The sketches, by 2nd Lieutenant Noel Whittles, of the Lancashire Fusiliers 19th Battalion, were made during the Battle of the Somme will be on show at Trafford Local Studies & Archives Centre
Cartoons and sketches drawn by a hero Lancashire soldier during the Battle of the Somme have been found in a plastic bag at the bottom of a wardrobe.
The amazing images from the First World War have now been put on display. The pictures drawn by Noel Whittles had been hidden for over 100 years.
David Burrows found them in his mother’s flat in Didsbury after she died. He said his grandfather had never shown them to anyone, adding: “He just kept his drawings to himself. They have never been published.
“Like a lot of people of his generation, Noel enjoyed sketching but he wasn’t a professional artist. He just kept his drawings to himself.”
The line drawings show French towns and caricatures taking a wry look at life in the army, the plight of the Tommy in the trenches, and the quartermaster’s demands. David’s late mother kept hold of Noel’s drawings and writings but kept them out of sight for decades.
She found it hard to look at them for the memories they brought back of her father and brother. Clearing her flat David and his late sister opened a sealed shopping bag of material – all still in fantastic condition – which he has since started sharing with the wider world.
2nd Lieutenant Whittles, of the Lancashire Fusiliers 19th Battalion, described the “rat-infested” trenches, with his drawings depicting life on the frontline of the Somme.
The pictures have been loaned to Trafford Local Studies & Archives Centre in Sale. Cllr Judith Lloyd, Armed Forces Champion at Trafford council said: “We’re delighted to be able to work with David to bring these fascinating drawings to a wider audience.
“It’s hard for us to imagine what Noel went through and this is one way that his bravery and sacrifice lives on.”
Whittles, from Altrincham, described the waist-deep mud conditions in the trenches at La Boisselle as “vile”. He was shot in the arm in April 1918 and evacuated to London for surgery.
He remained as an army officer training young soldiers in Warwickshire before serving in The Rhine area of Germany until Autumn 1919. He returned to Withington, South Manchester, became a civil servant and married Lillian.
The couple had two children, Graham and Margaret, David Burrows’ mother. Graham Whittles died in service on patrol in Amfreville in World War Two in 1944. Heartbroken, his father died later that year aged 54.