Living History: The Somme Battlefields
108 Years Since Battle of the Somme
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The Battle of the Somme, which began on 1 July 1916, is remembered as one of the bloodiest events of the First World War. On the first day of the offensive, one man was killed every 4.4 seconds, making it the bloodiest single day in the history of the British Army. There were over a million casualties sustained by both Allied and German forces by the time the battle had concluded.
Historian Mat McLachlan travels along the Circuit of Remembrance with tour guide John Anderson, visiting the commune of Beaumont-Hamel, the Newfoundland Memorial and the extraordinary World War One collection at Le Tommy Café in Pozières to learn more about the battle and all those who fought in it.
Up Next in 108 Years Since Battle of the Somme
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The Cutting Edge: Tanks in World War One
On 15 September 1916 the battlefield changed forever. At Flers-Courcelette, during the brutal, bloody fighting on the Somme, the British army released a new weapon designed to combat the devastating power of the machine gun: the tank. Moving on caterpillar tracks and protected by plated armour, t...
