ABSTRACT
The advent of bombardment, armoured ships, trench warfare and repeating rifles during the Crimean War changed how war was fought and made the fate of the common soldier a matter of public concern. The unprecedented number of letters to the editor that flooded the press during the war have be referred to as the ‘YouTube’ of the Crimea. William Howard Russell’s ability to establish the role of the war reporter was due to his position as ‘the special correspondent’ of The Times. The clash between military tradition and modern warfare was at the root of the failure of the British, Russian and to lesser extent French armed forces to prosecute the war efficiently. The typical photographs of the Crimean War were the portraits of military personal and landscapes which were due to technical imperative as much as ideological disposition; heavy cameras and long exposures disposed them to this form of representation.
