I think some on here are putting modern thinking into Victorian/Edwardian thinking, and the two are poles apart. Fighting for King and Country was seen as the norm at a time when the monarchy was far more revered than today, and (especially at the start of the Great War) going to Europe to give the Hun a bloody nose was looked upon not only as one's duty, but something of an adventure. Ridiculous by today's standards, but there is plenty of evidence that many looked up circumstances in this way.
I was really moved by Phil's post. The monumental size of the Thiepval memorial blew me away when I first went there, and it's impossible for me to be as eloquent as Phil about visiting the place. Suffice it to say that we were looking for the name of Private Harry Barton, a Dover lad like Cpl Victor Brown. Harry was a tram driver in the town who volunteered for The Buffs regiment at the outbreak of war - his letters home to his Mum convey in wonderful detail the spirit of adventure I was referring to in the first paragraph of this post; his family still retain his cigars as a memento. His name has been researched in great detail by Maggie & Simon of the DWMP and details can be found here :
http://www.doverwarmemorialproject.org.uk/Casualties/WWI/SurnamesB.htm
Harry Barton has stayed with me ever since we went to photograph his name on the Thiepval Memorial - I often think of him and wonder if he had any inkling of what he was volunteering for. When I think of our fallen on Remembrance Day, I always think of Harry Barton first.