Great War Forum

[Pete]

Those having an interest in unconventional warfare during the First World War might want to visit the Great War Forum, which can be found using the link below. GWF is a forum based in Britain with an international membership. It is a good place to discuss the operations of T.E. Lawrence, Lettow-Vorbeck, and the smaller theaters during that war. The main-force conflict on the Western Front has relevance to one of the main themes of Small Wars Journal, doctrinal change while under fire. The infantry and cavalry tactics that had served Britain during its colonial wars and us during wars with Indians, Spain and in the Philippines had proven inadequate, and artillery-intensive combined arms techniques became the new operational method. (Ironically enough, today we're moving in the other direction, away from a heavy reliance on fire support.) Feel free to visit the forum--it's one of my favorite places on the internet.

http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?

[Kevin23]

It looks interesting,

I may join as I have never seen a forum dedicated to the First World War, only the Second.

[Pete]

Today in "The Best Defense" blog Tom Ricks and Gian Gentile have an online contest over which kind of conflict is the hardest to fight, conventional battles such as the Somme or the COIN type of war. Click here (http://ricks.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/05/03/coin_and_the_somme) to read the blog entry and its comments. The comparision between the two is somewhat facile but it's an example of how the Great War is being cited in the current debate over U.S. military doctrine.