WW1: Not So Quiet On The Western Front!
This podcast takes you beyond the trenches of the First World War, exploring untold stories and surprising truths. Hosts Dan Hill and Dr. Spencer Jones bust myths and unravel the complexities of a conflict that shaped the 20th century. The show is produced by Battle Guide, a UK-based military history organization.
Episodes
Episode 149: WW1 Trench Raiding Weapons
Picture a soldier with a trench dagger tucked into his belt and a satchel full of grenades on his shoulder, carrying a spiked club in one hand and a revolver in the other: a man ready for a deadly encounter in the dark. The weapons of trench raiding are among the most unsettling objects left behind by the First World War, and today, we explore how these weapons were used and why the less fearsome
Episode 148: Courage Without Glory - The British Army in 1915
What happens when an army built for a short war finds itself fighting in a long one? In 1915, the British Army found out, and learned the answer the hard way. Short of guns, short of shells, and up against defences that no one had previously seen, the Army would experience a year of courage without glory.
Recommended Book
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Courage-without-Glory-British-Wolverhampton/dp/1
Episode 147: Germany 1915: Death, Taxes & Counter-Attacks
In this episode, a continuation of our Germany at War series, we take a deep dive into the fighting on the Western Front throughout the crucial year of 1915. From poison gas and pillboxes to elastic defence, we explore the tactics, technology, and brutal realities of the war and much more in this week’s episode.
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Episode 146: The Great Escapes of Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle was wounded and captured at Verdun in March 1916, but this marked the beginning of a new phase of his First World War. Over the next two and a half years, he would dedicate himself to escaping captivity and rejoining the fight. This is the story of how the future president of France became one of the most notorious escape artists of the First World War.
Our first book INFERNO i
Episode 145: Charles de Gaulle in WWI: From Academy to Verdun
It is difficult to imagine Charles de Gaulle as a young man before the képi, the presidency, and his famous silhouette. But in August 1914, he was a 23-year-old lieutenant about to be wounded and tested in the inferno of combat. Ultimately captured in the brutal fighting at Verdun, he would do all in his power to escape from captivity in Germany.
This is the story of Charles de Gaulle's First Worl
Episode 144: Who Won the Battle of the Somme
1917 British patrols walked into Serre without firing a shot. The Germans had gone - withdrawn back to the Hindenburg Line, abandoning ground over which some one million men had been killed and wounded. Four months after the Battle of the Somme officially ended, the British were left masters of the field - but it was a field of shell holes, ruins and unburied corpses. Were they the victors? In thi
Episode 143: The Ancre: The Final Major Battle of the Somme
On 13th of November 1916 the British Army attacked at Beaumont Hamel, Serre and Beaucourt - the ground of the first morning of the Somme. Four and a half months after the catastrophe of the first of July, the last battle of the campaign was fought across the same fields, still littered with the fallen from weeks earlier. What happened at the Battle of the Ancre - the final major battle of the Somm
Episode 142: French Army on the Somme
Today in popular memory the Battle of the Somme is often seen as titanic struggle fought between Britain and her vast Empire an the military might of the German War Machine. But, what’s far too often overlooked, and the subject of today’s episode is the contribution of the French Army who fought tenaciously from the very first to the very last shots of the battle.
NSQ Tour 2027: https://battleg
Episode 141: Thiepval 1916: Storming the Impossible Ridge
By late September 1916, the British Army stood ready to attempt something it had failed to do on the war's bloodiest day: capture Thiepval. Once a village, now a fortified maze of underground cellars and interlinking tunnels, the position had repelled the 36th Ulster Division on 1 July and become a symbol of German resistance ever since. Two and a half months on, a very different British Army laun
Episode 140: Flers-Courcelette: The Somme's Tactical Turning Point?
In this episode we continue our exploration of the 1916 Battle of the Somme with a focus on a key crucial stage famed for the global debut of a new weapon - the tank - But the battle of Flers-Courcelette was not just the tanks, debut - tens of thousands of infantry played their part in what would become one of the greatest assaults of the battle.
