42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I

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Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1780960182
Total Pages : 103 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (89 download)

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Book Synopsis 42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I by : Marc Romanych

Download or read book 42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I written by Marc Romanych and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-01-20 with total page 103 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the early days of World War I, Germany unveiled a new weapon – the mobile 42cm (16.5 inch) M-Gerät howitzer. At the time, it was the largest artillery piece of its kind in the world and a closely guarded secret. When war broke out, two of the howitzers were rushed directly from the factory to Liege where they quickly destroyed two forts and compelled the fortress to surrender. After repeat performances at Namur, Maubeuge and Antwerp, German soldiers christened the howitzers 'Grosse' or 'Dicke Berta' (Fat or Big Bertha) after Bertha von Krupp, owner of the Krupp armament works that built the howitzers. The nickname was soon picked up by German press which triumphed the 42cm howitzers as Wunderwaffe (wonder weapons), and the legend of Big Bertha was born. This book details the design and development of German siege guns before and during World War I. Accompanying the text are many rare, never-before-published photographs of 'Big Bertha' and the other German siege guns. Colour illustrations depict the most important aspects of the German siege artillery.

World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns

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Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472837169
Total Pages : 49 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (728 download)

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Book Synopsis World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns by : Marc Romanych

Download or read book World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns written by Marc Romanych and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-07-23 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the outbreak of World War II approached, Nazi Germany ordered artillery manufacturers Krupp and Rheimetall-Borsig to build several super-heavy siege guns, vital to smash through French and Belgian fortresses that stood in the way of the Blitzkrieg. These 'secret weapons' were much larger than the siege artillery of World War I and included the largest artillery piece of the war, the massive 80cm railway gun 'schwere Gustav' (Heavy Gustav). However, these complex and massive artillery pieces required years to build and test and, as war drew near, the German High Command hastily brought several WWI-era heavy artillery pieces back into service and then purchased, and later confiscated, a large number of Czech Skoda mortars. The new super siege guns began entering service in time for the invasion of Russia, notably participating in the attack on the fortress of Brest-Litovsk. The highpoint for the siege artillery was the siege of Sevastopol in the summer of 1942, which saw the largest concentration of siege guns in the war. Afterwards, when Germany was on the defensive in the second half of 1943, the utility of the guns was greatly diminished, and they were employed in a piecemeal and sporadic fashion on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. In total, the German Army used some 50 siege guns during World War II, far more than the thirty-five it had during World War I. Supported by contemporary photographs and detailed artwork of the guns and their components, this is an essential guide to these guns, exploring their history, development, and deployment in stunning detail.

World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns

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Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472837169
Total Pages : 49 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (728 download)

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Book Synopsis World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns by : Marc Romanych

Download or read book World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns written by Marc Romanych and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-07-23 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the outbreak of World War II approached, Nazi Germany ordered artillery manufacturers Krupp and Rheimetall-Borsig to build several super-heavy siege guns, vital to smash through French and Belgian fortresses that stood in the way of the Blitzkrieg. These 'secret weapons' were much larger than the siege artillery of World War I and included the largest artillery piece of the war, the massive 80cm railway gun 'schwere Gustav' (Heavy Gustav). However, these complex and massive artillery pieces required years to build and test and, as war drew near, the German High Command hastily brought several WWI-era heavy artillery pieces back into service and then purchased, and later confiscated, a large number of Czech Skoda mortars. The new super siege guns began entering service in time for the invasion of Russia, notably participating in the attack on the fortress of Brest-Litovsk. The highpoint for the siege artillery was the siege of Sevastopol in the summer of 1942, which saw the largest concentration of siege guns in the war. Afterwards, when Germany was on the defensive in the second half of 1943, the utility of the guns was greatly diminished, and they were employed in a piecemeal and sporadic fashion on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. In total, the German Army used some 50 siege guns during World War II, far more than the thirty-five it had during World War I. Supported by contemporary photographs and detailed artwork of the guns and their components, this is an essential guide to these guns, exploring their history, development, and deployment in stunning detail.

