11/6/2018. The Battle of the Somme. 1 July Darkest Day in the History of the British Army. 1 July 18 November 1916

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1 The Battle of the Somme 1 July 1916 Darkest Day in the History of the British Army 1 2 The Battle of the Somme 1 July 18 November 1916 Battle began with a British preliminary artillery bombardment Last eight days (alerted the Germans!) Used shrapnel shells rather than high explosive shell! Fired 1,723,873 rounds! Barbed wire entanglements remained intact! 3 1

2 The Battle of the Somme 1 July 18 November 1916 Attack Began 1 July 1916 Intended to relieve pressure on Verdun British and French vs. the Germans First day of the battle was the most costly in terms of men in the history of British military actions! 1 st Four Hours 50,000 casualties! 57,270 British casualties (Dead and Wounded) by the end of the day 4 5 Troops heavily laden with equipment Troops walk in line formations Barbed Wire obstacles are still intact! 6 2

3 Gains Limited to Yards not Miles Hawthorne Ridge Lochnagar Crater mine tunnels constructed at the Battle of the Somme Lochnagar = 54,000 lbs. of explosives Crater 300 X 90 Debris rose 4,000 into the air Initial attack by British unsuccessful! 9 3

4 10 What the British discovered! German Defenses Reached Deep! Had over a year to prepare fortifications w/ concrete Many survived the British bombardment British shocked / surprised at the quality of German trenches

5 Pals & Chums Battalions (Tragedy in the Making) Entire communities of men who volunteered to fight together are nearly all killed or wounded 13 First Tanks Introduced into Modern War on 15 September allocated to the battle 32 tanks begin in the battle 23 break down 9 make it to the German trenches Make good gains unsupported by Infantry unable to hold gains

6 British eventually gain approximately five miles of ground Tanks intended to support infantry Overwhelm German trenches No effective strategy for utilization Strong Allied development vs. little interest from Central powers 16 September 2013 Ft. Meade, MD US Army Museum 17 Results of the Tanks at the Somme Element of surprise is lost Germans begin to understand the threat Strategy finally developed in Fall, 1917 Battle of Cambrai 18 6

7 19 20 Ends on 18 November 1916 Pressure relieved from Verdun Germans forced to shift forces to the Somme area Butte de Warlencourt 21 7

8 Ends on 18 November 1916 Halted at the Butte de Warlencourt 22 Iron Harvest from the Battle of the Somme 23 Names of 73,367 British & Commonwealth soldiers who have no known grave who fought at the Somme! 24 8

Notables who fought at the Somme 25 Lt. J.R.

after serving as communications officer during the Battle of

Creator of Middle Earth, Hobbits and the Lord of the Rings

Lewis Somerset Light Infantry Served in Arras Sector, North of

9 Notables who fought at the Somme 25 Lt. J.R.R. Tolkien 11th Lancashire Fusiliers Disabled by trench fever after serving as communications officer during the Battle of the Somme. Creator of Middle Earth, Hobbits and the Lord of the Rings Cycle. Images of Western Front permeate writings. Lt. C.S. Lewis Somerset Light Infantry Served in Arras Sector, North of the Somme 1917; Wounded Leading Christian Apologist; Author of Screwtape Letters and Narnia Chronicles; literary scholar & critic. 9

Winnipeg (Winnie) Bear Winnipeg Rifles Mascot for the

Became a favorite at the London Zoo including for A.E.

Nationality Battle of the Somme in British Memory Total

Canada 24,029 - - Prisoners Australia 23,000 < 200 New

2,000+ - - Total British Empire 419,654 95,675 - French

465,000* 164,055 31,000 Net Result: Gain of between 6 15

10 Winnipeg (Winnie) Bear Winnipeg Rifles Mascot for the 2nd Canadian Brigade (Somme). Inspired Winnie the Pooh. Became a favorite at the London Zoo including for A.E. Milne and his son Christopher Robin. Nationality Battle of the Somme in British Memory Total casualties Killed & missing United Kingdom 350, Canada 24, Prisoners Australia 23,000 < 200 New Zealand 7, South Africa 3, Newfoundland 2, Total British Empire 419,654 95,675 - French 204,253 50,756 - Total Allied 623,907* 146,431 - Germany 465,000* 164,055 31,000 Net Result: Gain of between 6 15 miles of front *actually thought to be higher! As many as 1.4 million casualties!! 29 10

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