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Episode 139: Pozières: Australia's Bloodiest Battle of the Somme
The struggle for Pozieres would become one of the most infamous campaigns of the Battle of the Somme: some 23000 Australians would become casualties over six weeks fighting on a front barely three miles wide. The total casualties were comparable to Gallipoli and the outcome would be controversial. What happened at Pozieres and why did it degenerate into one of the bloodiest battles of the war for
Episode 138: Somme's Woodland: Mametz, Trônes, Delville & High Wood
There was no terrain on the Somme that soldiers feared more than woodland - a maze of broken stumps, fallen branches, and hidden barbed wire. In this episode we explore how and why the woods of the Somme became such a crucial part of the battle.
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Episode 137: Night Attack on the Somme: Bazentin Ridge 1916
Just two weeks after the catastrophe of 1 July 1916, the British Army launched another major assault on the Somme - this time with dramatically different results. Attacking before dawn after silently assembling thousands of men in No Man's Land, they overran much of the German second position, captured thousands of prisoners, and briefly created what many believed was the best opportunity for a de
Episode 136: The Somme in the South - Forgotten Victory
When people think of the Somme, they think of failure: men cut down in no man's land; shattered battalions; and catastrophic losses. Yet along much of the southern part of the battlefield, this is not what happened at all. Here, British troops broke into the German defences, captured villages and advanced further than anywhere else on 1 July. For a few brief hours, it even seemed that the offensiv
Bonus Episode: Reichs & Republics The Turnip Winter of 1916/17
What happens when an entire nation runs out of food?
This is one of our favourite episodes from our sister podcast, Reichs and Republics: The German History Podcast, and we’d like to share it with you.
In this episode Katja and Chris explore the brutal reality of the 'Turnip Winter' of 1916/17, when the German civilian population was forced to endure extreme hunger, freezing temperatures and a c
Episode 135: The Somme’s Northern Disaster
At 7.30am on the morning of 1st July 1916, whistles blew along a front stretching more than twenty miles. Tens of thousands of British soldiers climbed from their trenches and began walking towards the German lines. By nightfall nearly 20,000 of them would be dead. It remains the bloodiest day in British military history. But that catastrophe was not evenly spread across the battlefield. Some sect
Episode 134: France's Elite Units
What turns a unit into an elite?
Is it rigorous selection, a hard-earned reputation, or simply being thrown into the fiercest fighting and surviving?
In today's episode, we search for the answer through the story of the Blue Devils of the Vosges. From the Chasseurs to the Corps Francs, we'll explore what the French considered to be their elite units of the First World War.
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Episode 133: The Gallipoli Evacuation: A Forgotten Success Story?
For eight brutal months in 1915, every Allied plan at Gallipoli had failed. However, on the final night of the campaign, the Allies finally managed to pull off one perfectly executed operation and evacuate.
This is the story of how a disastrous campaign came to an end with an almost flawless final action.
The Caribou Trail — Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3065030/The_Caribou_Trail
Episode 132: Battles that Shaped the 20th Century
In this week’s episode and in a long overdue collaboration between Not So Quite on the Western Front and WW2 Both Sides of the Wire, four of us sit down to explore what we feel are the battles that, for one reason or another, shaped the course of the 20th century.
Pre-order here:
http://battleguide.co.uk/inferno
Written by four historians, each bringing their own unique perspective, Inferno ex
Episode 131: The August Offensive: Gallipoli’s Last Great Hope
In August, the Allies prepared for their largest offensive yet on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
This was intended to be the decisive breakthrough that would break the deadlock and end the stalemate once and for all. The plan involved a new landing, a night march and a dash for the heights. But how did the campaign's most imaginative plan become its most bitter failure?
The Caribou Trail: https:
Episode 130: Why the Allies Failed at Krithia — Gallipoli’s Fatal Mistake
Four miles from the beaches of Gallipoli stood a small village called Krithia. Allied commanders believed it could be captured in a single day. Instead, thousands of British, French, Australian and New Zealand troops would die trying to reach it.
