York in the Great War

The Great War touched every single town and city in Britain, barely a community escaped unscathed and the city of York was no different. Despite a long and tumultuous history, the seemingly brief period between 1914 and 1918 left as indelible a mark on York and its people as any period in the preceding millennium. Karyn Burnham explores what everyday life was like in York during the Great War and reveals how life changed as troops flocked into the city, Belgian refugees were welcomed, enemy 'aliens' were incarcerated and Zeppelins rained terror from the skies. Using contemporary publications, newspaper reports and photographs, York In The Great War tells the story of how the residents of York coped with the privations of war and discovers the pressures facing York's Quaker population when the introduction of conscription forced them to challenge their consciences.