German Artillery

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Author :
Publisher : Fact File
ISBN 13 : 9781473823983
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (239 download)

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Book Synopsis German Artillery by : Wolfgang Fleischer

Download or read book German Artillery written by Wolfgang Fleischer and published by Fact File. This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Each weapon is presented with a short description, images and a reference table of key technical data, supplemented by colour drawings."--Back cover

Italian Armoured & Reconnaissance Cars 1911–45

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472824350
Total Pages : 49 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (728 download)

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Book Synopsis Italian Armoured & Reconnaissance Cars 1911–45 by : Filippo Cappellano

Download or read book Italian Armoured & Reconnaissance Cars 1911–45 written by Filippo Cappellano and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2018-07-26 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first Italian armoured cars were used in the war in Libya in 1911-12 against the Ottoman Empire. With few tanks being developed, the Italians relied instead on the development of more mobile armoured cars like the Ansaldo Lancia 1 Z, during World War I, but post-war the army, focusing on the Alpine battlegrounds of Italy's northern borders, did not consider armoured cars suitable for reconnaissance duties. The experience of the Spanish Civil War would provide the much needed last push for the Italians to develop modern armoured cars. The result were the famous AB 41-43 models, which fought against the British in North Africa and Marshall Tito's forces in Yugoslavia, along with other vehicles such as the AS 36 light armoured car. Using detailed colour plates and contemporary photographs, this book examines the development of the Italian armoured car in the two world wars and the inter-war years, from the deserts of North Africa to the slopes of the Alps.

Ten Days in August

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Publisher : The History Press
ISBN 13 : 0750957611
Total Pages : 421 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (59 download)

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Book Synopsis Ten Days in August by : Terence Zuber

Download or read book Ten Days in August written by Terence Zuber and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2014-08-01 with total page 421 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In August 1914 the German main attack was conducted by the 2nd Army. It had the missions of taking the vital fortresses of Liège and Namur, and then defeating the Anglo- French-Belgian forces in the open plains of northern Belgium. The German attack on the Belgian fortress at Liège from 5 to 16 August 1914 had tremendous political and military importance, and yet there has never been a complete account of the siege. The German and Belgian sources are fragmentary and biased. The short descriptions in English are general, use a few Belgian sources and are filled with inaccuracies. Making use of both German and Belgian sources, and supported by tactical maps, this book for the first time describes and evaluates the construction of the fortress, its military purpose, the German plan and the conduct of the attack. Previous accounts emphasise the importance of the huge German 'Big Bertha' cannon, to the virtual exclusion of everything else; Ten Days in August shows that the effect of this gun was a myth, and reveals how the Germans really took the fortress and thus set the scene for perhaps the most destructive conflict in history.

Statistics of the Military Effort of the British Empire During the Great War 1914-1920

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Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781847346810
Total Pages : 946 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (468 download)

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Book Synopsis Statistics of the Military Effort of the British Empire During the Great War 1914-1920 by :

Download or read book Statistics of the Military Effort of the British Empire During the Great War 1914-1920 written by and published by . This book was released on 2015-07-22 with total page 946 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: First published in 1922 in a very limited edition, this mammoth work is the most comprehensive, single-volume record of the nation's commitment in the first total war in British history. Until August 1914, wars, as far as Great Britain was concerned, had been the business of the regular armed forces, supplemented by eager volunteers, motivated by patriotism and a sense of adventure. They had marched away behind the bands, with the Colours flying and the enthusiastic cheers of onlookers ringing in their ears. Apart from the families of the men doing the fighting, however, war had little effect on the wider population. In August 1914 most people expected the war to follow this previous pattern: the surge of patriotism, the Mafeking-style jingoism, the rush of volunteers eager to get to the fighting before it was all over. But within a couple of months, when the casualty lists of then First Battle of Ypres began to appear, the mood began to change, as people perceived the true nature of modern war. The record of this response is made clear in the monthly and annual statistical returns displayed in this volume. The scope of 'Statistics' is hugely impressive. It is divided into thirty-two parts, each dealing with a different aspect of the war effort - personnel, animals and materiel - under separate section headings, with the detail presented in clear, tabular form, frequently accompanied by a narrative of events or commentary. The wealth of detail displayed is formidable. For example, the 200-page part dealing with Strength of the Forces has tables showing monthly recruiting figures, strength returns by theatres, returns of Labour and Native personnel serving abroad, growth of individual Arms of the Service (infantry, artillery, cavalry etc.) and tables of consolidated figures. Casualty lists include those incurred in hospital ships, with individual ship details, and there are also figures for major offensives, such as the Somme, Arras, Passchendaele, Cambrai etc. Other parts deal with discipline - courts martial, crime and punishment statistics; consolidated list of honours and awards; texts of armistices; munitions production and expenditure, including the cost of certain bombardments during major battles. There is a fifty-page outline diary of the main events in the various Theatres of War and, under a separate heading, a diary of the air raids over the UK and coastal bombardments with resulting casualties.

