Briftaschenatlas fur den Champagne – Soldaten [Briefcase Atlas for the Champagne Soldiers]

A useful reference for ‘Champagne Soldiers’ of the German Army.

This handy little pocket atlas, the 14th edition, was published ‘In the Field’ in 1918 by Champagne-Kamerad, a weekly German soldier newspaper attached to the Third Army. The back cover provides a short advertisement for the publication, which costs only 25 pfennings a month and promises weekly essays, pictures, and diversions of all kinds. Other souvenir volumes, including a print album with photos from Champagne and a travel guide to Sedan, are listed.

Three small-scale maps are included within the tri-fold pamphlet; 1. The Main Map: Champagne-Argonne Army Front, 2. Hinterland and Neighboring Areas (Important Railway Lines to Germany), and 3. Western Front. Based on the position of the front line, the maps were issued shortly before the massive Allied Meuse–Argonne offensive, the largest and deadliest campaign in United States military history.