Channel 4’s “The First World War”

Channel 4 (a British television network) has a site dedicated to WII, titled “The First World War.”  Right off the bat, it tells you “this site explores and dissects some of its [World War I’s] most controversial features.”  It covers such topics as controversies, biographies, combatents and more. 

 What I like most about this site is its “learn more” section.  It includes, Web sites, places to visit, links to memoirs, poetry from WWI, films, tours, interest groups, etc.  It is a great resource and enables the visitor to take what they have learned from the Web site and apply it to the outside world, such as visiting a battlefield or viewing a documentary.

PBS.org — The Great War

PBS, as always, provides a great historical resource for World War I. Their Web site “The Great War” is a catchy, informative and unique way of portraying the war on the web.  It includes a prologue, and goes on to divide the war up in two four parts.  Each of the four-part sections provides a brief overview of the time period and include audio/video links to memorable speeches and even audio from soldiers. 

 Naturally, a timeline and maps are also included in the top navigational system.  I think the coolest part about the entire site is its “historians” section.   Upon visiting it, you are introduced to several new resources: people!  The page divides topics up among the historians and provides their commentary on the subject.  It is definitely a unique addition to the study of WWI.

BBC.co.uk — World War One

The BBC’s history Web site dedicated to World War One is also a an extensive archive of historical information.  Personally, at first I found it a bit overwhelming.  The most useful resource they have would be their listing of articles written about WWI.  Additionally, it has alot of audio and video from the BBC network.  I’m assuming that the Web site is a companion to a television series about WWI. 

A very cool item on their site is a Virtual Tour section, where one can tour the trenches.  Additionally, BBC provides an additional link section at the bottom of the page, directing visitors to other useful sites.

FirstWorldWar.com — “The War to End All Wars”

I have decided to research the internet coverage of the First World War.  Upon “googling” “World War I,” one of the first Web sites that appear is the appropriately named FirstWorldWar.com.  It provides anything and everything a historian could ever need in regards to studying World War I (WWI.)  From what I can tell, the site is not managed or owned by a corporation; the simple by-line of Michael Duffy at the bottom suffices for a copyright.  It has two main menus; one taskbar at the top, and one down the right side.  Each link provides a channel to an integral part of World War I, from maps, to the Somme to audio recordings of songs, speeches and even video.  At the bottom, a nifty “Did you know” box changes (I am assuming) daily, providing the visitor with a quick factoid. 

 One of the most interesting options I found on the Web site was the encyclopedia.  I found this to be a very valuable and simple idea.  If you need to look up something specific about WWI and are not just browsing the site, you can simply click on the encylopedia link and it brings you right to an alphabetized listing of all terms, people, events, etc. related to the First World War.

Also, the “war on the web” provides the most valuable resource, I think, the Web site “First World War Links,” where I was able to find many of my other sources.

The First World War: Sources for History

The United Kingdom’s National Archives provides a great World War I history resource with their site “The First World War: Sources for History.”  It provides a look at WWI from a British standpoint, enabling visitors to further understand Britain’s involvement in the conflict.  The Web site is made up of dozens of options, including exploring service records from the war, a comprehensive explanation of all the battles and the aftermath of WWI. 

Actually, it is almost too much information.  It is a bit difficult to navigate and there is no “search” option (although there is a site map.)  Nevertheless, it is a good Web site that one can explore if one is just looking to learn more about the conflict, particularly Britain’s take and involvement.