German Maps and Survey on the Western Front, 1914–1918

Abstract

Fighting the 1914–18 war largely on enemy territory in both the east and the west, German was at a disadvantage compared to the Allies when it came to survey and mapping as it did have access to much of the geodetic, topographic and cartographic data, relating to this terrain, necessary for modern warfare — in particular for artillery survey. German and Austria did, however, have a commanding lead in terrestrial and aerial photogrammetry, and the latter was to prove crucial in the production of accurate large-scale maps of enemy and occupied territory. Despite strong forces of conservatism in the high and field commands and in the artillery and military survey organizations, new air survey methods based on the photogoniometer and radial triangulation were rapidly developed. Through continual laboratory and field experimentation and testing, German was to increase her lead in aerial photogrammetry, and by the end of the war had not only set up a completely new air survey organization but was developing a new generation of optical-mechanical stereoplotting instruments of great precision. German progress was not, however, evident in all fields of military survey, and this paper examines the approaches taken by German to survey and mapping on the Western Front, and briefly compares and contrasts them with those of the Allies.