User blog:LB&SCR/GWM Episode 1: Douglas Haig vs. Robert Nivelle

These two men have created their fair share of controversy, with their grand offensives using up precious manpower, and drying up morale as people saw their fair bretheren fall beside them, jerking and twitching in the dirt. Today, we take a look at some grand strategy as we pluck the heads of both the BEF and French Army to duke it out today. For here we go.

Douglas Haig



 * -| Bio =

Sir Douglas Haig came from a Horse Cavalry background, became commander of the British Expeditionary Force on December 19, 1915 after Sir John French had been sacked for the British Defeat at the Loos three months before. The first major command decision came with the Battle of the Somme, were Haig had decided that the six months of bloody French-German fighting at Verdun had worn down the German Army enough to launch a major British Offensive. However, the originally joint Anglo-French attack was made mostly British as alarm bells caused the French to keep shipping troops towards Verdun. However, he chose to wait for training and to acquire more artillery pieces, and was finally goaded into launching his attack on July 1, just in time as any more waiting would have caused Petain's French forces to dissolve under constant German Pressure.

Haig recieved his promotion to Field Marshal in Early 1917, and in April was forced to support Robert Nivelle's failed offensive into German lines, further opening the already existing rift between him Nivelle; after which he went on to conduct the Third Batttle of Ypres (better known as Passchendaele), a further 'wearing down' operation to deplete German Resources and capture a vital railroad junction; leading to heavy casualties on both sides. This move led to great controversy from the British Government, with Lloyd George saying that it had been a "sensless campaign." However, it did achieve one of it's goals: Stopping the German Army from attacking a disorganized and demoralized French Force.

Later on in November, Haig launched an offensive into Cambrai, a piece of the German Hindenberg Line. Haig combined the tried-and-true artillery and infantry tactics with new tactics involving tanks and close air support, and the first day saw great British successes, but German Counter attacks soon saw most of the newly conquered territory retaken; and it was only through reckless British Determination that British forces weren't pushed completely from the field. However, Cambrai saved Haig's job... albeit at the price of smashing his political credability to pieces and the disappointment of the British Governemnt.

However, the Germans launched a series of offensives in the Spring of 1918, believing that the Entente were vulnerable, and wanting to end the war before complete American Mobilization. Operation Michael and Operation Georgette were met with stiff resistance by Haig's forces, and the brief early successes were soon overturned by the later Hundred-Days offensive launched by Haig, Petain, and Foch. Combining the tested Anglo-French-Belgian Armies with the newly arrived forces from America, Portugal, Siam, and Italy; This offensive cut straight through the Hindenberg line, forcing the Germans to retreat fully out of France. It was the last major action taken on the Western Front during the Great War.


 * -| Perceptions =

Haig recieved his fair share of praise and Criticism during the war. John Pershing (Commander of the American Expeditionary Force) said that Haig was "The Man who won the war." Historians such as John Terraine and Les Carlyon have compared Haig to British Heroes such as the Duke of Wellington, and his straightforward support of efficient commanders such as Herbert Plumer, the Canadian Arthur Currie, and the Australian John Monash.

However, men such as David Lloyd George and Winston Churchill pulled no punches in their criticism of Haig and his offensives, citing most of them as having been "Hopeless and disastrous." However, Churchill also said that no one else could have done Haig's job. Lloyd George wasn't so kind, claiming that Haig was not intellectually up to his task, and that he lacked a grasp of the conditions on the front; and preferred courteous gentlemen to talented advisors.

The BEF

 * -| Description =

The British Army of 1914 had been described as "The best trained, best equipped, and best organized British Army ever sent off to battle. From 1914-Early 1915, Volunteers were high in number and nearly 900,000 men were in France by the end of '14; however, the 360,000 casualties at the Battle of the Somme destroyed the volunteer spirit, and recruitment was so devastated that by 1916 Conscription had been enacted just to keep the BEF going, and by 1918 2.6 million men had been conscripted into soldierly duties, joining the 2.3 million volunteers to form nearly 4 million strong force by the end of 1918.


 * -| Tactics =

Having not been instructed in trench warfare, heavy losses forced a big change in army tactics: flexible waves would move under the cover of darnkess occupying shell holes and other cover near the German lines, and then the first wave (made up of skirmishers) would follow a creeping barrage into the front line to root out hard points of resistance; followed by the second, main wave advancing. The third wave was mostly small groups of reinforcements for the first and second waves, while the fourth wave was given the job of defending the captured area from counter-attack.

Each platoon was given a Lewis Machine Gun for fire support, and each also had a section specialising in throwing grenades to clear trenches and dugouts. Providing mutual fire support while leap-frogging forward was also a tactic used.

Weapons

 * -| Rifle =

'''Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk. III*'''



The Enfield Mk. III* was an improved variation of the Mk.III, improved via a simpler manufacturing process and an easier way to unjam the rifle. It is an 8.73 pound weapon with an overall length of 44.57 inches. It fires .303 British rounds from a 10-round magazine and is operated via a bolt. It possesses a rate of fire of 20-30 rpm; 2,441 ft/s of stopping power; and an effective range of 550 meters.


 * -| Light Machine Gun =

'''Lewis Mk. I Machine Gun'''



The Lewis Mk. I was the basic field model for the British Army from 1915 and through the rest of the war with few improvements. It is a 28 pound weapon with an overall length of 50.5 inches. It fires .303 British rounds from a 47-round drum magazine and is made for automatic fire in mind. It possesses a rate of fire of 500-600 rpm; 2,440 ft/s of stopping power; and an effective range of 880 yards.


 * -| Sidearm =

Webley Mk VI



The Webley Mk VI was adopted as the Standard Sidearm for British & Commonwealth Soldiers in 1915, replacing an earlier variant, which had been ill-suited for trench warfare. It is a 2.4 pound weapon with an overall length of 11.25 inches. It fires .455 Webley Mk II rounds from a six-round cylinder, and operates via double action. It has a fire rate of 20-30 rpm; 620 ft/s of stopping power; and an effective range of 50 yards.


 * -| Grenade =

Mills Bomb



The Mills bomb was the first extremely successful British Grenade, after the tried attempts with the designed No. 1 Grenade and the homemade looking Jam Tin Grenade. It weighs 1 pound 11 ounces, and carries a filling of baratol. It has a fuse of 7 seconds and is a defensive (shrapnel) grenade. A trained bombardier could throw it 20 yards by hand.

Robert Nivelle



 * -| Bio =

Robert Nivelle became Commander-in-Chief of the French Armed Forces in 1916 after his predecessor, General Joseph Joffre, had been promoted to the rank of Marshal of France (an elaborate cover for Joffre being relieved of command). He came from an artillery background, were his excellent command of French Artillery had turned back the German Offensives at Alsace, First Marne, and First Aisne. He is credited with the creation of the Creeping Barrage tactic, using it during the battle of Verdun in 1916, were his counter-strokes against the German Offensive, while costing heavy casualties, masterfully helped the French recapture several important objectives.

This fame earned him the Promotion to Commander-and-Chief, however the power this role held had been reduced with Joffre's resignation. His big plan in 1917 was for British Forces to take 20 miles of front line out of French hands, where he would gather those soldiers into an attacking force so a joint Anglo-French Offensive could be launched. Tired of all the attrition warfare, the French & British Governments supported his attack plan.

However, several times before his planned offensive, brilliant oppurtunities to disrupt a retreating German line were rejected in favor of his heavily vaunted plan, resulting in both General Petain and General d'Esperey losing oppurtunities that could have turned the tide of the war effort. In another political meeting, it was suggested that they wait until mobilized American Forces had reached the battle lines, but that too was rejected; with Nivelle offering to resign if they lacked confidence in his abilities.

The vaunted Nivelle Offensive began in April 1917, however, things started crumbling from the start. A sudden shortage in French Artillery meant that Nivelle's tried-and-true tactics of suppression barrages keeping Germans hidden while Creeping barrages guarded French Assaults couldn't be used, resulting in way less damage to the German lines than projected; the first day of battle cost 120,000 casualties. He was asked to halt the attacks, but Nivelle claimed he could rescue this dying animal from death; and by April 20th, the French had taken 20,000 German Prisoners and captured 147 artillery pieces; a very large increase from other large offensives. However, by the time the offensive ended on the 9 of May; 187,000 Frenchmen had been killed or wounded.

