I've just returned from the We Have Ways Festival, the Second World War history festival that has grown out of the We Have Ways podcast by Al Murray and James Holland.
The podcast has a big following and something like two thousand people were there that weekend: all bound by a common interest in WW2 history. I have to say the atmosphere was suburb; friendly, engaged and open to learning, and that was at the heart of this event. The range of talks was diverse and fascinating, and although I was working there, on our Leger Battlefields stand, I managed to catch a few including the one Sappers at Pegasus Bridge by Al Murrary’s father ‘The Colonel’ and the thought-provoking talk on the Himmler family by a Great Niece. That made me think of the years I spent in Germany in the late 80s and early 90s, talking to the German WW2 generation, both veterans and civilians. It was interesting how time seemed to have stood still since 1945, and I found talking to them that many of the values of their Third Reich past seemed to be ever-present. To hear a talk confronting aspects of this was truly fascinating.
Attending the festival gave me reason to pause and think about where Military History is now and in particular that of the Second World War. I’ve spent the last two years discussing the Great War on my podcast The Old Front Line, but this year with trips to Anzio, Monte Cassino and Normandy I’ve found my mind returning to the ‘other war’, and I’ve been involved in some interesting TwitterSpaces discussions on recording war experience and war trauma with colleagues Dr Victoria Humphreys and Ben Mayne.
What’s clear from both the WHW Podcast and the festival is that interest in the Second World War is strong and that the historiography of the period is changing; new voices, and new research is all changing the way we view the war, and how we think about it. This seems particularly important as that WW2 generation is fading rapidly.
Here on the War Diary, I hope to examine some of these subjects, look at the obscure and less obscure aspects of military history from both World Wars, and hopefully invite some debate and get some friends to collaborate to.
Meanwhile, please do subscribe, share the Substack and leave a comment if you wish!
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Excellent idea Paul, glad to be here.
Excellent stuff as you say now in the position we were in 1990s with last of the Great War generation