The village of Givenchy-lès-la-Bassée is located on a small hill in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. A hundred years ago, it was ravaged by the First World War. The fighting there was fierce between 1914 and 1918, eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded in this tiny village. Phil Tomaselli's detailed report shows what happened in Givenchy when it became a battlefield, and this story was repeated in other villages and towns on the Western Front. Givenchy's key position made it a target for devastating bombardments, infantry attacks and underground warfare. The landscape was pulverised by shellfire, and the ground beneath was riddled with tunnels. Even when this section of the front was relatively quiet, mine clearance, shelling, sniper attacks and trench raids took place around the remains of the village. The gruelling war of attrition that characterised the fighting on the Western Front continued here throughout the war. Phil Tomaselli's narrative is largely based on excerpts from war diaries, personal accounts, and official and unofficial historical accounts.
Group
Books (first-hand)
Author
Tomaselli, Phil
Title
Givenchy in the Great War
Details
Engish text, paperback. 256 pages.
State
new
Subtitle
A Village on the Front Line 1914 - 1918
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Church Street 47 S70 2AS South Yorkshire Vereinigtes Königreich