Beneath the heights of Achi Baba, repeated assaults collapsed in gunfire, confusion and bloodshed, turning the southern tip of Gallipoli into a battlefi
Episode 129: What Was It Really Like to Survive Gallipoli?
Have you ever wondered what it was actually like to survive in the trenches of the Gallipoli Front in the First World War? Not the battles we read about in textbooks, but the heat, the flies, the constant shellfire, and only metres from the enemy. In this episode we ask, and answer those very questions.
The Caribou Trail: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3065030/The_Caribou_Trail/
Gue
Episode 128: The Real Black Day of the German Army? | Soissons 1918
In July 1918, the German spring offensives had reached their high watermark, and it was time for the French army to strike back. This is the story of the Battle of Soissons, the largest French tank attack of the entire First World War and a turning point for the Allied cause.
Guest James Taub Socials:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-taub-670096103
https://bsky.app/profile/taubhi
Episode 127: From 1915 Newsreels to Mel Gibson - The Evolution of Gallipoli Movies
In this episode, Spencer is joined by Professor Mark Connelly, a renowned expert in military and cultural history, to explore the cinematic legacy of the Gallipoli Campaign.
From the earliest newsreels of 1915 to the monumental impact of Peter Weir’s 1981 masterpiece, we discuss how film has shaped and sometimes rewritten our visual and cultural understanding of the Great War.
Guest: Professor
Episode 126: Gallipoli 1915 - France's Forgotten Battle
In 1915, France sent an army to Gallipoli. Few in the English speaking world know this, and few in France remember their efforts. In this episode, we recover the forgotten story of the French contribution to the campaign. The landing on the Asian shore and the colonial soldiers who held the right flank at Helles is for eight brutal months.
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Episode 125: Gallipoli 1915: What Really Happened at Anzac Cove?
In 1915, Anzac troops landed on the rugged coastline of Gallipoli in an attempt to break the Ottoman defences from the north. What they encountered were steep cliffs, chaos and devastating fire from concealed Turkish positions. This is the story of the Anzac landings.
The Caribou Trail: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3065030/The_Caribou_Trail/
Guest Steve Chambers
Books: https://www
Episode 124: Gallipoli 1915: The Brutal Landing at Helles
In 1915, allied Forces tried to storm the beaches of Gallipoli and push in land through the heavily fortified ottoman positions. Instead, they faced devastating fire from determined defenders. This is the story of the Hellers landings and their bloody opening hours.
The Caribou Trail: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3065030/The_Caribou_Trail/
Guest: Stephen Chambers
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Episode 123: The Dardanelles Naval Assault: Catastrophe in a Single Day
In 1915 the allies tried to force their way through one of the most heavily defended waterways in the world - what they found was a deadly combination of mines, artillery and determined Ottoman resistance. This is the story of the doomed attempt to force the Dardanelles
Guest: Stephen Chambers
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Episode 122: The Fatal Plan Behind Gallipoli
In 1915 Winston Churchill had a plan to end the war with a single blow: he called it a master stroke of strategy, history remembers it as a catastrophe. This is the story of how Gallipoli was born and why it was doomed before a single soldier set foot on the beaches.
NSQ Tour 2026: https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq-tour-2026
Guest Steve Chambers
Books: https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Stephe
Episode 121: Myths of the French army
In this episode alongside regular guest James Taub, we delve into some of the most enduring myths surrounding the French Army in World War I.
Why did they start the war with blue jackets and red tracers were French tactics, as suicidal, is commonly believed, and what really happened with the Paris taxes at the Battle of the Man? We discuss all this and more.
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Episode 120: From the Home Front to the Alps
In this episode, we turn the show over to you, our listeners. We delve into questions posed for the podcast and our fourth war site, the dugout, covering everything from post-war veterans to the Italian front and much, much more.
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S
Episode 119: What Made Men Fight?
Today we’re diving into courage and fear on the Western Front: what made men fight? What soldiers were frightened of, how they learned to function anyway, and what the sources reveal when the mask slips - in letters, diaries, medical reports, and the hard edge of military discipline.
