The Battle of the Somme as a Victory for the British
This investigation seeks to evaluate the extent to which the Battle of
the Somme was a victory for the British. The main body of this
investigation will outline the way the British set out their
strategies to win the war and what were its weaknesses and
oppositions. During this investigation two main sources are going to
be used: "The first day of the Somme" by Richard Tames and the other
source is from the British newspaper "The Times" written on July 3rd
1916(still existing today).Through these 2 different sources we will
evaluate and highlight the differences and similarities about the
British "victory" over the Somme. To evaluate the success and failures
about the British offensive in the Sommeit is important to know who is
writing the source because the writer may be biased in favour of one
side. This will be mentioned during the investigation. The
investigation will also mention the origin purpose, value and
limitations of the sources chosen.
B) SUMMARY OF EVIDENCE:
The aim of the British army was to bombard the German defences by
breaking through their trenches and barbed wire until they gave up. At
first there were around 120,000 British soldiers attacking along the
18 mile front. The British and the French offensive against the
Germans were led by General Joffre and General Douglas Haig. According
to the Richard Tames book both the generals had certain qualities in
common. Both had a reputation for a cool head in crisis. They seemed
to be the right people to lead the British and the French through
victory according to the British point of view. During colonial
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...tish people
and Woodrow Wilson for flaws in his plans. I think that the British
government is at fault since they appointed a general like Haig in
command of the Battle of the Somme. The reason is because Haig had
very little experience in fighting battles against a strong side. He
was placed as general of the British army when fighting against
colonies. However the colonial armies were not as strong as the German
army. As a result Haig's plans were not very effective as they would
work only against the Weak armies but not strong armies like the
Germans.
F) LIST OF SOURCES
Richard Tames: "A day that made History, the First Day of the Somme",
First published 1990, London
Simkin,J.-"Contemporary accounts of the 1st world war, Tressell,
Brighton,1981
The Times, July 3rd 1916, THE GREAT BATTLE, UKLONDON
were poor and men loathed them. The soldiers slept on a bed of mud and
One of Currie’s most impressive and important achievements had come during the winter or 1919-17, while he was still a divisional commander. By analyzing the fighting he had witnessed on the Western Front, Currie had drawn up what proved to be a blueprint for tactical success. In a paper, Currie synthesized the best of British and French concepts, and with many of his own beliefs based on personal experience. Under Sir Arthur Currie, the Canadian Corps emerged as an outstanding formation on the ...
Source A tells us that Haig did not care about his men and is willing
the Germans for the first time in the war. The Battle of Britain was a
battle of the Somme began on the 1st of July 1916; the aim of the
The First Battle of Ypres, 1914. Strategically located along the roads leading to the Channel ports in. Belgian Flanders, the Belgian city of Ypres is the scene of. numerous battles since the sixteenth century.
In this essay I will explain the battle between Germany and Britain, discuss how important winning this battle was, what Britain had that the Germans did not have, and what could have happened if Britain would have lost. It is known cleverly as “the Battle of Britain”.
...did not exist.” However, when this information arrived the next morning, Haig told Rawlinson that “The enemy has undoubtedly been severely shaken and our correct course, therefore, is to press him hard with the least possible delay” . This military strategy was one which led, as Terraine argued, to long-term success. Primary source German Order of the Day from General Von Bulow on 3 July stated “the decisive issue of the war depends on… our victory on the Somme. We must win this battle…” . Furthermore, Haig’s strategy is shown to be perceptive and correct when we consider Ludendorff’s, German Chief of Staff, thoughts: “We were completely exhausted on the Western Front… If the war lasted our defeat seemed inevitable... I cannot see as I look back how the German G.H.Q. could have mastered the situation if the Allies had continued their blows as they did in 1916.”
be long or there will not be a single man left in the regiment’ This
the minds of the public, is that there was more to the Battle of the
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