author
Joseph Lee
1876–1949
A sharp-eyed Scottish war poet, journalist, and artist, his work brings the mud, boredom, wit, and strain of World War I vividly to life. He is often remembered today as one of Scotland’s overlooked voices of the Great War.
1 Audiobook
A Captive at Carlsruhe and Other German Prison Camps
by Joseph Lee
About the author
Born in Dundee in 1876, Joseph Johnston Lee left school young and worked briefly in a solicitor’s office before going to sea as a stoker. He later became a journalist, artist, and poet, building a career that mixed close observation with a lively, accessible style.
Lee served in World War I and was taken prisoner, experiences that shaped some of his best-known writing. His poems and sketches are valued for the way they capture everyday life in the trenches and prison camps, often balancing hardship with humor and humanity.
He also became known for defending the literary importance of Robert Burns in a public dispute with Poet Laureate Robert Bridges. Although he was long described as a "forgotten" war poet, his work has drawn renewed attention for its immediacy, personality, and record of ordinary soldiers' lives.