The Russell Cawthorn Collection
The Great War 1914-1918, and Associated Conflicts Poetry of the War
RCC8230
Colwyn Philipps 1915
ISBN
Purchase Price
£300.00 (second hand)
Date Purchased
March 31, 2025
Publisher
Smith Elder & Co (1916, London)
Notes
This book is stated to be a Third Edition. The First and Second Editions must have been a very short print run. The book appears to be very rare, we could not find any other copies for sale, anywhere (we were offered the book by a collector). The book was apparently published on a semi-private basis. Philipps was not one of the recognised "war poets", but he had been composing poetry for many years, and we do not include the book in the Collection as an example of top grade poetry, more as an example of what many young men of the period, especially minor aristos like Philipps, were writing. And the book is not just poetry. It has 70 pages of Philipps's poetry, covering a very wide range of subjects, but it also has a section which comprised "Notes from the Front", a story about a sniper, and a description of a typical morning at the Cavalry school. (Philipps was a Captain in the Royal Horse Guards). Then there is a final section which reproduces chiefly letters from Philipps to his mother. These contain a lot of information about what everyday life at the Front was like for (admittedly) a cavalry officer.
Purchase Price
£300.00 (second hand)
Date Purchased
March 31, 2025
Publisher
Smith Elder & Co (1916, London)
Notes
This book is stated to be a Third Edition. The First and Second Editions must have been a very short print run. The book appears to be very rare, we could not find any other copies for sale, anywhere (we were offered the book by a collector). The book was apparently published on a semi-private basis. Philipps was not one of the recognised "war poets", but he had been composing poetry for many years, and we do not include the book in the Collection as an example of top grade poetry, more as an example of what many young men of the period, especially minor aristos like Philipps, were writing. And the book is not just poetry. It has 70 pages of Philipps's poetry, covering a very wide range of subjects, but it also has a section which comprised "Notes from the Front", a story about a sniper, and a description of a typical morning at the Cavalry school. (Philipps was a Captain in the Royal Horse Guards). Then there is a final section which reproduces chiefly letters from Philipps to his mother. These contain a lot of information about what everyday life at the Front was like for (admittedly) a cavalry officer.