The Kaiser's Nightmare

Satirical pamphlet entitled 'The Kaiser's Nightmare' produced as a souvenir of the film of the same name made by the Charing Cross Film Society. The film, mocking the German Kaiser Wilhelm was based on a poem by J Smedley Norton . The pamphlet includes a depiction of the Kaiser in bed surrounded by bayonets and includes a copy of the poem. 'The Kaiser's Nightmare' was a hugely popular film and shown in all cinemas throughout the UK. On the back page are four portraits depicting the British military war leaders Haig, Churchill, Kitchener and Jellicoe headed 'Men we rely on'. The pamphlet was printed on 12 August 1914, just over a week after Britain declared war on Germany and purchased by Ernest King for one penny from a London street trader on 25th September 1914.