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THE THIRD BATTLE OF YPRES (PASSCHENDAELE) Passchendaele, officially known as the third battle of Ypres, became the focus for one of the worst battles of World War One, not only for the large amount of casualties, but also for the terrible weather and ground conditions under which those losses occurred. THE STRATEGY AND PLAN OF THE BATTLE General Haig's objectives were to sweep the Germans all the way to the Belgian coast. The town of Ypres, to which the British had been driven back by German chlorine gas in 1915, held great strategic importance. The Germans occupied a ridge from the east to the south of the town at Passchendaele, the only high ground in a completely flat area. Passchendaele was most important to the whole operation; if the British could break out of Ypres, and take the ridge, they could then turn north and drive the Germans from the Belgian coast. The British and French high command had decided that a three stage attack on the German lines was necessary to break the stalemate that had ensued since the end of 1914. It was decided that the British forces would attack at the Ypres front as part of the three phase attack. THE ACTUAL EVENTS OF THE BATTLE The first and second Battles of Ypres were both operations launched by the Germans in 1914 and 1915 respectively, whereas the Third Battle of Ypres was initiated by Sir Douglas Haig’s Allied forces in 1917.
Approximate Word count = 866
Approximate Pages = 3.5
(250 words per page double spaced)
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