"Myths" of WWI

[bayonetbrant]

This is an older article, and not from SailorSaturn...

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-25776836

[Steelgrave]

That's a really good article, thanks for sharing. 

[mirth]

+1 Great read.

[steve58]

very interesting, thanks O0,

[ArizonaTank]

The misconception that always strikes me is that the Western Front did not move.  While it is true that most of the war was static, the first few months in 1914, and most of 1918 saw major movement.  The last great German offensive of 1918 saw the French pushed back to the Marne, and Paris threatened, again.   

Another is that the American Expeditionary Force was pretty much fighting for the last year of the War.  But in fact, despite the American declaration of war in April 1917, the AEF did not really engage in major battles until the last six months of the War.  The first Americans didn't enter the trenches until October 1917.  But they held down quiet sectors and trained.  American forces did not engage in major battles until Spring, 1918.   

[agrippamaxentius]

Thanks! That was awesome!

[agrippamaxentius]

That 11.5% death ratio really puts things into perspective. People also seem to forget that there are usually always more wounded than dead on any given battlefield. Lucky soldiers charging an enemy trench likely got shot in non vital regions, perhaps some even feigned death to avoid going headlong into MG fire, although I know that when cases of this were discovered the soldiers were often killed.