Last Man Standing (Paperback)
Norman Collins
Imprint: Pen & Sword Military
Pages: 208
ISBN: 9781848848658
Published: 3rd April 2012
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It hardly seems credible today that a nineteen-year-old boy, just commissioned into the Seaforth Highlanders, could lead a platoon of men into the carnage of the Battle of the Somme. Or that, as the machine gun bullets whistled past and shells exploded, he could maintain his own morale to lead a platoon, keeping its discipline and cohesion, in spite of desperate losses. Norman Collins, the author of this superb memoir, was this remarkable man.
Using Norman's own words, Last Man Standing follows him from his childhood in Hartlepool to his subsequent service in France. The book also covers such shattering events as the German naval assault on Hartlepool in December 1914 when, as a seventeen-year-old, Norman was subjected to as big a bombardment as any occurring on the Western Front at that time. Norman's love for, and devotion to, the men under his command shine out in this book and his stories are gripping and deeply moving. They are illustrated by a rare collection of private photographs taken at or near the front by Norman himself, although the use of a camera was strictly proscribed by the Army. Most of the images have never been published before.
As featured on The Western Front Association
The Western Front Association, Tricia Platts
Nineteen-year-old Norman Collins was commissioned from the ranks of the Seaforth Highlanders in summer 1916, reached the trenches during the Somme battles and served in 1917 at Arras and on the periphery of Messines. Wounded in July 1917 he saw no further action.
British Army Review/Soldier Magazine - Dr Rodney Atwood
His collection of letters, photographs and the record of interviews as an old man are a treasure trove of information on Western Front fighting.
Richard van Emden has produced a really memorable account of Norman Collins' war.
The Long, Long Trail
A HEROIC young soldier’s memorable account of conflict has been published for the first time. Hartlepool man Lieutenant Norman Collins saw the terrors of the First World War first hand and penned as many memories as he could in 170 letters and 42 postcards back home. Forty one years later, the documents have been published in the book Last Man Standing by historian Richard Van Emden.
Hartlepool Mail
Enthralling memoir. These letters form the freshest part of this book, full of detail about kit and food that obsessed soldiers but which do not find a place in the history books.
Who Do You Think You Are?
This is one of the last great first-person memoirs of the Great War. Extraordinary diary, letter collection and photos.
Scottish Legion News
This is a harrowing tale of battle, loss and the horrors of war.
Scotland Magazine
Norman reached the grand old age of 100 and passed away in 1998; in his later years Rivhard van Emden got to know him well, working with him to produce this excellent publication.
Britain at War
Working with an unusually detailed collection of letters, documents, illustrations and photographs, the editor has put together a fine biography of Collins, his life and most of all his service to his country. The book brings vividly to light the war and one man's part in it. A Must Have.
Great War Magazine
This fantastic little WWI book is a must for any budding historians. Collins was underage when he joined the Seaforth Highlanders and was a 19-year-old officer when he led at the battle of the Somme. This book contains extracts from his diaries and a remarkable personal collection of photographs which lend this account a poignancy and immediacy which is often breathtaking.
Scottish Field
Unique first-hand accounts of the First World War and the 1914 Bombardment of Hartlepool, as seen through the eyes of one of the conflict's last survivors, are the subject of a fascinating new book.
Shields Gazette
About Richard van Emden
Richard van Emden interviewed 270 veterans of the Great War, has written extensively about the soldiers' lives, and has worked on many television documentaries, always concentrating on the human aspects of war, its challenge and its cost to the millions of men involved. Richard van Emden’s books have sold over 660,000 copies and have appeared in The Times’ bestseller chart on a number of occasions.
He has also worked on more than a dozen television programmes on the Great War, including the award-winning Roses of No Man’s Land, Britain’s Boy Soldiers, A Poem for Harry, War Horse: the Real Story, Teenage Tommies with Fergal Keane and most recently, Hidden Histories: WW1’s Forgotten Photographs. He lives in London.
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