1914 World War I Pictorial Cloth Handkerchief Map of the British Isles

This is a c. 1914 pictorial cloth handkerchief of the British Isles illustrating the connection between British soldiers deployed on the Western Front in World War I and their wives/sweethearts back home in Britain. Beautifully sewn, a British soldier is illustrated in France carrying a rifle and waving his hat back home at England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, which are personified by three women and a young girl. All the women are impeccably dressed and are waving handkerchiefs in response. Myriad cities and towns are labeled throughout France and Great Britain, including Paris and London. The last two lines of the chorus of the popular song 'It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary' are included along the top of the handkerchief

'It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary'

'It's a Long, Long Way to Tipperary' was a British music hall song written by Henry James 'Harry' Williams and Jack Judge. The song is about an Irishman in London missing his 'sweetest girl' in Tipperary, a county in rural Ireland. The song was immensely popular among British soldiers during World War I, probably since it was a lament for a love left behind at home. Thus, it's inclusion on this handkerchief, which may have been meant has a memento for soldiers to take with them to the front.

As this handkerchief is untitled except for lyrics to an incredibly popular song, tracing its origins and rarity are difficult. Nonetheless, this piece captures an incredible moment in world history and represents the deep connections between a soldier and the homefront.