Tommy's Fact Sheet

Unlike France, Russia, Germany, and Austria-Hungary, Great Britain entered the First World War with a small, volunteer force. It believed it could rely on the Royal Navy for most of its contribution should general war come, but the war that came in 1914 seemed to be a land war on the European continent. 

War Minister Gen. Horatio Kitchener quickly apprehended that major increases in the British Army were needed. A mass volunteer army was recruited at his recommendation. They became known as "Kitchener's New Armies." As the professional British Army was devoured in 1914 and 1915's futile campaigns, the new units trained, fated to have their main entrance onto the stage of war on 1 July 1916 at the Somme. 

Alas, even the mighty recruiting effort of Kitchener proved insufficient to the demands of total war. Eventually, the nation turned to conscription to bring the war to its conclusion.

Tommy's Rifle: The Short Magazine Lee-Enfield

Tommy's Facts

● "Tommy" as a name for British soldiers came from the name in the sample paybook given to new recruits in Wellington's time: Thomas Atkins. 

● The original 1914 British Expeditionary Force was composed of six infantry and one cavalry division totaling 150,000 men. 

● 5,704,416 Tommies from the United Kingdom (Great Britain & Ireland) eventually served in the war. 

● About 2,670,000 volunteered, of which 1,186,000 had enlisted by 31 December 1914. 

● About 2,770,000 were conscripted. 

● 724,000 Tommies were killed; 2,000,000 were wounded; and 270,000 were POWs.

● Besides the regulars, the British Army overseas was supplemented by "Territorials," volunteer reserves, originally intended for home defense but who could opt for "Imperial Service" overseas. 

● "Pals" battalions were special units of the British Army composed of men who enlisted together in local recruiting drives, with the promise that they would be able to serve alongside their friends, neighbors, and work colleagues ("pals"). By one count, there were 643 Pals battalions.

New Recruits—Oxford, 1915

● Some of Tommy's Lingo

Billet. Sometimes a regular house but generally a stable where Tommy sleeps while behind the lines. It is generally located near a large manure pile. Most billets have numerous entrances—one for Tommy and the rest for rain, rats, wind, and shells. 

Blighty. An East Indian term meaning "over the seas". Tommy has adopted it as a synonym for home. 

Estaminet. A French public house, or saloon, where muddy water is sold for beer. 

Funk Hole. When you just have to get away from the turmoil of the social whirl, find yourself a little storage niche in the parapet  to grab a snooze and psychologically withdraw for a bit.

Iron Rations. A tin of bully beef, two biscuits, and a tin containing tea, sugar, and Oxo cubes. These are not supposed to be eaten until you die of starvation. 

Maconochie . A canned meat stew or a thin soup of sliced turnips and carrots made by Maconochie Brothers in Aberdeen for the British Army. Most soldiers hated it unless they were nearly starving.

Minnenwerfer. A high-power trench mortar shell of the Germans, which makes no noise coming through the air. It was invented by Professor Kultur. Tommy does not know what is near until it bites him; after that, nothing worries him. Tommy nicknames them "Minnies."

Pip, Squeak, and Wilfred. The  nicknames for the three main campaign medals awarded to British servicemen in World War I: Pip: The 1914 (Mons) or 1914–15 Stars, Squeak: The British War Medal, Wilfred: The Victory Medal.

Tickler.  Slang for jam but also for handmade grenades made from old jam tins and packed with nails, glass, and explosives.

V.C.  The Victoria Cross, or "Very careless" as Tommy calls it. It is a bronze medal won by Tommy for being very careless with his life. 

Woodbine. A cigarette made of paper and old hay. Tommy swears by a Woodbine.

Harry Patch's Funeral

● The last surviving Tommy of the Great War was Henry John (Harry) Patch (1898–2009), who fought as a Lewis gunner with the 7th battalion of the Duke of York's Light Infantry.

Sources:  Over the Top magazine, April 2011; "Tommy's Dictionary of the Trenches"  in Over the Top, by Arthur Guy Empey, 1917