This made Nivelle's reputation shatter. While more successful than the German Offensive at Verdun, the grand victory that Nivelle had promised never arrived, and Neville was replaced by Petain just six days after the battle's conclusion. In December, he was appointed the Head of the French Army of North Africa, effectively humiliating Nivelle and removing him from the War.


 * -| Perceptions =

In some circles, Nivelle is actually viewed quite positively. While the breakthrough attempt failed, the official British War Historian wrote that the offensive gained several Advantages for France: 20,000 Prisoners, 147 pieces of cannon, freed the rail lines from Soissons to Reims, drove the Germans out of the Aisne Valley, taken several important hills, and those objectives had been successfully defended against numerous counter attacks. They also praise Nivelle for his competance as a tactician and for his innovations in the field of artillery support; plus his ability to galvanize the French public into supporting the war effort. They also praise Nivelle for seeing the promise of tanks and for pushing the French Government into developing them.

However, other circles claim that Nivelle didn't care about casualties, and that placing him as Joffre's successor was a disaster waiting to happen, and that the Nivelle Offensive was just a slapdash plan. The Grand Nivelle Offensive is also blamed for starting the French Army Mutinies of 1917, people placing the failure of Nivelle's plan as the reason for the massive drop in French Morale.

The French Army

 * -| Description =

Unlike the English Army, the French Army was based around Universal Conscription. Each year, a class of men turning 21 would be inducted for three years of army service, and after such service would be put into the reserves, where everytime they reached a certain age, the committment would grow less and less. The mobilization plan put heavy emphasis on the use of the extensive French rail system to muster troops to their respective fronts; holding the right to activate the reserves and re-conscript people who'd already done their service... which after a variety of setbacks on the Western front from 1914-1917... they invietably did.


 * -| Tactics =

As the war reached 1917, it became clear that the French tactics of supression artillery and a grand charge would not hold up to the modern standards, and their organization underwent a drastic change. By 1918, 40% of French Soldiers worked with Artillery, with only 850,000 being infantry. This was because of not only advances in Artillery tactics and tech, but also because of advances in Automatic weapons, armored cars and tanks, and also the birth of the French Air Force.

Weapons

 * -| Rifle =

Lebel 1886



The Lebel 1886 was the first firearm ever purposely designed to fire smokeless powder. It is a 9.7 pound weapon with an overall length of 51.2 inches. It fires 8 x 50mmR Lebel rounds from an 8-round tubular magazine and is operated via a bolt. It can fire with the stopping power of 2,300 ft/s and has an effective range of 400 yards.


 * -| Light Machine Gun =

Fusile Mitrailleur Modele 1915 CSRG



The FMM 1915 CSRG, better known as the Chauchat, was the standard French Machine Rifle of WWI. It is a 20 pound weapon with an overall length of 45 inches. It fires 8 x 50mmR Lebel rounds from a 20-round magazine and is designed for automatic fire. It has a fire rate of 240 rpm, stopping power of 2,100 ft/s, and an effective range of 220 yards.

Also, before you discout the Chauchat as that unreliable piece of tin, two things to keep in mind: 1) The Chauchat was designed to be carried in two hands and fired from either the hip or shoulder while walking, a tactic called Marching Fire. 2) While yes, it did jam like every other weapon; all those horror stories happened with the American Chauchat, as this thing was not designed for .30-06 Springfield rounds.


 * -| Sidearm =

Modele 1892



The French Modele 1892 revolver was the standard revolver sidearm of the French Army. It is a 1.88 pound weapon with an overall length of 9.3 inches. It fires 8mm French Ordnance rounds from a 6-round cylinder. It fires via double action, and has 730 ft/s of stopping power.


 * -| Grenade =

F1 Hand Grenade



The F1 was the first mass-produced French Grenade. It weighs about 600 grams, with a filling of Cheddite or TNT. It uses a timed, friction based fuse and is a defensive (shrapnel) grenade. A trained thrower could chuck it about 20 yards.