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The Deadliest (Non-Nuclear) Explosion In History
One of the largest planned detonations ever devised
World War I was a four year meat grinder that killed millions. There are dozens and dozens of singular stories of tragedy, heroism, and horror dotted throughout. One lesser known story revolves around one of history’s most powerful explosions. In a bid to break the unending gridlock on the Western Front, the British came up with an ingenious plan to literally blow a hole in the lines.
The Battle of Messines took place in early June of 1917 and saw the British Second Army attack a section of the German lines near the village of Messines in Belgium. The attack was a part of the overarching Nivelle Offensive, which ended up fizzling out. The offensive was supposed to finally create an opening and evolve into a breakthrough on the Western Front, but it failed to meet its goals leaving the French and British forces demoralized and bewildered.
In order to try and salvage something from the situation, British engineers had ordered extensive tunneling operations under the forward positions of the German lines. Before the battle, the British loaded thousands of pounds of explosives into caverns beneath the ground and rigged them to blow at a specific time at the start of the battle. The result was astounding.
The Explosion
The mines beneath the Germans were rigged to blow at 3:00 AM on June 7th, 1917. In the hours leading up to the assault, as the final touches were being placed on the British mining operation, British General Sir Charles Harington, Chief of Staff of the Second Army, remarked:
Gentlemen, I don’t know whether we are going to make history tomorrow, but at any rate, we shall change geography.
The explosions ripped off at 3:17 AM after an intense artillery barrage. The mines were blown in the space of 20 seconds and did indeed change geography and made history.
The explosion ranks as one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions ever created by human beings. Nineteen separate craters were created in…
