The First World War The war to end all wars

by Jukes, Geoffrey; Hickey, Michael; Simkins, Peter; Strachan, Hew

• ISBN13: 9781841767383
• ISBN10: 1841767387
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-09-25
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Summary

Raging for over four years across the tortured landscapes of Europe, Africa and the Middle East, the First World War changed the face of warfare forever. Characterised by slow, costly advances and fierce attrition, the great battles of the Somme, Verdun and Ypres incurred human loss on a scale never previously imagined. This book, with a foreword by Professor Hew Strachan, covers the fighting on all fronts, from Flanders to Tannenberg and from Italy to Palestine. A series of moving extracts from personal letters, diaries and journals bring to life the experiences of soldiers and civilians caught up in the war.

Author Biography

After leaving Oxford, Geoffrey Jukes spent 14 years in the UK Ministry of Defence, and Foreign and Colonial Office. He has also worked on the staff of the Australian National University. Peter Simkins was Senior Historian at the Imperial War Museum until his retirement in 1999, when he was awarded the MBE for his services to the Museum. He is Honorary Professor in Modern History at the University of Birmingham, a Vice-President of the Western Front Association and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. Michael Hickey retired from his position as Colonel GS Ministry of Defence in 1981, after serving in Korea, East Africa, Suez and Aden. In 2000 he was awarded the Westminster medal for Military Literature.

Table of Contents

Foreword	7	(2)
Professor Hew Strachan
Introduction	9	(4)
Chronology	13	(8)
Part I: The Western Front 1914--1916
Background to war -- The road to war	21	(5)
Warring sides -- The opposing sides	26	(6)
Outbreak -- Countdown to war	32	(3)
The fighting -- War on the Western Front 1914--1916	35	(59)
Portrait of a soldier -- Private Archie Surfleet	94	(2)
The world around war -- The Home Fronts 1914--1916	96	(4)
Portrait of a civilian -- Winnifred Adair Roberts	100	(2)
How the period ended -- No end in sight	102	(2)
Part II: The Western Front 1917--1918
Background to war -- Strategic choices for 1917	104	(6)
The fighting -- War on the Western Front 1917--1918	110	(61)
Portrait of a soldier -- Private Frederick `Fen' Noakes	171	(3)
The world around war -- The Home Fronts 1917--1918	174	(5)
Portrait of a civilian -- Caroline Webb	179	(2)
How the war on the Western Front ended -- The final month	181	(4)
Part III: The Eastern Front 1914--1918
Background to war -- Russian ambitions	185	(2)
Warring sides -- Russia, Germany and Austria-Hungary	187	(8)
The fighting --War on the Eastern Front 1914--1918	195	(50)
Portrait of a soldier -- A trooper, an ensign and a sergeant	245	(7)
The world around war -- The last days of Tsarist Russia	252	(5)
Portrait of a civilian -- `Living on cereals and porridge'	257	(3)
How the war on the Eastern Front ended: The Bolsheviks seize power	260	(8)
Part IV: The Mediterranean Front 1914--1923
Background to war -- The decline of the Ottoman Empire	268	(7)
Warring sides -- The opposing armies	275	(8)
The fighting -- War on the Mediterannean Front 1914--1923	283	(38)
Portrait of a soldier -- Cecil, Harold and Noel Wright	321	(5)
The world around war -- The loose ends of war	326	(4)
Portrait of a civilian -- The village of Christleton	330	(5)
How the war on the Mediterranean Front ended: End of the tragedy	335	(2)
Conclusion and consequences	337	(5)
Bibliography	342	(2)
Index	344