The Battle of Amiens marked a decisive turning point in the First World War. This course examines how strategy, coordination and innovation combined to break the stalemate on the Western Front. We explore why Amiens mattered, how it unfolded, and how it reshaped the path to the Armistice, offering insight into modern warfare and historical change.

DELIVERY MODE

• Hybrid (Face to face and online simultaneously)

COURSE RESOURCES

• Bill Gammage, The Broken Years, Chapter 6
• Les Carlyon, The Great War, Chapter 43
• George Mitchell, Backs to the Wall, Chapter 20
• Joan Beaumont, Broken Nation, Chapter 5

COURSE OUTLINE

• The War in France and Belgium until the German March Offensive
• Le Hamel and Monash makes his mark
• Amiens: the planning, the participants, the enemy
• Germany’s Blackest Day
• The effects of Amiens

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

1. Understand the context in the First World War of the fighting in 1918
2. See the strategic reasons for the moves of the German and Allied command
3. Understand the fighting techniques and weaponry by this stage of the war
4. Put into perspective the massive nature of the battle and its consequences