Some aspects of the British Geological Survey’s contribution to the war effort at the Western Front, 1914–1918

The application of geology to warfare in regard to questions of water supply, ground conditions and access to strategic minerals has long been appreciated, and much has already been written on these aspects of the science. During the Great War of 1914–1918 the services of the British Geological Survey, under the directorship of Aubrey Strahan, were called upon to advise on such matters both at home and abroad. Surviving archived files at the Geological Survey allow us to examine some rather more unexpected applications of the science, particularly in regard to the European theatre of war. These files provide only a partial record of the full range of war-related activities undertaken by the Survey, but they do reveal more especially the application of petrography to aircraft compass design, forensic geology, and the choice of stone for war graves