The Somme

[SWJED]

A few news links to mark the 90th anniversary...

• Ninety Years Ago, They Marched to a Certain Death - London Times
• The Somme: Its Place in British History - BBC News
• Honor and Carnage - International Herald Tribune
• Brits Remember 1916 Battle of Somme - Associated Press
• The Somme: Bloody Lesson Well Learnt - London Times
• Somme Losses Marked 90 Years On - BBC News

[jmm99]

It's hard to believe that SWJED started this thread on the Somme's 90th - and that in 2-1/2 years we'll be looking at its 100th. This "battle", a series of operations spanning mid-1916 through early 1917, is best known for its first day of carnage; but there was much more to it. My interest has focused largely on individuals and smaller units; and on books which relate their stories in their own words. In that sense, the Somme's story cuts across all "levels" of warfare and exemplifies all levels of physical and moral courage.

I thought I'd start with an outline of the Somme campaign - as provided by Wiki. In this case, Wiki is not a bad starting point; one may find more in depth resources for any given phase by "Googling", etc.

Category: Battle of the Somme (Wiki)

Battle of the Somme (Wiki)

First Phase: 1–17 July 1916

First day on the Somme, 1 July

Battle of Albert, 1–13 July

Battle of Bazentin Ridge, 14–17 July

Battle of Fromelles, 19–20 July

Second phase: July – September 1916

Battle of Delville Wood, 14 July – 15 September

Battle of Pozières Ridge, 23 July – 7 August

Battle of Guillemont, 3–6 September

Battle of Ginchy, 9 September

Third phase: September – November 1916

Battle of Flers–Courcelette, 15–22 September

Battle of Morval, 25–28 September

Battle of the Transloy Ridges, 1 October – 11 November

Battle of Thiepval Ridge, 26–28 September

Battle of the Ancre Heights, 1 October – 11 November

Battle of the Ancre, 13–18 November

Subsequent operations in Early 1917

Ancre, January – March 1917

Hindenburg Line

One can go in many directions from here; hopefully, others will be interested enough to chime in with their own viewpoints (and references).

In the next posts, I'll outline some filmography of the Somme.

Regards

Mike

[jmm99]

The first film is historical fiction; the second is a straight documentary; and the third is a somewhat specialized documentary (a sapper tribute), backgrounding one of the iconic scenes of the First Day.

Note: Youtube videos are often removed, but then reappear. So, if links in this and other posts fail, please search Youtube or Google - the video is probably somewhere.

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The Trench (Wiki and Imfdb)

The film paints a picture of the soldiers’ emotional experience in the confines of the trenches; an experience running the gamut from boredom to fear, panic to restlessness. Billy MacFarlane (Paul Nicholls), 17, along with his older brother, Eddie (Tam Williams), has volunteered for service. The whole platoon, all of them in their late teens, depend on the war-hardened Sergeant Winter (Daniel Craig) and the scholarly Lieutenant Hart (Julian Rhind-Tutt) for their survival. When word arrives that the platoon will join the first wave of attacks, they do not yet know they will be present when the British Army loses the greatest number of soldiers in a single day in history.

The Trench is a 1999 World War I film set in the 48 hours prior to the Battle of the Somme on July 1st 1916. The film follows a group of British soldiers from the Royal Fusiliers and captures their experiences during the build-up to the battle. Many of them are led to believe that the imminent action will be a walk-over and that casualties will be minimal due to an ongoing immense bombardment of the German lines. Only the platoon's war-weary Sergeant (an early role for Daniel Craig) truly knows the extent of what the troops will be faced with.

Youtube: The Trench (1999) (1.5 hrs) (240p; HD 720p has been removed from Youtube - the last 10 min in 480p is still here)

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Youtube: The Battle of the Somme (documentary) BBC (1976) (1hr 10min) (480p)

The Battle of the Somme: A 60th Anniversary Programme: With the letters, diaries and memories of men who took part: The story told by Leo McKern.

This video covers primarily the first day, July 1, 1916.

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Youtube: The Somme Secret Tunnel Wars - BBC full documentary (2013) (1 hr) (360p)

Beneath the Somme battlefield lies one of the great secrets of the First World War, a recently-discovered network of deep tunnels thought to extend over several kilometres. This lost underground battlefield, centred on the small French village of La Boisselle in Picardy, was constructed largely by British troops between 1914 and 1916. Over 120 men died here in ongoing attempts to undermine the nearby German lines and these galleries still serve as a tomb for many of those men. This documentary follows historian Peter Barton and a team of archaeologists as they become the first people in nearly a hundred years to enter this hidden, and still dangerous, labyrinth.

