Calais Conference (July 1915) participant H. H. Asquith
The Calais Conference took place in the French city of Calais on 6 July 1915.  It was intended to improve communication between the British and French governments on strategy for the First World War.  It was the first face-to-face meeting between the British and French prime ministers H. H. Asquith and René Viviani.  The meeting was poorly organised and no formal record was made of the decisions.  The French thought that the British had committed to a major offensive on the Western Front while the British thought they had persuaded the French that the main British effort that year should be in the Gallipoli campaign.  A meeting between military leaders at the conference led to a target of 70 divisions being set for the British Expeditionary Force, which would require the imposition of conscription.
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