The Battles End, Killing Continues British ‘Wastage’ and Charges of Cowardice Special to The Great War Project (21-26 November) It may be that only the great battles of the First World War get named and garner the focus of history. But as historian Adam Hochschild notes, “the air above the Western Front was also filled…
Tag Archive for Somme
A GRISLY ACCOUNTING
by Mike Shuster
As Somme, Verdun Battles End, Shocking Losses. Wilson Re-Elected, Seeks Peace. Special to The Great War Project (14-20 November) The battles of the river Somme and Verdun, on the Western Front in northern France are coming to an end. The last Allied offensive takes place on these days a century ago. Snow falls on the…
A NEW ARMORED BEHEMOTH ENTERS THE BATTLEFIELD
by Mike Shuster
The Arrival of the Tank; German Infantry Terrified. A Future British Prime Minister Witnesses the Monster. Special to The Great War Project. (13-17 September) On this date, September 15th, precisely a century ago, a new weapon appeared at the battle of the Somme – the tank. The first tanks belonged to the Allies. They fielded…
THE ENDLESS AGONY OF THE SOMME.
by Mike Shuster
Germans March to Their Death; “Like a Scythe Had Mowed Them Down.” Romania Joins the War. Special to The Great War Project (16-19 August) The Battle of the Somme in northern France rages on. The two sides are locked in mad fury. Neither the British nor the Germans are capable of mounting a knock-out blow…
A GERMAN SOLDIER’S STORY
by Mike Shuster
His Last Day on the Battlefield A Sense of Something Poetic, Now Gone Special to The Great War Project (12-15 August) The Battle of the Somme shows no signs of ending, even though it’s now more than six weeks old. What’s it like? What is it really like to live through this horror? There are…
THE PROPAGANDA WAR AT HOME
by Mike Shuster
Press Mobilized More Vigorously Than Ever. The Electrifying Arrival of the Propaganda Film. Special to The Great War Project. (4-7 August) The battle of the Somme on the Western Front rages on. “So many deaths,” writes historian Adam Hochschild, “for a sliver of earth so narrow it could barely be seen on a wall map…
THOUSANDS LEAVE THE BATTLEFIELD WITH SHELL-SHOCK
by Mike Shuster
British Army Faces New Challenge – What’s Real Nervous Breakdown? Soldiers Put on Trial; Face Death Sentences. Special to The Great War Project. (17-20 July) By this time a century ago at the Battle of the Somme on the Western Front, the British military is facing another daunting problem. “As the fighting at the Somme…
THE RANDOMNESS OF DEATH
by Mike Shuster
The Ugly Aftermath of Battle, for Victor and Vanquished Alike. “German, Austrian, Russian, Lay There at Peace, in a ‘Brothers’ Grave.” Special to The Great War Project. (13-16 July) The murderous fighting at the Somme continues, bringing with it the randomness of death. Many soldiers write home with tragic stories about the randomness of death.…
HAIG RAGES: OUR LOSSES ARE TOO LOW
by Mike Shuster
British Commander Reasons, High Losses Bring Victory, Means Equal Losses for the Germans. Special to The Great War Project (9-12 July) The blood-letting on the Western Front at the Somme shows no sign of ending. Although the British five-day artillery bombardment does cut through some of the German barbed wire defenses, it is not so…
A RENDEZVOUS WITH DEATH
by Mike Shuster
Slaughter at the Somme Incomprehensible. A Vision of Hell; The Sorrow of the Poet’s Song. Special to The Great War Project (2-5 July) The scale of the slaughter on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, July 1st a century ago, is now becoming sadly clear. It is nothing less than horrific. “The human…