| Synopsis: |
The Friends Ambulance Unit made an enormous contribution to the alleviation of suffering in wartime conditions in both the first and second World Wars. Quakers (members of the Religious Society of Friends) are strongly committed to peace and the resolution of conflict and stand firmly in the ranks of Conscientious Objectors. Faced with war on an unprecedented scale, many had to make very careful decisions as to what the extent of their involvement might be. Arthur Pearson in 1914, and his son Gordon, in 1939, both committed themselves to the Friends Ambulance Unit, and later recorded their experiences which are published here for the first time. For the benefit of a wider public their accounts are supplemented with a short piece on the Pearson family of Dublin by Gordon's brother Irwin, and an introductory essay by J. Glynn Douglas on the broader theme of Quaker relief in times of famine, war and post-war reconstruction. |