1914-1918-online – International Encyclopedia of the First World War is an English-language online reference work on World War One. Launched in October 2014, the multi-perspective, public-access encyclopedia is a collaborative project by the largest network of WW1 researchers worldwide, spanning more than 50 countries. 1914-1918-online features innovative navigation and search functions based on semantic wiki technology and will eventually contain more than 1,000 articles.

Article Contribution: Le Poilu

Abstract:

Le Poilu translates literally as “the hairy one” and was a collective identity assumed by French infantry during the First World War. However, the term, based upon the soldiers’ hair, became a metaphor for a wider political spirit, through concepts of masculinity and participation in the discourse of the French Republic.