All tagged AEF

WWI Further Reading

One of our readers requested some additional source material about some of what I write about on CBRNPro.net. The Further Reading list posted today will appear in our forthcoming book on Belleau Wood and in our series of publications of Rexmond Cochrane's work, but I'm posting it here for a "living version" on our website to encourage others to learn more about the most critical part of CBRN history - the beginning. 

Re-examining the History of Chemical Warfare Part III

The massive scale of chemical warfare on the Western Front between March 21, 1918 and the armistice is a period most history of the war skips over.  Yet this period was marked by tactical innovation, more than at any point in the war. This innovation was concurrent with the height of American involvement: Belleau Wood,  Cantigny, St. Miheal, and the Meuse-Argonne battles all occurred in this period.  While the Americans struggled with everything, from battlefield effectiveness to logistics, the AEF reflects changes going on in the French and British Armies as well. 

Many have noted the importance of artillery to these new innovations, and some suggest this period was the harbinger of the "blitzkrieg" style of German warfare in WWII.  Few have noted the important role chemical weapons played in the final months of the Great War. CBRNPro.net examines the tactical utility of chemical weapons based on this history, in our latest post in an ongoing series re-examining the history of chemical warfare.

Re-examining the History of Chemical Warfare Part II

During the German Spring Offensives of 1918, also known as the Ludendorff Offensives and Operation Michel, the Germans used chemical weapons to an extent never seen before, or since, on the battlefield. During the largest artillery bombardment, and chemical attack, in history, Mustard ran in the gutters of the French village of Armentiers "like rain." CBRNPro.net explores this tactical innovation, and what followed in the second part of its ongoing series re-examining the history of chemical warfare, and the lessons that history can teach us today.