Improvising Language Capability: The British Army's Corps of Interpreters, 1914–1915

Abstract

This article examines the British army's short-lived Corps of Interpreters on the Western Front during the early stages of the First World War. It begins by establishing a benchmark for the regular army's French language capability in 1914. It then explores the interpreters’ recruitment process, employment, and the corps’ subsequent dissolution. Further insight into their motivation and suitability is then determined through a prosopographical analysis of their backgrounds and accounts of their employment. Overall, the article provides an important case study of the pitfalls of improvising military language capability during a crisis.