Germany in the Great War: Arras, Third Ypres & Cambrai

By Joshua Bilton

This book documents the experiences of the Central Powers, specifically Austria-Hungary, Germany and the Ottoman Empire during 1917, as they fought on land, at sea and in the air. Drawing on hundreds of contemporary photographs, many of them never previously published, this book examines the experiences of these three nations, spotlighting not only the events that occurred throughout the year, but the lives of those individuals fighting and dying to defend their homelands, families and friends. Each chapter includes a succinct overview of a single front or theatre of operation, complimenting the hundreds of professional and amateur photographs contained within. Though many of the images are of the German and Austro-Hungarian armies on the Westfront and Ostfront, several additional chapters also explore the fighting across other, lesser-known fronts, including the Südwest Front and in Sinai and Palestine, and Mesopotamia. This book is an excellent pictorial guide that would be of benefit to anyone seeking to gain a better understanding of what life was like from the perspective of the German, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman armies, and their peoples during the fourth year of the First World War.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Dec 8, 2021
• ISBN: 9781473876958

Joshua Bilton

Josh Bilton is a recent graduate of Kings College London where he studied the History of War. He lives and works in the United Kingdom.

Book preview

GERMANY IN THE GREAT WAR

GERMANY IN THE GREAT WAR

Arras, Third Ypres & Cambrai

Joshua Bilton

First published in Great Britain in 2021 by

Pen & Sword Military

An imprint of

Pen & Sword Books Ltd

Yorkshire – Philadelphia

Copyright © Joshua Bilton, 2021

ISBN 978 1 47387 693 4

eISBN 978 1 47387 695 8

Mobi ISBN 978 1 47387 695 8

The right of Joshua Bilton to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the Publisher in writing.

Pen & Sword Books Limited incorporates the imprints of Atlas, Archaeology, Aviation, Discovery, Family History, Fiction, History, Maritime, Military, Military Classics, Politics, Select, Transport, True Crime, Air World, Frontline Publishing, Leo Cooper, Remember When, Seaforth Publishing, The Praetorian Press, Wharncliffe Local History, Wharncliffe Transport, Wharncliffe True Crime and White Owl.

PEN & SWORD BOOKS LTD

47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, England

E-mail: [e-mail]

Website: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk

Or

PEN AND SWORD BOOKS

1950 Lawrence Rd, Havertown, PA 19083, USA

E-mail: [e-mail]

Website: www.penandswordbooks.com

Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Chapter 1 Westfront

Chapter 2 Ostfront

Chapter 3 Südwest Front

Chapter 4 Türkei

Chapter 5 Luftstreitkräfte

Chapter 6 Kaiserliche Marine

Chapter 7 Heim Front

Chronology of Events

Bibliography

Endnotes

Acknowledgements

Research is rarely a solitary endeavour. The author therefore wishes to thank David Bilton for his continued support, advice and guidance, as well as Irene Moore for proofreading multiple drafts and Amy Jordan for assisting with the final edits. Any errors or omissions are mine alone.

Introduction

Germany in the Great War Illustrated: Arras, Third Ypres and Cambrai is the fourth publication in a five-part series, documenting the exploits of the Central Powers during the First World War. This particular edition focuses on the year 1917 and the political unrest that manifested, as well as the increased privation, both at home and at the front, the defensive stratagem adopted on the Westfront (Western Front) and the engagements conducted in the air and at sea.

Fighting in Africa and Macedonia is not examined, due to a lack of photographic evidence: a consequence of the sporadic nature of the campaigns, the paucity of servicemen and, by default, media attention. It is important to note that this book is not an exploration of the Central Powers and their endeavours. It is instead a pictorial record.

By January, the Central Powers were fighting on various fronts, situated across Europe, Africa, the Middle East and at sea. On the Westfront (Flanders and northern France), the Deutsches Heer (German Army) was engaged in frustrating Entente (France, Britain and their allies) endeavours to break the ensuing stalemate. The attritional campaigns of the Somme and Verdun the previous year had also weakened German forces to the west, and a stratagem of defence had therefore been adopted in order to husband resources, reorganise and regroup. Between February and April, elements of the Deutsches Heer retired to a newly-established fortified line designated the Siegfriedstellung (Siegfried Position). Significantly shorter, it was regarded as impregnable and capable of withstanding myriad offensives.

