The Englishman's Daughter: A True Story of Love and Betrayal in World War I

The Englishman's Daughter: A True Story of Love and Betrayal in World War I | Ben Macintyre | A true story of courage, love and betrayal in World War On

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The Englishman's D...

	The Englishman's Daughter: A True Story of Love and Betrayal in World War I Ben Macintyre Delta, 2003 - 272 pages average customer review:based on 13 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

In the first terrifying days of World War I, four British soldiers found themselves trapped behind enemy lines on the western front. They were forced to hide in the tiny French village of Villeret, whose inhabitants made the courageous decision to shelter the fugitives until they could pass as Picard peasants.

The Englishman?s Daughter is the never-before-told story of these extraordinary men, their protectors, and of the haunting love affair between Private Robert Digby and Claire Dessenne, the most beautiful woman in Villeret. Their passion would result in the birth of a child known as ?The Englishman?s Daughter,? and in an act of unspeakable betrayal, a tragic legacy that would haunt the village for generations to come.

Through the testimonies of the villagers and the last letters of the soldiers, acclaimed journalist Ben Macintyre has pieced together a harrowing account of how life was lived behind enemy lines during the Great War, and offers a compelling solution to a gripping mystery that reverberates to this day.

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History at ground level

This is a wonderfully written book on several levels. To begin with, and perhaps most importantly, Macintyre is a terrific writer, researcher, and storyteller. This is not a dry history about names and dates, but rather about relationships and the misfortune of living in the wrong area at the wrong time. Macintyre beautifully illustrates the shifting alliances in a small town in France, Villeret, which found itself tucked just behind enemy lines. Into this village come lost English soldiers in the opening months of World War 1, cut off from their divisions and a means of escape. Their impact upon Villeret during their 18-month stay is profound as one of the soldiers, Robert Digby, falls in love with a young French woman. Macintyre helps us understand the prejudices, jealousies, and emotions which shift and change among the townspeople throughout the war. During that time, the Englishmen become a little less loved and revered and their presence becomes resented. The Germans, conversely, become less reviled. Macintyre also deftly weaves the mystery of who betrayed the Englishmen into his tale, giving a convincing argument for his "best guess" at the end. In Macintyre's hands, this history truly comes back to life.

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A true story of courage, love and betrayal in World War On

This little gem is well researched and well written by an author who tells the tale of a group of British soldiers trapped behind German lines in 1914. The people of a small village, Villeret near the Somme River harbor the men for nearly two years as the Germans press the search for them and other British stragglers. An outstanding tale of love, romance, danger, narrow escapes and brutal suppression by the Germans and it is all true. Finally, after many long months of brutal treatment by the Germans, someone in the village betrays the British. Who betrays them and why? Read the book. You will not be disapointed by this one. A film just waiting to happen.

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A little-viewed aspect of World War I

This is an interesting book about a chapter of the First World War not often spoken of in the history books. We read a great deal in books about the Second World War how the various civilian populations, and stray lost soldiers, resisted the Nazis, but we read almost nothing with regards to World War I on the same subject. This book recounts a particular incident where 7 British soldiers found themselves caught behind German lines at the beginning of the war, during the first campaign. They hid in a village named Villeret, spending two years there, blending into the local population, making friends, and even in one case falling in love and fathering a child.

The main story of the book surrounds this love affair and the resulting child (still alive when the author wrote the book in 1999). After her birth, the child's father and his comrades were captured and four of them (including the father) were executed. This part of the book, and the subsequent reunion of the family in 1930, is told simply and rather elegantly by the author.

The interesting part of the story, to my mind, was the backdrop to the actual affair. I've always been fascinated by this sort of thing, and the author does a good job of recounting how the French civilians were treated during World War I if they were in territory occupied by the Germans. The Germans apparently looted quite thoroughly (the commander in the story issues a proclamation that eggs are for German officers exclusively!) and shot anyone who showed much defiance. There were French espionage rings operating behind German lines (one figures in the plot, murkily, in the background). There wasn't, however, the concerted effort to kill individual German soldiers and sabotage their operations that there was in the later war.

I enjoyed this book a great deal. I have MacIntyre's other books too, and I intend to read them when I get a chance.

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if you are really interested in WW1...

this book might be for you. seeing as i am but a 10th grade student forced to read this book, i didnt really have a choice. after reading the back of the book, i was actually excited about reading the book but i found what i was hoping for to be much different from the content. i was excited to read about a more social aspect of war(aka the love afair between digby and claire), but it seemed almost casually thrown in at certain places. I didnt really find a character to connect with and nothing about the book was particularly touching. maybe i set my sights too high but this book just wasnt for me.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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