The region of the Somme was very hilly and the British based themselves at the bottom of a very big hill. At the time they did not realise they had done this. Only later on in the battle they realised how badly they had placed themselves and infact the Germans had a perfect view of the British movement.
On the German side they had built much better trenches. They believed that they would be in their trenches for a very long time and so built their trenches with very deep and strong dugouts. These were far more advanced trenches than the British and the trenches played a major role in the battle.
For many weeks both sides battled but before long they realised that neither could progress any more. This stage was called Stalemate . The British had not planned to stay in their trenches for long and needed a new plan. This plan was made by Field Marshall Sir Douglas Haig, the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army on the Western Front. General Haig believed that if he bombarded the German trenches for seven days he would kill everything that was there. Then, after this very heavy bombardment the British would simply walk over to the German trenches and kill anyone that was left alive.
The week long bombardment hadnt had the affect Britain had thought. Many of the Germans stayed in their deep, safe dugouts and simply waited for the bombardment to stop. General Haig believed that the plan had worked.You will find all the Germans dead ; not even a rat will have survived , The wire has never been so well cut . These are both quotes from General Haig. This source shows us how bad the information feed back to him was.
The next part to Haigs plan was for the British to walk out of their trenches and walk over no mans land and capture what they had thought were empty trenches. Many people were not to sure about Haigs plan including his right hand man General Rawlinson. Russell Bradshaw,
11th East Lancashire Regiment (the Accrington Pals ) complains about the standard instructions to cross no mans land at walking pace. This proves that many had doubts about the orders of the plan. But, even with such important people doubting him he stuck to his plan.
On the 1st July, 1916 the battle began. All of the British troops had been ordered to walk over no mans land. The British troops had a very big shock indeed because, as soon as they walked over the top of their trenches German machine guns fired at them.
When we started firing we just had to load and reload. They went down in their
hundreds. You didnt even have to aim, we just fired into them, This source has came from a German machine-gunner at the Somme. It doesnt tell us when he
said it so this could have affected his interpretation on the event. It also doesnt tell us his name or his background and this too could affect his interpretation. But it clearly tells us the failure of Haigs plan.
General Rees, commander of the 94th Infantry Brigade was also at the Somme the day the battle started. Not a man wavered , broke the ranks, or attempted to come back. He is describing the time when his men went over the top and walked straight into a wall of German bullets. This source shows us loyal the men were to their orders an it also shows trust. It shows that Haig was successful in his commands and loyalty was shown to him.
After the first day of the battle there were 60,000 British casualties, 40,000 wounded and 20,000 killed. It was not the result Britain had planned.
It was pure bloody murder. Douglas Haig should have been hung, drawn and quartered for what he did on the SommeThe cream on British manhood was shattered in less than six hours. That is the opinion of Private P . Smith of the 1st Border Regiment. It doesnt tell us if Private P. Smith was actually at the front line. We can only guess. There could also be other reasons to why he feels so strongly about it. One reason could be that his friends or even family were killed on the first day so this would affect his interpretation. It also doesnt tell us when he said or wrote this. But what it does tell us is that he doesnt believe Haigs plan was good and he doesnt think alot of Douglas Haig.
This is a article published by The Daily Chronicle on the 3rd July which is explaining the events of the first day of the battle. At about 7 . 30 am this morning a vigorous attack was launched by the British Army. The front extends over some 20 miles north of the Somme.
The assault was preceded by a terrific bombardment, lasting about an hour and a half. It is too early to as yet give anything but the bearest particulars, as the fighting is developing in intensity, but the British troops have already occupied the German front line. Many prisoners have already fallen into our hands, and as far as can ascertained our casualties have not been heavy. This article is completely the opposite to what really happened, especially the part about our casualties have not yet been heavy . He know as a fact that, that day was one of the worst in British military history, and also that there were roughly 60,000 casualties. This article also shows us how much the government had a hold on the papers at the time of the battle. It doesnt tell us who actually wrote this article but I would imagine it would have probably already been written by someone in the government departments. This source tells us that the battle was a success but was the article wasnt a success as they had lied about the whole thing.
It was on the 13th November 1916 that the last attack of the Battle of the Somme took place . During this time Britain had lost 420,000, the French lost nearly 200,000 men and the Germans 500,000. The allied forces had advanced along a thirty-mile strip that was seven miles deep at its maximum. Many people find it hard to believe that nearly 88,000 allied men died for every one mile gained.
Many people have argued that the Battle of the Somme was a success or a failure. They are many reasons why they would argue that. One of the reasons why people would think it was a success was because that the British achieved their first objective which was to relieve pressure of the French who were being attacked at Verdun. The British attack at Somme did this and prevented what could have been a breakthrough for the Germans.
On the other side people have said that Haigs plan was all wrong and the losses during the battle should not have happened. Many people have Haig souly to blame for the losses and his stubbornness to change his plan. But when you think about it, there had never been a battle or war like that. He can be let of for not really knowing how to handle the battle. But he can not be excused from the fact that his plans were not changed although many doubted it.
I believe that the Battle of the Somme was a success. Although, thousands and thousands lost their lives fighting for their countries, the loss taught the British lessons. Without these lessons they might not have won the war.