Breaking the Fortress Line, 1914

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Author :
Publisher : Pen and Sword
ISBN 13 : 1473830125
Total Pages : 263 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (738 download)

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Book Synopsis Breaking the Fortress Line, 1914 by : Clayton Donnell

Download or read book Breaking the Fortress Line, 1914 written by Clayton Donnell and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2013-10-17 with total page 263 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Breaking the Fortress Line 1914 offers a fascinating new perspective on the German offensive against France and Belgium in 1914. In graphic detail it describes the intense fighting that took place around the forts and fortified cities that stood in the path of the German invasion. The ordeal began with the German assault on the mighty fortress of Lige. They took twelve days to batter their way through the 'Gateway to Belgium', losing thousands of men in repeated frontal assaults, and they had to bring up the heaviest siege artillery ever used to destroy the defences.This is the epic struggle that Clayton Donnell depicts in this compelling account of a neglected aspect of the battles that followed the outbreak of the Great War. Not only does he reconstruct the German attack on the strongpoints they encountered along the entire invasion line, but he traces the history and design of these fixed defences and analyses the massive military building programmes undertaken by the French, the Germans and the Belgians between 1871 and 1914. Thousands of huge forts, infantry strongpoints, bunkers, casemates and shelters were dug out along the French and German borders. The German Moselstellung and Steinbruch-stellung were born. These massive concrete fortress systems with steel gun turrets and diesel motors to generate electricity were a completely new concept of fortress design.As war approached, France and Germany devised plans to overcome each other's powerful armies and these border defences. The French plan avoided contact with the German fortress system. But the Kaiser's army faced twelve forts at Lige, nine more at Namur, and then the strongpoints of the first and second Sr de Rivires lines. Clayton Donnell provides a gripping narrative of the violent confrontation that followed.

The Forts of the Meuse in World War I

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Author :
Publisher : Osprey Publishing
ISBN 13 : 9781846031144
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (311 download)

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Book Synopsis The Forts of the Meuse in World War I by : Clayton Donnell

Download or read book The Forts of the Meuse in World War I written by Clayton Donnell and published by Osprey Publishing. This book was released on 2007-02-27 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On October 29, 1891, the new forts built around the cities of Li_ge and Namur, known as the "Forts of the Meuse," were turned over to the Belgian Army. The huge project, which had begun in 1888 and cost 71.6 million Belgian Francs, required over 9,000 workers to complete. It produced 21 modern forts that could defend the strategic rail, river, and road arteries passing through narrow gaps to the flat, open plains of Flanders. The Forts of the Meuse were the creation of General Brialmont, one of the foremost military engineers of his time. The development of new and more powerful artillery meant that Brialmont's forts were made of concrete, featuring underground barracks, storerooms, and guns protected in revolving steel turrets. In August 1914, the German Army attempted a quick crossing of this area in order to reach France, but it took them 12 days to destroy the fortresses, with the 30,000 Belgian troops putting up a valiant fight. Containing maps, diagrams, and photographs taken from private collections, this book explores the design, development, and influence of the "Forts of the Meuse," and highlights the importance of their role during the opening battle of World War I.

M40 Gun Motor Carriage and M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage in WWII and Korea

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Author :
Publisher : Schiffer Military History
ISBN 13 : 9780764354021
Total Pages : 112 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (54 download)

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Book Synopsis M40 Gun Motor Carriage and M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage in WWII and Korea by : David Doyle

Download or read book M40 Gun Motor Carriage and M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage in WWII and Korea written by David Doyle and published by Schiffer Military History. This book was released on 2017-10-18 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The M40 Gun Motor Carriage and M43 Howitzer Motor Carriage are featured in over 200 photographs, providing a detailed study of the conception, development, testing, and combat use of these key vehicles. As the US entered WWII, the nation lacked heavy self-propelled artillery, instead relying heavily on towed artillery, much of it WWI-surplus. Only 100 examples of the nation's first heavy self-propelled gun, the M12, were built. Finding favor once deployed, attention was turned to developing an improved model. Initially designated the T83, and later as the M40, the new 155mm Gun Motor Carriage was first fielded in the closing months of WWII. Already scheduled for mass production, the M40, and its companion 8-inch howitzer-armed M43, continued to see extensive use during the Korean War, providing crucial support to infantry and armor formations. Historic period images, as well as, meticulously photographed surviving examples, provide a detailed look at this important piece of US military hardware.

Railway Guns of World War I

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Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472816412
Total Pages : 49 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (728 download)

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Book Synopsis Railway Guns of World War I by : Marc Romanych

Download or read book Railway Guns of World War I written by Marc Romanych and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-08-24 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: World War I was the Golden Age of the railway gun. Even though at the start of the conflict none of the armies possessed any railway artillery pieces and the very idea was comparatively new, more railway guns were used during this war than in any other conflict. Designed to break the stalemate of trench warfare, the first railway guns were simple, improvised designs made by mounting surplus coastal defence, fortress, and naval guns onto existing commercial railway carriages. As the war dragged on, railway artillery development shifted to longer range guns that could shell targets deep behind enemy lines. This change of role brought much larger and more sophisticated guns often manufactured by mounting long-barrel naval guns to specially-designed railway carriages. This book details the design and development of railway guns during World War I from the very first basic designs to massive purpose built "monster" railway guns. Accompanying the text are many rare, never-before-published, photographs and colour illustrations depicting how these weapons were used during World War I.

British Artillery 1914–19

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Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1782004300
Total Pages : 83 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (82 download)

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Book Synopsis British Artillery 1914–19 by : Dale Clarke

Download or read book British Artillery 1914–19 written by Dale Clarke and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2012-09-20 with total page 83 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1914 the artillery of Britain's 'Field Army' encompassed those weapons judged to have sufficient mobility to keep up with troops in the field. This book describes all major variants, from the 60-pdr guns of the heavy field batteries, perched somewhat uncomfortably on the cusp between field artillery and siege artillery, to the 2.75in. guns of the mountain batteries, almost toy-like in comparison. Between these two extremes lay the bulk of the artillery of the Field Army: the 13-pdr guns of the Royal Horse Artillery, and the 18-pdr guns and 4.5in. howitzers of the Royal Field Artillery batteries.

The Illustrated War News

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 510 pages
Book Rating : 4.F/5 ( download)

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Book Synopsis The Illustrated War News by :

Download or read book The Illustrated War News written by and published by . This book was released on 1917 with total page 510 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Railway Guns of World War II

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Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472810694
Total Pages : 52 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (728 download)

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Book Synopsis Railway Guns of World War II by : Steven J. Zaloga

Download or read book Railway Guns of World War II written by Steven J. Zaloga and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-02-25 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: World War II marked the zenith of railway gun development. Although many of the railway guns deployed at the start of the conflict were of World War I vintage, Germany's ambitious development programme saw the introduction of a number of new classes, including the world's largest, the 80cm-calibre Schwerer Gustav and Schwerer Dora guns, which weighed in at 1,350 tons and fired a huge 7-ton shell. This book provides an overview of the types of railway guns in service during World War II, with a special focus on the German railway artillery used in France, Italy and on the Eastern Front, and analyzes why railway guns largely disappeared from use following the end of the war.

