This is a ground-breaking study of German operational command during a critical phase of the First World War from November 1916 to the eve of the third battle of Ypres. The situation faced by the German army on the Western Front in 1917 was very different from the one anticipated in pre-war doctrine and Holding Out examines how German commanders and staff officers adapted. Tony Cowan analyses key command tasks to get under the skin of the army's command culture, internal politics and battle management systems from co-ordinating the troops, materiel and different levels of command needed to fight a modern battle to continuously learning and applying lessons from the ever-changing Western Front. His detailed analysis of the German defeat of the 1917 Entente spring offensive sheds new light on how the army and Germany were able to hold out so long during the war against increasing odds.

This monumental, two volume set, several years in preparation, includes over 400 color photographs, illustrations and period images from the finest collections in the United States and Europe. For the first time, collectors will see a comprehensive full color photographic lexicon picturing helmets from every unit of the Imperial German Army of 1914. Many of the photographs exhibit helmets of such rarity that they have never been seen outside a select group of advanced collectors. Carefully selected, each photograph and illustration affords the reader information not to be found elsewhere. Presented in a clear and easy to understand format, the detailed text covers evolution of the Pickelhaube from 1842 until 1918, helmet nomenclature, front plates of the Active, Reserve and Landwehr regiments, and identification tables for officer and other ranks helmets. Without a doubt, these are the most extensive and comprehensive books on this subject ever published in English. The information presented here will make this book essential for the novice and advanced collector, military historian and restorer.