The Western Front: A History of the Great War, 1914-1918

Written by:
Nick Lloyd
Narrated by:
Mark Elstob

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
32
Narrator
3
Release Date
May 2021
Duration
20 hours 40 minutes
Summary
The Western Front evokes images of mud-spattered men in waterlogged trenches, shielded from artillery blasts and machine-gun fire by a few feet of dirt. This iconic setting was the most critical arena of the Great War, a 400-mile combat zone stretching from Belgium to Switzerland where more than three million Allied and German soldiers struggled during four years of almost continuous combat. It has persisted in our collective memory as a tragic waste of human life and a symbol of the horrors of industrialized warfare.

In this epic narrative history, the first volume in a groundbreaking trilogy on the Great War, Nick Lloyd captures the horrific fighting on the Western Front beginning with the surprise German invasion of Belgium in August 1914 and taking us to the Armistice of November 1918. Drawing on French, British, German, and American sources, Lloyd weaves a kaleidoscopic chronicle of the Marne, Passchendaele, the Meuse-Argonne, and other critical battles. From the trenches where men as young as seventeen suffered and died, to the headquarters behind the lines where Generals Haig, Joffre, Hindenburg, and Pershing developed their plans for battle, Lloyd gives us a view of the war both intimate and strategic, putting us amid the mud and smoke while at the same time depicting the larger stakes of every encounter.
Reviews
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Michael Hayes

Very good book. Narration was excellent. I've only read a few books on WWI and this is probably the most detailed about the Leadership and their decision making process. When you are losing literally 100's of thousands of men in single battles the strain on those leaders must have been incredible. Definitely recommend!

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Raymond A.

Enjoyed book as the Western Front was were the main action was. Discussion of the leader interactions was new to me. Access to a map of the front would be helpful but not essential to the great narration. RW

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