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Episode 118: The 5 Deadliest Allied Snipers of WWI
In this episode, we follow the Great War’s deadliest marksmen into action. What made an elite sniper and what effect did these individuals have on the battlefield?
We’ll trace the lives of men like Francis Pegahmagabow, Henry “Ducky” Norwest, Billy Sing, Neville Methven, and Johnson Paudash - how they fought, how they earned their medals, what their victories cost them, and what happened when the
Episode 117: The Battle that Created a Myth: The German Army at Ypres 1914
In this episode, a continuation of our series exploring the story of the German Army on the Western Front, we look at the formation of the Western Front and explore the early battles of Trench Warfare which highlighted the brutal nature of that new phase of the Great War.
Listen to WW2 Both Sides of the wire with Professor Matthias Strohn:
https://listen.both-sides-of-the-wire.com/
Episode 116: The Battle Germany Had to Win: The Marne 1914
In this episode we continue our journey into the story of the German Army on the Western Front. This week our focus lies with the early battles of the great war and the bloody fights of late 1914 that, ultimately led to the horrors of trench warfare.
Listen to WW2 Both Sides of the wire with Professor Matthias Strohn:
https://listen.both-sides-of-the-wire.com/
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Bonus Episode: The Wartime origins of words and phrases | Untitled History Podcast Episode: 1
We really hope you enjoyed this episode, and if you did, it would mean a huge amount if you could head over to the Untitled History Podcast channel right now, give it a follow and leave a quick review!
https://open.spotify.com/show/1pVhf1zLs05L1hPwsB2tJIhttps://www.youtube.com/@UntitledHistoryPodlisten.untitled-history.com
From as early as 7000 years before the common era, we have evidence sugg
Episode 115: Germany’s 6-Week Gamble - 1914
In this episode, part 2 of our Germany on the Western Front series, we take a detailed look at the famous Schlieffen Plan. What led to its creation? By who? What were its objectives? And how did it unfold in the early weeks of the Great War? - We answer all that and more!
Listen to WW2 Both Sides of the wire with Professor Matthias Strohn:
https://listen.both-sides-of-the-wire.com/
Joi
Episode 114: How Germany Prepared for the Great War
In this episode the first in a new series from the ‘other side of the wire’ along with guest historian Professor Matthias Strohn, we begin a much requested deep dive into the story of the Germany Army on the Western Front. This week our focus lies with the German pre-war military and how the early phases of the war unfolded from their perspective.
Listen to WW2 Both Sides of the wire with Profe
Episode 113: Flamethrowers in WW1: How Effective Were They?
In 1915 the German Army introduced the world to the power of the flamethrower - but by 1916 the Allies had caught up with their own weapons. As the war continued flame stopped being a novelty and instead became a system - specialist troops, evolving equipment and developing tactics. We delve into that story in this episode and ask whether the flame thrower was a weapon whose bark was worse than it
Episode 112: Flamethrowers in WW1: The Weapon That Shocked the Trenches
In 1915, the German army began using a terrible new weapon in organized assaults. The flamethrower capable of clearing a trench in seconds, few weapons the First World War produced such immediate revulsion or such rapid imitation. In this episode, we dive into the story of liquid fire on the Western front, tracing its evolution, its most notorious actions and its overall effect on the battlefield.
Episode 111: How Grenades Took Over the Trenches in WW1
In the early months of the Great War, a hand grenade was almost an anachronism — a relic of fortress warfare associated with seventeenth-century “grenadiers” rather than modern industrial armies. And yet, by 1918, it had become one of the most important and feared weapons on the Western Front.
This episode is the story of that transformation. From improvised “jam tins” and crude bombs to engine
Episode 110: The Season Soldiers Feared Most: Winter in the Trenches
In this ‘seasonal’ episode,and one with particularly close links to current world events, we explore the story of winter life in the trenches. From frostbite and fraternisation to surviving in a harsh and deadly climate, we look closely at a universally disliked experience, from both sides of the wire.
