Download or read book The Battles of the British Expeditionary Forces 1914 1915 written by Fred R. van Hartesveldt and published by Praeger. This book was released on 2005-04-30 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A historical reference book that provides a discussion of interpretations and controversies about the British Expeditionary Force in 1914-15 and an annotated bibliography of more than 1,000 sources concerning the subject.

Download or read book Memoirs from the British Expeditionary Force 1914 1915 written by Edward Gleichen and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2014-08-31 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Edward Gleichen commanded the 15th Infantry Brigade during the tumultous opening battles of the Great War. The division was mobilised by 10 August 1914, and fought in the opening battles at Mons, Le Cateau and the Marne. The 15th Infantry Brigade was a regular formation tht comprised four battalions from Bedfordshire, Norfolk, Dorset and Cheshire. Detailed accounts by battlefield commanders from 1914 are surprisingly rare. This long out of print account of the actions of the British Expeditionary Force, which was first published in 1917, was based on a diary of events written at the time by Brigadier General Edward Gleichen. It originally appeared under the title The Doings of the Fifteenth Infantry Brigade - August 1914 to March 1915. This volume is much more than a brigade diary, providing the reader with a detailed and privileged insight into the problems of command during the confused actions in Flanders and France from the perspective of the men who helped to forge the legend of the Old Comtemptables.

Download or read book The 1915 Campaign written by Andrew Rawson and published by British Expeditionary Force. This book was released on 2016-02-20 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The British Expeditionary Force - The 1915 Campaign is a thorough account of the BEF's actions during the battles of 1915 and early 1916, starting with the success at Neuve Chapelle in March and the nightmare gas attack at Ypres in April. It follows their back-to-back failures at Aubers and Festubert before the British used gas at Loos in September and the minor engagements of the early months of 1916. Each major battle and minor action is reconstructed in graphic detail and given equal treatment through the compiling of information from the Official History and printed histories, resulting in a balanced view of the most-talked-about side of the campaign - the British side. Detailed throughout are the reasonings behind each battle and the objectives, and there is discussion about how the infantry, the artillery, the cavalry and engineers worked together, often learning new techniques after bloody mistakes, with insights into the successes and failures of each attack. Together the narrative and over sixty new maps, that chart the day-by-day progress of each battle and action, provide an unique insight into the British Army's experience during those difficult days of 1915 and early 1916, as it came to terms the art of the offensive. Where possible the brave men who made a difference are commemorated; those who led the attacks, those who faced overwhelming counter attacks and those who were awarded the Victoria Cross. Through this wide-ranging, up-to-date and balanced account of this catastrophic conflict, the the real 1915 campaign experienced by the British Army and how its brave soldiers fought hard to achieve their objectives is explored.

Download or read book Order of Battle of the British Army 1914 written by Richard A Rinaldi and published by Ravi Rikhye. This book was released on 2008-07-15 with total page 498 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A complete Order of Battle for the British Army in 1914. 470 content pages.

Download or read book The British Expeditionary Force 1914 15 written by Bruce Gudmundsson and published by Osprey Publishing. This book was released on 2005-12-10 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over 200 divisions fought on the Western Front during the first year of World War I and those best suited to the challenges of trench warfare were the six infantry divisions of the original British Expeditionary Force (BEF). Their superiority was partially due to the high quality of the divisions' personnel and the first-class equipment provided to them. This book describes the organization and equipment of the BEF at the outbreak of the war in 1914, and relates how its structure changed both to accommodate the waves of Territorial and New Army units that were raised and to adapt to the rigours of conditions on the Western Front.

Download or read book Battle Story Ypres 1914 1915 written by William E Fowler and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2011-09-30 with total page 157 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.

Download or read book Canadian Expeditionary Force 1914 1919 written by G.W.L. Nicholson and published by McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. This book was released on 2015-11-01 with total page 709 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Colonel G.W.L. Nicholson's Canadian Expeditionary Force, 1914-1919 was first published by the Department of National Defence in 1962 as the official history of the Canadian Army’s involvement in the First World War. Immediately after the war ended Colonel A. Fortescue Duguid made a first attempt to write an official history of the war, but the ill-fated project produced only the first of an anticipated eight volumes. Decades later, G.W.L. Nicholson - already the author of an official history of the Second World War - was commissioned to write a new official history of the First. Illustrated with numerous photographs and full-colour maps, Nicholson’s text offers an authoritative account of the war effort, while also discussing politics on the home front, including debates around conscription in 1917. With a new critical introduction by Mark Osborne Humphries that traces the development of Nicholson’s text and analyzes its legacy, Canadian Expeditionary Force, 1914-1919 is an essential resource for both professional historians and military history enthusiasts.

Download or read book Challenge of Battle written by Adrian Gilbert and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-02-20 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winston Churchill described the opening campaign of World War I as 'a drama never surpassed'. The titanic clash of Europe's armies in 1914 is one the great stories of 20th-century history, and one in which the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) played a notable part. Previous assessments of the BEF have held to an unshakeable belief in its exceptional performance during the battles of 1914. But closer examination of the historical record reveals a force possessing some key strengths yet undermined by other, significant failings. Within an authoritative and well-paced campaign narrative, Challenge of Battle re-evaluates the Army's leadership, organization and tactics. It describes the problems faced by commanders, grappling with the brutal realities of 20th-century warfare, and explains how the British infantry's famed marksmanship has to be set against the inexperience and tactical shortcomings of the BEF as a whole. However, it also demonstrates the progress made by the British during 1914, concluding with the successful defence of Ypres against superior enemy forces. The author examines the fateful decisions made by senior officers and how they affected the men under their command. Making full use of diaries, letters and other contemporary accounts, he builds a compelling picture of what it was like to fight in the battles of Mons, Le Cateau, the Aisne and Ypres. In this timely new book, Adrian Gilbert clears away the layers of sentiment that have obscured a true historical understanding of the 1914 campaign to provide a full, unvarnished picture of the BEF at war.

Download or read book Fire and Movement written by Peter Hart and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2015 with total page 537 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The dramatic opening weeks of the Great War passed into legend long before the conflict ended. The British Expeditionary Force fought a mesmerizing campaign, outnumbered and outflanked but courageous and skillful, holding the line against impossible odds, sacrificing themselves to stop the last great German offensive of 1914. A remarkable story of high hopes and crushing disappointment culminates in the climax of the First Battle of Ypres. And yet, as Peter Hart shows in this look at the war's first year, for too long the British part in the 1914 campaigns has been veiled in layers of self-congratulatory myth: a tale of unprepared Britain, reliant on the peerless class of her regular soldiers to bolster the rabble of the unreliable French Army and defeat the teeming hordes of German troops. But the reality of those early months is in fact far more complex-and ultimately, Hart argues, far more powerful than the standard triumphalist narrative. Fire and Movement places the British role in 1914 into a proper historical context, incorporating the personal experiences of the men who were present on the front lines. The British regulars were indeed skillful soldiers, Hart writes, courageous and adaptable in the near-impossible circumstances in which they found themselves. But they also lacked practice in many of the required disciplines of modern warfare. Hart also offers a more accurate portrait of the German Army they faced--not the caricature of hordes of automatons, but the reality of a well-trained and superlatively equipped force that outfought the BEF in the early battles--and allows readers to come to a full appreciation of the role of the French Army, which has often been marginalized"--Provided by publisher.

Download or read book Le Cateau written by Nigel Cave and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2008-03-26 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Le Cateau (26–27 August 1914) was the second major action fought by the BEF in the Great War. His men exhausted after fighting at Mons and by the subsequent speedy retreat, Lieutenant-General Horace Smith-Dorrien (commanding II Corps) decided that he had to make a stand in the vicinity of Le Cateau.There his men took on elements of four German corps in an action that succeeded in giving the BEF a respite, but at considerable cost. Amongst other elements of controversy in the conduct of the battle was the handling of the Royal Artillery.The battle also undermined the already fraught relationship between Smith-Dorrien and the BEF's commander, John French. The battlefield today remains largely as it was, open countryside, and it is an ideal location to view one of the most significant British battlefields of the early days of the war.In this action no less than five Victoria Crosses were won, three of them in one howitzer battery and two by men of the 2nd King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry.

