For many soldiers in World War I, the fighting continued once they left the battlefield, as a remarkable collection of pictures shows them overcome physical and mental trauma.
A digital exhibition reveals how injured soldiers from across Europe were re-integrated into society through groundbreaking surgery as they embarked on new careers after the Great War.
Taken 100 years ago, the fascinating photographs show wounded soldiers perform manual work and learning to write with prosthetics as amputated soldiers craft toys in a workshop.
French soldiers display their reconstructed faces shaped by dental surgeon Mikael Schweitzer who became the ‘French specialist in facial dental surgery’. Facial injuries were often so horrific victims suffered extreme psychological damage and disfigurements kept some soldiers from returning to their families.
Other poignant pictures from the ‘Seven Men, One Leg’ exhibition show soldiers being transformed after pioneering facial reconstructive surgery and bravely posing alongside their fellow amputated servicemen.
It was often difficult for soldiers to recuperate and find their place in society again, be it economically or socially, as the Europeana collection reveals.
From the war’s outset, special institutions and schools were founded across Europe where disabled soldiers were trained to deal with prosthetics and become useful members of society once again.
Pictures a soldier with a serious facial injury as he goes through his reconstruction, date and location unknown. Shrapnel bursts would often disfigure faces, doing far more damage than a bullet graze
French soldier Maurice Antoine Gayton after his amputation in France. His picture features in a new exhibition showing groundbreaking techniques used to return soldiers to civilian life after fighting on the frontline
A wounded English soldier manages to keep smiling during a walk aided by a French nurse after he lost his leg in battle
This intimate shot shows a French soldier lying on a stretcher as he awaits the amputation of a leg and arm. He would require retraining after the war in order to reintegrate into civilian life
If soldiers couldn’t return to former jobs, they retrained based on their new, often limited capacities, with prosthetics designed for specific tasks.
The range of proposed jobs was quite wide, with training courses for accountants, tailors, shoemakers, carpenters cabinet makers, horticulturists and manufacturers of wooden toys.
A soldier looks at his disfigured hand in an orthopaedic equipment centre for the war-disable in Clermont-Ferrand, France, 1917 in a remarkable set of photos that show how men learned to become useful members of society once again
Belgian soldier Edouard Van Landschoot who was injured during the defence of the Liege fortresses on August 5, 1914 after his second leg amputation
Mutilated English soldiers attempting woodwork with prosthetics specially designed for the task as part of an initiative to help war heroes find jobs after the fighting was over
Hermann Peschel learning to write again with his prosthetic arm at an unknown location, circa 1914-1918, as European countries prepared to welcome back soldiers from the frontline
The apprenticeship period varied from six to eight months depending on the job.
The exhibition also demonstrates how many World War I soldiers suffered severe facial injuries.
Trenches protected the bodies of soldiers, but in doing so left their heads vulnerable to enemy fire.
French soldiers attempt garden work in an orthopaedic equipment centre for the war-disable in Clermont-Ferrand, France, 1917. Training courses for available for accountants, tailors, shoemakers, carpenters cabinet makers and horticulturists after the war
Hermann Peschel, left, continues learning how to use his prosthetic arm by playing a card game with a companion at an unknown location, circa 1914-1918
Soldiers would frequently stick their heads up above the trenches, exposing them to all manner of weapons.
Their faces could be ripped apart and rendered unrecognisable by twisted metal shards from shrapnel blasts and bullets would leave straight-line injuries.
Though trenches were designed to protect soldiers’ bodies during battle, these Englishmen weren’t so lucky. Here they are pictured overcoming their loss of a leg and using crutches to help them race to the finish line.
Toy manufacturing was another career open to mutilated soldiers. Picture is a workshop for making toys at a school for mutilated soldiers in Lyon, France, circa 1914-1918
English soldiers attempt gardening with a wheelbarrow and a shovel at an unknown location circa 1917 as part of their rehabilitative training before they returned home
Facial injuries were often so horrific victims suffered extreme psychological damage.
Disfigurements kept some soldiers from returning to their families.
Pioneering plastic surgery helped to reconstruct the faces of badly injured soldiers who needed extensive bone, muscle and skin grafting to restore their appearance.
But the home front found great difficulty getting used to the reconstructed faces.