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Updated in [July 27th, 2023]

This free online course offers an opportunity to explore the mechanics and memory of the Great War. Focusing on the Western Front, the most important and bloody theatre of the war, the course examines how the Allied armies experienced a ‘learning curve’. It looks at how they integrated new training, techniques and technologies to end the stalemate of trench warfare, defeat the German invader and liberate Belgium and northern France from four hard years of military occupation. The course compares and contrasts the reality of the First World War with their memory of it today. It focuses on the experiences of soldiers in the British, French, German and American armies, as well as those from the British and French empires, including Australian, Canadian, Indian, New Zealand, Algerian, Moroccan and West African soldiers. Led by John Connor, one of Australia’s leading military historians, and a team of international historians, the course draws on the latest historical research to offer new insights and engage with old myths. It is presented in three parts: an overview of the Great War, the ‘learning curve’, and remembering the First World War. No particular background is required; everyone with an interest in the First World War is welcome to participate.