The Great War Podcast: Recent Episodes
Daniel Clark
When your back is against the wall, you can retreat no further.
Update
For some reason my text post isn't showing up on the feed. Click below for the update regarding the next episode.
https://thegreatwarpodcast.podbean.com/e/no-episode-for-august-will-be-back-in-september/
The Great German Offensive of 1918 is underway.
Captured British during Operation MICHAEL
Woodrow Wilson presents his Fourteen Points to the world.
Full text of the Fourteen Points
Source: https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/president-woodrow-wilsons-14-points
I. Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at, after which there shall be no private international understandings of any kind but diplomacy shall proceed always frankly and in the public view.
II. Absolute freedom of navigation upon the seas, outside territorial waters, alike in peace and in war, except as the seas may be closed in whole or in part by international action for the enforcement of international covenants.
III. The removal, so far as possible, of all economic barriers and the establishment of an equality of trade conditions among all the nations consenting to the peace and associating themselves for its maintenance.
IV. Adequate guarantees given and taken that national armaments will be reduced to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety.
V. A free, open-minded, and absolutely impartial adjustment of all colonial claims, based upon a strict observance of the principle that in determining all such questions of sovereignty the interests of the populations concerned must have equal weight with the equitable claims of the government whose title is to be determined.
VI. The evacuation of all Russian territory and such a settlement of all questions affecting Russia as will secure the best and freest cooperation of the other nations of the world in obtaining for her an unhampered and unembarrassed opportunity for the independent determination of her own political development and national policy and assure her of a sincere welcome into the society of free nations under institutions of her own choosing; and, more than a welcome, assistance also of every kind that she may need and may herself desire. The treatment accorded Russia by her sister nations in the months to come will be the acid test of their good will, of their comprehension of her needs as distinguished from their own interests, and of their intelligent and unselfish sympathy.
VII. Belgium, the whole world will agree, must be evacuated and restored, without any attempt to limit the sovereignty which she enjoys in common with all other free nations. No other single act will serve as this will serve to restore confidence among the nations in the laws which they have themselves set and determined for the government of their relations with one another. Without this healing act the whole structure and validity of international law is forever impaired.
VIII. All French territory should be freed and the invaded portions restored, and the wrong done to France by Prussia in 1871 in the matter of Alsace-Lorraine, which has unsettled the peace of the world for nearly fifty years, should be righted, in order that peace may once more be made secure in the interest of all.
IX. A readjustment of the frontiers of Italy should be effected along clearly recognizable lines of nationality.
X. The peoples of Austria-Hungary, whose place among the nations we wish to see safeguarded and assured, should be accorded the freest opportunity to autonomous development.
XI. Rumania, Serbia, and Montenegro should be evacuated; occupied territories restored; Serbia accorded free and secure access to the sea; and the relations of the several Balkan states to one another determined by friendly counsel along historically established lines of allegiance and nationality; and international guarantees of the political and economic independence and territorial integrity of the several Balkan states should be entered into.
XII. The Turkish portion of the present Ottoman Empire should be assured a secure sovereignty, but the other nationalities which are now under Turkish rule should be assured an undoubted security of life and an absolutely unmolested opportunity of autonomous development, and the Dardanelles should be permanently opened as a free passage to the ships and commerce of all nations under international guarantees.
XIII. An independent Polish state should be erected which should include the territories inhabited by indisputably Polish populations, which should be assured a free and secure access to the sea, and whose political and economic independence and territorial integrity should be guaranteed by international covenant.
XIV. A general association of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike.
An Austro-Hungarian raid on the Otranto Barrage turns into the Adriatic's most dramatic engagement.
The Bolsheviks make their move, marking the beginning of the end of Russia's Great War.
Eager to bring down Russia, the Germans launch an amphibious invasion of three Baltic islands.
After the Flanders Campaign, the British Third Army prepares to raid Cambrai. They're going to use tanks...lots of tanks.
Herbert Plumer takes over at Ypres, and delivers three straight victories.
Map for reference: Right click to view in larger format.
Kerensky's government survives a 'scare', leaving it ripe for the picking.
Kornilov arrives at the Moscow Conference, 1917
April was a deadly month for the Royal Flying Corps.
Dicta Boelcke
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Try to secure advantages before attacking. If possible, keep the sun behind you.
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Always carry through an attack when you have started it.
- Fire only at close range, and only when your opponent is properly in your sights.
- Always keep your eye on your opponent, and never let yourself be deceived by ruses.
- In any form of attack it is essential to assail your enemy from behind.
