The Romance of the Red Triangle

Behind the military camps and battle fronts of the First World War, Y.M.C.A. workers build recreation tents, run canteens and help soldiers' families. Arthur K. Yapp recounts this service through the story of the Red Triangle, the association's familiar sign. His account begins with a camp in North Wales in 1901, then turns to the hurried expansion of its work after British mobilisation in August 1914.

The scale of that organisation sits beside smaller scenes of care. Relatives travel to France to visit seriously wounded men, finding transport, lodging and sympathetic company through the association's hostels. A hospital encounter with a young Canadian brings the distance from home into sharp focus. Written from within the organisation, the book links practical help with Christian belief and patriotic duty. Readers interested in wartime welfare will find both an account of logistics and a record of personal needs behind the fighting.