The Battle of the Somme changed the face of warfare

[NelsonG]

1916

French troops prepare to move on German positions.

Image: Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images

On July 1, 1916, the first shots were fired in what would become one of the bloodiest engagements in human history, the 141-day Battle of the Somme.

It was nearly two years into what was then being called the Great War, and what was once expected to be a quick skirmish had turned into a mechanized war of attrition, in which dozens of trains a day ferried men and materiel into a maw of bullets, shells, gas and fire, to little effect.

The battle took place in northern France, along the upper reaches of the River Somme, in a morass of mud, shattered trees and barbed wire. In the early hours of dawn, the Allies completed a withering eight-day artillery barrage to soften up the German lines. At 7:30 a.m., the signal was given to go over the top and charge across no man’s land to assault the German trenches. Read more...

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