On 2 September 1918, Colonel B. H. Belson would present a Military Medal[i] to a former 18th Battalion soldier, invalided home due to illness as he was discharged from service at Toronto, Ontario, on 15 April 1918. The circumstances of the act of valour from which he earned his medal speak for themselves: “MILITARY MEDAL... Continue Reading →
“We Sure Had Some Battle the Other Day”: A Letter from Private Sproal of Brampton
Private William Cecil Sproal, Circa 1916. With the images and sounds of the now famous Battle of Vimy Ridge present in his 22-year-old mind, Private Sproal took time to write his mother while the 18th Battalion was “resting”[i] in billets at the camp located at Bios-des-Alleux[ii]. His letter, transcribed in full below, describes his experiences... Continue Reading →
“Nerves” in War-Time: A contemporary view of Shell Shock, German Propaganda and the cure to all this: Optimism
The understanding of what we would not call PTSD during the First World War was minimal and fraught with a range of mostly inappropriate connotations about a person's mental and moral upbringing. Many of this blog's posts reference shell shock and one may find this article from the Daily Telegraph recorded in the June 5,... Continue Reading →
History of the 18th Battalion CEF, "The Fighting Eighteenth" 