The History Book

272

P

asschendaele, officially

known as the Third Battle

of Ypres, was a large-

scale attack against the German

front line around Ypres, Belgium,

during World War I. The Allies’

aim was to advance into Belgium

and free the German-held ports

on the Belgian coast, which

the Germans had been using to

attack British shipping. The

biggest challenge was to break

through the defensive positions

taken by the Germans on the

West Flanders Ridge. Key to the

breakthrough was seizing the

village of Passchendaele.

Preparations for the battle

began on June 7, 1917 with a heavy

two-week bombardment of German

positions. The infantry offensive

began on July 31, 1917. Within days,

the Allied forces were stuck in mud

as torrential rain turned the area

into a quagmire. By the time the

Allies—made up of British, French,

Canadian, and Australian troops—

captured Passchendaele on

November 6, the village was in

ruins. The conflict cost 300,000

Allied lives, with a gain of 5 miles

(8km), while the Germans lost

260,000 of their troops. It was

hailed as a victory by the British

government but became a byword

for the utter futility of war.

Secret diplomacy

Two main disputes led to World

War I: one between Germany and

France, and the other between

Russia and Austria-Hungary. The

long history of mutual antipathy

between Germany and France

came to a head in 1870 with

France’s humiliating defeat by

Germany in the Franco-Prussian

Life in the trenches At the outbreak of World War I,

both sides anticipated fast-moving

battles that would cover hundreds

of miles. None expected a static

fight with their forces deep in

defensive trenches.

Early trenches were small

furrows, but they grew more

elaborate, fortified with wooden

frames and sandbags. German

trenches were more sophisticated

and had electricity and toilets.

Soldiers spent daylight hours

avoiding enemy fire and endured

periods of boredom and daily

chores, broken up with spells in

reserve and short rest periods.

The trenches sometimes filled

up with rats and lice, as well

as water, which turned to ice.

Life in such conditions was

exhausting, and soldiers had

a repetitive diet of canned food

and few comforts.

Snipers shot at any heads

that appeared over the parapet,

and raiding parties throwing

grenades were a constant

danger. The trenches were

bombarded with shells, bullets,

and poisonous gas. It was a

relentless war of attrition—

smelly, dirty, and riddled

with disease.

THE BATTLE OF PASSCHENDAELE

Soldiers at Passchendaele fought in

appalling conditions. In the absence

of anything better, these machine-

gunners are using bomb indentations

as makeshift shelter.

IN CONTEXT

FOCUS

World War I

BEFORE

1870–71 Defeat for France in

the war against Prussia leads

to the creation of a powerful

German Empire.

1887 Germany orders large

shipbuilding initiatives.

1912 The Balkan Wars erupt,

hardening Austro-Hungarian

attitudes to Serbia.

AFTER

1916 Secret meetings between

Britain and France produce

the Sykes–Picot Agreement,

splitting the Ottoman Empire.

November 9, 1918 Kaiser

Wilhelm abdicates, and his

imperial government collapses.

1919 At the Paris Peace

Conference, stiff terms are

imposed on Germany by

the victors in the Treaty

of Versa i l les.

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273

war, which led to the annexation

of most of the French provinces of

Alsace and Lorraine.

In Eastern Europe, the Austro-

Hungarian and Russian empires

had a long-standing dispute over

which of them had the strongest

claim to power in the Balkans. Both

depended on the area for access to

the Mediterranean, and each eyed

the movements of the other with

intense suspicion.

Each state needed allies, and

in 1882 Austria-Hungary, Germany,

and Italy signed a Triple Alliance

promising to give each other

military support in case of war.

Then, in the 1890s, Russia and

France signed an agreement to

protect one another in the event of

a war against Germany. By the turn

of the century, Kaiser Wilhelm II’s

provocative nationalistic speeches

and naval expansion pushed Britain

into closer ties with France. In

1904, Britain and France agreed

an entente cordiale, or friendly

alliance, which was broadened into

a triple entente, embracing Russia,

in 1907. The triple entente would

become known as the Allied Powers.

The atmosphere generated by this

international jostling led to an

increase in military spending

by European governments and the

expansion of armies and navies.

War erupts

A spark was all that was needed to

ignite the flame of enmity between

these two alliances. It came on

June 28, 1914, when a Bosnian Serb

assassinated Archduke Franz

Ferdinand, heir to the Habsburg

throne, in Sarajevo. The Austrians

suspected Serbia, their principal

enemy in the Balkans, of the attack.

After securing support from its

ally Germany, Austria-Hungary

presented Serbia with an ultimatum

on July 23, demanding that the

Serbs stop all anti-Austria-Hungary

activities. Serbia accepted most of

the demands, but Austria-Hungary

declared war on Serbia on July 28.

Britain called for international

mediation, but the crisis quickly

escalated into European war. When

Russia mobilized against Austria-

Hungary, Germany declared war on

Russia on August 1, and on France

two days later. Britain joined the

war on August 4, after the Germans

invaded neutral Belgium. The

British Expeditionary Force (BEF), ❯❯

See also: The Expedition of the Thousand 238–41 ■ Russia emancipates the serfs 243 ■ The October Revolution 276–79 ■

The Treaty of Versailles 280 ■ Nazi invasion of Poland 286–93

THE MODERN WORLD

European powers are bound

together in a complex

web of alliances.

The relative equality of the armies means that

neither side can score a decisive victory.

With both sides exhausted, US entry into the war on the side

of the Allies facilitates a breakthrough in the conflict.

War breaks out, eventually drawing in all the major powers and

causing death on a scale previously unimaginable.

A European arms race leads

to larger armies and more

destructive weapons.

The fighting on the Western Front becomes

a bitter stalemate despite the enormous

cost of battles like Passchendaele.

The lamps are going

out all over Europe. We

shall not see them lit

again in our lifetime.

Sir Edward Grey

British Foreign Secretary (1914)

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