The German Army in World War I (2)

The years 1915-17 saw the Imperial German Army, like the other Great War combatants, forced to adapt to the new realities of static trench warfare. Prewar uniforms and equipment had to be modified, for reasons of both utility and economy; on battlefields ruled by machine guns and artillery the steel helmet reappeared, and masks to protect against the terrifying new weapon of poison gas. The fashionable cavalry regiments became irrelevant on the Western Front; many were dismounted to join the infantry, while new types of unit usurped their prestige - assault battalions, and the air corps. This second volume in a three-part sequence offers a mass of detail on organization, uniforms and insignia, illustrated with rare photographs and meticulous colour artwork.