The Clash of the Gods of War

Australian Artillery and the Firepower Lessons of the Great War

By William Westerman & Nicholas Floyd (editors)

Published by Big Sky Publishing
RRP $34.99 in hardback | ISBN 9781922265821

There is a stellar cast of contributors to this book which is an edited collection of papers presented during the Firepower: Lessons from the Great War seminar series conducted by the Royal Australian Artillery Historical Company (RAAHC) [click the link for more information] – over the commemoration period 2014-2018.

Among the familiar names are Jean Beau, Roger Lee and Mark Lax, to name just a few.

The book is divided into three sections beginning with

• ‘Early Challenges’ which covers the period 1914-15;
• ‘Unto the Breach’ which covers artillery and firepower development during the static trench warfare of 1916-1917; and, finally,
• ‘King of the Battlefield’ which explores artillery in 1918, when it was at its most powerful and effective.

Overall, the collection, which includes numerous previously unpublished Great War images, aims to showcase the breadth and diversity of topics in relation to the deployment of artillery and how Australia’s fledgling and inexperienced field and garrison artillery forces faced the challenge of a major conflict.

Published with the support of the Army History Unit.