The authoritative revealing text about the incompetence of leadership on the Western Front - why the British soldiers were lions guided by donkeys. On September 26, 1915, twelve British battalions – a force of nearly 10,000 men – were ordered to attack German positions in France. In the three and a half hours of battle, there were 8,246 fatal casualties. The Germans suffered no losses. Why did the British army fail so disastrously? What can be said about the leadership of the generals? And most importantly, could all this have been avoided? In the book The Donkeys, the eminent military historian Alan Clark examines the key battles of that fateful year and shines a steady and revealing light on those in the High Command – the French, Rawlinson, Watson, and Haig among others – whose orders nearly led to the destruction of the old professional British army. Clark paints a vivid and convincing picture of how the brave soldiers, the lions, were essentially sent to their deaths by incompetent and indifferent officers – the donkeys. ‘A eloquent and painful book... Clark leaves the impression that vanity and stupidity were the main ingredients of the slaughter of 1915. He writes sharply and memorably’ Evening Standard