The German Army at Ypres 1914 and the Battle for Flanders PDF Download

Author: Jack Sheldon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781848841130
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
"[This book] is the first complete account of the operations of the German Army in the battle for Flanders during the first autumn of The Great War. Due emphasis is placed on the fighting east of Ypres against the Old Contemptibles of the BEF, but the vital contribution of the French and Belgian armies is fully recognised. Although many believe that the BEF alone was all that saved world civilisation as 1914 drew to a close, the crushing defeat suffered by the German Army was in truth an Allied triumph, which laid to rest the Kaiser's ambition of a swift victory in the west"--Jacket.

Author: Jack Sheldon
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1844681564
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
The WWI military expert presents his authoritative study of the German Army’s operations during the First Battle of Ypres. Soon after the First World War broke out in 1914, Allied and German forces attempted to outflank each other in a series of battles along the Western Front. Some of the most intense fighting came in Flanders, Belgium, at the First Battle of Ypres. It was during this battle that generals on both sides confronted the end of maneuvering as they became locked into positional warfare. Historian Jack Sheldon is a renowned expert on the German Army during WWI. In this groundbreaking study of the First Battle of Ypres, he presents a tactical narrative of German operation at the regimental and battalion level. Focusing on the battles around Ypres against the British Expeditionary Force, Sheldon also analyses the fighting against the French and Belgian armies. This book also features the first complete account of German army operations in the battles north of Lille in the late autumn of 1914. Drawing on extensive research into German sources, Sheldon presents the testimony of German participants, shedding light on the experiences of the fighting troops at regimental level and below. He supports this material with historical context and commentary, as well as evidence from senior commanders.

Author: Jan Vancoillie
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1526707489
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 506

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Book Description
Published by the Memorial Museum Passchendaele in 2016 in Dutch as Bouwen aan het front, this book examines how the German army developed field fortifications to hold what can loosely be described as the Ypres Front. With the decision by Falkenhayn in 1915 to concentrate Germanys offensive efforts largely in the east, the German defenders around Ypres set to developing their lines for semi-permanent occupation. The sub soil around the Salient generally made it difficult to construct and maintain mined (i.e. deep) dugouts—unlike on, for example the Somme, with easily worked chalk not far below the surface. The only practicable alternative was to use reinforced concrete.In this book the authors (both with many years of experience in researching and working on matters Great War, particularly the German army in Belgium) have examined in detail an impressive range of primary sources to provide a narrative of what the Germans built, how they built it (the logistical challenge was enormous) and how the designs and requirements of bunkers (for example, forward medical bunkers, artillery shelters, machine gun and observation bunkers) changed as the war progressed and as the military situation on the front dictated. There are many photographs, largely unseen by British readers, design diagrams and maps to supplement the text; whilst the activities of selected particular formations are examined in detail to provide an example of the effort that was put into the work.Additions to the Dutch edition will include a tours section, taking a visitor to accessible remaining structures in the Salient area; and a glossary of terms and their English equivalent. The book will be in full color throughout.

Author: Jack Sheldon
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1844155641
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 369

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Book Description
Even after the passage of almost a century, the name Passchendaele has lost none of its power to shock and dismay. Reeling from the huge losses in earlier battles, the German army was in no shape to absorb the impact of the Battle of Messines and the subsequent bitter attritional struggle. Throughout the fighting on the Somme the German army had always felt that it had the ability to counter Allied thrusts, but following the shock reverses of April and May 1917, much heart searching had led to the urgent introduction of new tactics of flexible defense. When these in turn were found to be wanting, the psychological damage shook the German defenders badly. But, as this book demonstrates, at trench level the individual soldier of the German Army was still capable of fighting extraordinarily hard, despite being outnumbered, outgunned and subjected to relentless, morale-sapping shelling and gas attacks. The German army drew comfort from the realization that, although it had had to yield ground and had paid a huge price in casualties, its morale was essentially intact and the British were no closer to a breakthrough in Flanders at the end of the battle than they had been many weeks earlier.

