This illustrated book reveals how the tactics and strategies used in the Underground War between 1914-18 evolved.
This study covers the Western Front, as well as the Gallipoli, Italian and Italian theaters. It explores the three main aspects of World War I underground: Military mining, attack tunnels, and dugouts. The underground war in 1914-17 was the result of trench warfare. It was essential for both sides to fight and survive. In 1917-18 it was rendered largely obsolete by the development of the all-arms battle as mobility was restored to the battlefield.
In the stagnant, troglodyte existence of trench warfare, military mining was a hidden world of heroism and terror in which hours of suspenseful listening were spent monitoring the steady picking of unseen opponents, edging quietly towards the enemy, and judging when to fire a charge. Hand-to-hand combat in darkness resulted from breaking into enemy mine galleries. This fully illustrated book by an expert discusses and illustrates the ingenuity and claustrophobia of underground warfare, as well as its tactical significance. These plates depict the underground uniforms, equipment and weapons, along with vignettes which vividly portray the subterranean war during World War I.