One of the great questions in the ongoing discussions and debate about the First World War is why did winning take so long and exact so appalling a human cost? After all this was a fight that, we were told, would be over by Christmas. Now, Allan Mallinson, former professional soldier and author, provides answers that are disturbing as well as controversial, and have a contemporary resonance. He disputes the growing consensus among historians that...

'Sniping in France' provides a detailed and richly informative account of how the snipers of the British Army during the Great War trained and fought, and what measures were taken against their German counterparts. The author's study covers the genesis of sniping in the army.