Soils of battle fields

[Guest steve campbell]

Hi,

This is a bit of a long shot, but does anyone have any idea as to how I can find out what types of soils are apparent within the Western front. In particular the area of Cambrai. I searched high and low on the internet but can't seem to find any info.

Any leads would be most appreciated.

Steven Campbell

[Paul Reed]

I believe someone from the University of Greenwich published a paper on this recently. Nils Fabiasson might have a copy. See his website at:

http://w1.865.telia.com/~u86517080/Battlef...rkeologENG.html

[Graham-McAdam]

Lots of woldy chalk around Cambrai, as on the Somme, Would you like me to find a little geology book up to a fiver when I'm there next week?

[paul guthrie]

I have a friend at Middle Tennessee State U. Murfreesboro who has done a lot of work on Somme soil, spoke about this at a WFA conference here in Lexington. Do not have email but you can find it on their web site or mail him at MTSU or I can get it if you need me to. I will be gone until 17th though.

[Somme1916]

Tunneling units did soil surveys in area's they planned to dig so you may want to see what you can track down in that field. Sorry I’m afraid I don’t have the foggiest idea how to start researching it from that angle but maybe some of our fellow members with an interest in the war underground can help? I did find a soil survey map done by one of the tunneling units during the war for the area south of Ypres. It was in the Shell Hole in Ypres a couple of months ago, I bought one copy for a friend of mine but I think there was another one there as well.

Best of luck

Jon

[Guest steve campbell]

Paul,

If you could forward me this email contact, or contact them on my behalf I would be most grateful

Steven

[Tim Birch]

Try "The Geographical Journal" of the Royal Geographical Society in London, Vol 163 Part 1 Pub March 1997 Paper entitled "Military Geography: terrain evaluation and the British Western Front 1914-18" by Peter Doyle and Matthew R Bennett of the School of Earth Sciences, University of Greenwich.

This should contain all the info you need. I have a copy and it is packed with useful geological data on the western Front.

For copyright reasons I can't copy it (and there is too much of it!!), but if you have a specific query I may be able to extract the info you need, provided its for your own private use.

Tim

PS Chris you may wish to include the above in the documents list.

[Christina Holstein]

You might also look for 'Battlefields of the World War' by Douglas W. Johnson, published by the American Geographical Society in 1921. This is a study in the military geography of the Western and Southern Fronts and makes fascinating reading. Lots of soil details in there.

Christina Holstein.

[Hedley Malloch]

I believe someone from the University of Greenwich published a paper on this recently. Nils Fabiasson might have a copy.

The guy at Greenwich (whose name escapes me) is a geologist who specialises in the geology of WW1 battlefields. He wrote a nice paper on the geology of the different parts of the Gallipoli battlefield and how it influenced the outcome of the campaign.

[Raster Scanning]

Stand to! number 49 has an article entitled "Geology and Warfare on the Western Front" by Peter Doyle and Matthew Bennett, both from the University of Greenwich, Chatham, Kent. At the end is a good list of further reading on the subject. This may be the same article that Tim mentions.

John.