The Age of Attrition 1917 — Mutiny, Submarines, and the Breaking Point

1917 — Mutiny, Submarines, and the Breaking PointBy 1917, the war had entered a phase no one had planned for and no one could control. The optimism of 1914 was long dead, and even the grim determination of 1916 had begun to rot from within. The armies still faced each other across the Western Front, but beneath the surface, the foundations of the war effort were cracking. This was no longer only a struggle of armies. It was a struggle of societies—of food, morale, discipline, belief, and patience.On the Western Front, the trenches remained largely where they had been for years. From the North Sea to Switzerland, the front lines shifted only in meters and hundreds of meters, never in decisive miles. Soldiers rotated in and out of the front line, but the pattern of life barely changed: weeks in mud-filled trenches, under constant artillery fire, punctuated by raids, patrols, and the occasional large offensive that promised much and delivered mass casualties instead.In France, the year began with hope—and ended in disillusionment. General Robert Nivelle, newly promoted after Verdun, promised a breakthrough that would end the war within forty-eight hours. His plan relied on overwhelming artillery, precise coordination, and rapid infantry advance. In April 1917, the French army launched the Nivelle Offensive along the Aisne River.It was a disaster.