The Battle of Somme took place from July 1st to November 18th, 1916 along the Somme River in France. The objectives of the British and French forces were to relieve pressure on the French at Verdun and drain German resources. On the first day, the British suffered over 60,000 casualties while advancing slowly towards German trenches in broad daylight. Overall, over 1 million soldiers from both sides were killed or wounded, making it one of the bloodiest battles in history. Neither side gained significant strategic advantages and the battle resulted in very heavy losses on both sides.

1. Justine Faith P. Melgar

2. The Battle of Somme
1st July – 18th November, 1916

3. 
 Britain and France had noticed that their
armies up at the North of France, near the Somme
river have been battered continuously by the
Germans.
 The Germans have also invaded Verdun, a
small city at north-eastern France, and the Alliance
want him out.
Why the battle took place…

4. 
Main Objectives of the
Alliance:
 FIRST OBJECTIVE:
- To drain the
Central Powers’
(mainly Germany’s)
resources and supplies
at Somme.
 SECOND OBJECTIVE:
- To regain lost
land.
- To regain
Verdun.
The Alliance:
- Great Britain
- France
- Russia
The Central Powers:
- Germany
- Turkish Ottoman Empire
- Austria-Hungary

5. 
How the battle started…
 As a pre-attack, the
British forces, battered
the German army with
a week-long of
shelling. This was done
in hopes that
Germany’s defenses
would weaken before
the full-attack.
 Without the British’s
knowledge, the Germans
had hidden in
underground chambers to
protect themselves from
the week-long shelling.
The Germans also had
really thick barbed wires
which were said to be as
thick as a finger, which
weren’t as easily
destroyed as the British
had hoped.
The concentration of both British and German armies were up at the northern
side of the Somme, while French troops were at the further south.

6. 
The Military Leaders behind both
Parties…
The British and French Army:
Commander-in-Chief Sir Douglas
Haig
The German Army:
General Fritz von Below

7. 
 With pride, the British army greatly believed that the
week-long of shelling had weakened the German army
greatly. And so the British soldiers marched through No
Man’s Land towards the German trenches carrying only
bayonets. It was even said in one account that the British
officers ordered their soldiers to ‘walk’ towards the
Germans in a slow, and prideful manner. Another thing
was, the British had done it in broad daylight, with not a
hint of cover to hide themselves.
 The German army, on the other hand, almost unfazed,
used machine guns to slaughter down the British soldiers
who were coming onto them.
One of the bloodiest days in
written history…

8. The
Map:

9. 
 It was given this title for a reason.
 On the first day alone, the British army suffered over
60, 000 casualties while the German army suffered
less than 20,000.
 With around almost 80,000 lives lost on only the first
day, the first day of the Battle of the Somme was
recorded as ‘most war casualties in a single day’ and
the title remains undefeated until today.
A hundred bodies per square
meter…

10. 
 It was said to be the first battle in history where
tanks were used.
 Several war weapons were widely used for the first
time including, mines, poisonous gas and machine
guns. Some machine guns used by the Germans
were huge and required 12 men to operate.
 It was a highly criticized battle which was said to
have ‘gained so little, yet lost so many lives.
How the Battle of Somme is
remembered…

11. 
 The British soldiers who fought in the Battle of
Somme, were said to be inexperienced. While the
soldiers on the German side were said to be war
veterans.
 The tanks used by the British were too slow and
risky. They also required a lot of technical work.
 The shells used by the British Army were made of
poor-quality materials and so many were defective.
Defects of the Battle as pointed
out by historians…

12. 
 After 4 ½ months of bloody battle, the battle was
ended by Commander-in-Chief Sir Douglas Haig on
18th November, 1916.
 The major reason was because conditions were
getting worse, the rain had poured heavily which
made the battlefield a muddy hell in the recent
weeks. The battle was ended when the first snow
fell.
 The British and French have also decided that they
have already lost too many and cannot continue any
longer.
How the battle ended…

13. 
 This is the tricky part.
 At the outermost extent, historians believed that the
Allied forces were able to defeat the Central Powers
in this battle.
 Though, some historians also say that the battle was
a draw. In the end, the Allied forces gained very little
ground and the number of casualties on both sides
were almost equal.
 Some historians believe that the amount of casualties
suffered by both sides made the battle a draw.
Who won?

14. 
 The British and French troops only managed to gain 8km
of advancement.
 The battle strategies of Commander-in-Chief Sir Douglas
Haig were greatly criticized as the result of the huge life
loss. He was later known as “the Butcher of the Somme”.
 In the favorable side of the battle to the Alliance, they
managed to destroy German resources and supplies at the
Somme.
 Many German veterans were lost at the battle which
weakened the overall German army since then.
In the end…

15. 
Casualties by Numbers…
 British Army
= approx. 420,000
 French Army
= approx. 200,000
 German Army
= approx. 500,000
 Lives lost in total
= approx. over
1,000,000

16. 
 The Battle of Somme served as a grim reminder,
especially to the British troops, to improve on their
war tactics. This is the result of the events following
the great blood-shed that happened on the first day,
as a result of rubbish war tactics.
 The German army lost a huge number of war
veterans which in turn weakened its overall army.
Their supplies and resources were also drained.
 The tanks that were used by the British were
remodeled and improved.
The impacts the Battle of Somme
left on WWI…

17. 
 Verdun was retaken by France.
 The battle showed the true horrors of trench warfare.
As to avoid the same thing to happen again, both
parties since then had developed new tactics that
improved conditions of soldiers in trenches.
 The shells used by the British were improved and
then made with better materials.
(cont.)

18. 
 The Germans since then re-organized their defensive
lines and started to rely on a series of concrete
pillboxes as a front line defensive. The pillboxes were
placed to cover machine guns. The fortified line was
also named as “the Siegfried Stellung”--- or better
known as the “the Hindenburg line”.
(cont.)

19. The Battle of Somme
1st July – 18th November, 1916

20. 
Bibliography:

21. 
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22. 
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(cont.)

23. 
 Gilbert, Martin. The Battle of the Somme: The Heroism
and Horror of War. Toronto: M&S, 2006. Print.
 Ronayne, Ian. A Gunner's Great War: An
Artilleryman's Experience from the Somme to the
Subcontinent. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military, 2012.
Print.
 Livesey, Anthony, and Jeremy Moore. Great Battles of
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