Battles WW1

The battle of Ypres 1914, 1915, 1917
there were in fact three battles fought around the Ypres salient during the war.
The first in 1914 was an attempt by the BEF to halt the rapid advances made by the germans.
The second, in 1915, was notable for the first use of poison gas by the germans. However, it is the long-planned offensive of july 31,1917, that holds the most significance. Here, a combination of over-ambitious aims, appalling, weather conditions, and misguided persistence by haig led to horrific losses

By the time the offensive was called off total casualties for both sides had been approximately 250,000. The horrors of the battle, in which men drowned in liquid mud has become synonymous with the images of the War. One of the central objectives, the village of Passchendale (eventually taken on November 6 by the Canadians), lent its name to the whole conflict.