Military mines were the original weapons of shock and awe - with nowhere to hide from a mine explosion, these huge explosive charges could destroy a heavily-fortified trench in an instant. In order to get under the German lines to plant their mines, British tunnellers had to play a terrifying game of subterranean cat and mouse - constantly listening out for enemy digging and trying to intercept the German tunnels without being detected. To lose this game probably meant death.

As well uncovering the grim reality of this strange underground war, Peter discovers the story of the men who served here, including the tunnelling companies' special military units made up of ordinary civillian sewer workers and miners. He reveals their top secret mission that launched the Battle of the Somme's first day and discovers why British high command failed to capitalise on a crucial tactical advantage they had been given by the tunnellers.

Regards

Mike

[jmm99]

The first film is the classic combat camera image of WWI; the second film is really two stories: (1) a field survey in how the original film was made - and not made; and (2) the journey of two Canadian officers as they follow the steps of the First Newfoundland Regiment on the First Day.

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The Battle of the Somme (Wiki)

The Battle of the Somme is a 1916 British documentary and propaganda film, shot by two official cinematographers, Geoffrey Malins and John McDowell. The film depicts the British Army in the preliminary and early days of the battle of the Somme (1 July – 18 November 1916). The film had its premiere in London on 10 August 1916 and was released generally on 21 August. The film depicts trench warfare, showing marching infantry, artillery firing on German positions, British troops waiting to attack on 1 July, treatment of wounded British and German soldiers, British and German dead and captured German equipment and positions. A scene where British troops crouch in a ditch then "go over the top", was staged for the camera behind the lines.

The film was a great success, was watched by c. 20 million British people in the first six weeks of exhibition and the film was distributed in eighteen more countries. A second film covering a later phase of the battle, was released in 1917 as The Battle of the Ancre and the Advance of the Tanks. In 1920 the film was preserved in the film archive of the Imperial War Museum and was inscribed on UNESCO's Memory of the World Register. In 2005 the film was digitally restored and in 2008 was released on DVD. The Battle of the Somme is an early example of film propaganda, an historical record of the battle and a popular source of footage illustrating the First World War

Youtube: The Battle of the Somme (1916, 2005) (1.25 hrs) (480p) (silent - no commentary; re-mastered original)

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Battle Of The Somme - The True Story (2006) (Wiki)

Ninety years ago, one of the bloodiest days in the history of Britain was captured on film. But this shocking footage has never been shown as it was actually filmed. It was combined with staged sequences to create ‘The Battle of the Somme’, a propaganda film designed to rally a grieving nation. In the months and years following the brutal battle, the film was seen by around twenty million people. A cameraman called Geoffrey Malins had been allowed to the front lines on The Somme by the British generals. Along with fellow official cinematographer John McDowell, Malins created a graphic portrayal of trench warfare that showed dying British and German soldiers.

Although the British army had been anticipating a great victory - and were happy to see it commemorated on film – the battle did not go as planned. Malins had been filming the build up to the battle; he thought that he would go on the enemy being decimated. But it all went wrong. By the end of that first day almost 20,000 Allied soldiers were dead - the heaviest battlefield casualties ever inflicted on the British army in a single day. Since then, the film's iconic images have defined the Great War. But, the real story hidden in its footage has remained a mystery.

On that same day, 1st July 1916, men from the First Newfoundland Regiment fighting for Britain went over the top and into history. They were virtually wiped out. Now, as their descendants march back in time to find out what they went through, the silent film shot on The Somme surrenders its secrets. A team of investigators using forensic science work to determine the truth. They identify what is probably the first footage of men falling in battle ever captured on film, putting names to the faces of soldiers frozen in time that lead to their descendants, and releasing words spoken by soldiers on that fateful day, words that have never been heard…until now.

Youtube: Battle Of The Somme - The True Story - Parts 1-8 (1.5 hr total; 480p) (1 of 8, do rest manually) (auto playlist for 8 parts)

Regards

Mike

[jmm99]

This film may be somewhat controversial, although it's far from a complete revision of the traditional received "wisdom" that the Brits were lions led by donkeys.

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The Somme – From Defeat to Victory (2006) (Wiki) (Wiki2):

The 1st of July 1916 was the bloodiest day in British military history. But there was much more to the Somme than senseless slaughter. The Somme: From Defeat to Victory challenges the traditional view of the battle as a disaster and reveals how it was on the Somme that the British Army learnt to fight a modern war.

