Author: Turner, Alexander
Publisher: Osprey Pub Co
Year: 2010
ISBN: 9781846038457
Binding: Soft Cover
Book Condition: As New
Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall
Description:
New book, 96 pages, CAM225. At 0310 hours on 7 June 1917, the pre-dawn gloom on the Western Front was shattered by the ‘pillars of fire’ - the rapid detonation of 19 huge mines, secreted in tunnels under the German lines and containing 450 tonnes of explosives. Admitted by the Germans to be a ‘masterstroke’, the devastating blasts caused 10,000 soldiers to later be posted simply as ‘missing’. Launching a pre-planned attack into the carnage, supported by tanks and a devastating artillery barrage, the British took the strategic objective of Messines Ridge within hours. A rare example of innovation and success in the First World War, this book is a fresh and timely examination of a fascinating campaign. Contents: Origins of the campaign, Chronology, Opposing commanders, Opposing forces, Opposing plans, The battle of Messines, Aftermath, The battlefield today, Further reading, Index.