Download or read book 1914 Fight the Good Fight written by Allan Mallinson and published by Random House. This book was released on 2013-09-02 with total page 771 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ‘No part of the Great War compares in interest with its opening’, wrote Churchill. ‘The measured, silent drawing together of gigantic forces, the uncertainty of their movements and positions, the number of unknown and unknowable facts made the first collision a drama never surpassed...in fact the War was decided in the first twenty days of fighting, and all that happened afterwards consisted in battles which, however formidable and devastating, were but desperate and vain appeals against the decision of fate.’ On of Britain's foremost military historians and defence experts tackles the origins - and the opening first few weeks of fighting - of what would become known as 'the war to end all wars'. Intensely researched and convincingly argued, Allan Mallinson explores and explains the grand strategic shift that occurred in the century before the war, the British Army’s regeneration after its drubbings in its fight against the Boer in South Africa, its almost calamitous experience of the first twenty days’ fighting in Flanders to the point at which the British Expeditionary Force - the 'Old Contemptibles' - took up the spade in the middle of September 1914: for it was then that the war changed from one of rapid and brutal movement into the more familiar vision of trench warfare on Western Front. In this vivid, compelling new history, Malliinson brings his experience as a professional soldier to bear on the circumstances, events, actions and individuals and speculates – tantalizingly – on what might have been...

Download or read book My Year of the War written by Frederick Palmer and published by . This book was released on 1915 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Death of the Dukes written by Graham Sargeant and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 604 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Story of Valour and The Sacrifices Made by a Battalion of the Old Contemptibles". The Complete Analysis of an Original Battalion of the British Expeditionary Force - August 1914 to May 1915 (Including the WWI Letters of Lt R H Owen) by Graham Sargeant with Bob Sargeant, Cyril Ford & Scott Flaving with a Foreword by Maj Gen Sir Evelyn Webb-Carter KCVO, OBE, DL. PART I - Lt Rowland Hely Owen. The Dukes of Wellington's Regiment - A Potted History. The Build-up to World War One. The Short Magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE) rifle. Portobello Barracks, Dublin. North Wall, Dublin Dock. SS Gloucestershire. Mobilisation - The Letters of Rowland Hely Owen. Havre. Landrecies. Marouilles. Foret De Mormal: Obies; Mecquignies & Bavai. St Ghislain. The 13th Infantry Brigade comprised - 2/DWR (2nd Bn Duke of Wellington's (West Riding) Regiment), 1/RWK (Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment), 2/KOYLI (King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry) and 2/KOSB (King's Own Scottish Borderers). 13th Infantry Brigade, 5th Division, II Corps of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). The Battle of Mons. The Angel of Mons. The Battle at Wasmes. M. Herman Capiau. Le Cateau & The Retreat from Mons. The Battles of The Marne & The Aisne. Sermoise. Missy-sur-Aisne. Gobain Wood. The Race to the Sea / The Battle of La Bassée. Major H K Umfreville. Major Harrison. Capt B J Barton. The Battle of 1st Ypres - Hooge Wood & Nonne Boschen. The 'Dukes' as Prisoners of War. Wulverghem. Earsdon. Backworth. The Battle of Hill 60. The gas attack on Hill 60 - 5th May 1915. 2nd Lt Gilbert Beyfus The mystery of Rowland Hely Owen's last resting place. St Thomas' Church, Huddersfield. PART II - The Battle at Wasmes - An Analysis. A Statistical Analysis of an original Battalion of the BEF. Statistics and facts and figures for an original battalion of the BEF with dozens of tables, graphs and charts - The Geographical origins of the Officers and Men of 2nd Battn - The Reservists in 1914 - their periods of enlistment and terms of employment - The Health of the Reservists 1914 - The individual fates of the original Officers & Men of the Battalion after 10 months of WWI - The changing demographic of the Battalion over 10 months of WWI - Comparison of the fates of Officers and Men of 2nd Battalion - When and where the Men were killed - When and where the Men were taken POW - Marital status of Men of 2nd Battalion killed in WWI - Original Men of 2nd Battalion Men killed and taken POW over whole course of WWI - The Dependents of the original Men of 2nd Battalion killed in WWI - ANNEX 'A' - Attritional Rates suffered by the 'original' Men of 2nd Battalion The Duke of Wellington's (West Riding) Regiment. ANNEX 'B' - Embarkation List - Officers. ANNEX 'C' - Embarkation List - NCOs and Men. ANNEX 'D' - Those who survived in the Battn until February 1918 for the Mons Star. Officer Commanding (OC) Lt Col J A C Gibbs: Major K A Macleod: Capt & Adjt C O Denman-Jubb; Capt & Quartermaster A Ellam: Major E N Townsend: Captain R M Tidmarsh: Lt C W G Ince: Lt R J A Henniker: 2nd Lt G W Oliphant: 2nd Lt H K O'Kelly: Capt R C Carter: Capt T M Ellis: 2nd Lt F H Fraser: 2nd Lt M C B K Young: 2nd Lt F R Thackeray: Major P B Strafford: Capt R K Healing: Lt J H L Thompson: Lt L E Russell: Capt E V Jenkins, DSO: Capt E R Taylor: Lt. R O'D Carey: Lt R H Owen: 2nd Lt Owen Price: Lt W M Ozanne: Lt W N Cox: Lt C C Egerton: Capt J C Burnett: Lt E N Hitchens on attachment from 5th Div Signals: Capt S Field on attachment from Royal Army Medical Corps.

