In this section we will be following the war on the Western Front, to place into context the role of the Australian Imperial Force within the British Army. The early years saw the defensive withdrawal and eventual halting of the German Army, the race to the sea and the development of trench warfare and the Battles of 1st and 2nd Ypres. It was with the great Somme offensive in the summer of 1916 that we saw the Australians enter the fray. As the war progresses we will see the importance of the Australians in many battles, including the step-by-step battles of 3rd Ypres, halting the German Spring Offensive in 1918 followed by spearheading the offensive that led to the ultimate collapse of the Germans and the Armistice.
1914: Countdown to War; initial fighting & race to the sea
1915: War beyond the trenches; 2nd Ypres; Loos Offensive
1916: Verdun; the Somme
1917: Arras; 3rd Ypres
1918: German Spring Offensive; 100 Days Offensive
1919: Versailles Peace Treaty
FIRST WORLD WAR TIMELINE 
Following the Twenty-Second 