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In this week’s episode we delve
Episode 109: Prostitution & VD on the Western Front
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In this week’s episode we delve into the often overlooked and murky world of prostitution in the Great War. From back alley entrepreneurs to Army run brothels, and from morale affects to disease, we discuss one of the most common, but least spoken of aspects of the war on the Western Fronts.
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Episode 108: Myths of the Somme
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In this week’s episode we head to the Somme battlefields to explore a battle that even today is covered in controversy. We discuss what actually happened in that 4 month long battle and address some of the many myths that still pervade more than a century later.
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Episode 107: Myths of the Ypres Salient
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In this week’s episode we head to the Ypres Salients to explore an area that even today is covered in controversy. We discuss what actually happened in that 4 years of fighting and address some of the many myths that still pervade more than a century later.
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Episode 106: The Evolution of Sniping in WW1
In this week’s episode we continue our look into the vital role of Snipers on the Western Front. From informal and disorganised beginnings, we explore the emergence of the ‘art’ of sniping and how by 1918 they became one of the most feared and efficient weapons on the battlefield.
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Episode 105: The Rise of the Snipers in WW1: The War Within a War
In this week’s episode we begin a multi-part journey into the secretive and highly dangerous world of sniping in the Great War. From its ad-hoc early employment, to the development of dedicated sniper schools and tactical advances on the battlefield, we explore a method of fighting, which to many came to symbolise the deadly nature of trench warfare.
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Episode 104: The Hidden Battle for Hygiene in WW1
In today’s episode, we discuss sanitation in the trenches: Why the trenches were so filthy, what that did to soldiers’ bodies and minds, and how armies tried - with varying degrees of success - to keep a modern industrial war even vaguely hygienic.
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Episode 103: African Americans in WWI
Today we’re looking at African Americans at war in 1917-18 - nearly 400,000 thousand men in uniform, most assigned to hard, essential labor, a smaller number fighting in segregated units that navigated American racial policy and coalition warfare at the same time.
We’ll trace that story from recruitment and training through service with both the US Army and the French, and we’ll ask what their ex
Episode 102: The Deadliest U-Boat Skippers of WWI
This week we return to the oceans and consider the top U-Boat skippers of WW1. What made a skipper an ace? What tactics made them so lethal? And why were some of them so controversial? We discuss all this and more.
US National Archives, Der Magische Gurtel, 1917 - 1918: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoA1wOrmTLk
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Us
Episode 101: Front Lines at Night
In this week’s episode we return to the trenches to explore the often overlooked experiences of life in the frontlines at night. From trench raids to fatigue parties, wire placement to sleeping arrangements, we take a deep dive into the nocturnal world of the Western Front.
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Episode 100: WWI’s forgotten Battles, Tank Fails & What We Got Wrong! – Our 100th Episode Special
Not So Quiet hits triple digits! For Episode 100 we’re handing the wheel to you, the listeners, answering your questions and discussing many of the thoughts you’ve shared with us via email, on 4th Wall, or via social media. We’ll trade stories, compare notes, and admit some of the things that we got wrong along the way.
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Episode 99: When Sport Stopped for War – How WW1 Changed Football, Rugby & the Olympics
In this episode we continue our exploration of the fascinating story of Sportsmen at War on the Western Front. From world champions to local legends, and across all combattant nations, all gave some, and of course, some gave all.
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Episode 98: From Playing Fields to Battlefields: Sportsmen in WWI
In this week’s episode we return to the frontlines to explore the fascinating and varied experiences of Professional Sportsmen in the Great War. From Wimbledon Champions to cycling legends, we take a deep dive into how they payed their part on the western front.
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Suppo
Episode 97: Forgotten Lessons: Why the BEF Wasn’t Ready for 1940
In this week’s episode, alongside guest historian Dr Rob Lyman, we will take a deep dive into the story of the British Army between 1918 and 1940, and the remarkable, and in many ways tragic decline which led it from Victory to Defeat.
