Why was the battle of the somme fought?
Dear Quetioner The Somme battle commenced on the 1 July 1916 following months of build up preparation and weeks of intense artillery bombardment of the German trenches. It was the first great battle of WW1 to involve large numbers of British volunteers who enlisted in 1914. The battle was fought to relieve pressure on the French Army at the fortress town of Verdun. The German Army tried to capture Verdun and to bleed France white in a battle of attrition. The losses were enormous but the German Army never captured the Town. They had to divert resources in defence of the Somme front. The first day of the Somme battle was the greatest disaster for the British Army. There were thousands of casualties on the first day alone and if I can remember correctly 17000 in the first five minutes. The battle continued into November but the small gain in territory could never be justified by the huge losses. Good books by serving soldiers at the time are:- ‘Goodbye to All That’ by Robert Graves and ‘
