Somme 1 July 1916 Tragedy and triumph

by Robertshaw, Andrew; Dennis, Peter

• ISBN13: 9781846030383
• ISBN10: 1846030382
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-05-30
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Summary

The first day of the Somme is still on record as having the largest number of deaths in any one day in any war. This book explores the myths of this infamous battle, and the use of mines, tunnels, gas and flame-throwers by the British in combination with innovative tactics such as smoke. Andrew Robertshaw analyses the first day of the battle, explaining how British tactics developed as a result of the experience of the Somme, and provides an overview of the events along the entire front line, examining the actions of two British Corps, VIII at Serre and XIII at Montauban.

Author Biography

Andrew Robertshaw is Director for Education at the National Army Museum and is currently working with Whitehall on their Household Cavalry museum project. He has presented numerous programmes on the First World War for the BBC and Channel 4; he is currently working on 'Finding the Fallen' for the Discovery Channel. In 1997 he published 'A Soldier's Life' (Heinemann/Penguin). He frequently lectures on battlefield archaeology and the First World War, and is Chair of 'No Man's Land', the European Group for First World War Archaeology. He lives in Surrey.

Table of Contents

Origins of the Campaign	p. 7
Opening moves
Options to end trench stalemate
The failed offensives of 1915
Plans for 1916 - towards the Somme
The place of the Somme in Allied strategy
Chronology	p. 13
1914
1915
1916
1917
1918
Opposing Commanders	p. 15
German commanders
British commanders
French commanders
Opposing Forces	p. 21
The German Army
The British Army
The French Army
Orders of battle
Opposing Plans	p. 31
German plans for defence on the Somme
The British Army's plan of attack
Preparing for Z Day - artillery, barbed wire and dugouts
French plans
1 July 1916	p. 41
Third Army: Gommecourt
Serre and Beaumont Hamel
Thiepval
Ovillers and La Boisselle
Fricourt and Mametz
Montauban
The French sector
South of the Somme
The German experience
The situation at the end of the day
Aftermath	p. 78
A military disaster?
Lessons of the Somme	p. 78
The Battlefield Today	p. 88
Further Reading	p. 94
Index	p. 95
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.