Author: David Bilton
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1783038853
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 274

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Book Description
A pictorial history of the German occupation of Flanders in Belgium during the early years of World War I. With photographs, captions, and text, this book follows the German Army’s presence in Flanders, from its arrival in September, 1914, until the summer of 1916. It examines the Kaiser’s Army’s battles with the French, Belgians, and British, concentrating mostly on the latter and the battles for Ypres (1st Ypres 1914 and 2nd Ypres 1915 and the gas attacks). The book features detailed text, around 250 photos, a timeline of events in Flanders, and a section on the German divisions that fought there. Also included is material from the home front. Each phase and aspect of the period is described from the German point of view using primary and secondary sources from both Germany and Britain. The illustrations provide a view of life on the front-line as well as in rear areas. Most of the illustrations have never been published. As well as illustrating German troops in the area, it shows how the war changed the towns and villages. A second campaign volume covering the period from 1916 to 1918 will follow.

Author: Otto Schwink
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1473883695
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 128

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Book Description
This new volume in the long-running Images of War series features the actions of the Imperial German Army at Ypres from 1914-15. In the autumn of 1917 Captain Otto Schwink, a General Staff Officer, by order of the Chief of the General Staff of the Field Army, produced a book entitled The Germans at Ypres 1914. Herr SchwinkÕs text is reproduced accompanied by rare photographs illustrating the Imperial German Army as it was in the prewar era and in the field during the campaign, which culminated in the four year struggle for the Ypres salient. Photographs depict the troops, officers, supporting artillery, High Command and the events of the 1914 Christmas truce. This volume also features a chapter on Adolf HitlerÕs service during the Great War, which both began and ended in the Ypres salient, and includes a selection of rare photographs illustrating HitlerÕs experience in the ranks of the Bavarian Army in Flanders.

Author: Chris Baker
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1844685926
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 403

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Book Description
The Battle of the Lys, fought in April 1918, was critical for the Allies and for Germany. The outcome of the Great War hung in the balance. After the successful German offensive on the Somme, their breakthrough on the Lys threatened Ypres and the British hold on Flanders and brought them close to victory on the Western Front. The Allied line was broken it was only saved by improvisation and great gallantry—and the German onslaught tested Allied cooperation under the newly appointed Generalissimo Ferdinand Foch to the limit. Yet, as Chris Baker shows in this compelling account, the declining force of the German attack revealed deficiencies in material, organization and morale that led to their ultimate defeat.

Author: War Office
Publisher: Firestep
ISBN: 9781908487995
Category : Ypres, 1st Battle of, Ieper, Belgium, 1914
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The small Belgian town of Ypres stood directly in the path of the German Army s march to Paris at the beginning of World War I. Unfortunately, in no time at all, the town was obliterated and the surrounding fields soon played host to several of the war s bloodiest battles. Originally written by order of the German General Staff, " Ypres, 1914" offers a German perspective of this early stage of the war, before the savagery of modern warfare eventually overtook everyone. It provides a unique opportunity to look inside the mind of the Germany Army at the beginning of the conflict, as well as a potential alternative to the existing narrative about those early months on Flanders fields. "

Author: William E Fowler
Publisher: The History Press
ISBN: 0752468545
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 157

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Book Description
Ypres was a medieval town known for its textiles; however, it became infamous during the Great War with trench warfare, poison gas and many thousands of casualties. As the German Army advanced through Belgium, it failed to take the Ypres Salient. On 13 October 1914, German troops entered Ypres. On looting the city, the Germans retreated as the British Expeditionary Force advanced. On 22 November 1914, the Germans commenced a huge artillery barrage killing many civilians. In 1917, the Third Battle of Ypres commenced making it an exceptionally dangerous place to live. In 1918, a German major offensive was launched, but the British held firm. Ypres was finally safe in late September 1918 when German troops withdrew from the Salient. Today the battlefields of Ypres contain the resting place of thousands of German and British soldiers. This book explores the first and second battles of Ypres through narrative, eye-witness accounts and images.

Author: David Bilton
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 184884445X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 171

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Book Description
"Each phase and aspect of the period is described from the German point of view in photographs, captions, and text from German and British primary and secondary sources"--Page 4 of cover.