- If your opponent dives on you, do not try to evade his onslaught, but fly to meet it.
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When over the enemy's lines never forget your own line of retreat.
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For the Staffel (squadron): Attack on principle in groups of four or six. When the fight breaks up into a series of single combats, take care that several do not go for the same opponent
Robert Nivelle's magic solution to the deadlock leaves the French army on the brink of mutiny.
It took the United States 65 days to go from committed neutral to full blown participant.
By the end of 1916, neutrality had left the United States in a precarious spot.
Life Magazine, February 1916.
Beginning on October 24th, a French counter attack liberates the forts Douaumont and Vaux, signalling the end of the battle of Verdun.
With winter approaching on the Somme, Haig hoped to deliver a substantial blow to Germany's forces.
Hindenburg and Ludendorff face a home front wracked by food shortages and social unrest.
The Romanian campaign lasted for 101 days. In this episode, we cover those 101 days in 41 minutes.
With the General Allied Offensive in full swing, the Central Powers face a manpower crisis on the Eastern Front.
Australian and South African forces arrive on the Western Front, and we explore a new interpretation of Fromelles and Delville Wood.
At the tail end of Fourth Army's front, Congreve's XIII Corps and Fayolle's Sixth Army achieve remarkable success.
Livens Flame Projector: CLIP
Gommecourt, Serre, Beaumont-Hamel and the Slaughter of the Somme.
The old British front line, looking northeast toward the German trenches. Note the drop in elevation.
"Y" Ravine,
The battle of Verdun reaches its climax.
Map of the battlefield, note its "H" shaped outline.
The ancient Citadel in downtown Verdun. To enlarge, right click-view image.
Monument to Fleury residents who fought at Verdun.
"Remains" of Fleury
Markers indicating where houses and businesses once stood.
The imposing Ossuary.
View from a top the Ossuary, looking southeast towards Fleury. Note the concentrated battlefield: the interpretation center is visible along with the white path leading to the village. The ridge beyond was the German objective of June 23rd.
Fort Douaumont
Douaumont's roof, still heavily cratered.
Yours truly at the entrance.
The warriors of France and Germany engage in an bloody stand off for Fort Vaux.
Postcard commemorating Raynal's final pigeon and subsequent plaque.
The fighting at Verdun intensifies as the Germans seize the crests of Mort Homme and Hill 304.
Under Brusilov's leadership, a resurgent Russian army smashes the Austro-Hungarians; Conrad surrenders to Falkenhayn's oversight.
With Tsar Nicholas II in charge of her armed forces, Russia looks to a fresh start; In Galicia, Aleksei Brusilov plans his masterpiece.
*Note: St. Petersburg was renamed Petrograd in 1914. I refer to both in the appropriate context. -Dan
Links to Romanov family photos:
Siberian Times, 2013 Mashable
A review of Verdun and a look at the British home front, which sees radical change under the direction of David Lloyd George and the Ministry of Munitions.
A decade after Dreadnought revolutionized naval warfare, the battle fleets of Great Britain and Germany finally meet.
EDIT: Since they were armoured cruisers, Arbuthnot was part of First Cruiser Squadron, not First 'Light' Cruiser as incorrectly stated. -Dan
Reinhardt Scheer assumes command of the German battlefleet, and the war in the North Sea kicks into high gear.
Conrad sees red, and attempts to eliminate the Italians with a single blow. At Verdun, the French discover retaking Fort Douaumont will require a bit more planning.
Desperate to capture the Meuse Heights, the German 5th Army extends operations onto the west bank of the Meuse. When things falter, both armies commit more men to "the Mincer".
As 1916 beckons, both the Allies and Central Powers realize they're in for another bloody year.
In this episode we discuss the sinking of the Cunard liner Lusitania and what it meant for the first unrestricted U-boat campaign.
To contest the supremacy of the Allied fleets, Germany unleashes the first unrestricted U-Boat campaign in February, 1915.
*Gahh when I say the Russians retreated 500 miles, I mean 500 kilometers of course. -Dan
SMS Blucher capsizing at the battle of Dogger Bank (January 1915).
An ambitious Anglo-French attack in Artois and Champagne is met with disaster. At the battles of Loos, the BEF makes use of chlorine gas for the first time.
Serbia is the latest victim of Falkenhayn's combined offensive. The Serbs refuse to surrender, opting to evacuate and continue the fight elsewhere.
On May 23rd, 1915 an energized but divided Italy enters the Great War. This episode examines why the Italians initially chose neutrality, only to declare war against their former allies.
