Borrowed Soldiers

Borrowed Soldiers
Author: Mitchell A. Yockelson
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2016-01-18
Genre: History
ISBN: 0806155604

The combined British Expeditionary Force and American II Corps successfully pierced the Hindenburg Line during the Hundred Days Campaign of World War I, an offensive that hastened the war’s end. Yet despite the importance of this effort, the training and operation of II Corps has received scant attention from historians. Mitchell A. Yockelson delivers a comprehensive study of the first time American and British soldiers fought together as a coalition force—more than twenty years before D-Day. He follows the two divisions that constituted II Corps, the 27th and 30th, from the training camps of South Carolina to the bloody battlefields of Europe. Despite cultural differences, General Pershing’s misgivings, and the contrast between American eagerness and British exhaustion, the untested Yanks benefited from the experience of battle-toughened Tommies. Their combined forces contributed much to the Allied victory. Yockelson plumbs new archival sources, including letters and diaries of American, Australian, and British soldiers to examine how two forces of differing organization and attitude merged command relationships and operations. Emphasizing tactical cooperation and training, he details II Corps’ performance in Flanders during the Ypres-Lys offensive, the assault on the Hindenburg Line, and the decisive battle of the Selle. Featuring thirty-nine evocative photographs and nine maps, this account shows how the British and American military relationship evolved both strategically and politically. A case study of coalition warfare, Borrowed Soldiers adds significantly to our understanding of the Great War.

Narrow Gauge in the Somme Sector

Narrow Gauge in the Somme Sector
Author: Martin J. B. Farebrother
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 578
Release: 2018-10-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 1473887658

The Somme sector of the Western Front was held by French forces until early 1916, when the British and Dominions Third and Fourth Armies moved into the northern part, before the joint First Battle of the Somme from July to November 1916. In 1917, with the German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line, British responsibility moved further south. By early 1918 the British Third and Fifth Armies were responsible as far south as east of Noyon. In Spring 1918 the German attack and advance from the Hindenburg Line came west almost to Amiens. However the British and French Armies finally stopped the advance, and from August 1918 drove the German Army back eastwards until the Armistice on 11 November 1918.In this book the meter gauge networks established before the First World War are examined. Then the build up of light (60cm gauge) railways, initially mainly French but later British, in 1915 and 1916, is considered, with an assessment of the contribution of these and the meter gauge lines to the war effort. With the major movements of the front line in this sector in 1917 and 1918, the response of the narrow gauge railways is considered chronologically as well as by area, in the context of overall railway policy and development. After the war the light railways contributed to the reconstruction of the devastated areas, and then in some places served the sugar beet industry. The meter gauge railways were rebuilt or repaired. The story is followed to the closure of the last of these railways in the 1960s.This book is a companion volume to Narrow Gauge in the Arras Sector (Pen & Sword Transport, 2015) by the same authors. It refers also to other previous works on British and French railways in the First World War, but contains sufficient information to stand alone. It describes how to find key locations now, and where rolling stock can be seen. Some walks are included for those who wish to explore the territory.

Narrow Gauge in the Arras Sector

Narrow Gauge in the Arras Sector
Author: Joan S. Farebrother
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
Total Pages: 375
Release: 2015-11-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 1473869587

The Arras sector of the Western Front in World War I (WW1) was held partly by the British and Dominions 1st Army from September 1915, and almost wholly by the 1st and 3rd Armies from March 1916. No less than in the Ypres sector to the north and the Somme sector to the south, the struggles of the French and then British troops in this sector were pivotal to the outcome of the War. The sector included countryside in the south, but in the north a major part of the industrial and coal-mining area of northern France, around Lens and Bthune. In this book the contribution of metre and 60 cm gauge railways to the Allied war effort in this sector is examined in the context of the history of the metre gauge lines already established. The build up of light (60 cm gauge) lines from 1916 is examined in detail area by area, and the contribution of the related metre gauge lines is reassessed, from British and French sources. After the War the role of these railways in the reconstruction and recovery of this devastated region of France is described. Later the surviving part of the 60 cm gauge network served the sugar beet industry east of Arras. The history is followed through another World War to the closure of the last of these railways in 1957.The book refers to previous works on British War Department light railways in WW1, but contains sufficient general information for readers new to the subject. It also describes how to find key locations now, and how and where rolling stock can be seen. Six walks and an urban tour are included for those who wish to explore the territory in greater depth.

Only an Observer

Only an Observer
Author: Lieutenant Charles G. Johnson
Publisher: FriesenPress
Total Pages: 205
Release: 2018-06-04
Genre: History
ISBN: 1525523430

“There before us were two Fokker biplanes giving one of our planes a bad time.... He was going down.... we were together in seconds....I fired on the Jerry....under our crippled plane.... the other Jerry swept across us.... so close I had an excellent look at this chubby faced lad.... the Jerry turned to give us his only burst, it passed close above my head.... I got a short burst in, point blank.... he slipped over and went into a spin.... as I turned I was met by a bath of oil and then the engine stopped with a jerk.... in more recent times whenever I saw a picture of Herman Goring head of the German Luftwaffe in WW2 and Hitler’s second in command it always reminded me of the chubby boy I saw that day” Lieutenant Charles Johnson served 3 years with the Canadian Army in WW1 on the Western Front building railways and in the last 6 months of the war flying over 400 hours as an Observer in No.2 Squadron RAF. His original manuscript written from memory 40 years after the events reflects his sense of duty mixed with detailed descriptions of places and events and humour.

