HAIG AND THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME

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HAIG AND THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME

• ASSESSMENT PREPARATION

2
WHEN AND WHERE?

• The battle started on July 1st 1916
• It lasted until November 18th 1916
• The battle was named after the nearby River Somme

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WHO WAS DOUGLAS HAIG?

• Douglas Haig was born on June 19 1861. He was
  educated at Oxford and Sandhurst.
• At the beginning of World War One in 1914, Haig
  commanded the first Army Corps.

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WHY WAS HAIG THERE?

• In December of 1915 questions were being raised
  about how well the war was being fought. On the
  10th December a new commander of the British was
  appointed - Douglas Haig.

• He was 54 at the time and had a long a successful
  military career behind him. Even with his
  experience though, trench warfare was a new form
  of fighting, so he faced a difficult task.

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WHY WAS THE BATTLE FOUGHT?

• In February 1916, Germany began a campaign
  against the French at Verdun. Five months passed,
  700,000 men had become casualties, and the French
  were only just hanging on.

• The British decided they had the relieve the
  pressure on the French. The British high command,
  led by Field Marshal Haig began a major attack
  along the line of the river Somme.

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WHAT WAS THE BATTLE LIKE?

• After five months the British had captured little
  land.
• The battle of the Somme was one of the most
  bloody of the First World War

• More British soldiers had been killed than in any
  other battle before it.
• It earned Haig the title 'Butcher of the Somme',
  after he unnecessarily sent thousands of British
  troops to their deaths.

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WHAT WERE HAIGS THOUGHTS?

• "The way to capture machine guns is by grit and
  determination."
• The nation must be prepared to see heavy
  casualty lists."
• "Very successful attack this morning... All went
  like clockwork... The battle is going very well
  for us.

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IMAGES OF THE SOMME
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WHAT WAS LEFT
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YOUR ASSESSMENT

• You will have to decide if Haig was the butcher
  of the Somme.
• Look through this display again and collect
  evidence for and against.