Here is a selection of photos taken during my ride to Normandy. I covered mainly the British / Canadian area of operations on this trip with the exception of the American Cemetery Omaha beach which has a brand new interpretive center which worth anyone's time.

By early 1915, the lines in northern France had become static and the trench warfare that WWI is known for had commenced. Many soldiers and officers found themselves not only green, but found their senior leadership green in the tactics of the trench as well. New ideas had to be considered and new tactics developed to break the enemy lines for any offensive to succeed. The British First Army, under the command of the often maligned General Douglas Haig, was given the task of taking the immediate German positions, Neuve Chapelle and finally Aubers ridge. The First Army was made up of British, Canadians and Indians.

Although the battle is not often associated with the major battles of the First World War, it is highly significant in the analysis of the planning, technology and tactical advances of the time. The battle exhibited major breakthroughs in four key areas.

• The German lines were mapped extensively by aerial reconnaissance by a British air arm that was in its infancy. This allowed;
• Detailed maps to be distributed to the ground forces which contained phase lines and timed intervals for movements which were co-ordinated with;
• Air support in the attack and;
• Heavy artillery preparation of targets in advance with the lifting and shifting of fires in time with infantry movements. More rounds were sent skyward in the battle than in all of the Boer War.

These innovations paid off at first with Haig taking the immediate objective of the German line salient and then the village of Neuve Chapelle. However, the attack bogged down soon thereafter, well before reaching the final objective of the Aubers ridge. A competent German counter-attack was partly the casue, but unforced errors also came into play. There were several tactical explanations for the halt that are common to many battlefields;

• Poor weather on the second day limited aerial observation and support which contributed to;
• Poor communications that kept the leadership from knowing where things were progressing properly and where they weren't which led to;
• Bad tactical intelligence that led some areas to be allotted more troops than needed and others less than needed which led to;
• The fog of war where things tend to freeze on the senior decision level, but local fighting goes on, but is uncoordinated with the larger picture.

The battle was a limited tactical win for the Brits, but at a heavy cost of approximately 12,000 casualties. In the longer term Neuve Chapelle became the professional template for a new set of tactics that would become prevalent for the rest of the war.

Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

This is a great ride when you are going somewhere else in France. It is only 60 miles from Calais and can be seen on the way to the south of France, Paris or Belgium with only a minor detour. From Calais, head to Neuve Chapelle, then take the following circular ride of the area. This is not a spectacularly scenic ride, but you get to ride along the British front line from Neuve Chapelle to Fleurbaix (with a British Cemetary in Fauquissart), then see the Aubers ridge objective, then down to the pivot point in the line at La Bassee.

Book Recommendation: The Battle of Neuve Chapelle - French Flanders from AbeBooks.co.uk

Map Recommendation: Michelin Map No. 236 Nord de la France from AbeBooks.co.uk

Accor Hotels in the Lille area

On 13 February 1862, Union commanding General U.S. Grant's positioning was complete and the time had come to attack Fort Donelson. The Union forces had spent the 12th of February closing in from Fort Henry and exchanging picket fire with the Confederates manning the earthen works of Fort Donelson. The gunboats had also spent the 12th testing the river batteries and found them tough, but assumed they could be taken as Fort Henry's had been.

On the morning of 13 February 1862, Grant meant to have a simultaneous push along the right and left, but General John A. McClernand had jumped the gun and got manhandled by the Confederates, led by General Gideon Pillow. A push on the other side by General C.F. Smith was more disciplined and originally successful, but met with the same fate at the hands of General Simon Bolivar Buckner's troops. Overnight, a snow and ice storm befell the area and the lines woke on the 14th to a white landscape, ice laden trees and wounded who had died from exposure overnight.

On 14 February 1862, Foote was to unleash his gunboats on the Fort Donelson river batteries just like he had at Fort Henry. However, Donelson was not Henry. Fort Donelson's batteries were on tiered bluffs overlooking the Cumberland River, which gave them great range and an enviable angle of fire up close. This was to prove decisive. Foote was to preclude the ground assault with a show of force and hopefully take out the batteries. Foote came on and made considerable progress, until the flotilla got close enough for the Confederate gunners to zero in. When very close, the Donelson guns were firing right down on the Yankee ships, delivering devastating blows. Virtually the entire flotilla lost navigation capabilities due to direct hits and were floating helplessly down stream. Foote was seriously injured and many were dead. Donelson would not be another Henry. The overall Rebel commander, General John B. Floyd, was ecstatic, because his original mission was to slow down the Yankee advance long enough to let Rebel troops in Bowling Green, Kentucky retreat to Nashville unhindered and this he had accomplished. His follow-on mission would drive the course of the battle, though.

