A British soldier after the Second Battle of Ypres

The British Line - No.1 Wipers, Snaffles'~~~~This picture by Snaffles aka Charles Johnson Payne (1833 -1967) was published shortly after the Second Battle of Ypres in May 1915, in which Germans used gas for the first time. Despite large losses on both sides, the Germans failed to gain ground from the British and this soldier, encumbered by his spade and a wounded hand, personifies the gritty determination displayed by the various British (and Canadian) battalions involved. Snaffles built his reputation as a sporting artist, focusing especially on hunting subjects, and his military pictures echo this imagery - from the defeated Germans lying at his feet, to his trophy, a Pickelhaube helmet, atop his bayonet. Wipers was a British colloquialism, replacing the difficult pronunciation of Ypres

Hi-Res image available upon request

Aftermath Pickelhaube Shovel Shovels Spade Spades Wipers Ypres

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