As if to coincide with their strategic withdrawal, Entente forces launched the Nivelle Offensive. British and Dominion servicemen conducted a preliminary assault against the German line northeast of Arras, intending to draw reinforcements away from the subsequent French attack on the Aisne. Though initially successful, it was clear by 20 April that the campaign had floundered owing to an effective defence-in-depth that culminated in heavy casualties. Eager to capitalise upon the situation, British and Dominion forces launched two further attacks, first at Ypres, Belgium in July, then at Cambrai, France in November. Over the course of six months, the Deutsches Heer withstood eight offensives around Ypres and one at Cambrai. Despite repeated efforts, minimal gains were achieved, leaving British forces exhausted.

Part of the German success was the utilisation of their air service and the effective exploitation of ‘combined arms’, especially at Cambrai. The Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte (Imperial German Air Service; or IGFC) pilots had by the beginning of the year gained aerial ascendancy over the Westfront. As a consequence, the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was decimated during the Nivelle Offensive, suffering a 50 per cent attrition rate during April alone.¹ Though ascendancy was eventually wrested from the IGFC, across the Ostfront (Eastern Front), as well as in the Middle East, German airmen reigned supreme. For example, in Sinai and Palestine it was only with the introduction of Bristol fighters during the autumn that rendered the exceptional Albatros D.I ineffectual.²

Aerial warfare was not limited to the battlefield. Since January 1915, dirigible airships (Zeppelins) had bombed England and a variety of other cities and towns, undertaking what can be regarded as the first strategic bombing campaign. However, the limited success of these raids occasioned a shift to Gotha G.IV bombers. Under the codename Operation TÜRKENKREUZ (Turk’s Cross), numerous sorties were conducted against London and the southeast coast of England. Several hundred civilians and armed forces personnel were killed, while thousands sought shelter in the London Underground in fear.³ Anti-aircraft defences were similarly established, drawing two RFC squadrons away from the Westfront.

In April, the American government declared war on Germany. Their entry on the side of the Entente was problematic for Germany due to the substantial manpower resources of the United States and the fact that such weight of numbers was likely to overwhelm German forces on the Westfront. However, this was tempered by growing political unrest in Russia, where demonstrators, mostly women, had taken to the streets of Petrograd (St. Petersburg) to protest against the war, heavy casualties during the campaigns of 1916, and the reign of Nicholas II of Russia. In the face of public animosity, the Tsar abdicated to be replaced by the Provisional Russian Government (PRG). Despite attempts to unify the populace and renew operations on the Eastern Front, military and social discipline disintegrated, culminating in Russia’s withdrawal from the war and capitulation. Breakdown was to an extent a consequence of the lamentable Kerensky Offensive, as well as the occupation of the Riga, Latvia and Western Estonia Archipelago (WEA) by German forces.

Success at the WEA was in part a result of the Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial German Navy; IGN) having shepherded German servicemen ashore, while elements of the invasion fleet conducted mine clearance and the subjugation of coastal batteries. Perhaps the IGN’s most significant decision that year, however, was the renewal of ‘unrestricted’ submarine warfare. Between February and April, British shipping losses increased exponentially, from 414,000 Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT) per month to 600,000. Despite initial successes, by May overall figures had decreased owing to the implementation of the convoy system and the reintroduction of Q-Ships, heavily armed merchant vessels, disguised as neutral ships. Meanwhile, in the Adriatic and Mediterranean Sea the Austro-Hungarian navy was also active, undertaking a variety of operations, either in support of ground forces in northern Italy or against merchant shipping and the ‘Otranto Barrage’ – an Entente blockade of the Otranto Straits, intended to preclude entry into the Mediterranean Sea.

Limited gains, however, could not ameliorate the ensuing economic blockade, which continued to impact life on the home fronts. Food and coal shortages enervated ‘productivity and health’, especially among juveniles and