The Leeds Pals were men and boys from Leeds who formed the 15th Battalion (Prince of Wales's Own) West Yorkshire Regiment. Many enlisted as volunteer soldiers at the outset of World War I, as part of the national phenomenon of "Pals" that sprang up across the nation. These people from Leeds trained in rugged Colsterdale, guarded the Suez canal and were changed irrevocably by their experiences on the Battle of the Somme in 1916. Who were these men? How did their experiences resonate in Leeds? What impact did they have on the city itself? Using unpublished archive sources and original research, this book add to our knowledge of the Leeds Pals through case studies, historical overview and reveals how the city treated this one battalion, at the expense of others.
