POLICE_WORLD_3_2016

Article

The Battle of the Somme Fought between July and November 1916 was one of the defining events of the First World War. The Somme offensive was planned as the major Allied effort on the Western Front for 1916, but the start of a desperate battle between French and German forces at Verdun meant that the British Army assumed the main role. After an intense, week-long artillery bombardment of German positions, the infantry began their advance at 7.30am on the clear midsummer’s morning of 1 July 1916. While there were some gains to the south, in the north the attacking troops struggled to overcome formidable defences, many of which had survived the artillery barrage. By the end of the first day, some 57,000 Commonwealth and 2,000 French soldiers had become casualties – more than 19,000 of whom had been killed. The offensive continued over the following months, and men from every part of Britain and across the Empire took part. Both sides committed huge quantities of manpower and munitions to the struggle. When the offensive was halted in November, more than 1,000,000 Commonwealth, French and German soldiers had been wounded, captured, or killed.

The CWGC Thiepval Memorial - Commemorating the dead Today, the cemeteries and memorials built and cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) portray the human cost of the battle. Some 150,000 Commonwealth servicemen lie buried in 250 military and 150 civilian cemeteries on the Somme. More than 100,000 more were never found or identified. They are not forgotten, but are remembered by name on six memorials to the missing for those whose graves are not known. The Thiepval Memorial is the largest Commonwealth war memorial in the world. The 45 metre high monument stands on a ridge just south of Thiepval village – a heavily fortified German position on the Somme front in 1916. The brick superstructure has 16 stone piers. Each pier has panelled faces and on those panels are inscribed the names of the dead. A commemorative event is held every year at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s Thiepval Memorial, organised by The Royal British Legion and the British Embassy, Paris, but in 2016 the UK and French Governments will host a significantly larger event. Due to the high public demand and the limited capacity at the site, the event will be accessible by ticket only. Tickets for the event were distributed via a public ballot. In addition to the event at Thiepval, the French are making plans to broadcast the event live to large screens in a number of towns across the Somme region, so that as many people as possible can see the event and participate, including those who are unsuccessful in the ballot. There will also be a wide programme of events taking place in both the UK and France, which the public can participate in to mark both the 1st July and the 141 day duration of the battle.

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POLICE WORLD Vol 61 No. 3, 2016