Download or read book The Marne 15 July 6 August 1918 written by Stephen C. McGeorge and Mason W. Watson and published by . This book was released on with total page 80 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Undying Story written by W. Douglas Newton and published by Forgotten Books. This book was released on 2018-02-05 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from The Undying Story: The Work of the British Expeditionary Force on the Continent From Mons, August 23rd, 1914, to Ypres, Nov, 15th 1914 The Battles of the Rivers (both Hodder Stoughton), for correction of dates, details and facts, since it was not always possible when writing serially to eliminate error in handling masses of material so close up to events. Thanks to these books, too, I feel that I have been able to add strength to whatever strategical and tactical story there is in an account mainly concerned with the individual and personal side of the first four months of the campaign. I gratefully acknowledge the. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Download or read book With My Regiment From Aisne to La Bass e Illustrated Edition written by Arthur F. H. Mills and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2015-11-06 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Includes the First World War Illustrations Pack – 73 battle plans and diagrams and 198 photos Originally published under the pseudonym “Platoon Commander” these excellent memoirs were written by the noted novelist Arthur F. H. Mills after his service in the British Expeditionary Force in 1914-1915. “In the early summer of 1914, apparently unconcerned by the gathering storm and the colossal building of military might in Germany, the British regular army, reduced in numbers and not having fought a major conflict for over a decade, was at peace in its garrisons. When German troops marched through Belgium and attacked France, the British Expeditionary Force was hastily created and for British soldiers the transition from peace to mobilisation and transportation to the battle line happened within a matter of days. It is astonishing that the ‘Contemptible Little Army’ was not instantly enveloped by the advancing Germans who outnumbered them—often by much more than five to one. Some are jingoistic about the British Army of the day being ‘the best army in the world,’ however, the battle fought at Mons, the retreat to the Marne, the skilful command of the British staff and the dogged resistance of troops, who inflicted causalities on the enemy totally disproportionate to their strength, speaks for itself. The outcome was inevitable though and by the early months of 1915 the B. E. F. had all but been destroyed. Its tenacity had, however, earned the British sufficient time to build a new army, defence and response.”-Print ed.

Download or read book From Boer War to World War written by Spencer Jones and published by University of Oklahoma Press. This book was released on 2013-04-01 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The British Expeditionary Force at the start of World War I was tiny by the standards of the other belligerent powers. Yet, when deployed to France in 1914, it prevailed against the German army because of its professionalism and tactical skill, strengths developed through hard lessons learned a dozen years earlier. In October 1899, the British went to war against the South African Boer republics of Transvaal and Orange Free State, expecting little resistance. A string of early defeats in the Boer War shook the military’s confidence. Historian Spencer Jones focuses on this bitter combat experience in From Boer War to World War, showing how it crucially shaped the British Army’s tactical development in the years that followed. Before the British Army faced the Boer republics, an aura of complacency had settled over the military. The Victorian era had been marked by years of easy defeats of crudely armed foes. The Boer War, however, brought the British face to face with what would become modern warfare. The sweeping, open terrain and advent of smokeless powder meant soldiers were picked off before they knew where shots had been fired from. The infantry’s standard close-order formations spelled disaster against the well-armed, entrenched Boers. Although the British Army ultimately adapted its strategy and overcame the Boers in 1902, the duration and cost of the war led to public outcry and introspection within the military. Jones draws on previously underutilized sources as he explores the key tactical lessons derived from the war, such as maximizing firepower and using natural cover, and he shows how these new ideas were incorporated in training and used to effect a thorough overhaul of the British Army. The first book to address specific connections between the Boer War and the opening months of World War I, Jones’s fresh interpretation adds to the historiography of both wars by emphasizing the continuity between them.