Digital Wills and Letters From WWI Soldiers Fill in the History Gaps

AsI have previously discussed,recently the wills of thousands of WWI soldiers have been published online andcan be seen by the public. Before leaving their families and preparing for battle,each soldier drafted a will and put it in his uniform pocket. Now, years laterthese pieces of history tell the personal stories of thousands.

Thephysical hard copies of the wills are being preserved in a temperature-controlledwarehouse. The wills are owned by Her Majesty’s Court and Tribunal Service. BBCwas given access to the first group of wills being digitized for public access.Some wills have letters attached to them with sensitive information about thewar while others pour out the soldier’s emotions and concerns to their family members.Digitizing the wills and letters will allow people to learn not only about thewar, but also about their ancestors.

Military historian John Cooksey said the wills were crucial documents for descendants tocast some light on what a life was like at that time.”[The wills] aregiving us real nuggets of information which are filling the gaps in a man’sservice record, because it’s not just about the military side, it’s about theirrole in society and the backgrounds they came from.”

See Matt Lee World War I Soldier Wills Digitised for Online Archive, BBC News England, Aug. 28, 2013.

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.