A German Deserter's War Experience

Anonymous
Translated by Julius Koettgen (1877 - )

The author of this 1917 narrative, who escaped from Germany and military service after 14 months of fighting in France, did not wish to have his name made public, fearing reprisals against his relatives. The vivid description of the life of a common German soldier during “The Great War” aroused much interest when it was published in the United States in serial form. Here was a warrior against his will, a hater of militarism for whom there was no romance in war, but only butchery and brutality, grime and vermin, inhuman toil and degradation. His story also contains the first German description of the retreat of the Teutonic armies after the battle of the Marne. – From the Translator’s Preface
- Summary by Lee Smalley

Genre(s): War & Military

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 00 Translator's Preface Lee Smalley
00:03:41
Play 01 March into Belgium Lee Smalley
00:11:04
Play 02 Fighting in Belgium Lee Smalley
00:24:35
Play 03 Shooting Civilians in Belgium Lee Smalley
00:14:31
Play 04 German Soldiers and Belgian Civilians Lee Smalley
00:09:13
Play 05 The Horrors of Street Fighting Lee Smalley
00:11:26
Play 06 Crossing the Meuse Lee Smalley
00:06:15
Play 07 In Pursuit Lee Smalley
00:15:58
Play 08 Nearly Buried Alive on the Battlefield Lee Smalley
00:11:53
Play 09 Soldiers Shooting Their Own Officers Lee Smalley
00:13:23
Play 10 Sacking Suippes Lee Smalley
00:15:49
Play 11 Marching to the Battle of the Marne—Into the Trap Lee Smalley
00:11:10
Play 12 At the Marne—In the Maw of Death Lee Smalley
00:16:49
Play 13 The Rout of the Marne Lee Smalley
00:14:34
Play 14 The Flight from the Marne Lee Smalley
00:20:03
Play 15 At the End of the Flight Lee Smalley
00:15:38
Play 16 The Beginning of Trench Warfare Lee Smalley
00:21:13
Play 17 Friendly Relations with the Enemy Lee Smalley
00:09:26
Play 18 Fighting in the Argonnes Lee Smalley
00:12:46
Play 19 Christmas in the Trenches Lee Smalley
00:13:45
Play 20 The "Itch" A Savior Lee Smalley
00:13:03
Play 21 In the Hell of Vauquois Lee Smalley
00:10:14
Play 22 Sent on Furlough Lee Smalley
00:08:13
Play 23 The Flight to Holland Lee Smalley
00:08:39
Play 24 America and Safety Lee Smalley
00:07:02