Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #77697 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-21
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

Synopsis
Even after the passage of almost a century, the name Passchendaele has lost none of its power to shock and dismay. Reeling from the huge losses in earlier battles, the German army was in no shape to absorb the impact of the Battle of Messines and the subsequent bitter attritional struggle. Throughout the fighting on the Somme, the German army had always felt that it had the ability to counter Allied thrusts, but following the shock reverses of April and May 1917, much heart searching had led to the urgent introduction of new tactics of flexible defence. When these in turn were found to be wanting, the psychological damage shook the German defenders badly. But, as this book demonstrates, at trench level the individual soldier of the German Army was still capable of fighting extraordinarily hard, despite being outnumbered, outgunned and subjected to relentless, morale-sapping shelling and gas attacks.

The German army drew comfort from the realisation that, although it had had to yield ground and had paid a huge price in casualties, its morale was essentially intact and the British were no closer to a breakthrough in Flanders at the end of the battle than they had been many weeks earlier.

Customer Reviews

Use with great caution
Sheldon's book is based largely on translations from the hundreds of regimental histories that appeared in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s. But, as Sheldon nowhere acknowledges, these were written under conditions of strict censorship imposed by the German government as to their content and point of view. The Reichsarchiv insisted that they 'abstain from any critical position taking'. The regimental 'war diaries' and collections of soldiers' letters (feldpostbriefe) on which the regimental histories drew were also severely controlled and censored. It says a great deal about these regimental 'histories' that one of the greatest admirers of their style and point of view was Adolf Hitler. Sheldon is more of a military enthusiast than a proper historian, so you wouldn't expect him to comment on these matters. But it is shocking that Peter Simkins and Richard Holmes, who introduce Sheldon's works, don't do so. Sheldon's books are useful, if dull, to read, but must be consulted with very great caution.

The Great War book of 2007
Jack Sheldon has delivered another compelling book to match his excellent reference on The German Army on the Somme (ISBN 1844152698) published in July 2005.
This current book follows the same format as its Somme partner in placing German eyewitness accounts in the correct battle context at Passchendaele as part of the Third Battle of Ypres. It is a masterpiece of research and gives breadth to the German side of the story thus far restricted to the few English translations of such authors as Junger. Indeed the temptation to regurgitate the well known accounts has been suppressed in favour of lesser known sources and it is the better for it. So those seeking Junger at Langemarck will find plenty of supporting sources and evidence from others with 73rd HF and also from adjoining regiments of the 111th Division (76th HF and 164th ). That is the genius of Sheldon's work; the sheer depth of research and corroboration that leaves you confident that these sources are reliable. The bibliography of over one hundred published German books plus further unpublished sources confirms this. This book is without doubt the highlight of 2007 and an absolute necessity for any serious researcher on Third Ypres.

Michael McCarthy
Editor, The Battle Guide
Guild of Battlefield Guides

The German Army at Passchendaele
For generations, the story of the Flanders fighting in the summer and autumn of 1917 has been the province of "anglocentric" historians. Jack Sheldon has redressed the balance, and provided us with a meticulously researched and superbly written chronicle of the Third Ypres Campaign, as experienced by German soldiers. Any suggestion that German sources are too scarce to allow for such an assessment are refuted by this superb book. Here we can appreciate how the ordeal of Flanders impinged on the warriors of the Fatherland, from the man in the shellhole to the reflections of The Crown Prince Rupprecht. The narrative is in the best chronological tradition, from the dramatic British success at Messines to the dismal culmination at Passchendaele. This was a war of material, in which the German soldiers and high command had to face an overwhelming British preponderance in a prolonged and intense artillery battle. As well as the ordeal of enduring relentless shellfire, the German troops engaged British and Commonwealth soldiers in vicious close quarters fighting, and, like their foes, lived and died in unspeakable conditions, all the while exhibiting amazing steadfastness. This is a history that engages our emotions as well as our intellect. The style of writing is first rate, and the maps provide timely and clear understanding of the significance of location in this dreadful struggle. Let's hope that in the years ahead, as we approach the centennial of the Great War, we might enjoy more such writing from Jack Sheldon. It is rare to see such a high standard of scholarship presented in such a readable and captivating manner.
Phil Andrade, a member of the Western Front Association