The Unseen Portraits of Somme Soldiers, 1916

By | November 20, 2017

During WW1, the village of Vignacourt in France was always behind the front lines – as a staging point, casualty clearing station and recreation area for troops of all nationalities moving up to and then back from the battlefields on the Somme.

Here, one enterprising photographer took the opportunity of offering portrait photographs of the soldiers. A century later, his images were discovered, abandoned, in a farm house.

Captured on glass, printed into postcards and posted home, the photographs enabled soldiers to maintain a connection with loved ones at home.

With servicemen from around the world these soldiers are gathered together for what would become the frontline of the Battle of the Somme.

H/T Vintag.es