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Gas! The Battle for Ypres, 1915
A fascinating World War One history that charts the first use of chemical weapons in modern warfare. Perfect for readers of Max Hastings, Martin Middlebrook and Tim Cook.
By 1915, the Western Front had descended into deadlock.
Near the town of Ypres, soldiers from Canada, Britain, India, France, Belgium, the French Colonies and Germany sat in long winding trenches facing each other.
German commanders sought to break through the Allied lines by using a new weapon: chlorine gas.
At five o’clock on 22nd April 1915, German troops opened the valves on their deadly steel cylinders and chemical warfare entered the First World War.
As the thick, yellow-green cloud of smoke was carried by the wind into Allied trenches it overcame all those who breathed in its poisonous vapours.
By the end of the Second Battle of Ypres, thousands of men had been killed and even more were injured as a result of gas.
J. McWilliams and R. J. Steel uncover this horrifying battle from beginning to end and explore what it was like the for the French Algerians who first witnessed the gas clouds approaching them, how the Canadians stubbornly refused to retreat in the face of gas, what the British and Indians hoped to achieve with their tragic counterattacks, and ultimately why the German offensive failed.
Gas! The Battle for Ypres, 1915 discusses the course of the battle, not just from the perspective of generals, but also drawing information from the accounts of field commanders and men who were there in the trenches witnessing these terrifying events first-hand.
By 1915, the Western Front had descended into deadlock.
Near the town of Ypres, soldiers from Canada, Britain, India, France, Belgium, the French Colonies and Germany sat in long winding trenches facing each other.
German commanders sought to break through the Allied lines by using a new weapon: chlorine gas.
At five o’clock on 22nd April 1915, German troops opened the valves on their deadly steel cylinders and chemical warfare entered the First World War.
As the thick, yellow-green cloud of smoke was carried by the wind into Allied trenches it overcame all those who breathed in its poisonous vapours.
By the end of the Second Battle of Ypres, thousands of men had been killed and even more were injured as a result of gas.
J. McWilliams and R. J. Steel uncover this horrifying battle from beginning to end and explore what it was like the for the French Algerians who first witnessed the gas clouds approaching them, how the Canadians stubbornly refused to retreat in the face of gas, what the British and Indians hoped to achieve with their tragic counterattacks, and ultimately why the German offensive failed.
Gas! The Battle for Ypres, 1915 discusses the course of the battle, not just from the perspective of generals, but also drawing information from the accounts of field commanders and men who were there in the trenches witnessing these terrifying events first-hand.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
July 31, 2020
Gas attack--one of the most frightening aspects in a war of horror. This book details the efforts of the British and French to overcome the consequences of the German use of clorine gas in the Ypres salient in April, 1915. The attacks themselves take up only a small part of the book, but the efforts at counter-attack would cost many an Allied life, and with little favorable results. Ironically, it also opened the Pandora's Box of gas to be used AGAINST the Germans, especially since the Germans failed to appreciate that prevailing winds were not in their favor. Death begat more death.
Just reading what those brave men went through and what many endured for years to come is a lesson in the folly of war. Attack! Don't think about what you're doing, just go! In this way, the actions of men like Foch and French contributed to the high casualty rates. As the author states, "But there is also that ultimate horror so characteristic of the 'War to End War'--so many had died to achieve nothing."
Just reading what those brave men went through and what many endured for years to come is a lesson in the folly of war. Attack! Don't think about what you're doing, just go! In this way, the actions of men like Foch and French contributed to the high casualty rates. As the author states, "But there is also that ultimate horror so characteristic of the 'War to End War'--so many had died to achieve nothing."
May 17, 2020
“Duty” Drove Them
I have read far fewer books on the “Great War” as opposed to that of World War II. This book provides a stunning; no, make that a shocking account of the use of gas within an already brutal and tragic war.
It provides a look at what it was like to be gassed as the allies were. It also provides a look at the so-called “fog of war.“ And within the fog it shows the horrible decisions made by the commanders on both sides of the battle.
It seems that behind the actions of all of the troops in the front lines was a sense of duty to God and country that largely has escaped us in our age of self-centeredness. How else can it be explained that hundreds and even thousands of men would walk into a well entrenched enemy firing machine guns at them?
I recommend you take the time to read this book!
I have read far fewer books on the “Great War” as opposed to that of World War II. This book provides a stunning; no, make that a shocking account of the use of gas within an already brutal and tragic war.
It provides a look at what it was like to be gassed as the allies were. It also provides a look at the so-called “fog of war.“ And within the fog it shows the horrible decisions made by the commanders on both sides of the battle.
It seems that behind the actions of all of the troops in the front lines was a sense of duty to God and country that largely has escaped us in our age of self-centeredness. How else can it be explained that hundreds and even thousands of men would walk into a well entrenched enemy firing machine guns at them?
