Enduring the Great War AninnovativecomparativehistoryofhowGermanandBritishsoldiers enduredthehorroroftheFirstWorldWar.Unlikeexistingliterature, whichemphasisesthestrengthofsocietiesormilitaryinstitutions,this studyarguesthatattheheartofarmies’robustnesslaynaturalhuman resilience.DrawingwidelyoncontemporarylettersanddiariesofBritish and German soldiers, psychiatric reports and official documentation, and interpreting these sources with modern psychological research, thisuniqueaccountprovidesnewinsightsintothesoldiers’fears,moti- vationsandcopingmechanisms.ItexplainswhytheBritishoutlasted theiropponentsbyexaminingandcomparingthemotivesforfighting, the effectiveness with which armies and societies supported men and thecombatants’moralethroughouttheconflictonbothsides.Finallyit challenges the current consensus on the war’s end, arguing that not a‘covertstrike’butratheran‘orderedsurrender’ledbyjuniorofficers broughtaboutGermany’sdefeatin1918. ALEXANDER WATSON is a Research Fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge. In manuscript form Enduring the Great War was joint-winner of the Institute of Contemporary History and Wiener Library’s Fraenkel Prizefor2006. Enduring the Great War Combat, Morale and Collapse in the German and British Armies, 1914–1918 Alexander Watson CAMBRIDGEUNIVERSITYPRESS Cambridge,NewYork,Melbourne,Madrid,CapeTown,Singapore, Sa˜oPaulo,Delhi CambridgeUniversityPress TheEdinburghBuilding,CambridgeCB28RU,UK PublishedintheUnitedStatesofAmericabyCambridgeUniversityPress, NewYork www.cambridge.org Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9780521881012 (cid:2)AlexanderWatson2008 Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements, noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithout thewrittenpermissionofCambridgeUniversityPress. Firstpublished2008 PrintedintheUnitedKingdomattheUniversityPress,Cambridge AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary ISBN978-0-521-88101-2hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy ofURLsforexternal orthird-party internet websites referred toin thisbook,anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwill remain,accurateorappropriate. Contents Listof plates vi Listof figures viii Listof tables ix Acknowledgements x Listof abbreviations xiii Map:TheWestern Front1914(cid:2)1918 xvi Introduction 1 1 War of endurance 11 2 Why men fought: combat motivation in thetrenches 44 3 Self-deception and survival: mental coping strategies 85 4 Junior leadership: command, cohesion andcombat motivation 108 5 Morale and military endurance 140 6 The German collapse in1918:strike, mutiny or an ordered surrender? 184 Conclusion 232 Appendix 1:Walter Ludwig’s study of Wu¨rttemberg soldiers’ copingstrategies 236 Appendix 2:Psychiatric casualties inthe German andBritish armies 238 Appendix 3:Military ranks andstatus inthe GermanandBritish armies 241 Glossaryof Germanterms 244 Bibliography 246 Index 283 v Plates 1.The battlefield: British trenches from theair, September 1915.Archive of ModernConflict, A 2883c page13 2.The cost: German corpses after theFrench Artois offensive, September 1915.Author(cid:2)sCollection 18 3.The power ofartillery: shell exploding in no-man(cid:2)s-land, December 1916.Imperial WarMuseum, Q 1688 25 4.Aconstrictive environment: thetrenches from the ground, January 1917.Imperial War Museum, Q4654 30 5.Volunteering: female coercion. From thesketches of John Patrick MacKay. CostelloeCollection 55 6.Comradeship: German troopsat Lens,winter 1917–18. Archive of ModernConflict, A4682 68 7.Disillusionment? AGerman protest –(cid:3)wedidn(cid:2)t wantthewar(cid:2).Author(cid:2)s Collection 73 8.Faith(1): (cid:3)Pals(cid:2)from the diary ofArthur Wrench. Heldin theImperial War Museum,85/51/1 78 9.Faith(2): padreblessing German troops, October1917. Archive of ModernConflict, Vol.298 D 94 10.Officers(1): Britishofficers on theSomme, 1July 1916. Imperial War Museum, Q66 112 11.Officers(2): German officers atVerdun, March 1916. Archive ofModern Conflict,A 2883a 121 vi Listofplates vii 12.Hunger: German military kitchen inFrance. Archive of ModernConflict, A5048 127 13.Material might (1):British 6-inch howitzerand crew, 1July 1916.Imperial War Museum, Q 2 152 14.Human decline: (cid:3)The Guard once andnow(cid:2),1917 and1914. Archive of ModernConflict, A4682 159 15.Preparation: inspection at aGerman recruit training depot behind thelines. Archive of ModernConflict, A 4743 162 16.Material might (2):British tank. Archive of ModernConflict, A 4579 166 17.Prisoners (1):British soldiers captured intheGerman spring offensive, 1918.Archive of ModernConflict, A4360 177 18.Material might (3):British shells being unloaded, 23 March 1918.Imperial War Museum, Q 8610 180 19.Prisoners (2):captured German soldiers, 28 September 1918.Imperial WarMuseum, Q 9342 218 20.Prisoners (3):captured German officers, 10 August 1918.Imperial War Museum, CO 3001 225 Figures 1. Voluntary enlistments into theBritish army, August 1914–December 1915 page50 2. Voluntary enlistments into theWu¨rttemberg army, August 1914–December 1916 52 3. Ratio of BEFpersonnel captured and missing tothose killed, August 1914–June 1918 144 4. Ratio of Germans captured andmissing tothose killed (British sector), February 1915–October 1918 151 5. German prisoners captured weekly in theBritish sector of theWestern Front, 31 July1917–11 November 1918 216 viii