The Tragedy of Sir John French

by George H. Cassar

The Tragedy of Sir John French is a biography of John D. P. French, who was considered the best field commander in England, but then deemed a failure and was replaced. The author, George Cassar, does not entirely share the failure conception and considers French was a dedicated soldier and fine cavalry leader with an uncanny ability to inspire men, but that he was ill-suited to command the BEF in the conditions of 1914-15. Dr. Cassar's narrative, which includes a number of wartime photographs and drawings as well as many detailed maps, is based on a wealth of documentary sources and a result of over four years of research.

Genres: World War I

324 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1985

About the author

A specialist in modern British military history, George Harris Cassar is professor of history emeritus at Eastern Michigan University, where he taught from 1968 until his retirement in 2018. He earned his bachelor's (1962) and master's )1963) degrees at the University New Brunswick and his doctorate in philosophy (1968) from McGill University.

Reviews

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clearly written but rather pedestrian account of Sir John French's military career, concluding that he was out of his depth as commander in chief of the BEF during the early period of the First World War.