Call to Arms: The British Army 1914-18

How the British Army of 1914 was transformed from a tiny imperial police force to the 3.75-million strong army that won the First World War in 1918

This is a comprehensive account of how the British Army coped with and adapted to the enormous challenges and pressures of the First World War -- the first major continental war that the army had had to fight for almost a hundred years. Following the course of the War, both on the Western Front and in other theatres, Charles Messenger tells how the British Army managed the challenges of command, training, technology and new weapons of war. He examines officer selection, medicine, discipline, the manpower crisis of 1918, the integration of women into the forces and many other topics.

Based on years of original research, this will become the standard work of reference on the organization and administration of the biggest army Britain has ever put into the field.