I recommend you take the time to read this book!
October 17, 2020
Gas!
This was a very, very detailed work.
It is surprising how little training some of these battalions had. Especially when you think this was only the second year into the war that would last another three years.
Another thing that surprised me was how inefficient communication was back then. It really shouldn’t come as a surprise, I know, but I tend to forget how cumbersome it must have been. Living in the 21st century, we do take cell phones and all of our communication systems for granted. At least I do.
What also struck me was the inability of some officers, making me wonder how they became officers in the first place. I’m guessing back then it was more about your heritage than education. Like that French General, Ferdinand Foch. I couldn’t get over the fact how deluded he was. Really pissed me off and made me feel like a lot of soldiers died unnecessarily, same for the use of the Ross rifle issued for the Canadian troops. Or at least their deaths could have been avoided, at least for another day given the bad situations they were put in. The battle at Ypres seemed like one big fiasco due to the lack of proper communication, training, and strategic officers.
Aside from my rant on those early days of the first world war, the book itself is very well written and I love the author’s eye for detail. You get to experience nearly every attack and push or retreat by the hour.
Then there is the main subject of the book, the chlorine gas. For those soldiers who experienced it the first time, my heart goes out. It must have been horrible, the entire war back then must have been horrible. And the book, by way of accounts and reports, does bring the battle scenes very much to life with all its horror and terror. It’s crazy to think this once happened in a little town in old Belgium, otherwise such a picturesque place occupied by mere farmers.
This was a very, very detailed work.
It is surprising how little training some of these battalions had. Especially when you think this was only the second year into the war that would last another three years.
Another thing that surprised me was how inefficient communication was back then. It really shouldn’t come as a surprise, I know, but I tend to forget how cumbersome it must have been. Living in the 21st century, we do take cell phones and all of our communication systems for granted. At least I do.
What also struck me was the inability of some officers, making me wonder how they became officers in the first place. I’m guessing back then it was more about your heritage than education. Like that French General, Ferdinand Foch. I couldn’t get over the fact how deluded he was. Really pissed me off and made me feel like a lot of soldiers died unnecessarily, same for the use of the Ross rifle issued for the Canadian troops. Or at least their deaths could have been avoided, at least for another day given the bad situations they were put in. The battle at Ypres seemed like one big fiasco due to the lack of proper communication, training, and strategic officers.
Aside from my rant on those early days of the first world war, the book itself is very well written and I love the author’s eye for detail. You get to experience nearly every attack and push or retreat by the hour.
Then there is the main subject of the book, the chlorine gas. For those soldiers who experienced it the first time, my heart goes out. It must have been horrible, the entire war back then must have been horrible. And the book, by way of accounts and reports, does bring the battle scenes very much to life with all its horror and terror. It’s crazy to think this once happened in a little town in old Belgium, otherwise such a picturesque place occupied by mere farmers.
The battlefield is fearful. One is overcome by a peculiar sour, heavy, and penetrating smell of corpses. Rising over a plank bridge you find that its middle is supported only by the body of a long-dead horse. Men that were killed last October lie half in swamp and half in yellow sprouting beet-fields. The legs of an Englishman, still encased in puttees, stick out into a trench, the corpse being built into the parapet; a soldier hangs his rifle on them. A little brook runs through the trench, and everyone uses the water for drinking and washing; it is the only water they have. Nobody minds the pale Englishman who is rotting away a few steps farther up. In Langemarck cemetery a hecatomb had been piled up; for the dead must have lain above ground level. German shells falling into it started a horrible resurrection. At one point I saw twenty-two dead horses, still harnessed, accompanied by a few dead drivers. Cattle and pigs lie about, half-rotten; broken trees, avenues razed to the ground; crater upon crater in the roads and in the fields.Written by a German soldier in his diary.
April 28, 2022
It was a very interesting history of the Battles for Ypres. The terrible lack of coordination amounts the leaders of the wide numbers of allied countries. The other interesting item is the disconnect between the various allied HQ generals and the unspeakable carnage and lack of respect for life with the massive loss of life.
The detail of all the detail of all the different regiments, brigades, companies, battalions , troops etc etc etc became a little much and tough to follow.
The detail of all the detail of all the different regiments, brigades, companies, battalions , troops etc etc etc became a little much and tough to follow.
July 1, 2021
Wow, the amount of detail regarding one battle in WWI is incredible. It reinforced a lot of things that I understood about WWI. For how dense the material was in terms of recounting the details of the battle, it was an easier read then I thought it would be, although I think I would have benefited greatly from having one of the many maps in the book in front of me while reading it. It also took time to quote primary sources and provided interesting facts or stories. I particularly enjoyed the story of one of the Highland battalions finding a lone Algerian soldier, incorporating him into their brigade and issuing him a kilt.
