John Sadler

Joseph Laycock

Morag Miller

Rosie Serdville

When the harrowing Great War diaries of one of Britain’s first black soldiers were unearthed in a dusty Scottish attic nearly 100 years after they were written, they posed a bit of a mystery. The diary entries – ranging from May 1917 to March 1918 – were written by one Arthur Roberts while he served initially with the King’s Own Scottish Borderers before being transferred to Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1917. He details what life was like for him during the First World War, how he survived the Battle of Passchendaele, and how he escaped unscathed when a German shell killed a dozen men round him. Yet Arthur was an otherwise unknown man – what was the rest of his life like?Now, Morag Miller and Roy Laycock have painstakingly researched Roberts’ life history, filling in the gaps. From his birth in Bristol, to his life in Glasgow and time at the front, they provide here much more than just a war memoir. This is a unique history of one man’s remarkable life.Beautifully illustrated with Roberts’ own accomplished photographs and artwork, As Good As Any Man is the remarkable biography of one of Britain’s black Tommies.

Scotland's Black Tommy

As Good as Any Man

Rosie Serdiville

Roy Laycock

The remarkable biography of one of Britain's first black soldiers of World War I, including artwork by the soldier When the harrowing Great War diaries of one of Britain's first black soldiers were unearthed in a dusty Scottish attic nearly 100 years after they were written, they posed a bit of a mystery. The diary entries, which range from May 1917 until March 1918, were written by one Arthur Roberts while he served with the King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSB). They went into great detail about what it was like for him during World War I; such as how he survived the Battle of Passchendaele, and one incident where he escaped unscathed when a German shell killed a dozen men around him. Yet Arthur Roberts was an otherwise unknown man, and little else was known about him. Now, Morag Miller and Roy Laycock have painstakingly researched Roberts' life history and filled in the gaps. From his birth in Bristol to his life in Glasgow and time at the front, they provide here much more than just a war memoir, but the unique history of one man's remarkable life.

Morag Miller

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