The Comrades of The Great War were formed in 1917 as an association to represent the rights of ex-service men and women who had served or had been discharged from service during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Comrades of The Great War was one of the original four ex-service associations that amalgamated on Sunday 15 May 1921 to form The British Legionbr>
The organisation was founded by John Joseph Woodward who was also secretary and

Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby Edward George Villiers Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby, (4 April 1865 – 4 February 1948), styled Mr Edward Stanley until 1886, then The Hon Edward Stanley and then Lord Stanley from 1893 to 1908, was a British soldier, Conservative politician, ...

as a right-wing alternative to the

National Association of Discharged Sailors and Soldiers The National Association of Discharged Sailors and Soldiers (NADSS) was a British veterans' organisation. The group was founded in early 1917 at a conference in Blackburn, drawing together various local groups representing working men who had ser ...

(NADSS) and the

National Federation of Discharged and Demobilized Sailors and Soldiers The National Federation of Discharged and Demobilised Sailors and Soldiers (NFDDSS) was a British veterans organisation. The organisation was founded in January 1917 by various London-based veterans groups opposed to the Military Service (Review of ...

(NRDSS). In particular, the NFDSS had put a candidate up against Derby's son in the

1917 Liverpool Abercromby by-election The 1917 Liverpool Abercromby by-election was a by-election, parliamentary by-election held on 28 June 1917 for the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, British House of Commons United Kingdom constituencies, constituency of Liverpool Abercrom ...

. Historian Niall Barr has stated that the movement was intended to "form a buttress against Bolshevism": its leader,

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

Wilfrid Ashley Colonel (British Army), Colonel Wilfrid William Ashley, 1st Baron Mount Temple, His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, PC (13 September 1867 – 3 July 1939) was a British people, British soldier and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative p ...

was also secretary of the

Anti-Socialist Union The Anti-Socialist Union was a British political pressure group that supported free trade economics and opposed socialism. It was active from 1908 to 1948 with its heyday occurring before the First World War. Organizational history Formation Coming ...

References

External links

British Legion Memorabilia Collectors Club - Comrades of the Great War Badges
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070311131359/http://beehive.thisiscornwall.co.uk/default.asp?WCI=SiteHome&ID=12361&PageID=74970 Badgebr>Badge

Clubs

*Comrades of the Great War Club, Coulsdo

*Comrades f the Great WarClub, Godmancheste
History 1920 - 1929
British veterans' organisations Defunct organisations based in the United Kingdom United Kingdom in World War I 1917 establishments in the United Kingdom 1921 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1917 Organizations disestablished in 1921 {{UK-org-stub