Road to War

As political events unfold from the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand (heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne), the resulting sparks are sent flying across a central Europe that is primed to explode igniting the catastrophic events of the Great War. This original and gripping short story follows the ordeals of an ordinary middle-class Belgian family in the summer of 1914, caught up in the invasion of their neutral country. An estimated 1 to 1.5 million men, women and children found themselves in exile in France, The Netherlands and Great Britain between August 1914 and November 1918. A recorded 250,000 escaped to Great Britain; 16,000 arriving in the port of Folkestone, Kent during a single day in October 1914. The story is narrated in the first person through the eyes of 7-year-old Jaak Maes, the eldest son of a Pieter and Francijn Maes. Pieter is a reasonably successful businessman and unlikely hero in this WW1 historical fiction, depicting the civilian exodus of Belgium, including its own Government, during late July and August 1914. This is the debut short story of a young author, James E H Fitzgerald, who started writing this aged 10 and completed it in time for the 100-year anniversary of the end of WW1. Although only aged 11, this has as good a story line as any Hollywood blockbuster. Personal note from James: I am dedicating my first ever short story, to the estimated one million exiled Belgian people who fled their homeland from the summer of 1914 until 1918. Whilst my story is fictional, I have tried to keep as close as I could to historical events and dates. Some elements of the story I have drawn from my own life, including not only those of my two brothers George and Henry, but also my Grandad John (Fitzgerald) who was born in July 1932. Thank you for buying this book (whether in digital, printed or audio format) as I am donating 25% of the royalty payment of this short story to two worthy causes: The Royal British Legi