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Amiens 1918
The first history of one of the most significant battles of the First World War. A major victory for the Allies, Amiens is the battle many military historians credit with precipitating the end of the war. The surprise attack was launched on 8 August 1918, with over 500 tanks (the largest number to participate in any battle of the war), 1,000 aircraft and 21 divisions of the Allied forces. The German supreme commander, General Erich von Ludendorff, described the first day as the black day of the German army in the history of the war. The operation succeeded and by 13 August the Allies had penetrated 11 miles along a 47-mile front, killing or wounding 50,000 Germans. Thirty years in the writing, Amiens is the first book to study the battle in minute detail. Using eyewitness accounts from numerous survivors, the authors take us into the trenches, the tanks and the cockpits.
328 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 2, 2016
Good look at the Battle of Amiens in the summer of 1918. Considering that less than six months before, the Allied Army had been fighting for survival, this turnaround had a profound effect on the course of the war. Overextention on the part of the German Army along with a momentous effort on the part of Allied troops produced what became known as "the black day of the German Army". Unfortunately, after a short period the Allies were forced to halt operations due to increased resistance on the part of the enemy, and their own need to rest and refit.
July 29, 2017
The first day of this battle was a prototype of blitzkrieg. Many tanks, armored cars, mechanized infantry, elite Canadian and Australian shock troops, ground-support air units and deceptive communications were combined to stun the Germans to the extent that Ludendorf lost his nerve and thought about peace. The fact that the success was limited is due to High Command's inability to deal with success after four years of failure. Nevertheless, this limited achievement tore the heart from the German Army.
May 1, 2016
This review refers to the British 2007 edition: Amiens 1918: The Last Great Battle
This book started life over 30 years ago, when McWilliams & Steel interviewed a number of surviving Australian participants in the battle. The project stalled, only to be revived some 20 years later in the form of this book. The result is a useful contribution to the study of this vital battle, in that it supplements the official histories of Britain, Australia and Canada with significant firsthand accounts.
The authors have adopted a largely narrative approach, dealing with the origins of the battle and then covering each phase of the battle, division by division. The result is a very clear description, but the depth of analysis is limited. This is made more significant by the absence of any real examination of the battle from the German side, other than through material already contained in the Allied official histories and a handful of standard works, focused on Lunderdorff.
As a consequence, while this is a very welcome contribution to the literature on this fascinating battle, and is well written and readable, the more serious reader will need to look elsewhere for a full understanding of why the events described so well by McWilliams and Steel happened the way they did.
This book started life over 30 years ago, when McWilliams & Steel interviewed a number of surviving Australian participants in the battle. The project stalled, only to be revived some 20 years later in the form of this book. The result is a useful contribution to the study of this vital battle, in that it supplements the official histories of Britain, Australia and Canada with significant firsthand accounts.
The authors have adopted a largely narrative approach, dealing with the origins of the battle and then covering each phase of the battle, division by division. The result is a very clear description, but the depth of analysis is limited. This is made more significant by the absence of any real examination of the battle from the German side, other than through material already contained in the Allied official histories and a handful of standard works, focused on Lunderdorff.
As a consequence, while this is a very welcome contribution to the literature on this fascinating battle, and is well written and readable, the more serious reader will need to look elsewhere for a full understanding of why the events described so well by McWilliams and Steel happened the way they did.
August 29, 2015
The authors are to be commended for their perseverance (read the short 'The Authors' Acknowledgement' at the end of the book for more details). This book is essential reading for anyone who wishes to become acquainted with the last phase of the Great War, and the contributions made by the Australian and Canadian Corps towards the Allied victory in November 1918. As mentioned in other reviews the maps published are lamentable. But the published Order of Battle is very useful.
March 28, 2015
Excellent overview of the battle along with some reasonably insightful comment on causes and consequences of it all. I rated it only three stars because it suffers in using old, unclear maps and not too many of those. Other than that a good starting point for someone wanting to study this battle in particular and the Hundred Days overall.
September 7, 2011
A look at the Great war and the turning point for Canada and it's allies. Steel and McWilliams are masterful in making history a pleasure to read.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews