War Diaries Talk

Summary has more information than the Diary...

  • Maria64 by Maria64

    Hi all,
    Still following 3 CAVALRY DIVISION: 6 Cavalry Field Ambulance and for the first time under this new-ish O.C., there's a summary covering part of 8th April- part of 14th May 1917 during three major operations, including mention of 'Capture of the Siegfried Line.'
    This summary is technically a report but in the diary, there has been no way to note numbers or kinds of casualties or map references due to lack of specifics given so there is valuable information in this summary that wasn't available to tag in the diary. My instinct is to tag this as a Diary page rather than a report because of the detail contained in it. Have I got it wrong? All thoughts gratefully received.
    Best wishes,
    Maria.

    Posted

  • HeatherC by HeatherC moderator

    Tricky one. It's really still a report despite the day to day structure, as it's what the Field Guide describes as a "detailed account of a raid or attack or other significant incident."

    So looking at this page, what really useful info is there that won't be tagged if you do it as a report? The casualties mentioned are not the Unit''s own casualties so you wouldn't be tagging those anyway. Presumably the diary mentions the place names even if not the map references? Yes there is some really interesting detail about exactly what the Unit was doing but how would you tag that anyway? If someone wants this kind of real fine detail they'd have to look at the diary itself to get it.

    What else vital is there in these pages that would be tagged if it was done as a diary page and will be missed if it is done as a report?

    Posted

  • Maria64 by Maria64

    Hi Heather,
    Thanks for your reply. I know we can't tag everything, hun and it is the vital information that's needed - it does help to stand back sometimes and re-focus. 😃
    My last two diary pages at least would be in this period and most of these place names weren't mentioned. It was mainly about who was on leave, detachment, returning and the totals of sick for the week and month but not R.A.M.C. casualties.
    Also, there is an underlined title on this page of Casualties R.A.M.C. separate from the other casualties which I assume means they were unit casualties.
    It's tricky because I can't say what the other pages in this summary are like. I'll tag this page as a report and see how it looks on the following ones.
    Best wishes, Maria.

    Posted

  • Maria64 by Maria64

    Just to follow up, there was only one other page involved so I did tag them as a Report.

    Posted