Old Front Line
WW1 Podcast with Paul Reed
Questions and Answers Episode 62
In this week’s Question and Answer Episode we look at: why did German intelligence understand so much about the coming Battle of the Somme, yet the Allies were caught so badly off guard by the German Spring Offensive of 1918?
We also examine the changing role of cavalry after the war of movement ended in 1914. How did commanders such as Haig reconcile traditional cavalry doctrine with trench warfare, and why were substantial cavalry formations maintained even as infantry numbers fell?
We then turn to the fascinating problem of errors on war graves and memorials. How common were mistakes in names, dates and details when thousands of headstones were produced without modern databases, and what happens when an error is discovered?
Finally, we follow the story of Private Arthur Wickes of the 11th Sherwood Foresters, whose battalion’s Somme battle plan placed him on prisoner duties at Battalion HQ rather than in the first assault. Why were men selected for these duties, and could his previous wounds have influenced the decision?
Main Image: Cavalry in reserve halted in the Authie River to water the horses, Auxi-le-Chateau, 17th September 1918. (IWM Q9317)
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2 Comments on “Questions and Answers Episode 62”
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And sometimes errors on the headstones are just simple errors by the stonemasons that slipped through the quality control and aren’t noticed for a long time. At Zantvoorde cemetery I noticed the headstone of private J.W. Peeves. His headstone puts him in the Durham Licht Infantry. At Gent City Cemetery I stumbled upon the grave of Lieutenant W. Stirk of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, killed 22nd June 1915. Which was strange because it was the 2nd World War plot. He died on the 22nd June 1945. Of both man, the database held the correct data. On both occasions I notified the CWGC and they responded very quickly that they had looked into it and would correct the error on the first available moment.
Thanks, Peter!