In Deadly Combat

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Publisher : University Press of Kansas
ISBN 13 : 0700611223
Total Pages : 384 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (6 download)

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Book Synopsis In Deadly Combat by : Gottlob Herbert Bidermann

Download or read book In Deadly Combat written by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann and published by University Press of Kansas. This book was released on 2000-06-07 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the hell that was World War II, the Eastern Front was its heart of fire and ice. Gottlob Herbert Bidermann served in that lethal theater from 1941 to 1945, and his memoir of those years recaptures the sights, sounds, and smells of the war as it vividly portrays an army marching on the road to ruin. A riveting and reflective account by one of the millions of anonymous soldiers who fought and died in that cruel terrain, In Deadly Combat conveys the brutality and horrors of the Eastern Front in detail never before available in English. It offers a ground soldier's perspective on life and death on the front lines, providing revealing new information concerning day-to-day operations and German army life. Wounded five times and awarded numerous decorations for valor, Bidermann saw action in the Crimea and siege of Sebastopol, participated in the vicious battles in the forests south of Leningrad, and ended the war in the Courland Pocket. He shares his impressions of countless Russian POWs seen at the outset of his service, of peasants struggling to survive the hostilities while caught between two ruthless antagonists, and of corpses littering the landscape. He recalls a Christmas gift of gingerbread from home that overcame the stench of battle, an Easter celebrated with a basket of Russian hand grenades for eggs, and his miraculous survival of machine gun fire at close range. In closing he relives the humiliation of surrender to an enemy whom the Germans had once derided and offers a sobering glimpse into life in the Soviet gulags. Bidermann's account debunks the myth of a highly mechanized German army that rolled over weaker opponents with impunity. Despite the vast expanses of territory captured by the Germans during the early months of Operation Barbarossa, the war with Russia remained tenuous and unforgiving. His story commits that living hell to the annals of World War II and broadens our understanding of its most deadly combat zone. Translator Derek Zumbro has rendered Bidermann's memoir into a compelling narrative that retains the author's powerful style. This English-language edition of Bidermann's dynamic story is based upon a privately published memoir entitled Krim-Kurland Mit Der 132 Infanterie Division.The translator has added important events derived from numerous interviews with Bidermann to provide additional context for American readers.

The Price of Glory

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Author :
Publisher : Penguin UK
ISBN 13 : 0141937521
Total Pages : 400 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (419 download)

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Book Synopsis The Price of Glory by : Alistair Horne

Download or read book The Price of Glory written by Alistair Horne and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2007-06-28 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The battle of Verdun lasted ten months. It was a battle in which at least 700,000 men fell, along a front of fifteen miles. Its aim was less to defeat the enemy than bleed him to death and a battleground whose once fertile terrain is even now a haunted wilderness. Alistair Horne's classic work, continuously in print for over fifty years, is a profoundly moving, sympathetic study of the battle and the men who fought there. It shows that Verdun is a key to understanding the First World War to the minds of those who waged it, the traditions that bound them and the world that gave them the opportunity.

Verdun 1916

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Author :
Publisher : Pen and Sword
ISBN 13 : 1473875188
Total Pages : 319 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (738 download)

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Book Synopsis Verdun 1916 by : H. W. Kaufmann

Download or read book Verdun 1916 written by H. W. Kaufmann and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2016-07-31 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Wrapped in myth and distortion, the Battle of Verdun is one of the most enigmatic battles of the Great War, and the controversy continues a century later. Before the battle the Germans believed they had selected one of the strongest points in the French defences in the hope that, if they smashed through it, the French would collapse. But Verdun was actually a hollow shell since its forts were largely disarmed and the trench lines were incomplete. So why did the Germans fail to take Verdun? As well as seeking to answer this fundamental question, the authors of this perceptive new study reconsider other key aspects of the battle the German deployment of stormtroopers, the use of artillery and aircraft, how the French developed the idea of methodical battle which came to dominate their military thought after the war. They look too at how Verdun brought about a renaissance of fortress engineering that resulted in the creation of the Maginot Line and the other fortifications constructed in Europe before the Second World War.