Based on extensive research in British and German archives, the film mixes realistic, historically sourced drama scenes, archive, documentary footage and state of the art computer graphics to bring the extraordinary events of the Somme to life. It has been made with the advice of some of the world's top military historians. The result is a film that offers a radical new perspective on the Somme, putting the terrible events of July 1st into their proper historical context.

The film is also influenced by the personal perspective of its writer, director and producer Detlef Siebert, who says:

"As a German, I approached the battle of the Somme without the preconceptions that most British people seem to have. Even 90 years on, the Somme is still seen as a prime example of the recklessness and idiocy of British generals who sent wave after wave of brave young men to certain death.

"And although the battle of the Somme lasted almost 5 months, it is normally only the first day that is remembered. This popular view of the Somme struck me as rather one-dimensional and I wondered how the British Army would have won the war if it was really led by 'donkey' generals. In fact, recent historical research has demonstrated that many British commanders proved able and willing to learn from the disaster of the 1st of July.

"I wanted to make a film that not only shows the human tragedy of trench warfare but also highlights the learning curve of the British Army on the Somme."

The Somme - From Defeat To Victory - Parts 1-7 (1 hr total; 480p) (1 of 7 parts) (auto playlist for 7 parts)

The "lessons learned" segments feature the Fall 1916 Battle of Thiepval, and showcase then Lt. Col. Frank Maxwell (brief bio in next post):

Thiepval Map 01



Thiepval Map 02



Regards

Mike

[jmm99]

The measure of Brigadier General Francis Aylmer Maxwell VC, CSI, DSO & Bar (7 September 1871 – KIA, sniper, at Ypres, 21 September 1917) (Wiki), goes well beyond that brief bio, his memorial in St. Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh



and even his Decorations and Citations (partial). Those do give us something of a framework to work with.

One begins to appreciate the person from his letters: first to his family when he was single; and later to his wife Charlotte (an Aussie). Charlotte Maxwell, Frank Maxwell Brig. General, V.C., C.S.I., D.S.O. A Memoir and Some Letters (London: John Murray, 1921)

Once an Eagle presents us with a somewhat overdrawn fictional choice between Sam Damon and Courtney Massengale. Bob Scales (in looking back on Once an Eagle), among others, has commented that the military needs good combat leaders and good staff officers. Frank Maxwell was both; making the fictional choice between Damon and Massengale a false one.

He established his "Damon" credentials with the Indian Army on the Frontier and during the early stages of the Boer War. He established his "Massengale" credentials as "The Brat", ADC to Kitchener in South Africa and India; and later Military Secretary to the Viceroy of India. Toss in polo, pig sticking and tiger hunting for balance. He returned to the "Damon" role as a Bn and Bde commander in 1916-1917 - see snips in attached PDF file and judge for yourself.

IMO: Maxwell is a person to be emulated, whether or not one is a soldier.

Regards

Mike

[davidbfpo]

In my teens I was interested in WW1 and read about this battle, many years later I was able to twice visit the area.

The battlefield remains primarily agricultural land, with a few small villages and the terrain is not easy to follow. A good number of the houses are non-French owned, as a good number of those interested have purchased houses.

Delville Wood, where the South Africans fought and died, remains a rather shattered place even if the wood has re-grown.

We walked through the partly restored trenches around the Newfoundland Memorial (then not part of Canada), with German trenches nearby (out of grenade range) and the cratered "no mans land". A truly terrible place.

Conditions were so bad later on British troops deserted en masse to the Germans on the River Ancre sector; which when it rains is a really dismal, damp place.

A few years ago with my interest rekindled I joined the Western Front Association; treading their printed journal, taking in some lectures and maybe one day will go back. Link:http://westernfrontassociation.com/

Further north is that other battlefield etched in blood and mud in the British memory, Ypres. There the terrain is far easier to follow, with the Germans holding the high ground against which British "Tommies" threw themselves in 1917. We took in a nearby French cemetery and ossuary, then a German cemetery (for 44k) for the late 1914 battles - when eager student volunteers were mown down. A small German student party were there laying a wreath.

Link:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langema...n_war_cemetery

Incidentally two (?) US Army divisions (108k) served in the Ypres sector later in the last Allied offensive, which I was unaware of until finding a memorial:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_..._November_1918

Showing my age the best guide is a book: 'Before Endeavours Fade' by Rose Coombs (Pub. 1994); it covers many more battlefields e.g. Verdun: http://www.amazon.com/Before-Endeavo.../dp/0900913851