Unlike its neighbour, working-class Salford, Manchester proved able to raise eight World War I Pals battalions. At first they were composed of middle-class men whose experience before the war was in the commercial, financial and manufacturing interests which formed the foundations of Edwardian Manchester's life. In the Battle of the Somme, the Manchester Pals were part of one of the few successful actions, making a deep incursion into the German defences. Yet within days their apparent success turned sour as the battle ground its way towards seemingly unending attrition and historical notoriety. This book tells the story of more than 35,000 men who served in the Manchester Pals within the 7th, 30th and 35th Divisions. It is the story of their communities and the anguish which unfolded in the face of tragic losses and sacrifice.