War Diaries Talk

Orders for 95th Field Ambulance for the First Day of the Somme

  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    This is the first page of a really interesting set of seven pages of orders detailing expectations and procedures that the men of the field ambulance will follow while collecting and treating wounded. It covers such things as how men who have already received an anti-tetanus injection at the Advanced Dressing Station will be marked, how to use the two-part army form to track the man, and what each stretcher bearer should carry for his own needs in addition to what a wounded man may require.

    It's a bit long but easy to read. I haven't seen such a detailed explanation of how a dressing station worked before.

    Here are the remaining pages:

    AWD0003y2b
    AWD0003xzc
    AWD0003y1o
    AWD0003y0g
    AWD0003y2r
    AWD0003y31

    Posted

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Article re Tasks of Field Ambulances in WW1 - A rather long list.

    Link: http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/a-soldiers-life-1914-1918/the-evacuation-chain-for-wounded-and-sick-soldiers/field-ambulances-in-the-first-world-war/

    Posted

  • cyngast by cyngast moderator in response to marie.eklidvirginmedia.com's comment.

    That's a good description of the big picture, Marie. What caught my attention with the orders was the detail. How to fill out the form, then tear it in half, pin one part to the man's clothing, enter the other half in the Admissions and Discharges Book, and so on. I really got a sense of "Oh, this is how they did it."

    Posted

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Cynthia, I find all this information makes interesting reading, especially what goes on behind the scenes. You learn something new nearly every day from these diaries.

    Posted

  • ral104 by ral104 moderator, scientist

    Thanks for posting these, Cynthia. It really give a sense of how everything would have been happening at the time.

    Posted

  • cyngast by cyngast moderator in response to ral104's comment.

    I thought it was a remarkable set of orders.

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