The German army at Ypres 1914

[edwin]

Dear all,

After reading many good reviews about Jack Sheldon's latest book (The German army at Ypres in 1914) on various ww1 sites, I purchased it myself and I finished it yesterday. In this book Sheldon deals with he first battle of Ypres, a topic which is widely addressed in, primarily British, great war literature. However, the German view on this is poorly represented and is therefore interesting to note that Sheldon provides a good overview about how the Germans perceived the first battle of Ypres. Drawing from many previously unpublished sources, including many eyewitness accounts, Sheldon provides a detailed view of how the poorly trained German kriegsfreiwilligen of the 4th army were thrown into combat against the battle-hardened British regulars and French troops, resulting in their complete anihilitation at, for example, Langemarck and Dixmuide. In his book Sheldon not only focusses on the battles of Ypres but also deals with the Belgian effort at the Yser to stop the German advance. The German view and the personal accounts of the kriegsfreiwilligen of these battles in Flanders in late 1914 make this book a welcome addition to the existing ww1 literature.

Best regards,

Edwin

 

[joerookery]

I am biased being both a fan and a friend of Jack's. We had gone back and forth on a few topics about this book but when he sent me his advance copy I was flabbergasted. I think this is his best work. He absolutely cuts the myth situation about 1st Ypers. He really dissects these 1st replacement tier regiments and provides a significantly different view of doctrine and execution of doctrine than was displayed in the recent books by Zuber. If you are into the lower 200 series reserve infantry regiments this is the only–only source in the English language that I'm aware of that goes into this kind of detail. As usual, my hat is off to Sheldon. :thumb up: :thumb up: [-o< [-o< :bravo:

 

[edwin]

I am biased being both a fan and a friend of Jack's. We had gone back and forth on a few topics about this book but when he sent me his advance copy I was flabbergasted. I think this is his best work. He absolutely cuts the myth situation about 1st Ypers. He really dissects these 1st replacement tier regiments and provides a significantly different view of doctrine and execution of doctrine than was displayed in the recent books by Zuber. If you are into the lower 200 series reserve infantry regiments this is the only–only source in the English language that I'm aware of that goes into this kind of detail. As usual, my hat is off to Sheldon. :thumb up: :thumb up: [-o< [-o< :bravo:

I completely agree, an excellent book

Regards,

Edwin