Vyvyan Harmsworth

Vyvyan Harmsworth, the son of Lord Rothermere. As a young man he attended Eton (1908-12).

On the outbreak of the First World War he joined the Irish Guards. He saw action on the Western Front where he was wounded several times.

On 13th January 1915 he wrote to Lord Rothermere: "Hell is the only word descriptive of the weather out here and the state of the ground. It rains every day! The trenches are mud and water up to one's neck, rendering some impassable - but where it is up to the waist we have to make our way along cheerfully. I can tell you - it is no fun getting up to the waist and right through, as I did last night. Lots of men have been sent off with slight frost-bite - the foot swells up and gets too big for the boot."

Harmsworth was injured again in December 1917. He wrote to his father: "I am now well on my way to England and comfort. I have got as far as the base hospital at Staples. Here I am very comfortable and am having a rest after my week in that hectic spot, the Casualty Clearing Station. My wounds are healing very rapidly - in fact I don't worry about them now. I have been awfully lucky, no vital or difficult spots, such as knees touched."

Vyvyan Harmsworth, who returned to the Western Front when he recovered from his wounds, was killed on 12th February, 1918.

Primary Sources

(1) Vyvyan Harmsworth, letter to Lord Rothermere (13th January, 1915)

Hell is the only word descriptive of the weather out here and the state of the ground. It rains every day! The trenches are mud and water up to one's neck, rendering some impassable - but where it is up to the waist we have to make our way along cheerfully. I can tell you - it is no fun getting up to the waist and right through, as I did last night. Lots of men have been sent off with slight frost-bite - the foot swells up and gets too big for the boot.

(2) Vyvyan Harmsworth, letter to Lord Rothermere (7th December, 1917)

I am now well on my way to England and comfort. I have got as far as the base hospital at Staples. Here I am very comfortable and am having a rest after my week in that hectic spot, the Casualty Clearing Station. My wounds are healing very rapidly - in fact I don't worry about them now. I have been awfully lucky, no vital or difficult spots, such as knees touched. I expect it will be 3 or 4 weeks before I can do much more than hobble about.