Two months ago everything got worse. General Haig made us go into German territory. This stupid idea just got hundreds killed. I should have been one of them. Lucks on my side.
That foot disease I was telling you about is going around. The lads are calling it trench foot. The smell has just got worse and there freezing water up to my waist. If this war goes on any longer I’m going to get out of here.
From Louis
Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme started on 1stJuly and ended on November 16th. It was one of the largest battles during WWI and it is still remembered by many people. It was at Verdun. It took place because General Haig wanted to kill as many German Soldiers as part of the ‘war of nutrition’.
Britain’s Plan
There aim was to win the war by bleeding the enemy dry and forcing them to surrender. They wanted to break the German line at its weakest. They wanted to relieve the French at Verdun by drawing German troops. During the six day bombardment the Brits had used 15337 artillery guns and had fired 1627824 shells fired/There aim was to bomb the enemy trenches, enemy guns and supporting town. Haig said that ‘not a rat would be left behind’. They were going to walk over no mans land and take enemy trenches. Some soldiers kicked footballs as they advanced and others were in drill formation.
What actually happened?
In reality the Germans were safe deep underground bunkers. They were unaffected by the bombardment which was extended by a day due to bad weather. Bombardment before the attack gave the Germans notice that the Brits were on the way. Mines caused some disruption but it set off 10 minutes early before the attacks. This also gave the Germans time to sort out their defences. The Brits walked across onto no mans land and were mauled down by German machine guns. The Brits kit was too heavy as it weighed 70lbs which is the size of a twelve year old. They were a massive amount of casualties. 57470 British men were wounded, 19270 British men were killed on the first day. The Germans had only lost 8000 men. This continued on for a month. A series of attacks failed to break the German line and the offensives were called off at the onset of winter. Some people hated General Haig for just throwing men away. They named him ‘the butcher of the Somme’.
New Weapons and Tactics used after the Battle of the Somme
Poison gas was first used after the battle of the Somme. Poison gas was used a lot and many people suffered from fatal injuries. Tear gas was a common one which was used a lot. They were made of chemicals and the French were the first to use them. They were thrown in 19 cc partridges so they hard to find. After the French and Brits had used them the Germans started using them and they fired them in fragmented shells. They were always sent in small partridges and were occasionally used during 1017/1918. This was a much feared weapon.
Tanks were also a new weapon used during World War 1. They were transported by trains and they had wheels to supports them. They were imitating, they had 4 machine guns and also has 2 artillery guns. They also has their problems as they got stuck a lot, they were slow, they broke down easily and their max speed was 2mph. They were first used during the battle of the Somme. During the battle of the Somme 42 were used, 32 reached their starting points, 9 broke down, 5 got stuck in the trenches and 9 saw success.
The creeping barrage was an artillery tactic used by the British on August 1918. A creeping barrage is an artillery barrage that slowly creeps up the field of battle towards the enemy lines. The primary usage of the creeping barrage is to create cover for the soon-to-be advancing soldiers rather then kill enemy troops. A creeping barrage was designed to place a curtain of artillery fire just ahead of advancing infantry. A creeping barrage would progress at the rate of approximately 50 metres per minute once an attack began.
Air Warfare during WW1
Aircraft played a major role during WW1. At first they were unarmed observation aircraft getting information on enemy troop’s movements and being the eyes and ears for the artillery. In later years they carried either one or two forward firing machine guns on a single seated aircraft and if you shot down a lot of aircrafts people would say you’re an ace. Both sides started using fighter squadrons to shoot down enemy aircraft and enemy observation balloons and assist in ground operations. Both sides also started using twin engine bombers to hit key enemy positions. Usually they had devastating effects. Bombs were first dropped out of the observer’s cockpit since there were no bombsite and no bomb racks on the bottom side of the fuselage these came in later years. The only problem about flying these aircraft is that they were made of wood, you chocked on engine fumes and were exposed to the elements because you were in a open cockpit, also if you were shot down, there was no way to bail or jump out since the parachute was frowned upon it and it was also in the experimental stages in most countries. The aces were looked upon as national heroes such as Eddie Rickenbacker, Raoul Lufbery, Manfred Von Richtofen, Max Immelman, Albert Ball, Mick Mannock, Billy Bishop, Billy Barker and many more.