Grant now had to face the very real possibility that his confidence in taking Donelson was misplaced. The next day would be critical, but not in the way Grant expected. On 15 December 1862, Grant had to go meet Foote as the Navy man was too injured to travel to Grant. As Grant left, he left explicit instructions not to engage with the Confederates in the belief that the Confederates would not dream of attacking. Grant met with Foote and asked for whatever force Foote could give the following day to keep the batteries busy, whilst he attacked on land. As Grant rode back on the icy roads, he got news that McClernand was under pressure on the right. The fight was on, but not at Grant's bidding.
The Confederate leadership of Floyd, Buckner and Pillow had querulously decided to attempt a breakout around Dover. Buckner was to provide a rear guard, Pillow, with the help of Nathan Bedford Forrest's Cavalry, would push McClernand out of the way, then Floyd would lead the vanguard to Nashville. Pillow and Buckner would then retreat under fire and provide cover for Floyd.

Pillow's and Forrest's push on McClernand was what the reports Grant was receiving were all about. Grant made his way forward and heard that the Rebels were carrying 3 days of rations on them. This told him that they were trying to breakout. Grant immediately ordered re-enforcements to McClernand and also told Smith to attack Buckner's rear guard with force. Smith put such pressure on Buckner that Pillow had to send some help to stave off a collapse of the rear. Pillow thought this was OK, because he and Forrest had opend the road near Dover for a retreat. However, as the Rebels settled back into their positions after opening the road, a stasis developed. As the intitative ebbed away, Floyd, Pillow and Buckner traded turns in being optimistic, pessimistic and openly hostile to each other.

Floyd was a deer in the headlights now. Finally, Pillow wanted to hold the position and Buckner wanted to ram the forces through the hole created during the day. Floyd lost nerve and decided to hold the position. The day ended in much the same position as it had began with the notable exception of some of Smith's unit occupying some of the ridge line near the fort, putting artillery in range of the main fort. It might have continued that way had Pillow and Floyd stuck around, but both were former Federal officials and feared being tried for treason if caught. So, under the cover of darkness, they caught the first thing steaming to Nashville. A small number of Confederate troops also got up river that night. Forrest, who was disgusted by the trio of Generals, stomped out and took his cavalry command across a swollen stream and into the Tennessee darkness. Buckner was left in charge and immediately drafted a request for terms to send to his old friend, Grant. Buckner was probably hoping for some leniency based on his previous relationship with Grant.

The request reached Grant in the early morning and he responded with what was to make him famous, "No terms except an unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works." Buckner called him "unchivalrous," but accepted the terms anyway.

Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

This is my home ride and I recommend it as one of the most beautiful rides anywhere. It splits the the Land Between the Lakes from North to South.

Book Recommendation: Where the South Lost the War: An Analysis of the Fort Henry-Fort Donelson Campaign, February 1862 from AbeBooks.com or Amazon.com

Map Recommendation: Tennessee Atlas and Gazetteer 2006 from AbeBooks.com or Amazon.com

Accor Hotels in the western Tennessee area

On 12 December 1862 Union General Burnside's troops had crossed the Rappahannock and secured Fredericksburg and another major crossing down river. Burnside and Lee spent the day riding their lines, but with different tasks.
Lee, knowing that he had superior ground, was riding to check his lines and trying to second guess Burnside's intentions. Would Burnside attack elswhere due to the South's superior positioning or was Burnside so confident of his numbers that he would attack Lee's formidable position?
Burnside also spent the day with his troops. He mainly found them trashing Fredericksburg. However, Burnside was futilely looking for weak points in Lee's poition, but could find none. He finally settled on two hills, Prospect and Marye's Heights, that had the sole advantage of being close, reducing the ground needed to be covered.

The stage was now set and the the 13th would bring battle. Log on tomorrow for part 3.

Books from Amazon.co.uk

Motorcycle Ride

Check out the ride along Virginia State roads 218 and 205 from Fredricksburg to Colonial Beach.