Right so the Battle of the Somme... The Battle of the Somme map plan.... (ABOVE)
On the 1st of July 1916 the Battle of the Somme began. It happened at around 7:30 in the morning, whistles were blown to start what was one of the bloodiest battles in the History of wars. Soldiers from across Britain rose slowly from their trenches and walked slowly towards the Germans front-line trench which was on a 15 mile stretch across Northern France.
By the end of the day 20,000 British and Irish lads were never to go home again and another 40,000 were injured lying in ditches.
The British battle plan was as follows: British would attack on a 15 mile front line to the north of the Somme with 5 French divisions attacking along an 8 mile front line to the south of the Somme. Despite having fought trench warfare for almost tow years, the British Generals were so confident of success that they even ordered a cavalry to be put on standby, to exploit the hole that would be created by a horrible infantry attack.
The battle started with the British bombarding the German lines with a total of 1.7 million shells being fired. It was said that with such a pounding would destroy the Germans in their trenches and rip through the wire that had been placed down in front.
This plan did not work though, this is because the Germans had sunk deep proof bomb shelters or bunkers in which to take refuge, so when the bombardment took place, and all the Germans did was go underground and waited for it to stop. When it stopped, the Germans would come out and get their machine guns ready to face the British and French forces.
To maintain discipline the British ordered the soldiers to walk slowly up to the German trenches, this gave the Germans time to get to their defensive posts and as that happened, the Germans started firing into No mans land and then the slaughter began.
Some soldiers did manage to get to the German trenches, but they were driven back again.
The British army had got 60,000 casualties with almost 20,000 dead. The largest loss in one day since the war began EVER.
The months that followed turned into bloody stalemate. In September they tried using their tanks, but they didn’t make a great impact.
Heavy rain throughout October made the land into mud baths.
The battle finally ended in mid-November. The British had about 360,000 casualties with a further 64,000 troops from across the empire, the Germans around 550,000 and the French nearly 200,000.
For many, the Battle of the Somme was a symbol of how terrifying and horrific that trench warfare was... and it was horrible. Imagine it, just waking up everyday thinking YOU MIGHT DIE! I would of been terrified and the Battle of the Somme was so stupidly planned out that i would of refused going out there and risk my life!
On the 1st of July 1916 the Battle of the Somme began. It happened at around 7:30 in the morning, whistles were blown to start what was one of the bloodiest battles in the History of wars. Soldiers from across Britain rose slowly from their trenches and walked slowly towards the Germans front-line trench which was on a 15 mile stretch across Northern France.
By the end of the day 20,000 British and Irish lads were never to go home again and another 40,000 were injured lying in ditches.
The British battle plan was as follows: British would attack on a 15 mile front line to the north of the Somme with 5 French divisions attacking along an 8 mile front line to the south of the Somme. Despite having fought trench warfare for almost tow years, the British Generals were so confident of success that they even ordered a cavalry to be put on standby, to exploit the hole that would be created by a horrible infantry attack.
The battle started with the British bombarding the German lines with a total of 1.7 million shells being fired. It was said that with such a pounding would destroy the Germans in their trenches and rip through the wire that had been placed down in front.
This plan did not work though, this is because the Germans had sunk deep proof bomb shelters or bunkers in which to take refuge, so when the bombardment took place, and all the Germans did was go underground and waited for it to stop. When it stopped, the Germans would come out and get their machine guns ready to face the British and French forces.
To maintain discipline the British ordered the soldiers to walk slowly up to the German trenches, this gave the Germans time to get to their defensive posts and as that happened, the Germans started firing into No mans land and then the slaughter began.
Some soldiers did manage to get to the German trenches, but they were driven back again.
The British army had got 60,000 casualties with almost 20,000 dead. The largest loss in one day since the war began EVER.
The months that followed turned into bloody stalemate. In September they tried using their tanks, but they didn’t make a great impact.
Heavy rain throughout October made the land into mud baths.
The battle finally ended in mid-November. The British had about 360,000 casualties with a further 64,000 troops from across the empire, the Germans around 550,000 and the French nearly 200,000.
For many, the Battle of the Somme was a symbol of how terrifying and horrific that trench warfare was... and it was horrible. Imagine it, just waking up everyday thinking YOU MIGHT DIE! I would of been terrified and the Battle of the Somme was so stupidly planned out that i would of refused going out there and risk my life!
It wasn't for glory and pride, it was just to show that England was a better country, which was new anyway!
Click below for more info...
World War 1 Trench Warfare
The Western Front during World War 1 stretched from the North Sea to the Swiss Frontier with France.
Both sides dug themselves in ending any possible chance of a quick war; this caused a stalemate, which was to last for most of the war. Over 200,000 men died in the trenches of WW1, most of who died in battle, but many died from disease and infections brought on by the unsanitary conditions.
Life in the Trenches
The first thing a new recruit would notice on the way to the Frontline was the smell, rotting bodies in shallow graves, men who hadn't washed in weeks because there were no facilities, overflowing cess pits, creosol or chloride of lime, used to stave off the constant threat of disease and infection. Cordite, the lingering odour of poison gas, rotting sandbags, stagnant mud, cigarette smoke, and cooking food. Although overwhelming to a new recruit, they soon got used to the smell and eventually became part of the smell with their own body odour.