The Routledge Atlas of the First World War

The Routledge Atlas of the First World War
Author: Martin Gilbert
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 221
Release: 2023-09-12
Genre: History
ISBN: 100086345X

From its origins to its terrible legacy, the tortuous course of the Great War is vividly set out in a series of 196 fascinating maps. Together the maps form a comprehensive and compelling picture of the war that shattered Europe, and illustrate its military, social, political and economic aspects. Beginning with the tensions that already existed, the atlas covers: The early months of the war – from the German attack on Belgium and France, to the fierce fighting on the Western and Eastern Fronts The developing war in Europe and beyond – from the Somme and Verdun to Gallipoli and Mesopotamia, in the Near East and Africa, and in the Pacific The war at sea and in the air – from the Zeppelin and air raids to the naval battles, shipping losses and Atlantic convoys Life at the front – the trench system, living underground, the mud of Passchendaele, the French and Russian mutinies Technology and the intensifying war – from phosgene gas to submarines, tanks and aerial bombardment The home front – war supplies, munitions factories, the air defence of Britain, German food riots, the entry of the United States into the war, the Russian Revolution, and the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian and the Ottoman Empires The aftermath – the peace treaties and territorial changes, war debts, war deaths, and the new map of Europe along with the visual remembrance of the war, memorials that commemorate the tragedy. This new edition now includes an additional 23 of Martin Gilbert’s maps, across the whole period of the war, originally published across a range of publications, now gathered in this one volume for the first time.

Narrow Gauge in the Ypres Sector

Narrow Gauge in the Ypres Sector
Author: Martin J B Farebrother
Publisher: Pen and Sword Transport
Total Pages: 266
Release: 2024-05-30
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1526788845

The Ypres sector of the Western Front was held predominantly by the British and Dominions Armies from 1914 to 1918. The Ypres Salient, at the centre of this sector, was one of the most intensively fought over single locations of the First World War. By the end of 1917 the sector was full of railways, dumps, camps, and other facilities. Much was lost in the German advance in April 1918, but from September 1918 the German Army was driven eastwards until the Armistice. Although Ypres and most of the forward areas are in Belgium, much of the support area is in northern France. In this book the meter gauge networks of both countries established before the First World War are examined, with their uses and extensions during the War. The build up of light (60cm gauge) railways from 1916 to 1918 is described, with an assessment of the contribution of both narrow gauges to the war effort. After the war the light railways in this sector were generally used only for short term clearing up and salvage. The meter gauge railways in Belgium were rebuilt or repaired. Those in France had been less affected. The story is followed to the closure of the last of these railways. This book is a companion volume to those on the Arras Sector (2015), and the Somme Sector (2018). It refers to other previous works on British, French and Belgian railways, especially during the First World War, but contains sufficient information to stand alone.

The British Army and the First World War

The British Army and the First World War
Author: Ian Beckett
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 485
Release: 2017-05-25
Genre: History
ISBN: 1107005779

A comprehensive new history of the shaping and performance of the British army during the First World War.

World War I

World War I
Author: DK
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 374
Release: 2024-05-21
Genre: History
ISBN: 0593847539

Discover the misery of life in the trenches -- and how the Great War devastated Europe. Here is an original and exciting guide to the grim challenge of life or death on the Western Front. Devastating first-hand reports and contemporary photographs of the battles that slaughtered millions, together with a clear account of how nation upon nation sent their men to join the carnage, combine to present a dramatic "eyewitness" view of this most terrible war. See the bullet-riddled car of the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, everyday life in the dugout, sappers mining tunnels beneath the enemy, and Mata Hari learning the art of spying. Learn how people avoided gas attacks, when periscopes were used, what soldiers wrote home to their sweethearts and mothers, the best way to use a tank, how troops flattened a hillside, and the meaning of Armistice Day. Discover how it felt to go over the top, what happened to all the bodies, how people dealt with shell shock, why war led to revolution, and much, much more.

World War I

World War I
Author:
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 362
Release: 2014-04-21
Genre: History
ISBN: 1465434909

Vividly portraying confrontation on land, sea, and in the skies, World War I: The Definitive Visual History is a brilliant and fascinating portrait of a world at war. Sumptuously illustrated, this definitive account recounts in striking detail the course of the First World War. Engaging narrative recreates the experience of titanic battles such as Gallipoli, the Somme, and Verdun that left an indelible mark on the collective memory of countries that lost a generation of young men.