The World Crisis, 1911-1918As first lord of the admiralty and minister for war and air, Churchill stood resolute at the center of international affairs. In this classic account, he dramatically details how the tides of despair and triumph flowed and ebbed as the political and military leaders of the time navigated the dangerous currents of world conflict. Churchill vividly recounts the major campaigns that shaped the war: the furious attacks of the Marne, the naval maneuvers off Jutland, Verdun's “soul-stirring frenzy,” and the surprising victory of Chemins des Dames. Here, too, he re-creates the dawn of modern warfare: the buzz of airplanes overhead, trench combat, artillery thunder, and the threat of chemical warfare. In Churchill's inimitable voice we hear how “the war to end all wars” instead gave birth to every war that would follow, including the current war in Iraq. Written with unprecedented flair and knowledge of the events, The World Crisis remains the single greatest history of World War I, essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand the twentieth century. |
Contents
THE VIALS OF WRATH | 3 |
MILESTONES TO ARMAGEDDON | 14 |
THE CRISIS OF AGADIR | 26 |
AT THE ADMIRALTY | 48 |
THE NORTH SEA FRONT | 71 |
IRELAND AND THE EUROPEAN BALANCE | 85 |
THE CRISIS | 94 |
THE MOBILIZATION OF THE NAVY III | 111 |
The Ruin of the Balkans | 507 |
The Abandonment of the Dardanelles | 525 |
The Consequences of 1915 | 535 |
19161918 | 536 |
The Blood Test | 549 |
Falkenhayns Choice | 568 |
Verdun | 580 |
THE WAR FRONTS JANUARY 1916 | 583 |
THE PASSAGE OF THE ARMY | 123 |
THE ESCAPE OF THE GOEBEN | 138 |
THE INVASION OF FRANCE | 141 |
THE MARNE | 152 |
THE MARNETHE TURNABOUT | 158 |
THE MARNETHE GERMAN RETREAT | 166 |
THE WAR AT SEA | 169 |
HOME WATERS 19091 | 174 |
ANTWERP AND THE CHANNEL PORTS | 188 |
ANTWERP | 205 |
LORD FISHER | 211 |
CORONEL AND THE FALKLANDS | 226 |
THE BOMBARDMENT OF SCARBOROUGH AND HARTLEPOOL | 251 |
OPERATIONS OF DECEMBER 16 1914 26869 | 259 |
TURKEY AND THE BALKANS | 273 |
The Deadlock in the West | 291 |
The Origin of Tanks and Smoke | 303 |
The Choice | 317 |
The Action of the Dogger Bank January 24 | 330 |
Second Thoughts and Final Decision | 347 |
The Genesis of the Military Attack | 360 |
Fall of the Outer Forts and the Second Greek Offer | 373 |
The New Resolve | 383 |
The Eighteenth of March | 394 |
Admiral de Robecks Change of Plan | 405 |
The First Defeat of the Uboats | 415 |
The Increasing Tension | 425 |
The Battle of the Beaches | 432 |
PROPOSED ADMIRALTY ORDER OF MARCH 23 4023 | 438 |
After the Landing | 444 |
The Fall of the Government | 456 |
The Darkening Scene | 474 |
The Battle of Suvla Bay | 489 |
the Preliminaries | 599 |
THE BATTLE OF JUTLANDTHE FIRST CONTACT | 611 |
ENEMY BATTLESHIPS IN SIGHT | 617 |
the Encounter | 619 |
DEPLOYMENT DIAGRAMS | 624 |
THE MEETING | 628 |
POSITION OF THE FLEETS AT 9 P M | 641 |
The Battle of the Somme | 652 |
THE SOMME BATTLEFIELD | 663 |
The Roumanian Disaster | 669 |
THE ROUMANIAN CAMPAIGN 1916THE BEGINNING | 677 |
The Intervention of the United States | 684 |
General Nivelles Experiment | 698 |
GENERAL NIVELLES EXPERIMENT | 717 |
At the Ministry of Munitions | 720 |
CAMBRAI | 734 |
Britain Conquers the Uboats | 736 |
COMPARISON BETWEEN LOSSES AND OUTPUT | 751 |
The German Concentration in the West | 753 |
The Twentyfirst of March | 763 |
THE TWENTYFIRST OF MARCH | 771 |
The Climax | 779 |
SIR DOUGLAS HAIGS BACK TO THE WALL ORDER FACSIMILE | 785 |
The Surprise of the Chemin des Dames | 791 |
THE BATTLE OF NOYON JUNE 1918 | 798 |
The Turn of the Tide | 801 |
The Teutonic Collapse | 815 |
THE WESTERN FRONT 82627 | 821 |
Victory | 823 |
Appendix | 845 |
| 849 | |
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Common terms and phrases
action Admiral Admiralty advance Allies already Antwerp armoured arrived artillery attack August Austria Balkan Battle Fleet Battle Squadron battle-cruisers battleships Beatty Belgian Belgium bombardment Brigade Britain British Army British Fleet Bulgaria Cabinet Canopus coast command Commander-in-Chief Commodore continued corps Cruiser Squadron Dardanelles decision defence destroyers divisions Empire enemy enemy’s favourable fighting fire flank flotillas forces forts France French Army front German Fleet Gneisenau Goeben Government Grand Fleet guns harbour Heligoland High Sea Fleet Joffre land light cruisers Lord Fisher Lord Kitchener manœuvre March Marne Meanwhile Mediterranean ment miles military minefields months morning naval Navy night North o’clock offensive officers operations position Prime Minister reinforcements Roumania Russia Scharnhorst Sea Lord sent Serbia ships side Sir Arthur Wilson Sir Edward Grey Sir Ian Hamilton situation speed Staff steam Straits strength submarines telegram tion torpedo troops Turkey Turkish Turks turned Verdun vessels victory whole