Tannenberg August 1914
Battle of Tannenberg
Perhaps the most spectacular and complete German victory of the First World War, the encirclement and destruction of the Russian Second Army in late August 1914 virtually ended Russia's invasion of East Prussia before it had really started.
Battle of the Marne Sepetmber 1914
The First Battle of the Marne was fought in September 1914. By September 12th, the end of the Battle of the Marne, the war of movement seen since August 1914 had gone and the trench warfare associated with World War One had come into being.
Battle of Gallipoli April-December 1915
By 1915 the Western Front was clearly deadlocked. Allied strategy was under scrutiny, with strong arguments mounted for an offensive through the Balkans or even a landing on Germany's Baltic coast, instead of more costly attacks in France and Belgium.
Battle of Verdun February-December 1916
The German siege of Verdun and its ring of forts, which comprised the longest battle of the First World War, has its roots in a letter sent by the German Chief of Staff, Erich von Falkenhayn, to the Kaiser, Wilhelm II, on Christmas Day 1915
Battle of Somme July-November 1916
Comprising the main Allied attack on the Western Front during 1916, the Battle of the Somme is famous chiefly on account of the loss of 58,000 British troops (one third of them killed) on the first day of the battle, 1 July 1916, which to this day remains a one-day record. The attack was launched upon a 30 kilometre front, from north of the Somme river between Arras and Albert, and ran from 1 July until 18 November, at which point it was called off.
Battle of Ypres July-November 1917
Strategically located along the roads leading to the Channel ports in Belgian Flanders, the Belgian city of Ypres had been the scene of numerous battles since the sixteenth century. With the German failure at the Battle of the Marne in September 1914 and the subsequent Allied counter attacks, the "Race to the Sea" began.
Battle of Caporetta October-November 1917
One of the more spectacular successes of the war (by any belligerent), the Battle of Caporetto (also referred to as the Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo) saw combined Austro-Hungarian and German forces decisively break through the Italian line along the northern Isonzo, catching the Italian defenders entirely by surprise. The scale of the Italian defeat at Caporetto led to both a change in government and Luigi Cadorna's dismissal as Chief of Staff.