This is just a great local history blog about the “West Ham Pals”.One of the reasons why the First World War was so traumatic an event to British society was that so many of the new infantry Battalions formed to fight in the trenches were the so called “Pals Battalions”. Where men could serve with local friends, neighbours or workers.
The West Ham Pals were officially the 13th Battalion of the Essex Regiment.
Unofficially they were West Ham football team supporters who joined up en mass with their mates and whose battle cry (and bayonet charge) was “Up the Irons”.
The Battalion fought in some of the worse battles in the War and suffered in total 37,404 causalities killed, wounded or missing. The impact of all these deaths and casualties in battle on the local community was therefore immense.
Hat-tip thingy Newham Recorder.
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