Following on from their pioneering account of the Saxon army in the First World War -Fighting the Kaiser’s War - Andrew Lucas and Jurgen Schmieschek have compiled this remarkable sequel which covers Saxony’s war in Flanders in much greater detail. Once again they draw on vivid extracts from personal accounts and letters as well as regimental and documents from the Saxon archives, and they illustrate their powerful study with hundreds of previously unpublished personal photos which show every aspect of wartime experience in the front line and the rear areas. The role of the Saxon army in the three battles of Ypres is recorded in graphic detail, and rare photographs offer fresh perspectives on famous wartime locations on the Western Front including Ploegsteert Wood, the Menin Road, Bellewaarde, Wytschaete and Passchendaele. The historic photographs - and the insights provided by the accompanying text - give us a fascinating inside view of the Saxon soldiers and their relations with the local population who were obliged to host them. The quality of the evocative personal material - text and images - collected by Andrew Lucas and Jurgen Schmieschek makes this exceptional work a major contribution to the literature on the German forces on the Western Front. AUTHOR: Andrew Lucas first developed his passionate interest in the Kingdom of Saxony and its army while researching his great grandfather Arno Bierast’s wartime service with 4. Kgl. S chs. Feldartillerie-Regiment Nr.48. He has published several articles on the Saxons in Stand To! and is the author, with J rgen Schmieschek, of Fighting the Kaiser’s War: The Saxons in Flanders 1914-1918. Jurgen Schmieschek is a lifelong resident of Dresden. Since his first visit to Flanders in 1994 he has been fascinated by the Great War, and in particular the experiences of his fellow Saxons. He has since travelled widely on the old Western and Eastern Fronts, formed friendships with researchers and collectors in many countries, and amassed the amazing collection which forms the basis of this book. He has contributed to numerous publications in German and Flemish and is the co-author with Andrew Lucas of Fighting the Kaiser’s War: The Saxons in Flanders 1914-1918.
300 b/w illustrations