were tanks first used in the battle of the somme

Since the British used minimal attacks on the first day, 57,000 men fell, of which 19,420 died. Upon realizing the infantry attack, the German soldiers shifted to deeper hideouts manning their machine guns ready to face the British and French Armies. The battle commenced with a weeklong weaponry attack of the German lines in the North with the aim of cutting all their wires, destroying the trenches, and knocking out the enemy guns thus providing a useful barrage for the infantry attack. At the end of the meeting, Douglas Haig and Henry Rawlinson commenced campaigns through the Kitchener’s Volunteer Army with posters of Lord Kitchener himself persuading the people to volunteer in the battle as a sign of patriotism. In 1915, allied commanders from the British and French armies met to discuss the strategies for the following year’s offensive astride at Verdun. Seeing their dissatisfaction and frustration, the British decided to move in and aid the French. Lead Up to the Battle of Sommeįor a couple of months, the French had been suffering devastating losses at the Verdun battlefield, east of Paris. At the culmination of the battle, the British Army grieved 420,000 casualties, the French lost 200,000 men, and the Germans had 500,000 casualties. The Somme Offensive, which was the largest battle of the First World War, commenced on July 1, 1916, and was fought through to November 18, 1916.

It was a deliberate dual operation between the French and British to achieve a conclusive victory over the Germans on the Western Front after months of trench deadlock. The Battle of the Somme is documented as one of the bloodiest battles that occurred during the First World War. What Was the Battle of the Somme? Allied soldiers during WWI's Battle of the Somme.

Were tanks first used in the battle of the somme