On the King's Service: Inward Glimpses of Men at Arms

A chaplain’s keen eye turns the chaos of the first months of the Great War into a vivid, human portrait. He describes the looming stone barracks of Maryhill, swamped with fresh recruits who must endure leaky tents, cold meals and endless rain. The narrative captures the stark contrast between the bleak training grounds and the clear, quiet glens of Braemar, where the chaplain’s own church spire watches over a nation at war.

Through wry humor and quiet reverence, he paints the soldiers as ordinary men thrust into extraordinary circumstances—impulsive, resilient, and bound together by shared hardship and a lingering faith. Their conversations, the makeshift camaraderie, and the early attempts at order reveal a fragile yet determined spirit that sustains them through the bewildering rush of enlistments, spare equipment, and the first drills of artillery training. The book invites listeners to hear the early, unvarnished voices of those who answered the call.