What, in your view, was the short term significance of the Battle of the Somme?

Another factor significant to the overall defeat of the German forces was that, although both opposing sides were subject to a similar amount of casualties, they were of a greater military loss to the Germans. At the start of 1916 Haig’s army was comprised of inexperienced and poorly trained soldiers which was the result of Lord Kitcheners “Citizen Army” which had been called for as a response to the start of the war. Although their loss was of great proportions to the country as a whole, it was of little military significance and their lives were quite easily replicable despite the fittest and most well educated men being put forward in the initial battalions. However, for Germany, who entered the war with a fully trained and skilled force, each casualty was felt by taking the experience and effectiveness out of their highly trained army. The senior German commander, Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria stated "What remained of the old first-class peace-trained German infantry had been expended on the battlefield."[2] This represents the effect the loss of experienced soldiers had on the remaining Army and the country that struggled in vain to replace them. Rupprecht came to the conclusion much earlier than most other German generals, towards the end of 1917, that the war could not be won, seeing an ever increasing material advantage of the allies. The initial advances, although they appeared inutile, may have concluded the Germans forces predictions about the war before it was ever achieved. Minister of munitions, Edwin Montagu recorded in December that “There is not a soldier who I meet that does not believe that the German force is a beaten one”. [3] This provides information that British morale was high within the trenches and they believed that victory, for them, was imminent. However, although politically and financially involved in the war effort, Montagu had never spent an extended period on the front line and so would not have had a full grasp on the overall feeling towards the battle, as a result this quote is not completely valid in reflecting the generalised opinions soldiers had towards whether victory was in their hands.

One of the most important and significant mistakes made by German Forces was changing their tactics, in recognition of the growing threat Britain posed, Germany adopted the policy of unrestricting submarine warfare in an attempt to starve the island nation of supplies. However, the continuous destruction of American supply ships bound for Britain along with the passenger liner Lusitania on May 1st 1915 which sank with a loss of 1,195 lives would ultimately bring the United States into the war, an act of which brought 1 million men into Battle and also brought the Germans downfall. They also switched their war plan to go on the defensive, this made the battle a war of attrition, this was a tactic that worked in the Germans favour for a while. The British were also subject to tactical changes, mainly those adopted from the French as they were far more experienced in trench warfare. The British had, up until this point, advanced their men in straight line formations, however this resulted in the loss of more men. Instead the French scattered there advances, cutting down the number of casualties, a tactic in which the British soon adopted. Along with this another French tactic known as “the creeping barrage” was soon a widely regarded technique and used largely within the Battle of the Somme, this involved bombarding the trenches ahead with a line of artillery and an advancing infantry moving in just behind. This reduced the amount of casualties by keeping the amount of German troops ahead down and also allowed allied forces to gain more land in the process.

The Battle of the Somme was also significant with regards to highlighting the out dated tactics Britain continuously stood by. Just how backwards military thinking was at the time is shown by the fact that the British put a regiment of Calvary on standby. British military faith was still being placed on cavalry attacks in 1916 when the nature of war in the previous two years would have clearly indicated that cavalry was no longer viable. However, the battle was also the debut for a new mechanical war effort, the tank. The British had high hopes and faith that the use of this secret weapon would break the deadlock of the trench warfare in the Battle of Flers-Courcelette; however, it only slightly improved the mobility. “I have forgotten the land crabs, the great armoured crabs that took part in the battle of the 15th September. Some are lying on their backs mangled masses of twisted and broken iron, others are back in the repairing yards, and all are more or less crocked" [4] This contemporary source was taken from an eye witness account from Sergeant-Major Pegler who fought in the 24th division artillery making this source slightly biased as he only encountered the failures of the tanks in battle and didn’t consider the significance it would have on future warfare. Although they were designed for the tough terrain of the trenches and went unfazed by barbed wire and any obstacles within there path, they were slow with most reaching a top speed of 2 mph, vulnerable to artillery and extremely unreliable. Of the 49 tanks available on 15 September, only 32 made it to the start line and of these, only 21 made it into action. Mechanical breakdowns were common and many others became bogged or ditched in the shell holes and trenches of the churned battlefield. Although their significance in the battle of the Somme itself was very small and did not provide the advantage that was anticipated, it did pave the way for future tactic changes and highlighted the adjustments needed to create a successful weapon that today is at the centre of modern day warfare.

Along with this, another significant use of War tactics was the employment of fighter aeroplanes within the Battle of the Somme, from this point on they would not only be used as aerial reconnaissance but for part of the combat. At the start of the battle, The British had received a large blow to their aviation tactics by what was known as the “Fokker Scourge”, this was a term used by the press to refer to the ascendency of the German Fokker Eindecker fighter plane over the poorly-armed reconnaissance planes the allies favoured at the time. This highlighted the need for a larger a better militarily equipped RFC for use in the Battle of the Somme.  Although they were mainly used for reconnaissance and artillery observation, one-seated fighter planes were also being employed by both the opposition and the British forces. These were primarily used to attack observation balloons, strafe enemy ground targets, and defend friendly airspace from enemy bombers. As the British gained substantial control over the air it increased the involvement of the RFC, in what was known at the time as "trench staffing" which in modern terms means “close support”. The disposable use of aircraft pilots was a notorious factor within the Battle and WW1 in general; it highlighted the need for a more organized, better trained and better equipped aviation force. Although the allied forces maintained their superiority within the battle, and at a great advantage, it did provoke the Germans to pursue a complete re-organization of the Luftstreitkräfte. This reorganization eventually produced the German strategic bombing squadrons that were to cause such dismay in England in 1917 and 1918 along with the specialist close support squadrons, the Schlachtstaffeln, which caused trouble for the British at Cambrai and during the German spring offensive of 1918. The most famous and perhaps the most disastrous for the allied forces were the Germans creating specialist fighter squadrons or Jagdstaffeln. By the end of 1916 these units, equipped with the new Albatros fighters, had reestablished German air superiority; despite being formed a full year after similar units had become part of the RFC and the French Aéronautique Militaire.

With an ample amount of narrow observations into the tragedies the Battle of the Somme inflicted, it is easy for people to conclude that it was insignificant and a sacrifice of a generation of lives. However, I believe that there was much achieved from the battle. Firstly, although at a great human cost, they achieved their original target of relieving the French at Verdun and without this act a take over would have been imminent and the war therefore, lost. It was also the start of a series of mistakes in tactical changes made by the Germans that would eventually cost them their victory by bringing the United States into the war. Along with this, it was crucial in highlighting out-dated British tactics such as the cavalry and the importance of improvements in areas such as aviation warfare and the use of tanks, something that would become of much importance to them in future war efforts. Overall, I think the gains the Battle of the Somme provided were of great significance in improving and preparing Britain for the future but at an unnecessary cost of lives. German officer, Friedrich Steinbrecher, wrote: “Somme. The whole history of the world cannot contain a more ghastly word” [5]