Mules, Mountains & Mosquitoes: The Salonika Campaign 1915 - 1918

We are excited to share that the Salonika Campaign Society will be joining us for a special study day, delving into various aspects of the Salonika Campaign. Frequently overshadowed by the events unfolding on the Western Front, we anticipate this event will serve as an enlightening opportunity to rebalance historical perspectives.

Tickets must be booked in advance. Lunch is included in the ticket price - please make us aware of any dietary requirements at checkout. 

Itinerary:

• 09.30-10.00am registration and tea/ coffee
• 10.00am Welcome
• Alan Wakefield: The British Way in Warfare – How the BSF Conducted Military Operations in Macedonia 1915-1918
• Colonel Nick Ilić MBE QGM: The British who defended Serbia during the Great War 1915-18 - The story of Admiral Ernest Troubridge and the wider British contribution to the Second Serbian Campaign through to the end of the War.
• 12.00 – 13.00 Lunch and exploration of site
• Taff Gillingham: Uniforms and equipment of the British Salonika Force
• Wendy Moore: With the Scottish Women's Hospitals in Serbia, Russia and Romania: the story of Vera 'Jack' Holme and Evelina Haverfield in love and at war
• Robyn Braysher: On Patrol with the Pneumatic Cavalry: innovation and adaptability in the Army Cyclist Corps in northern Greece, 1915-18.
• 17.00 Closing remarks

About the speakers:

Wendy Moore is a freelance journalist and author of six non-fiction books on medical and social history. Her last book, Endell Street (UK), No Man's Land (US), is about Endell Street Military Hospital which was run and staffed by women in London in the First World War. Wendy’s book, Jack and Eve: Two Women in Love and at War, was released on 4 April.

Alan Wakefield: Is Head of First World War & Early 20th Century Conflict at Imperial War Museums, where he leads the curatorial team charged with interpreting and developing the hugely varied collection of material covering the period 1900 – 1929. Alan is Chair of the Salonika Campaign Society and a recognised authority on British involvement in the Salonika Campaign (1915-1918). He has lectured and contributed to publications in the UK and overseas on aspects of the campaign and other First World War related subjects. Alan is

a member of both the British Commission for Military History and the Western Front Association. His Salonika Campaign related publications and papers include ‘Under the Devil’s Eye – Britain’s Forgotten Army at Salonika 1915-1918 (2004); ‘The British Way in Warfare – Salonika 1915-1918’ (Belgrade, November 2018); ‘Cameras with the British Salonika Force’ (Thessaloniki, May 2018) and ‘The Armies in the Landscape – The Allied Military Presence in the Kilkis Prefecture 1915-1918’ (in Archaeology in Times of War in Kilkis – From the War Trenches to the Excavation Trenches’ (2024).

Robin Braysher: Has been interested in military matters for as long as he can remember. His fascination with the Great War - and the Salonika campaign in particular - comes from his grandfather who served with the Army Cyclist Corps. Robin has been a member of the Salonika Campaign Society for over twenty years, during which time he has edited the Society’s journal - The New Mosquito - and its website and ‘adopted’ a mule.

Colonel Nick Ilić MBE QGM: Is a career Army officer who was commissioned into the Light Infantry in April 1991 and has served with the Light Infantry, Royal Green Jackets and The Rifles in barracks and operations around the world. A native speaker in Serbian/Bosnian/Croatian, Nick completed three operational tours to Bosnia-Herzegovina as an interpreter and liaison officer for Commander British Forces and Commander 1 CHESHIRE Battle Group (1992-1993), as Aide de Camp to Commander Bosnia-Herzegovina Command UNPROFOR (1994) and as Divisional Intelligence Officer within Multinational Division (South West) SFOR (1999). Nick has also deployed to Kosovo and Sierra Leone as a Company Commander and was Commanding Officer of the United Kingdom Leadership Training Team in Afghanistan. Between 2018 and 2021 he was the British Defence Attaché to Serbia. Nick was awarded the Queen’s Gallantry Medal in 1993; the Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service in 1999 and made a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 2006. He has a keen interest in military history and when not at work, devotes all his spare time to his family and motorcycle touring. In September 2024, Nick will retire from the Army after 34-years service.

Taff Gillingham is a military historian specialising in the life of the British and Commonwealth soldier during the first half of the Twentieth Century. He has been consistently employed as a military historical advisor on major film, television and theatre productions since the 1990s, making regular appearances on documentaries on television and radio. He co-owns Khaki Devil; a company specialising in the supply of historically accurate uniforms, equipment and props for film, television and theatre. Along with his co-director, Kev Smith, he is a director of the Great War Huts First World War museum and heritage project near Bury St Edmunds. A former trustee of The Suffolk Regiment Museum, he is Hon. Chairman of the Ipswich & District Suffolk Regiment Old Comrades, Chairman of The Friends of the Suffolk Regiment and former Chairman of the Suffolk Branch of the Western Front Association.

“One of the best FWW communicators bar none.” - Stephen Barker, Author & Presenter