The invaluable century-old First World War archive from young Edinburgh soldier up for auction

He was a gifted young war poet who was killed in the First World War just days after his 21st birthday.

Hamish Mann, who was said to have dreamt of pursuing a career as a writer and actor, wrote dozens of poems while serving with the Black Watch regiment in France.

Now a treasure trove of the Scottish soldier’s work is set to come under the hammer after it was handed down through generations of his family.

The archive, which includes 11 bound notebooks, has been valued at up to £4000 by Edinburgh-based auctioneers Lyon & Turnbull.

The collection, which includes some material from Mann's schooldays, features poems inspired by life in the trenches, as well as photographs, short stories, sketches, playscripts and letters to his parents.

Mann was born in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee, and attended Grove Academy before moving to Edinburgh where he was educated at George Watson's College.

Lyon & Turnbull said Mann had been "captivated by a sense of patriotism" at the outbreak of the war, but was initially considered not fit enough because he had a heart disorder.

However his doctor, who was in the Army Medical Corps, offered him a voluntary position at the Craigleith Military Hospital in Edinburgh, where he wrote for the military magazine Craigleith Chronicle.

Lyon & Turnbull's sales brochure states: "The First World War was running its devastating course and by the summer of 1915, the casualty rate was so high that the War Office amended the medical requirements needed to enlist.

"In spite of his heart condition, Hamish passed the medical examination on 2nd June 1915 and was offered a commission as a Second Lieutenant in a reserve battalion of the Royal Highlanders, Black Watch.

"The archive leads us through Mann’s officer’s training and into the trenches. The material is as extensive as it is devastating, although not without humour."

Writing about a fellow soldier, Tommy Atkins, Mann said: "Tommy is in many ways a perverse creature. He always sings and waxes joyful at a time least to be expected.

“For instance, when marching home after a heavy day’s field work in the rain, on ploughed ground and an empty stomach, he will chant all his favourite ditties with great relish and apparent mirth.

"But, on the other hand, when we march out on a beautiful spring morning after a hearty breakfast, when all nature rejoices in the goodness of things, our revered friend Mr Atkins is strangely silent."

Mann, who served as a second lieutenant, was involved in the British advance on German defences near the French town of Arras in the spring of 1917. However the lengthy battle which ensued would claim the lives of almost 160,000 British soldiers.

Mann was wounded on 9 April 1917 and died the following day, five days after his 21st birthday.

Cathy Tait, head of rare books and manuscripts at Lyon & Turnbull, which will be auctioning off the collection on 5 February, said: “This is a very moving archive penned by a talented writer who never got to see his work published.

“Hamish Mann is now part of the canon of First World War poets he so admired.

“Our forthcoming sale puts a human face on the suffering of war and presents a rare opportunity to own a piece of First World War literary and social history."