Troops on the move
‘Temple Meads lined with folk all cheering’
Lance Corporal Harold Hayward, 12th Battalion, the Gloucestershire Regiment on Royal Naval Reserve leaving Bristol, August 1914
Men who may never have left Bristol before found themselves fighting in unfamiliar places like France, Egypt, Turkey and Palestine. They risked their lives on land, at sea and in the air.
The port at Avonmouth became a hub for the transport of troops . Over 200,000 men from across the Empire passed through here on their way into or out of Britain.
It wasn’t just men on the move: horses and mules were crucial to the war effort. Shipped into the docks, over 300,000 were prepared for action in Shirehampton on the outskirts of Bristol.
Men who may never have left Bristol before found themselves fighting in unfamiliar places like France, Egypt, Turkey and Palestine. They risked their lives on land, at sea and in the air.
The port at Avonmouth became a hub for the transport of troops . Over 200,000 men from across the Empire passed through here on their way into or out of Britain.
It wasn’t just men on the move: horses and mules were crucial to the war effort. Shipped into the docks, over 300,000 were prepared for action in Shirehampton on the outskirts of Bristol.