The description of how the gas effected the troops was horrifying and I found the epilogue to be incredibly enlightening because when I thought gas in WWI I thought of this particular battle and its use by the Germans, I never really considered how much it was employed by the allies.
The description of how the gas effected the troops was horrifying and I found the epilogue to be incredibly enlightening because when I thought gas in WWI I thought of this particular battle and its use by the Germans, I never really considered how much it was employed by the allies.
August 4, 2020
War is futile
World War 1 was supposed to be “the war to end all wars” but it didn’t work out that way. The war was a meat grinder for all sides, and then poison gas showed up at the Second Battle of Ypres depicted in this book.
I wanted to read this because a cousin in my wife’s Canadian family died fighting in the Ypres Salient on the first day of the battle. His body was never recovered.
This book would not interest everyone, but it gave me a feeling for what her relative and all the other poor souls went through.
World War 1 was supposed to be “the war to end all wars” but it didn’t work out that way. The war was a meat grinder for all sides, and then poison gas showed up at the Second Battle of Ypres depicted in this book.
I wanted to read this because a cousin in my wife’s Canadian family died fighting in the Ypres Salient on the first day of the battle. His body was never recovered.
This book would not interest everyone, but it gave me a feeling for what her relative and all the other poor souls went through.
March 16, 2021
A battle to end all battles
Extensive description of the 2nd battle of Ypres in WWI. The blood bath of this engagement encapsulated the horrible events of WWI, and also brought the use of Chlorine gas used by German forces for the first time. It was an incredible slaughter on both sides an the aftermath elucidated the futility of this war, British reprisals using more sophisticated gas attacks after Ypres far exceeded German gas attack usage.
Extensive description of the 2nd battle of Ypres in WWI. The blood bath of this engagement encapsulated the horrible events of WWI, and also brought the use of Chlorine gas used by German forces for the first time. It was an incredible slaughter on both sides an the aftermath elucidated the futility of this war, British reprisals using more sophisticated gas attacks after Ypres far exceeded German gas attack usage.
August 27, 2020
Good History book on the results of the first use of gas as a weapon. Has the tragedies, heroism and hardships of some of the most Famous Units from Canada, Britain and Allies in Battle during W.W. I.
May 15, 2020
The author tells the story of the second battle of Yrpes though eyewitness accounts, war diaries, reports etc. The reader is given a highly detailed account of the battle, which includes the first use of poison gas as a weapon we learn of the confusion over orders, the misunderstandings that arose and of heroism in the trenches.
I find the book to be a sad but excellent and a fascinating insight into the events into the second battle of Yrpes
Highly recommended.
I find the book to be a sad but excellent and a fascinating insight into the events into the second battle of Yrpes
Highly recommended.
May 22, 2024
A horrendous waste of life
The Germans’ attempt to break the Allied front in 1915 featured their first large-scale use of poison gas. In attacks against French and British troops in a salient around Ypres, the Germans successfully pushed back and almost broke the Allied defenses. The heroism of the defenders stopped repeated successive attacks by the Germans, and eventually both sides, each suffering thousands of casualties, gave in to exhaustion and useless loss of life.
The Germans’ attempt to break the Allied front in 1915 featured their first large-scale use of poison gas. In attacks against French and British troops in a salient around Ypres, the Germans successfully pushed back and almost broke the Allied defenses. The heroism of the defenders stopped repeated successive attacks by the Germans, and eventually both sides, each suffering thousands of casualties, gave in to exhaustion and useless loss of life.
September 12, 2020
Great History
If you like to read about historic battles and events during World War One this is an interesting read. Very interesting, although I found it a bit hard to keep track of all the different battalions, regiments and locations. All in all I recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about this period in time.
If you like to read about historic battles and events during World War One this is an interesting read. Very interesting, although I found it a bit hard to keep track of all the different battalions, regiments and locations. All in all I recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about this period in time.
January 21, 2021
Great, detailed, and informative. The authors present the details but don’t get too bogged down, all while showing the horror and hell the soldiers were put through. I haven’t seen a lot written about the Second Battle of Ypres, but with this boo around there isn’t much more to write.
December 21, 2023
This was an amazing book describing one of the most heart wrenching episodes in human conflict and the human condition. The details are from first hand accounts, lending to the historic accuracy as a awesome piece of Nonfiction. It was just amazing hearing about how the use of gas to kill such numbers of people. So enlightening.
December 21, 2020
Well organized, well docomented
Concise exposition of the first use of war gas and the associated battles for Ypres. Casualty counts and conditions were well documented.
Concise exposition of the first use of war gas and the associated battles for Ypres. Casualty counts and conditions were well documented.
January 2, 2021
Somewhat disjointed telling of the history.
May 20, 2022
This book is text book on the first use of gas during WWI. Lots of detail and good references
December 3, 2014
very good
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews