Classic Military Vehicle Magazine 1917 Special Issue

Despite victories at the Somme and Verdun, the fourth year of the Great War saw no relaxation of Allied efforts. The war of attrition that had seen the incremental weakening of the German Army, and the German nation, had to be maintained, even accelerated, throughout 1917. By the summer of that year, Field Marshal Haig’s plans for a new offensive in Flanders were complete, with the initial attack being made against the German positions on Pilckem Ridge outside Ypres. It marked the start of the Third Battle of Ypres – better known as the Battle of Passchendaele.

Features include:

The Zimmermann Telegram
With Germany increasingly being forced onto the defensive, and with its chances of a successful outcome to the war through military means diminishing with the passing of each month, the German Foreign Minister, Arthur Zimmermann, advocated a resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare.

The US Enters the War
On 2 April 1917, President Wilson delivered a speech to the joint houses of Congress, in which he stated that the US had some ‘very serious’ decisions to make. These decisions related to the conduct of Imperial Germany, following its announcement of unrestricted submarine warfare on any vessel approaching the ports of the Allied nations.

The Battle at Vimy Ridge
Vimy Ridge stands high above the rolling plains of Northern France. The German positions crowning the sharp escarpment were considered to be the strongest in the whole of the region. As part of the Battle of Arras, the four divisions of the Canadian Corps and one British were to scheduled to attack the ridge on the morning of 9 April.

Rationing Begins
The actions of the German U-boats, following the reintroduction of unrestricted submarine warfare, and the enormous demands the war imposed upon Britain’s merchant fleet, meant that food supplies in the UK came under increasing pressure in 1917. This inevitably led to a number of regulations designed to limit food consumption.