A Dead soldier lies rotting on the battlefield
Rats and Lice
Rats were a constant companion in the trenches in their millions they were everywhere, gorging themselves on human remains (grotesquely disfiguring them by eating their eyes and liver) they could grow to the size of a cat.
Men tried to kill them with bullets shovels or anything else they had at hand, but they were fighting a losing battle as only 1 pair of rats can produce 900 offspring in a year.
Some soldiers believed that the rats knew when there was going to be a heavy bombardment from the enemy lines because they always seemed to disappear minutes before an attack.
Lice were a constant problem for the men breeding in dirty clothing they were impossible to get rid of even when clothes were washed and deloused there would be eggs that would escape the treatment in the seams of the clothes.
Lice caused Trench Fever, a particularly painful disease that began suddenly with severe pain followed by high fever. Recovery - away from the trenches - took up to twelve weeks.
It was not discovered that lice were the cause of trench fever though until 1918.
Millions of frogs were found in shell holes covered in water; they were also found in the base of trenches. Slugs and horned beetles crowded the sides of the trench. Many men chose to shave their heads entirely to avoid another prevalent scourge: nits.
The cold wet and unsanitary conditions were also to cause trench foot amongst the soldiers, a fungal infection, which could turn gangrenous and yucky wit the result of amputation. Trench Foot was more of a problem at the start of trench warfare; as conditions improved in 1915, it rapidly faded, although a small number of cases continued throughout the war.
Shell Shock
Between 1914 and 1918 the British Army identified 80,000 men (2% of those who saw active service) as suffering from shell-shock. Early symptoms included tiredness, irritability, giddiness, lack of concentration and headaches. Eventually the men suffered mental breakdowns making it impossible for them to remain in the front-line. Some came to the conclusion that the soldiers condition was caused by the enemy's heavy artillery. These doctors argued that a bursting shell creates a vacuum, and when the air rushes into this vacuum it disturbs the cerebro-spinal fluid and this can upset the working of the brain. So basically you get the idea of how horrible it actually was! Yeah??? It was horrible and yucky. Defo not a place you'd want to live in for years.... would you!?
For a good trench warfare site visit:
http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/trenchlife.htm
The Western Front during World War 1 stretched from the North Sea to the Swiss Frontier with France.
Both sides dug themselves in ending any possible chance of a quick war; this caused a stalemate, which was to last for most of the war. Over 200,000 men died in the trenches of WW1, most of who died in battle, but many died from disease and infections brought on by the unsanitary conditions.
Life in the Trenches
The first thing a new recruit would notice on the way to the Frontline was the smell, rotting bodies in shallow graves, men who hadn't washed in weeks because there were no facilities, overflowing cess pits, creosol or chloride of lime, used to stave off the constant threat of disease and infection. Cordite, the lingering odour of poison gas, rotting sandbags, stagnant mud, cigarette smoke, and cooking food. Although overwhelming to a new recruit, they soon got used to the smell and eventually became part of the smell with their own body odour.
A Dead soldier lies rotting on the battlefield
Rats and Lice
Rats were a constant companion in the trenches in their millions they were everywhere, gorging themselves on human remains (grotesquely disfiguring them by eating their eyes and liver) they could grow to the size of a cat.
Men tried to kill them with bullets shovels or anything else they had at hand, but they were fighting a losing battle as only 1 pair of rats can produce 900 offspring in a year.
Some soldiers believed that the rats knew when there was going to be a heavy bombardment from the enemy lines because they always seemed to disappear minutes before an attack.
Lice were a constant problem for the men breeding in dirty clothing they were impossible to get rid of even when clothes were washed and deloused there would be eggs that would escape the treatment in the seams of the clothes.
Lice caused Trench Fever, a particularly painful disease that began suddenly with severe pain followed by high fever. Recovery - away from the trenches - took up to twelve weeks.
It was not discovered that lice were the cause of trench fever though until 1918.
Millions of frogs were found in shell holes covered in water; they were also found in the base of trenches. Slugs and horned beetles crowded the sides of the trench. Many men chose to shave their heads entirely to avoid another prevalent scourge: nits.
The cold wet and unsanitary conditions were also to cause trench foot amongst the soldiers, a fungal infection, which could turn gangrenous and yucky wit the result of amputation. Trench Foot was more of a problem at the start of trench warfare; as conditions improved in 1915, it rapidly faded, although a small number of cases continued throughout the war.
Shell Shock
Between 1914 and 1918 the British Army identified 80,000 men (2% of those who saw active service) as suffering from shell-shock. Early symptoms included tiredness, irritability, giddiness, lack of concentration and headaches. Eventually the men suffered mental breakdowns making it impossible for them to remain in the front-line. Some came to the conclusion that the soldiers condition was caused by the enemy's heavy artillery. These doctors argued that a bursting shell creates a vacuum, and when the air rushes into this vacuum it disturbs the cerebro-spinal fluid and this can upset the working of the brain. So basically you get the idea of how horrible it actually was! Yeah??? It was horrible and yucky. Defo not a place you'd want to live in for years.... would you!?
For a good trench warfare site visit:
http://www.firstworldwar.com/features/trenchlife.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment