Ring of Fire: A New History of the Outbreak of the First World War

Historian Alexandra Churchill offers a fresh perspective on the opening year of the conflict, revealing its truly global scale.

When war broke out in the summer of 1914, no nation fully grasped the extent of what they were about to face. To emerge victorious, entire populations would have to be mobilised as the conflict rapidly spread across the globe.

Conventional assessments often take a rather narrow perspective of the war, obscuring its true scope. Many overlook the fact that Denmark actively participated in laying minefields from the outset of the war, or that the first shots fired by British forces were in West Africa, or that the first Australian casualties occurred not at Gallipoli but in the Pacific.

In this captivating talk, historian Alexandra Churchill offers a fresh, people-centred view of the First World War, drawing on new materials to challenge our understanding of events we thought we knew.

About the speaker

Alexandra Churchill is a historian and presenter with a keen interest in the 20th century. She has appeared in numerous documentaries on networks such as the BBC, Channel 5 and History Hit. She is a Fellow of The Royal Historical Society and the founder of the Great War Group.