Book — The Victory to Defeat: https://robertlyman.com/book/victory-to-defeat/
Tour — The Victory to Defeat: https://robertlyman.substack.com/p/the-victory
Episode 96: The French Army of Africa in WWI
In this episode night we follow a road that runs from the Sahara to the Somme, tracing the story of the French Army of Africa as it marched from the outposts of the empire and into the furnace of trench warfare. With the aid of French Army expert James Taub, we’ll examine the nature of this unique force, where it came from, how it was organised, and how it fought on the Western Front and beyond.
Episode 95: France’s Colonial Soldiers: Forgotten Stories of a Global Army
In this episode, we return to the story of the French Army and examined the history of France's colonial troops, how they were raised, what made them unique, and they're often overlooked experiences within the wider French military. We're joined by special guest James Taub, French Army expert, who brings new insights into the role these men played and the controversial legacies that they sometime
Episode 94: The First Tank Attack in History: Flers–Courcelette, 15 September 1916
Dawn on the Somme, 15 September 1916. At 06:20, the whistles blew and men climbed from their trenches into the attack. But this morning, something else moved with them - steel monsters clanking forward on tracks, belching fumes, and crushing wire. The world’s first tanks would go into battle at Flers–Courcelette. What happened that day has been remembered as both a marvel of invention and a muddle
Episode 93: Tunnellers – The Battle Beneath Messines Ridge
In this episode we take a literally deep dive, beneath the Western Front to return to an olf favourite, the story of Mining in the Great war, but this time with a specific focus on perhaps the most important tunnelling action anywhere on the Western Front – the battle of Messines.
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Episode 92: The Battle of the Memoirs: How WW1 Was Written (1918–39)
In this episode we explore how early histories of the First World War were shaped. We’re marching into the Official Histories and Britain’s “Battle of the Memoirs,” where footnotes became artillery, reputations the high ground, and truth the most contested trench! We examine how controversies and mud slinging that shaped the way we understand the war on the western Front.
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Episode 91: Pigeons at War!
In this episode we take to the air once more, but this time on the trail of one of the unsung heroes of the great war - the carrier pigeon. Equally vital for communication on the frontlines, maintaining unit cohesion in battle, or as a handy snack, we’ll explore their role and the stories of a few famous birds who took to the skies above the western front.
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Episode 90: Elite Divisions
In this episode we take a look at the formations of the British and Commonwealth forces who served on the Western Front and ask what made certain units ‘Elite’ and how did their performance on the battlefield impact the wider war?
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Episode 89: Trench Rats!
In this episode we discuss one of the ever-present and universally hated aspects of life in the frontlines - Trench Rats. What were they? How common were they? And how did the effect the lives of the men who had to live amongst them on the Western Front?
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Episode 88: Q-Ships - Deadly Duels
This week we continue the fascinating story of Q ships and their role in the war at sea. By 1917, German U-Boat skippers were well aware of the dangers of Q ships, which forced Royal Navy commanders to take ever greater risks to try and destroy their quarry. We examined some of those incredible close range actions in this episode.
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Episode 87: Q-Ships - Deceive and Destroy
In 1915, a strange new type of vessel emerged at sea—one that looked like a harmless fishing trawler or a weary merchantman, but concealed hidden guns, carried hardened crews, and was ordered to destroy U-boats on sight. These were Q-ships, Britain’s answer to the U-boat menace. In today’s episode, we delve into their story and explore cat-and-mouse warfare, secret identities, and some of the most
Episode 86: UBoats - Hunting the Hunters 1917-1918
In our final episode on the U-Boat we look at how the Allies struck back against the U-Boat menace. How did the Royal Navy turn the tide of the war and why did the U-Boat arm go from hunters to the hunted?
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Do you
Episode 85: The U-Boat Crisis of 1917: Was Britain About to Collapse?
In this episode we continue our deep dive into the history of U-boats in the First World War with a focus on the Second Unrestricted campaign against Britain. Why did Germany risk everything on a renewed blockade in 1917 and how close did it come strangling Britain into submission?
