Showing Arras: The Spring 1917 Offensive in Panoramas Including Vimy Ridge and Bullecourt by Peter Barton

In spring 1917, Allied troops on the Western Front began the largest ever artillery barrage on German positions, using over 2.7 million shells. During the battle they succeeded in capturing the famous Vimy Ridge. But the ultimate cost of fighting was immense, with a daily casualty rate 40% greater than the Somme and almost double that of Passchendaele - making it hour for hour the most dangerous major campaign of the First World War. In this major new account of the conflict, Peter Barton showcases over 50 re-discovered British and German panoramic photographs of the battlegrounds, from the start of the first Battle of the Scarpe to the final push on Vimy Ridge. Taken at huge personal risk by specialist photographers, they reveal what no other photographs can - the view beyond the trench parapet - and a view not seen for over 90 years. Also included are unpublished testimony, letters and memoirs from the different serving regiments, sourced from archives across the UK, Canada, Germany and elsewhere; and stunning mapping, plans and diagrams throughout. In association with the Imperial War Museum.