A Hundred Days

Commanded by Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) suffered heavy losses in its unsuccessful attempts to break through the German fortifications on the Western Front in 1916–17. Then, in the spring of 1918, following Russia’s military and political collapse, Germany launched a series of massive offensives on the Western Front. Haig’s army took a terrible—but not fatal—battering.

By July 1918, the German forces had largely exhausted themselves and were vulnerable to Allied counter-offensives. Although it was not without its problems, by mid-1918 the BEF had developed into a highly sophisticated military machine. With much of the French army exhausted and the American Expeditionary Forces still comparatively inexperienced, it was Haig’s British and Dominion forces who, starting with the Battle of Amiens 8-11 August 1918, took the lead in inflicting a series of devastating defeats on the Germans.

These victories constituted one of the greatest campaigns in British military history and had a profound impact on world affairs. Writing vividly and authoritatively, prize-winning military historian J. P. Harris offers penetrating insights into these dramatic events.

Harris taught at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst for 35 years and is the author of numerous acclaimed works of military history.