Osprey Men-at-Arms 81 : The British Army 1914-1918

Between 1869 and 1874, Edward Cardwell, Gladstone's Secretary for War, undertook several major reforms to modernise and re-organise the British Army. The Crimean War, and the campaigns quelling the Mutiny in India, had revealed serious administrative and command shortcomings; Cardwell's legislation was aimed at curing these faults and was to serve as the foundation of a new-style army. His successors put into practice further improvements in tactics, training and command structure learned from harsh lessons in the South Africa, and by the outbreak of war in 1914, the British Army had developed into the best professional fighting force in Europe. D.S.V. Fosten and R.J. Marrion detail the origins, organisation, tactics, equipment and uniforms of the British Army which fought in the Great War 1914-18. Numerous contemporary photographs and museum specimens throughout are accompanied by detailed commentaries and also there are eight full page colour plates by Gerry Embleton.

Contents

• Introduction
• Command Structure
• Composition
• Orders of Battle
• The Plates