A HISTORY OF THE ARMY ORDNANCE SERVICESThe Great War

Most of the casualties inflicted during the Great War were caused by artillery, yet the achievement of the Artillery in the conflict can often be overlooked. This history of the Army Ordnance Services is therefore, an important and welcome work. Written by the man who commanded the Royal Artillery Ordnance Corps in the conflict, Maj.Gen. A. Forbes, this history offers a full account of what the author rightly describes as ''Ultimately the decisive factor in the greatest struggle which mankind has known''. The Corps expanded from 30 officers and 1,360 men in 1914 to 800 officers and 15,000 men in 1918. Ordnance at its disposal was less than 1,000 tons in 1914, but in France alone totalled 336,450 tons at the war''s end - delivering 9000 tons of shot and shell to the Army every day. Apart from ammunition, the Ordnance Corps was also responsible for providing the fighting man with virtually all he needed in the trenches apart from food : including sandbags,l barbed wire, gas masks and even the gum boots to withstand the Flanders mud. This fascinating book is the real story of the sinews of war without which the conflict could not have been fought.