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Field Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19: The Poems of Alick Lewis Ellis
Field Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19: The Poems of Alick Lewis Ellis
Field Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19: The Poems of Alick Lewis Ellis
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Field Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19: The Poems of Alick Lewis Ellis

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Discovered by chance almost 100 years since it was written, the original "Field Dressings by Stretcher Bearer" manuscript contains the poems of Alick Lewis Ellis, a stretcher bearer of the 2/3rd London Field Ambulance, 54th Division, London Regiment. During more than three years active service on the Western Front in World War I his first-hand experience of the horrors of battle at Gommecourt, the Somme, Arras, Ypres and Cambrai, led him to produce a series of compelling poems that will trigger an entire spectrum of emotions in the reader. While many poems reflect the sadness and pain that comes from witnessing so much death and futile suffering, Alick's work shows he remained full of admiration for his fellow soldiers. In others, the gallows humour of the trenches will make the reader smile at times, while the hope and optimism of his few post-war poems will be tinged with the sadness our historical knowledge allows.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateOct 19, 2018
ISBN9781785453601
Field Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19: The Poems of Alick Lewis Ellis

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    Field Dressings By Stretcher Bearer - France - 1916 - 17 - 18 - 19 - Alick Lewis Ellis

    Acknowledgements

    Preface

    The discovery of the original ‘Field Dressings by Stretcher Bearer’ came as a total surprise to the current Ellis family and the literary endeavour of our great uncle, Alick Lewis Ellis was completly unknown to us. We are therefore indebted to the anonymous person who handed the original book of poetry into the Herts at War Project(¹), with a note saying it had been found in the loft of a house during renovation and ‘may be of interest to you’. Dan Hill of the Herts at War Project, tracked down Alick’s nephew and closest living relative, Robert ‘Bob’ Ellis to whom he planned to return the book. At that time Bob Ellis was too ill to receive the book, so it was returned to us, his children who accepted it on his behalf, with the handover being shown on the ITN 6 O’clock news in October 2017. Sadly, Bob Ellis passed away in late 2017 so was never able to see his Uncle’s work published.

    In bringing these new works to print, we have endeavoured to transcribe them as accurately as possible attempting to keep the format, style and punctuation close to that of the original. For example, the ampersand is used throughout much of the original text, and has been retained in the transcription. Any errors in transcription or omissions that remain are therefore entirely due to us. Occasional obvious spelling mistakes have been altered, but these are at an absolute minimum. In one poem ‘Major Wallace MC (and bar)’, an editorial decision was made to change one word in the original line ‘A white man to the end’ to ‘A right man to the end’. The original meaning of the phrase ‘white man’ at the time of Alick’s writing is consistent with the positive message of the poem, but a present day interpretation could be considered controversial, and so the alteration was made.

    The RAMC, of which Alick was a part, has been instrumental in helping to define, manage and treat the full range of battlefield injuries and traumas. From ‘shell shock’ of the WW1 trenches to the modern understanding of PTSD the RAMC has been in the vanguard. To recognise the role that the RAMC has had and continues to have, it is only fitting that a proportion of the profits from this book should be used in support of suitable PTSD charities. The charities that will be supported are Combat Stress(²) and Veterans With Dogs(³).

    Peter Ellis

    Pat Russell

    (Great Nephew and Great Niece to Alick Ellis)

    Biography - Alick Lewis Ellis

    1887-1953

    Alick Lewis Ellis was born on 19th January 1887 to John and Susan Jane Ellis of Terrington St Clement in Norfolk, England. One of 10 children, he had

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