Battle of the Somme An overview of the battle

Dead German soldiers at Battle of the Somme Overview July 1 – Nov. 18, 1916 One of the costliest battles of WWI Approximately 1.2 million casualties 420,000 British 200,000 French 500,000 German Image Credit: John Warwick Brooke (Photographer). (1916). [German dead in a trench and machine gun post near Guillemont during the Battle of the Somme], Retrieved October 17, 2012, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:German_dead_Guillemont_September_1916.jpg Dead German soldiers at Battle of the Somme

British gains Image credit: [Map of the Battle of the Somme]. Retrieved October 30, 2012, from: http://www.greatwar.co.uk/battles/somme-1916/index.htm

Cause and effect Attempt by the British to “push through” the German lines Fought along northwestern part of the Western Front After months of fighting, and several assaults up and down the front, resulted in small gains in land for England Greatly weakened German war effort overall

Causes of high death toll Massive loss of life due to new military technologies: machine guns artillery/mines hand grenades gas airplanes first use of tanks Image Credit: John Warwick Brooke (Photographer). (1916). [British Vickers machine gun crew wearing PH-type anti-gas helmets], Retrieved October 17, 2012, from: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vickers_machine_gun_crew_with_gas_masks.jpg British gun crew wearing PH-type anti-gas helmets

Central Historical Question: Who won the first day of the Battle of the Somme? Image credit: John Warwick Brooke (Photographer). (1916). [A British trench near the Albert-Bapaume road at Ovillers-la-Boisselle, July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme], Retrieved October 17, 2012, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cheshire_Regiment_trench_Somme_1916.jpg A British trench July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme

Central Historical Question Who won the first day of the Battle of the Somme? Day One Casualties: 57,470 British 8, 000 German 7, 000 French