Outcomes Of The Battle
The main battle objectives, which were to launch a major attack on German lines in the Somme River valley. The assault would begin with an intense artillery bombardment of German defenses. After this, a wave of 1.2 million soldiers would advance in wave formations along a 40km front. The aim of this was to cut the Germans off from behind and make them so demoralized that they would have to surrender. These objectives were not achieved, mainly for the fact that the British army made a slow, massive advance onto the German lines, however this was no match for the new weapons of the war. The British were mowed down from machine gun fire and more than 20,000 soldiers lost their lives. The worst in British military history.
The British commanders have received a lot of criticism for the way the battle was fought. By the end of the battle, the British Army had suffered 420,000 causalities including 60,000 on the first day alone. The French lost 200,000 men and the Germans nearly 500,000. The Battle of the Somme is the worst battle recorded in history in terms of the number of casualties, especially considering there were 60,000 deaths in one day.
The Battle of the Somme was the most significant battle in all of World War 1. Although there was a large amount of casualties, the objective of the battle was not achieved as the war continued on for almost two years afterwards.
The British commanders have received a lot of criticism for the way the battle was fought. By the end of the battle, the British Army had suffered 420,000 causalities including 60,000 on the first day alone. The French lost 200,000 men and the Germans nearly 500,000. The Battle of the Somme is the worst battle recorded in history in terms of the number of casualties, especially considering there were 60,000 deaths in one day.
The Battle of the Somme was the most significant battle in all of World War 1. Although there was a large amount of casualties, the objective of the battle was not achieved as the war continued on for almost two years afterwards.