Snipers in World War 1 (Documentary)

In fall 1914, the British and French armies on the First World Wadustr’s Western Front were wrestling with a problem: unseen German riflemen were picking off any man who showed himself above the trench. Something had to be done about it – and the result was the birth of the modern sniper.

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» SOURCES
Campana, Michele. Perchè ho Ucciso. 1918.

Goya, Michel. “Une brève histoire des snipers 2e partie : les chasseurs industriels.”

Pegler, Martin. Sniping in the Great War. 2008.

Plaster, John. The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting. 2008.

Uyar, Mesut. The Ottoman Army in the First World War. 2020


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»CREDITS
Presented by: Jesse Alexander
Written by: Jesse Alexander
Director: Toni Steller
Editing: Toni Steller
Motion Design: Toni Steller
Research by: Jesse Alexander
Fact checking: Florian Wittig
Executive Producer: Florian Wittig
Channel Design: Yves Thimian
Lebel 1886 Model by Diedrik Droesbeke

Contains licensed material by getty images, AP and Reuters
Maps: MapTiler/OpenStreetMap Contributors & GEOlayers3
All rights reserved - Real Time History GmbH 2024

[edpottinger]

My grampa served in the Canadian infantry regiments till 1917 then he became a sniper.He fought at Ypres the Somme, Vimy ridge as a sniper.He targeted machine gun nests in particular.The same tactics as the American snipers.Gramps liked the American troops, that's why he moved to the states in the twenties for about 10 years.I have the utmost respect for all our soldiers in the wars.Gone but not forgotten

[TheJoeSwanon]

With modern day understanding of PTSD this war must have utterly destroyed a whole generation of young men on an emotional level. You can’t be the same person after this

[DotepenecPL]

"They wouldn't have understood", such a universal statement.

[fishpoem]

Of the various YouTube documentaries on snipers, this is the most thorough, the best organized, and the most informative. Nicely done.

[truxlee]

The first unofficial British WW1 "combats" (wearing simple private soldier uniforms plus carrying a dubious rifle as camouflage) were concieved by officers who thought leading attacks from the front while waving their swords as per regs was a bit unrealistic...

[hlynnkeith]

Jesse, I appreciate and admire your narration more and more with each episode. My compliments.

[nickdarr]

You didn't need telescopic sites to be a sniper. The famous Finn in the winter war and continuation war never used a scope. He is considered the most prolific sniper of all time. I can't recall the name but his nickname was the white death

[raymondhorvath]

Billy sing the ANZAC did not use an enhanced sight on his rifle in Gallipoli and still got an estimated 250 kills

[matthewbrook]

Billy Sing with the Australian infantry got 250 kills in the 8 months he was in Gallipoli. He went on to serve on the western front for two and a half years but kept shooting and stopped counting. He would have to been over 700 but most of them unconfirmed. The truth is after the war his experience haunted him as he had killed so many men. He died alone in a Single mans hotel in Brisbane in 1943.

[josephsarra]

Are you planning to do the Philippine-American War documentary after you finish the Spanish-American War documentary a few months ago?

[maandpametal]

McBride’s A Rifleman Went To War, is an excellent read if interested in sniping in the early years of the war.

[danielnavarro]

Everyone thinks that sniping is a game. It’s more than that. Sniping requires patience, willpower, resourcefulness, and much more. Not only that but many snipers from the First World War, Second World War, Korean War, various conflicts in the Cold War, the gulf war, and the war on terror. Many snipers describe that the one thing that stays in their minds is the face of the enemy. Seeing their facial expressions, seeing them talk with other soldiers, laughter, etc. Then squeezing the trigger to end them. War is harsh and sniping is brutal. Godspeed.

[KAISERSCHL]

Excellent insights. I dint't realise that the Germans were such great pioneers in the field of sniping. Thanks a lot for sharing, always glad to see the channel return to its roots with content from the great war period!

[exploatores]

artillerymen aim at map cordinates, Machinegunners aim at a area. riflemen aim at something that moves. Snipers aim at a person. // former soldier.

[bigsarge]

Another informative AND entertaining history documentary!

[raymond]

Snipers were one of the few people that were not taken as POWs because they specifically targeted officers and leaders of soldiers to cause dissent and terror.

[espiovisi]

Shame about the German scout class in Battlefield 1 though, looks ridiculous.

[australianmade]

Billy Sing was a natural man from the land who skills were developed by taking moving kangaroos

[Getayabbyupya]

My great grandfather Charles Burton was a Australian sniper in the great war in France, he never spoke of his experiences except to my grandfather's who fought in the second world war and never spoke of war in front of women , he lived to the age of 97 dieing of golden staff infection in a Sydney hospital.

[johncox]

18:31
If accurate sniper fire denied the enemy the use of his machine guns, there can be little doubt of the importance of the sniper.