The French Army and the First World War (Armies of the Great War)

This Is A Comprehensive New History Of The French Army's Critical Contribution To The Great War. Ranging Across All Fronts, Elizabeth Greenhalgh Examines The French Army's Achievements And Failures And Sets These In The Context Of The Difficulties Of Coalition Warfare And The Relative Strengths And Weaknesses Of The Enemy Forces It Faced. Drawing From New Archival Sources, She Reveals The Challenges Of Dealing With And Replenishing A Mass Conscript Army In The Face Of Slaughter On An Unprecedented Scale, And Shows How, Through Trials And Defeats, French Generals And Their Troops Learned To Adapt And Develop Techniques Which Eventually Led To Victory. In A Unique Account Of The Largest Allied Army On The Western Front, She Revises Our Understanding Not Only Of Wartime Strategy And Combat, But Also Of Other Crucial Aspects Of France's War, From Mutinies And Mail Censorship To Medical Services, Railways And Weapons Development. -- Publisher's Description. The Pre-war Army -- 1914: From The Frontiers To Flanders -- 1915: On The Offensive -- 1916: Verdun And The Somme -- General Nivelle And His 1917 Offensive -- Restoring The Army -- 1918: German Offensives -- The Path To Victory -- Armistices And Demobilisation -- From 1914 To 1919: Aux Armes, Citoyens! Elizabeth Greenhalgh. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Cover 1 Half-title 3 Series information 4 Title page 5 Copyright information 6 Table of contents 7 List of figures 8 List of maps 11 List of tables 12 Preface 13 List of abbreviations 16 Introduction 19 1 The pre-war Army 25 The political background, 1870-1911 25 The new Republican Army prepares for war 32 The prospective enemy 37 Russia and Britain as allies 40 August 1914: The mobilised army 44 2 1914: From the frontiers to Flanders 55 The opening battles: from the frontiers to the river Marne 55 To the North Sea 68 Military medicine and military justice 76 3 1915: On the offensive 88 Secondary offensives, December 1914 to summer and autumn 1915 92 Principal operations: Champagne and Artois 103 The politicians intervene, at home and abroad 114 The Champagne and Artois double offensive 129 Africa 136 The end of 1915 138 4 1916: Verdun and the Somme 143 Verdun 148 The role of General Pétain 155 Somme 165 Exterior theatres 175 Results of the 1916 campaign 181 5 General Nivelle and his 1917 offensive 188 Nivelle's planning 193 The offensive begins 206 Renewing the offensive 211 Mutinies 219 Autopsy of a disaster 234 6 Restoring the Army 238 Doctrine, training, weapons 238 The 'batailles de redressement' 247 Flanders 247 Verdun 254 La Malmaison 258 Cambrai 263 The results of Pétain's offensives, and lessons learned 265 Other fronts intrude 272 Italy and Caporetto 278 Planning the 1918 campaign 283 7 1918: German offensives 289 Two offensives against the British front 289 The repercussions on the French Army 304 Three offensives against the French front 310 8 The path to victory 330 The 18 July counter-attack 330 The 24 July memorandum and plans 339 The general offensive: 'tout le monde à la bataille' 354 9 Armistices and demobilisation 363 The Central Powers disintegrate 363 Western Front 371 An offensive in Lorraine 377 Crossing the Meuse 382 The position on 11 November 1918 and the march to the Rhine 384 Demobilisation 388 10 From 1914 to 1919: Aux armes, citoyens 394 France's Army through the years of war 394 The French Army and France, its Allies and Germany 412 Arc de triomphe 425 Notes 428 Chapter 1 428 Chapter 2 431 Chapter 3 434 Chapter 4 439 Chapter 5 442 Chapter 6 446 Chapter 7 451 Chapter 8 455 Chapter 9 458 Chapter 10 461 Bibliographic essay 465 General works 465 The French Army as an institution 468 Military operations 469 Tactics and doctrine: pre-war and developments 472 Industrial mobilisation and new materiel: artillery, aviation and tanks 472 Intelligence 473 Military justice and military medicine 474 Allies and the enemy 475 Index 477 A comprehensive new account of the French Army's critical contribution to the Great War. Elizabeth Greenhalgh revises our understanding not only of wartime strategy and fighting, but also of other crucial aspects of France's war, from mutinies and mail censorship to medical services, railways and weapons development.