World War I: The Complete British Militaria Guide

The War to End All Wars

The First World War (1914–1918) was the most transformative event in modern British history. Over five million men from Britain and the Empire served; nearly one million died. The war overthrew empires, redrew maps, and produced a generation haunted by its trauma. For collectors, the Great War is the richest single period of British militaria — vast quantities of material survive, research resources are excellent, and the human stories behind every medal, badge, and document are recoverable in extraordinary detail.

The Conflict

1914: The Old Army

Britain entered the war on 4 August 1914 with a small, professional army — the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) of approximately 80,000 men. Within weeks, the BEF fought at Mons (23 August), Le Cateau (26 August), and the Marne (September), before the stabilisation of the Western Front during First Ypres (October–November). The “Old Contemptibles” — the regular soldiers of 1914 — suffered catastrophic casualties. By Christmas 1914, the original BEF was virtually destroyed as a fighting force.

1915: Expansion and New Fronts

Kitchener’s New Army — volunteers recruited by the hundreds of thousands in 1914 — began arriving in France. The Territorial Force deployed in strength. New fronts opened: Gallipoli (April 1915 — see separate article), Mesopotamia, East Africa, Salonika. On the Western Front, the battles of Neuve Chapelle, Second Ypres (the first gas attack), Loos, and Festubert demonstrated the terrible cost of attacking entrenched positions defended by machine guns and artillery.

1916: The Somme and Jutland

1 July 1916 — the blackest day in British military history. The opening of the Battle of the Somme cost 57,470 British casualties, including nearly 20,000 killed. The Somme ground on until November, gaining a few miles at a cost of over 400,000 casualties. At sea, the Battle of Jutland (31 May 1916) was the only major fleet engagement — a tactical draw but strategic victory for the Royal Navy.

1917: Arras, Passchendaele, and Cambrai

The Battle of Arras (April 1917) included the Canadian triumph at Vimy Ridge. The Third Battle of Ypres (“Passchendaele,” July–November 1917) became synonymous with the horror of the Western Front — men drowned in shell-flooded mud. The Battle of Cambrai (November 1917) saw the first large-scale use of tanks.

1918: The Hundred Days

Germany’s Spring Offensive (March–July 1918) — the Kaiserschlacht — achieved dramatic initial success, breaking through the British lines. But the Allied counter-attack from August 1918 (the Hundred Days Offensive, beginning with the Battle of Amiens on 8 August — which Ludendorff called “the black day of the German Army”) drove the Germans steadily back. The Armistice came on 11 November 1918.

The British Forces

The Army

• Regular Army: The small professional force of 1914 — approximately 247,000 regulars plus 224,000 reservists.
• Territorial Force: 268,000 part-time volunteer soldiers, originally intended for home defence but eventually deployed overseas.
• Kitchener’s New Army: Over 2.4 million volunteers enlisted in 1914–15, forming new “Service” battalions. The Pals Battalions — men from the same town, workplace, or social group enlisting together — are among the most poignant aspects of the war. The Accrington Pals, Leeds Pals, Grimsby Chums, and many others suffered devastating losses on the Somme.
• Conscripts: Conscription was introduced in January 1916 (the Military Service Act) — the first time in British history.

The Royal Navy

Still the world’s largest navy in 1914. Beyond Jutland, the Navy conducted the distant blockade of Germany (arguably the single most decisive Allied strategy of the war), fought the U-boat campaign, and supported amphibious operations at Gallipoli and Zeebrugge.

The Royal Flying Corps / Royal Air Force

The RFC began the war with 63 aircraft. By 1918, the newly formed RAF (1 April 1918) had over 22,000 aircraft. Air combat evolved from reconnaissance to strategic bombing in four years. Aces like Albert Ball, James McCudden, and Edward “Mick” Mannock became national heroes.

Collecting WWI Militaria

Medals

See the separate article on the WWI Medal Trio (1914 Star, BWM, Victory Medal) for detailed trio collecting guidance. Key points:

• The 1914 Star trio (“Mons trio”) is the most desirable standard group — £80–£200.
• The standard 1914–15 Star trio is the commonest — £40–£80 for an ordinary infantry other rank.
• Gallantry awards transform a group’s value: a DCM group to a named Somme action can reach £2,000–£5,000; an MC group, £1,500–£4,000; an MM group, £500–£1,500.

Cap Badges

WWI cap badges are one of the most popular collecting fields:

Trench Art

Trench art — objects made from the debris of war — is a unique WWI collecting genre:

• Shell case vases: Brass artillery shell cases, often decorated with hammered designs, flowers, regimental crests, or place names — Ypres, Arras, Somme. £20–£100.
• Bullet crucifixes: Crosses made from bullets and cartridge cases. £30–£80.
• Letter openers: Made from bullet casings, shrapnel, or aluminium from aircraft. £10–£40.
• Lighters: Trench-made cigarette lighters from cartridge cases. £20–£60.

Personal Items

• Soldier’s personal effects: Princess Mary Christmas tins (1914) — £30–£80 empty, £100–£300 complete with contents. Pay books, identity discs, trench maps, letters, postcards.
• Sweetheart brooches: Small enamelled regimental badges given by soldiers to wives and sweethearts. £10–£60.
• Silk postcards: Embroidered postcards from France — delicate and decorative. £5–£20 each.

Equipment

• 1908 Pattern webbing: The revolutionary woven cotton webbing system that replaced leather equipment. Complete sets are rare (£200–£500). Individual pouches: £20–£60.
• Brodie helmet: See separate helmets article. £100–£400.
• Entrenching tools, wire cutters, periscopes: All are collectible and evocative of trench warfare. £20–£100.

Documents and Photographs

• Soldier’s small book (AB64): The pocket-sized service record carried by every soldier. £20–£60 if named and identifiable.
• Photographs: Album pages, individual portraits (often in studios near the front), trench photographs. Individually: £5–£20. Complete albums with identified individuals: £100–£500.
• Death pennies (Memorial Plaques): The bronze plaques sent to next of kin of those killed. Named to the casualty (no rank — they were “equal in death”). £40–£100. £100–£300 if accompanied by the scroll, letter from the King, or other related items.

Research Resources

• Medal Index Cards: Digitised on Ancestry — the starting point for any WWI research.
• Service records (WO 363/364): “Burnt records” — 40% survive. Also on Ancestry.
• War diaries (WO 95): At The National Archives, Kew — daily unit logs.
• CWGC (Commonwealth War Graves Commission): cwgc.org — searchable database of all Commonwealth war dead.
• Soldiers Died in the Great War (SDGW): Complete casualty register.
• The Long, Long Trail (longlongtrail.co.uk): Outstanding website for British Army unit histories in WWI.

Sources and References

[1] Williamson, H., The Collector and Researcher’s Guide to the Great War.

[2] Holmes, R., Tommy: The British Soldier on the Western Front.

[3] Hart, P., The Great War: 1914–1918.