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Episode 84: UBoats - The War Beneath the Waves 1914-1916
At the outbreak of war in 1914, most still believed that the key sea battles would be fought above the waves. But beneath the surface, a revolution was beginning. Germany’s U-boats, small, cramped but lethal, would soon challenge the mighty Royal Navy and the rules of war itself. From prize law to the sinking of the Lusitania, this episode charts the U-boat’s rise - and the controversy it left in
Episode 83: French Tanks at War
This week, we dive into one of the Great War’s most remarkable transformations— the birth of the French tank arm.
Link from James: https://forum.pages14-18.com/viewtopic.php?t=52768
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Episode 82: French in WWI – Your Questions Answered
In this episode, with the aid of regular guest and French Army expert James Taub, we delve your questions on France in WW1. What exactly is a French Colonial unit? What did the French think of the chauchat machine gun? And what did the British soldier think of his French counterpart? We discuss all this and more.
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Episode 81: The Franz Ferdinand Assassination
In this episode, we unravel the story of the assassination that changed the world. On a summer morning in 1914, a teenage revolutionary fired two shots on a Sarajevo street - and set the world on fire. Who was Franz Ferdinand? Why did a group of young men risk everything to kill him? And how did a single wrong turn trigger a global catastrophe?
Battle Guide Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Episode 80: Pals Battalions
In this episode of Not So Quiet on the Western Front, we explore the rise and tragic fall of the Pals Battalions - units of friends, neighbours, and co-workers who marched to war together in 1914. Their story is one of camaraderie, sacrifice, and devastating loss on the killing fields of the Somme.
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Episode 79: Life Behind the Lines
When we think of the Western Front, we think of the trenches of mud, gunfire, and death. But there was another side to the war - the quieter spaces just behind the lines. In this episode, we explore life in those rear areas - the routines, the rest, the brief moments of humanity - and some of the choices men made in the face of exhaustion and uncertainty.
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Episode 78: French in 1918 - Part 2
In this episode we take our study of the French Army into the final, decisive Allied offensive of 1918. How did the French army finally weather the storm of the German spring offensives, and how did it turn the tide at the Second Battle of the Marne?
James Book Recommendations:
Doughty, Robert A. 2008. Pyrrhic Victory: French Strategy and Operations in the Great War. Cambridge, MA: Harvard
Episode 77: French in 1918 - Part 1
In this week’s episode we follow the French Army as they emerge from the extremely trying year of 1917 into a year that would ultimately lead to Victory on the Western Front, but, before that could happen, one more massive German offensive first had to be held.
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Episode 76: French in 1917 - Part 2
In this week’s episode we explore the vital period following the French ‘mutinies’ of 1917 and look at how the Army recovered in the face of intense fighting all along the Western Front.
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Thanks to James Taub for joining us on th
Episode 75: The Nivelle Offensive - French in 1917
This week we continue our study of the French Army in the First World War as we examined one of France's most controversial commanders, Robert Nivelle, and the April 1917 offensive that bears his name. What happened during the Noelle Offensive, and why did it lead to a mutiny in the French Army?
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Episode 74: Lighter Than Air: Airships in the Great War - Part 2
In this episode, we continue our discussion of the Zeppelin campaign in the skies over Great Britain. How did Britain’s air defences adapt to the threat, and what was it like to intercept and engage a Zeppelin?
Ian Castle's Book: Zeppelin Inferno: The Forgotten Blitz 1916
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Episode 73: Lighter Than Air: Airships in the Great War - Part 1
In this episode, with the support of guest historian Ian Castle, we delve into the ever popular ‘lighter than air’ subject of Airships in the Great War. We look at their initial introduction onto the world stage, employment by the military, use as an offensive weapon of war and examine the impact they made both on the home and fighting fronts.
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Episode 72: Göring's early life
In this week's episode we return to an old favourite - Air Power in the Great War. And with the help of Guest Historian Dr Victoria Taylor, we explore the life of the controversial German aviator Hermann Goering.
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