Britain and Victory in the Great War

by Peter Liddle

Overview

How can we begin to make sense of the Great War now that over 100 years have passed since it ended with the defeat of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman empire and Bulgaria, and the collapse of Tsarist Russia? The conflict had such a profound influence on world history that is it difficult to reconcile the different perspectives and draw clear conclusions. That is why this thought-provoking collection of original essays on the outcome of the war and its aftermath is of such value.

It completes the trilogy of ground-breaking volumes conceived and edited by Peter Liddle which presents the latest scholarly thinking about the Great War from an international perspective. The first two volumes – Britain Goes to War and Britain and the Widening War – made this stimulating new writing accessible to a broad readership and this final volume has the same aim.

A group of over twenty expert contributors reconsider the military reasons for the outcome of the fighting and look at the consequences for the principal nations involved. They explore the way the war and the peace settlement shaped the twentieth century and had an enduring impact within Europe and beyond.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781473891616
Publisher:	Pen and Sword
Publication date:	08/29/2018
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Dr Peter Liddle is a leading historian of the First World War and has concentrated on the personal experience of the men and women who took part. He founded the Liddle Collection, a repository of documents and memorabilia connected to the conflict, which is housed in the Brotherton Library, the University of Leeds. His many books include Captured Memories 1900-1918, Captured Memories 1930-1945, The Soldiers War 1914-1918, The Gallipoli Experience Reconsidered, The 1916 Battle of the Somme Reconsidered and, as editor, Facing Armageddon, Britain Goes to War and Britain and the Widening War.

Contributors: Holger Afflerbach, Phylomena Badsey, Niall Barr, Chris Bellamy, Nick Bosanquet, Peter Burness, George Cassar, Tim Cook, Irene Guerrini, Clive Harris, Kate Kennedy, Ross Kennedy, William Philpott, Marco Pluviano, Chris Pugsley, Duncan Redford, Matthew Richardson, Alan Sharp, Yigal Sheffy, Jack Sheldon, Edward Spiers, David Welch, Ian Whitehead

Table of Contents

Dedication v

List of Plates ix

List of Maps xi

Acknowledgements xii

Preface xiii

Introduction Preparing for Victory: British Military Innovation in Weaponry, Training and Tactics, 1916-1918 Edward M. Spiers 1

Part 1 25

1 The BEF and the Hundred Days Niall Barr 27

2 German Defeat and the Myth of the 'Stab in the Back' Jack Sheldon 42

3 The Royal Navy: Securing Victory and Coping with its Consequences Duncan Redford 59

4 Kitchener or Lloyd George, The Architect of Victory? George Cassar 73

5 British Industry and the First World War Matthew Richardson 89

6 'Do Good by Stealth'; British Propaganda and the First World War David Welch 105

7 The Commonwealth Contribution to Victory on the Western Front in 1918 Peter Burness (Australia) Tim Cook (Canada) Chris Pugsley (New Zealand) 124

8 Sideshows to Strategic Victory: Defeating Germany, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire in South-East Europe, Asia and Africa in 1918 Robert Johnson 150

Part 2 169

9 The United States and Britain's Victory Ross A. Kennedy 171

10 France Leads the Way to Victory William Philpott 185

11 Redoubtable Adversary - Bolshevik Catastrophe. Imperial Russia's Forgotten Role in the Achievement of Allied Victory Chris Bellamy 204

12 Italy and the Complex of the 'Mutilated Victory': Shared Myth and Party Mythology Irene Guerrini Marco Pluviano 228

13 'Brutal as Victors, Despicable as Vanquished'? Some Observations on the German Defeat in 1918 Holger Afflerbach 241

Part 3 253

14 The Great War and British Identity Ian Whitehead 255

15 Women and the Great War: a Transient Transformation of their Place in Society? Phylomena Badsey 273

16 The Middle East: From Coalition-Oriented to Imperial-Oriented Strategy Yigal Sheffy 286

17 'Do not forget me quite' - Music's War Poets Kate Kennedy 302

18 Loss and Devastation: The Costs of the Great War Nick Bosanquet 313

19 'That Quiet Place': A Historiography of Visiting the Old Front Line Clive Harris 326

20 Britain and the Post-War Settlement Alan Sharp 340

Notes on Contributors 353

Index 360