Laurence Marks was born in Manchester in 1894 to parents Jessie and Louis Marks. 

Towards the end of 1915, Laurence signed up, along with many other Jewish men from Manchester, with the Pembrokeshire Yeomanry, the headquarters of which were in Carmarthen, South Wales. On arrival in France over a year later, he became attached to the 2nd Battalion of the Welsh Regiment. Whilst serving on the Western Front, Laurence contracted what became known as Trench Feet, and was invalided out of the war after being sent back to Britain for treatment. 

In the 1970s, Laurence's grandson David Jacobs interviewed him and found out many fascinating stories about his life during the First World War. Included in this Collection is the transcript of that interview, in which Laurence recounts instances of antisemitism he and the other Jewish men in his regiment experienced whilst serving.