The Fighting - this is a brief summary
The battle most people associate with the Somme is the one that opened on 1 July 1916 when a mainly volunteer British Army of 16 divisions in concert with 5 French divisions attacked entrenched German positions in the Department of the Somme in France.
Over-reliance by the British on the destruction of the enemy defences by preparatory artillery bombardment led to almost 60,000 British casualties on the first day and more than 400,000 before the fighting ended on 17 November 1916.
The maximum advance made in all that time was six and a half miles. Total German casualties are estimated to have been about the same as the British, and the French were almost 200,000.
In our larger Somme guide book the actions of the Australians, Canadians and Americans on the Somme are covered as well as actions later in the war.
You can go directly to the bigger book if you click HERE.
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