author
Edmund John Kennedy
d. 1915
A Church of England clergyman and former YMCA leader, he wrote from direct experience in the early months of the First World War. His best-known book, With the Immortal Seventh Division, brings together frontline observation, pastoral work, and a strong sense of duty.
1 Audiobook
With The Immortal Seventh Division
by Edmund John Kennedy
About the author
Born in London on August 17, 1855, Edmund John Kennedy became known both as a religious leader and as a writer. A contemporary biographical record describes him as general secretary of the YMCA in London from 1884 to 1894, later vicar of St. James', Hatcham, and then vicar of St. John's, Boscombe.
His writing grew out of lived experience rather than distance. With the Immortal Seventh Division, published after his death in 1916, is a firsthand wartime account tied to his service as a chaplain with the British Expeditionary Force during the opening phase of World War I.
Kennedy died on October 25, 1915. Sources connected with his memorial record say he had returned from service in France and died from cerebro-spinal meningitis contracted while on service, giving his work an added sense of immediacy and personal witness.