Show Notes
On October 4th, 1917 a thousand British guns opened fire on German positions along Broodseinde Ridge. What followed was described by Crown Prince Rupprecht as "the black day of the war." For the first time, German high command began to consider the unthinkable: that they might actually lose.
The Battle of Broodseinde was the third and final success in General Plumer's carefully planned offensive. In this episode, Mat McLachlan reveals how a perfect convergence of tactics, timing and weather created what Charles Bean called "the most complete success so far won by the British Army in France."
From the 3rd Australian Division's capture of the Tyne Cot blockhouse to the stunning double-blow of simultaneous attacks, we follow the forces that shattered German morale and captured the ridge that dominated the Ypres Salient. But we also witness what came after: the rains that turned the battlefield to porridge, and the attacks at Poelcappelle and Passchendaele that descended into nightmare.
Why did German commanders panic after Broodseinde? How did tactics that worked perfectly on October 4th fail catastrophically days later? What makes the captured pillbox at Tyne Cot Cemetery the most significant monument on the Western Front?
"We no longer know what to do." - Crown Prince Rupprecht's diary, October 4th, 1917
Episode Length: 42 minutes
Features: The capture of the Tyne Cot blockhouse, Crown Prince Rupprecht's crisis of confidence, the weather that changed everything and why this single day's success could not be repeated.
Next Episode: Passchendaele - the final, bloodiest phase of Third Ypres.
Presenter: Mat McLachlan Producer: Jess Stebnicki
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