First World War in the News -- WW1 History from causes to trenches

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Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig, the butcher of the Somme, greatly underestimated
Even if Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig and his army commanders may never escape criticism for their errors of 1916 and 1917, they do deserve credit for the victory in 1918. It was a product of a steep learning curve, that raised British and Dominion divisions to the tactical and technical forefront of the Allied armies on the Western Front. It could be seen in the reorganization of infantry platoons and in small unit tactics, using new infantry weapons; in the greater use of wireless, motor machinegun units and of aircraft in the ground-attack role. And tanks were used in co-operation with the infantry, an in mass for the initial shock action. [ timesonline.co.uk :: 2008-08-07 :: Generals & Leaders ]

Riddle over 500 First World War pictures found in Kent
500 WWI photos, found at a former photographic studio in Kent after being "lost" 80 years, are being placed on display to solve the mystery behind them. Historians struggled to id the soldiers but assumed they were local troops, but research revealed they showed soldiers from 58 regiments. The pictures were all taken by Charles and Henry Essenhigh Corke at their studio. During the Great War, the town had several hospitals treating troops and it's thought soldiers might have had their photos taken while recovering. A number of the portraits have been id'd, including Military Cross winner William Blackmore. [ mirror.co.uk :: 2008-08-04 :: Photographs, Pictures & Images ]

Trench Life: A Survival Guide - exhibition at the Canadian War Museum
The Canadian War Museum (CWM) opened "Trench Life: A Survival Guide" -exhibition, which examines how, in the harsh world of First World War trenches, Canadian soldiers created and relied upon a distinct culture to make sense of their wartime experiences and deal with the strain of neverending death and destruction. Trench Life explores the history of World War I in its most personal dimension: the words, images, art, and songs by frontline soldiers. "...life in the trenches was more than just fighting and dying. Soldiers created a vibrant culture as a shield against the strain of war." explained Mark O'Neill. [ huliq.com :: 2008-08-04 :: Trenches and Fortifications warfare ]

Motorcycle believed to have carried the German Kaiser's letter of surrender
A motorcycle thought to have carried the German Kaiser's letter of surrender to the Allies at the end of World War I is to go on show in Denbighshire. Built in 1916, the 550cc Triumph Model H will take centre stage at the first Llangollen Motorbike Show. Owner Brad Jones says the vintage bike is a piece of world history. "I acquired the Triumph back in 1997... The bike had been in the same family since the early 1920s, with the father of the person I bought it off being a colonel in the British Army, who kept the bike when he left the forces. It came with letters from previous riders... stating they believed this was the very bike that carried the letter of surrender." [ bbc.co.uk :: 2008-08-04 :: German Soldiers - Army of Kaiser ]

Lusitania wreck to be explored by F. Greg Bemis Jnr.
F. Greg Bemis Jnr. is planning to explore the wreck of the Lusitania, torpedoed by a German submarine in 1915, an event America later used to enter into WWI. In 1982 he hauled up items from the ship - the ransacking angered many people - and battles still go on in the Irish courts. Bemis argues that a probe will prove his theory that the liner was secretly carrying ammunition to Britain which, when it exploded, caused the destruction of the liner. And there's more: it's claimed that among the ship's debris are lead containers that hold masterpieces (paintings by Monet and Rubens) from the famous Lane collection. [ southernstar.ie :: 2008-08-01 :: Wrecks ]

British and Australian troops who died in the Battle of Fromelles to be reburied
The remains of British and Australian First World War soldiers killed in the Battle of Fromelles in July 1916 will be unearthed from a mass grave and reburied in individual plots at a new cemetery - as close as possible to where they were found. The mass grave (up to 400 bodies) by Pheasant Wood on the edge of Fromelles in France was discovered in May 2008 by an amateur historian and later confirmed by a team of archaeologists. The exhumation and reinterment will be carried out under the protection of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission - and the men will be given full military honours to commemorate their courage. [ bbc.co.uk :: 2008-08-01 :: RIP - Remains of Soldiers ]

Dad's Army star Arnold Ridley was bayoneted by a German soldier in WWI
As "Private Godfrey" in Dad's Army, he was the least threatening of Walmington-on-Sea's Home Guard. In reality, actor Arnold Ridley went through hand-to-hand fighting in World War I trenches. Research into his WWI service has shown that he went "over the top" twice during the Battle of the Somme. On the second occasion, his unit was blocked by a German trench that was not marked on map. With many of his comrades cut down by machine guns, Ridley and the other survivors made their way along the dugout using bayonets and grenades. During the fighting, a German soldier lunged at him with a bayonet, but he deflected the blade into his groin rather than his stomach. [ telegraph.co.uk :: 2008-07-29 :: United Kingdom ]

The latest threat to World War I graves and memorials - Voyeuristic films and photos
While common acts of desecration have in the past included vandalism and graffiti, indecent photos are increasingly being shot around the structures built to remember the fallen. The latest case saw a French couple given a 4-month suspended sentence for making a adult video at the Vimy Ridge memorial. They were fined 400 pounds each and had to pay a symbolic 1 euro to Canada. Despite the sacrifice honoured by the Vimy Memorial, the couple stripped naked and did sex acts beside the structure. They then posted the video on a website, invited people to pay to watch it. Their sentence came only 6 months after another couple were fined for taking nude photos in the same place. [ telegraph.co.uk :: 2008-07-29 :: Museums and Memorials ]

The First World War (August 1914 to November 1918) is also known as the Great War, The War to End All Wars, World War I and WW1.

Many of the bloodiest battles in military history occurred during the First World War. In trench warfare hundreds of soldiers died for each yard of land captured. Artillery with fragmentation shells caused the most casualties and made massed infantry attacks futile.

First World War in the News is an edited review of hand-picked World War I 1914-1918 articles.