Showing in cinemas this week, the new film Journey’s End offers a poignant portrayal into the camaraderie of troops as they endure the boredom and terror of being in the trenches towards the end of WWI.
Highlighting the forthcoming Centenary to the end of WW1 on 11 November 2018, learn more about this complex and gruelling period of history on one of Historical Trips’ small group tours visiting the frontline trenches as depicted in the film, key battlefields in France and Germany, and further afield to Jordan in the Middle East where Lawrence of Arabia fought a very different WWI campaign.
Led by leading historians, such the former editor of History Today and BBC History magazine Nigel Jones and one of the Britain’s foremost historians of the First World War Gary Sheffield, with special access to a number sites, gain a better understanding into the politics that shaped the battlefields of WWI and the brave men and women who sustained the war on one of the following:
The Great War – An Introduction to the Western Front
Organised to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the end of First World War on 11 November 2018, delve deeper into the global conflict which irrevocably changed the course of 20th century history, as well as the lives of the millions who fought ‘in Flanders Fields’, on Historical Trips’ The Great War – An Introduction to the Western Front. Led by historian and Great War expert Nigel Jones, whose father and uncle both served in the conflict, chart the course of the war through the everyday reality of life in the trenches and, more personally, through Nigel’s own account of his 400-mile walk along the Western Front, whilst gaining an insight into the greater story of the battle for Europe. Covering the whole course of the conflict over five days, from the earliest battles around the Ypres Salient to the great watershed Battle of the Somme in 1916, the trip also takes in the battles around Arras, Vimy Ridge and Passchendaele in 1917, the first use of tanks at Cambrai and the final battles of 1918, which came in the wake of a massive German offensive and brought about the final Allied victory. With the opportunity to discuss the origins of the war, the key personalities involved, the tensions between officers and men, the Great War poets spawned in the midst of the mud and misery, and the precarious Peace Settlement reached at Versailles, this tour offers a deeply personal account of the First World War.
Historical Trips offers a five day The Great War from £1,450pp. Price includes return ferry, 4 nights accommodation, all meals with wine at lunch and dinner, transport during the tour, and the services of an expert historian as well as a tour manager. Departs 10 July 2018.
Blackadder’s War with John Lloyd
As the centenary commemorations of the Great War draw to a close, Historical Trips’ Blackadder’s War with John Lloyd reflects on the true stories behind the classic BBC comedy, ‘Blackadder Goes Forth’ with a special tour to sort fact from fiction led by the series’ producer John Lloyd* CBE and leading First World War historian, Professor Gary Sheffield. With the opportunity to debate whether “the series presents an oversimplified picture of the war or is a grimly accurate satire on an informative exploration of the key battlefields”, the tour includes the Ypres with the opportunity to attend the Last Post Ceremony at Menin Gate; Passchendaele museum and Tyne Cot – the largest Commonwealth forces cemetery in the world; the scene of the Christmas ceasefire at Ploegsteert; and an indepth tour of The Somme surrounding sites of Ulster Tower, Thiepval Memorial Arch and Lochnagar Crater. Culminating in visits to the Australian Memorial Park, Le Hamel and the Riqueval bridge over the St Quentin canal- part of the famed Hindenburg Line, the tour offers an interesting opportunity to gain a better understanding of WW1 from what is perceived as two very different perspectives.
Historical Trips offers a four day Blackadder’s War with John Lloyd from £1595pp. Price includes return Eurostar, three nights accommodation, all meals with wine at dinner, transport during the tour and the services of two expert Tour Guides as well as a tour manager. Departs 8 June 2018.
Jordan: Romans, Crusaders & Lawrence of Arabia
Lying at the heart of the modern Middle East where rival civilisations and empires have clashed over thousands of years, Jordan remains stable, friendly, and welcoming today. Rich in battlefields, fortifications, and military history, this 9 day tour explores the period of conflict during the Lawrence of Arabia’s campaigns in 1916-18 as well as under the Roman and Byzantine Empires and the time of the Crusades. Led by Dr Neil Faulkner, the Director of the Great Arab Revolt Project with exclusive access to numerous remote desert locations to see the fortified stations, hilltop redoubts, and abandoned campsites of ‘Lawrence of Arabia’s War’, other highlights include Petra, Wadi Rum with special access to recently excavated sites, the route of the Hejaz Railway and Aqaba Fort. In addition, the group will also have the opportunity to track raids, ambushes, and battles with Lawrence’s great memoir Seven Pillars of Wisdom.
Historical Trips offers a nine day Romans, Crusaders & Lawrence of Arabia from £2995pp. Price includes return flights, eight nights 4* hotels in Amman Wadi Musa and the Dead Sea, all meals, transport during the tour and the services of an Expert Lecturer as well as a tour manager. Tour departs on 22 October 2018.
For more information, visit: www.historicaltrips.com, or call 01722 684 139, 01722 713820.
