
Lawrence George Ellis (pictured), born in Tottenham in 1899, lied about his age to enlist at just 17 in 1915

Sketches drawn by a signaller who served on the front line in the First World War have been published in a new book for the first time.

Lawrence George Ellis, born in Tottenham in 1899, lied about his age to enlist at just 17 in 1915.

He went on to become a Signaller First Class in the 40th Division (later 33rd Division) Royal Field Artillery.

He witnessed the aftermath of the Somme and saw action at the Battle of Cambrai.

The sketches only came to light in 2014 when his great-grandson brought them into school for a show-and-tell assignment.

The book's now-editor David Langley, from Bristol, happened to be leading the class.

He said: 'I was covering for a colleague within the history department at the school where I teach and I was offered the chance to look at some sketches that a Year 9 student had brought in, which had apparently been drawn by his great-grandfather.'

The book is made up of three diaries and over 1,700 sketches.

Ellis, who was not a trained artist, writer or diarist, compiled the work between 1921 to 1930.

After the war he worked as a wages clerk, for the London Passenger Transport Board.

He went on to get married and have two daughters before passing away on June 14, 1971.

History Press commissioning editor Joanna de Vries said: 'It takes something unique, something that stands out and also something that touches you to make you want to take it through the commissioning process and champion its publication.

'Lawrence's book was just that – it was so real, so raw and covering a not-often told story of a key part of the war.

'I felt that we, as a generation who are taking time to reflect on those events of 1914-18, owed something to Lawrence, and by publishing this work we are allowing the legacy that he left behind to live on.'

During the First World War signallers worked closely with front-line troops to provide communications between troops and battalion headquarters.

At the beginning of the war, use of flags was common but as the conflict progressed technology improved to include wired telephones, lamps, telegraphs and heliographs.

Never-before-seen sketches drawn by a signaller who served on the front line in the First World War have been published in a new book for the first time. This image shows Ellis signing up at Ponders End in 1915

Lawrence George Ellis, born in Tottenham in 1899, lied about his age to enlist at just 17 in 1915. This image shows the arrival of artillery weaponry in 1915

He went on to become a Signaller First Class in the 40th Division (later 33rd Division) Royal Field Artillery. Here troops can be seen practising linesmen's work near Aldershot in 1915

The sketches only came to light in 2014 when his great-grandson brought them into school for a show-and-tell assignment. This image shows a line of troops passing by Stonehenge

The book's now-editor David Langley, from Bristol, happened to be leading the class. This drawing shows troops entering Ames in 1916

He said: 'I was offered the chance to look at some sketches that a Year 9 student had brought in, which had apparently been drawn by his great-grandfather.' This sketch shows troops dodging a shower of shrapnel and gunfire

The book is made up of three diaries and over 1,700 sketches. This drawing shows the result of heavy shells on Les Brebis in 1916

Ellis, who was not a trained artist, writer or diarist, compiled the work between 1921 to 1930. This haunting image shows a make-shift memorial for fallen troops in 1916

He went on to get married and have two daughters before passing away on June 14, 1971. This image shows troops going over the top in the heat of battle

History Press commissioning editor Joanna de Vries said: 'It takes something unique, something that stands out and also something that touches you.' This sketch shows a round of shelling in 1917

She added: 'Lawrence's book was so real, so raw and covering a not-often told story of a key part of the war.' This image shows troops going up to the front line before dawn

She went on: 'I felt that we, as a generation who are taking time to reflect on those events of 1914-18, owed something to Lawrence.' This sketch shows captured Germans assisting a wounded officer in 1917

During the First World War signallers worked closely with front-line troops to provide communications between troops and battalion headquarters. This drawing shows a man cowering with fear on the front line

At the beginning of the war, use of flags was common but as the conflict progressed technology improved to include wired telephones, lamps, telegraphs and heliographs. This image is entitled 'In the gas chamber'

This image shows soldiers having a welcome wash after a hot march from Harfleur in 1918

This sketch shows two soldiers taking cover while they come under fire in an attack - the caption reads 'Like doomed men'

This image shows a soldier being woken up in 1918 - the caption says: 'Hi, wake up - there's a war on and it's raining'