Many people interested in the First World War rather ignore 1915. We pay lots of attention to the outbreak of war, with the deployment of the tiny BEF to France; the Battle of Mons and the subsequent retreat to the Marne; the advance to the Aisne and the ‘race to the sea’, culminating in the first Battle of Ypres. All this is interesting and exciting – romantic even – and when we have finished with 1914 we tend to skip straight to 1916 and the Battles of the Somme. But on the Western Front 1915 is almost a forgotten year, and yet in many ways it was an important formative stage in the evolution of the BEF, and in the development of total war. In 1914 the BEF was an all-regular professional force; in 1915 it developed into a mix of regulars and Territorial Force battalions, while the first units of the New Armies made their appearance. The end of the year saw the removal of Field Marshal Sir John French as Commander-in-Chief and his replacement by General Sir Douglas Haig. It was the year of the formation of the Machine Gun Corps, and the reorganisation of divisional establishments to reflect the realities of what had now become siege warfare. In 1915 new techniques of waging war were introduced. Poison gas, flamethrowers, unrestricted submarine warfare and the bombing of civilian targets from the air all made their first appearance in war, courtesy of the Germans, while the British introduced their first trench mortars, the steel helmet, gas masks and a practical hand grenade. By the later standards of 1916 and 1917 British battles of 1915 were small-scale, but they did not seem so at the time, and offensives launched during that year were all part of the business of adapting to trench warfare and trying to find a way to break out of it. We shall examine the battles of 1915 and discuss how the British army adapted its tactics and equipment to the requirements of attritional warfare and how it began the conversion from an all regular professional force to a citizen army.

ITINERARY
Day 1 (Saturday): Depart Victoria Coach Station, London 08:45. Dover – Calais ferry. Drive to Ypres where we stay for 3 nights at Hotel Ariane. Introductory lecture, dinner and overnight.
Day 2: The Battle of Neuve Chapelle – March 1915. The attack of the Indian Corps and IV corps was at first successful although casualties were high. There was a failure to exploit the early gains. We will look at the battle and the conclusions drawn by both sides. Lunch break in Ypres. The second Battle of Ypres – April 1915. The first use of gas on the western front followed by attacks and counter attacks, the withdrawal to a shorter line and the loss of Hill 60. Attend the Last Post at the Menin Gate and choose one of the many restaurants for dinner tonight.
Day 3: The Battle of Aubers Ridge – 10th May 1915. Fought to support General Joffre’s offensives in Artois and Champagne, this was a new attempt by the BEF to secure Aubers Ridge and was followed by an attack further north at Festubert on 15th May. Lunch break in Armentiers. The attack by the Honourable Artillery Company on Bellewarde Wood, June 1915 and the fighting around Hooge, including the first use of flame throwers, in July 1915. Dinner in our hotel.
Day 4: The Battle of Loos, September/October 1915. Again fought in support of French offensives; again small gains were made at a disproportionate cost. The first British use of gas, the question of the reserves, the use of New Army divisions and the successes and failure will be discussed as we visit the scenes of the action. Lunch break in Bethune. Calais – Dover ferry. Arrive approx 18:45 Dover and 20:00 London.