yeovil at War
OFficial War PICTURES
"Official War Pictures" produced by the Daily Mail as postcards
During the Great War, a series of "Official War Pictures", also known as the "Daily Mail Battle Pictures" were reproduced as morale-boosting postcards by the Daily Mail newspaper. These were sent from Yeovil to the Front by loved ones, and also from the Front to loved ones back home in Yeovil.
The collection numbered 176 cards in total, issued in 22 series of eight cards each, and was based on photographs taken by a small number official photographers based on the Western Front. Many of the photographs feature the various battles that made up the Somme Campaign of 1916.
The cards were produced in three finishes; colour, silver-tone and photogravure. Most images were produced only in one format, however some were produced in two formats and a few were published in all three.
Below are a few examples from my collection
From my
collection
Series 11, No 86
The King
at the Front. At
the grave of a
fallen hero.
No
description on
the reverse.
From my
collection
Series 13, No
102
Queen of
the Belgians as
Photographer
The reverse
reads "While
King George
reviewed the
Belgian troops,
the Queen of the
Belgians was
busy with her
camera - her
children and the
Prince of Wales
being present."
From my
collection
Series 14, No
108
King
George greets
wounded officer
The reverse
reads "On the
British Front,
the King spent
hours in the
casualty
clearing
stations. He is
seen greeting
two wounded
officers whose
beds are alid
out in the open
air."
From my
collection
Series 15, No
114
The
Black Watch
Returning to
Camp
The reverse
reads "One of
the battalions
of the Black
Watch Regiment,
to whose bravery
the Germans
always pay
homage,
returning from
the trenches
headed by its
pipers."