A combined Austro-German offensive in May 1915 collapses the Polish Salient, forcing the Russians into a 4 month 310 mile retreat. The war on the Eastern Front is effectively over.
With German efforts concentrated in the East, the Allies begin looking for alternative ways to break the deadlock, leading their focus to fall on the Dardanelles and Gallipoli peninsula.
This week we examine German strategy in 1915, and Falkenhayn's decision to unleash chlorine gas at the Ypres Salient. 40 Maps That Explain World War One (Trench map is #26)
Despite popular theory, the war does not end by Christmas. This week we are on the Western Front for the early goings of 1915.
Did Europe really cheer the outbreak of war? An examination of the Western home fronts provides a glimpse into "the spirit of 1914".
A look at the larger world at war, and Graf Spee makes his voyage into the history books.
The final months of 1914 draw to a close on the Eastern Front. The Russians flex their military muscle, while the Austro-Hungarians suffer a defeat which helps doom their army.
Our first look at events on the Eastern front; The Austrians humiliate themselves against the Serbs. While in East Prussia, the Russians are annihilated at Tannenberg.
The lines stagnate across the Western theatre.Near the Belgian town of Ypres, German and British troops learn a harsh reality.
Please note: The Asine runs west of Verdun, not east as I state in the episode. -Dan
Map of Western theatre (Sept-Nov 1914) Right click to view in full.
Mass grave at Langemark German Cemetery
The war on the Western Front opens up, as the German army cruises through Belgium to the gates of Paris. The allies unveil a new secret weapon on the battlefield.
I apologize for the delay this week. I had a heck of a time getting all this stuff sorted out but this is a much better version then I what had originally written. -Dan
Map of the Western Theater, August-September 1914. Note the borders have been modified to to reflect 1914.
Two German battle cruisers escape the pursuit of the Royal Navy and seek refuge at Constantinople. The entry of the Ottoman Empire by November 1914, ensures that fighting would no longer be restricted to the European continent.
We conclude our discussion of the July Crisis by looking at events in Britain and offer an answer to why the war broke out.
A century after the Napoleonic Wars, the Concert of Europe crumbles in a matter of weeks following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Before killing off Franz Ferdinand, we take a look at some of the domestic issues effecting the Great Powers on the eve of July 1914.
On the heels of the Italian invasion of Libya, a collection of Balkan nations declare war on the Ottoman Empire.
A "very" basic map of the First Balkan War. October 1912-May 1913.
In an attempt to establish themselves as a great power, Italy declared war on the Ottomans in September of 1911. The subsequent invasion exposed Italian armed forces as logistically weak and unprepared in the event of a general European war. Watching events from a far, the Balkan states begin to contemplate plans for an attack on the Turks of their own.
Map of Libyan campaign (From the sources which I could piece together)
Zeppelin bombarding Turkish positions near Tobruk (Wikipedia Commons)
The annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Austro-Hungarians is another humiliation for Russia, and leaves the Serbs seething toward the Habsburg monarch.
Map of Russian interests.
With the war in the Far East raging in the background, Germany attempts to drive a wedge between France and its allies, but only succeeds in bringing them closer together.
I know I had stated there would be no episode this week, but unfortunately the long weekend plans fell through. -Dan
Beyond the Foxholes Podcast: http://www.breakthroughassault.co.uk/p/beyond-foxholes-podcast.html
The Russo-Japanese War provides us with a chilling glimpse into the nature of industrial warfare.
After nearly coming to blows at Fashoda, the French and English decide to put aside their grievances. In the Far East, Japan and Russia declare war.
With events in Asia threatening the status quo, Great Britain would find itself in desperate need of an ally.
- I apologize for this episode being behind schedule. We'll be back on track for Monday!*
In 1890 Wilhelm II dismissed Bismarck, allowing the French to break out of isolation; the British face a looming crisis in the years after 1894.
After the formation of Germany, Bismarck's primary concern was finding a place for the Second Reich in Europe; events in the Balkans would drive the Austro-Hungarians into a military alliance by 1879.
The revolts of 1848 paved the way for the formation of Germany under the leadership of Otto von Bismarck. The events surrounding German unification play a major role in the political atmosphere leading up to 1890.
**I have added some introductory music and changed my recording software so I hope you will hear an improvement.
Episode 1 overviews 19th century European politics after the Napoleonic War and the creation of the alliance systems.
This is my first ever podcast and am currently ironing out the kinks in my audio software so if the edits seem a bit off that is simply growing pains.