Contains over 100 maps, photos and illustrations “Formed in Egypt in March 1916 the division arrived in France a month later. It acquired an elite status, fought on the Somme, at Messines and Third Ypres. 49,000 casualties, ten VCs. A very fine and comprehensive history. ...As may be expected this is a remarkably comprehensive account of one of the finest divisions of the BEF of which Earl Haig wrote: “No Division in France built up for itself a finer reputation, whether for the gallantry of its conduct in battle or for the excellence of its behaviour out of the line. Its record does honour to the land from which it came and to the Empire for which it fought.” A German assessment of the division was seen in an Intelligence document captured at Hebuterne in July 1918:- “A particularly good assault Division. Its characteristics are a very strongly developed individual self-confidence or enterprise, characteristic of the colonial British, and a specially pronounced hatred of the Germans.”... The NZ Division of this history was formed in Egypt in March 1916...The infantry consisted of two battalions each of the Auckland, Canterbury, Otago and Wellington Regiments and four battalions of the NZ Rifle Brigade, all the divisional troops-artillery, engineers, medical etc .were NZ units. The GOC was Major-General Sir A.H. Russell, promoted from command of a brigade of the composite NZ and Australian Division; he was to be the only commander of the division. The NZ Division arrived in France in April 1916 and it remained on the Western front throughout the war....The author commanded the 2nd Battalion Canterbury Regiment and in preparing this official account he has drawn on all available material - War Diaries, Operation Orders, Intelligence summaries, Narratives of operations prepared at Corps level and below, Honours and Awards recommendations, Divisional reports and correspondence, personal diaries and papers and Haig’s Despatches. ...”—N&M Print Ed

The Battle of the Somme is widely regarded as one of the bloodiest and most controversial land battles ever fought. The first British troops went over the top on 1 July 1916 and by the day's end some 19,000 had been killed in the greatest one-day loss the British Army has ever known. This notoriety has ensured that the Somme and its many fallen warriors live on in countless books, plays and films. Documentary sources about the Somme abound and there is a voracious appetite among the book-buying public for more. Legacy of the Somme 1916 is a unique bibliographical and media guide to the battle, setting on record - in as comprehensive a listing as is possible - much of what has been written, filmed or sound-recorded in the English language between 1916 and 1995. This detailed listing includes official, unofficial and unit histories of the British and Commonwealth armies; biographies, autobiographies and memoirs; literature, drama and media; archives, tanks and war graves registers. Short commentaries accompany each entry and a detailed index enables accurate cross-referencing of subjects. First and foremost this is a unique work of reference which will appeal to all with an interest in the First World War. It will aid historians, researchers and enthusiasts to track down the vast amount of information available on the battle, and will also prove valuable to libraries, museums and the book trade.