Battle of Somme Tour
Tour the area the battle took place!
July 1 - November 18, 1916
Summary of the Battle
A Franco- British commitment to an offensive on the Somme had been made during Allied discussions at Chantilly, Oise, France in December of 1915 at. Agreed upon in a strategy of combined offensives against the Central Powers in 1916, by the French, Russian, British, and Italian armies with the Somme offensive as the Franco-British contribution. The first day on the Somme was a serious defeat for the German Second Army, which was forced out of its first line of defense by the French Sixth Army, from Foucaucourt-en-Santerre south of the Somme to Maricourt on the north bank and by the British Fourth Army from Maricourt to the vicinity of Albert-Bapaume road. The First Day on the Somme was also the worst day in the history of the British Army, which had about 60,000 casualties, mainly on the front between the Albert-Bapaume road and Gommecourt, where the attack was defeated and few British troops reached the German front line. At the end of the battle, British and French forces had penetrated 6 miles into German occupied territory, taking more ground than any offensive since the Battle of Marne in 1914.
French & British Casualties & Losses
Allied
Total 623,907
Killed & Missing 146,431
German Casualties & Losses
237,000 - 500,000
Total 465,000
Killed & Missing 164,055
POW 38,000
Battle Leaders
French Major General
Joseph Alfred Micheler (left)
French Marshal
Ferdinand Foch
French Marshal
Emile Fayolle
British General
Henry Seymour Rawlinson
British General
Hubert Gough
British Field Marshal
Douglas Haig
German General
Max Karl Wilhelm von Gallwitz
Prussian General
Fritz Theodor Carl von Below (fought for Germany)
German Field Marhsal
Rupprecht (Crowned Prince of Bavaria)
Technology
Tanks
Tanks were used for the first time, and enable the tank to have enormous capability to perform well in a tactical situation: the combination of strong weapons fire from their tank gun and their ability to resist enemy fire means the tank can take hold of and control an area of the battle and prevent other enemy vehicles from advancing.
The Zeppelin
The Zeppelin, was an airship that was used during the early part of the war in bombing raids by the Germans. They carried machine guns and bombs. However, they were abandoned because they were easy to shoot out of the sky.
Planes
Planes were also used for the first time. At first they were used to deliver bombs and for spying work but became fighter aircraft armed with machine guns, bombs and some times cannons. Fights between two planes in the sky became known as 'dogfights'
The Allies Won!
Tour Information
Event Information
Battle of Somme Tours
When?
Monday, Jul 6, 2015, 07:00 AM
Where?
River Somme, France
Museums
Tour the museum and look at all the treasures! Picked up from the battlefields and souvenirs from the veterans, and even a letter from President Obama himself!
Times
Tours will only happen during the summer, it creates a better atmosphere for imagination about how the battle was fought. Tours begin of the 6th of July and continue until August 29th.
Walk the Battle
Hikes will occur during the summer, hiking the first battle day. Walking six miles around the Somme and following the battle's footsteps.