War of Attrition on All Fronts; Sickness a Deadly Enemy Millions More Troops Needed Special to The Great War Project (26-29 June) It’s nearly a year since this war broke out, and it’s clearer now than ever, it’s a war of attrition on all fronts, Western, Eastern, and in several areas of the Ottoman Empire.…
Monthly Archives: June 2015
RUSSIANS SCORCH EARTH IN RETREAT
by Mike Shuster
Countryside and Cities Plundered; Rape and Murder Widespread Bolshevik Propaganda Reaches Front Special to The Great War Project (21-25 June) The Russian Army in Poland continues to fall back, suffering heavy losses in the process. Disillusionment with the war begins to spread in Russia, on the battlefield, and on the home front. The Germans retain…
AUSTRIAN ARMY SHATTERED, DESPITE RUSSIAN RETREAT
by Mike Shuster
Austrian Troops Throw Down Their Weapons, Then Surrender. Germany in Control of Eastern Front Special to The Great War Project. (Editor’s note: Catastrophe, A Blog of World War One, will take a short break. It will return next week.) (16-20 June) By now, in the spring of 1915, Austria-Hungary’s army is coming apart. On the…
FIERCE FIGHTING IN NORTHERN FRANCE
by Mike Shuster
British Use Millions of Artillery Shells, Some with Deadly Gas; Gains on the Ground Are Minimal. A German Spy Ring Uncovered in Britain. Special to The Great War Project. (13-15 June) All sides are hard at work – desperate really – to decode top secret messages of their enemies. In June of 1915, French cryptographers…
RUSSIAN ARMY COLLAPSES
by Mike Shuster
Germany Takes Control of Eastern Front, Rescues Austrian Forces. Chaotic Russian Retreat Special to The Great War Project (10-12 June) The Eastern Front is seeing a dramatic reversal of fortune, with Russia losing much of the territory in Eastern Europe it seized earlier in 1915. Austria-Hungary, which looked to be on the brink of collapse…
TURKS INTRODUCE BATTLEFIED INNOVATION – SNIPING
by Mike Shuster
Invisible Killers Terrorize Allied Troops; Stories of Female Snipers Improbable but Persistent Special to The Great War Project (7-9 June) The Turks introduce a new tactic into the butchery on the Gallipoli Peninsula – sniping. It may be difficult to believe a century later, but according to historian Eugene Rogan… …“at first the Allied troops…
SLAUGHTER AT GALLIPOLI
by Mike Shuster
Allies Fail to Take Key Hill and Village Stiff Turkish Defenses; Great Losses on Both Sides Special to The Great War Project (4-6 June) June 4th a century ago: One of the bloodiest days of the war. Fighting is sharp and bloody on the Gallipoli peninsular in western Turkey. A major battle is shaping up…
ALLIES PRESS AMERICA TO ENTER WAR
by Mike Shuster
Lusitania Sinking Forces Wilson to Ponder Joining Allies The President’s Advisers Are Split Special to The Great War Project (1-3 June) Ever since the sinking of the British ocean liner Lusitania on May 7th by a German submarine off the south coast of Ireland, the American President Woodrow Wilson is struggling with how to respond.…