Diwrnod Cyntaf y Somme Cerdded y Llinell

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-Today, wheat and corn sway in

-the breeze on the plains at Picardy.

-The beauty is in stark contrast

-to the memories of the war.

-The River Somme, which flows here,

-is synonymous with World War I.

-The Somme leads us to Amiens,

-a city scarred by two World Wars.

-It's now a lively, bustling city,

-with a purpose in life.

-It's a meeting place for those

-interested in the Great War.

-The Amiens skyline is dominated

-by the gothic Notre Dame Cathedral.

-It's amongst the oldest

-and most beautiful in France.

-I'm surprised the town

-was such a thriving place in 1916...

-..despite, or perhaps because of,

-its proximity to the front line.

-The soldiers lived with death

-and destruction every day.

-They needed somewhere to escape

-and Amiens was that place.

-There was alcohol,

-food and brothels galore.

-Prostitution and war are as old as

-each other and that won't change.

-The poet Talhaiarn said only three

-things should inspire poetry.

-Wine, love and war.

-I wonder what he'd have written

-had he been here in 1916?

-If we went back in time,

-we would hear 'Tipperary'...

-..and 'Keep The Home Fires Burning'

-echoing through the streets.

-The place was really alive.

-Every minute counted

-to those young men.

-They knew, within five minutes

-of returning to the front line...

-..they could be dead.

-This was the case at Verdun, where

-the French were bleeding to death.

-The Germans attacked the French

-fiercely in February 1916.

-Every available man and gun

-was used to protect Verdun.

-France was in grave danger.

-The enemy was about to fulfil its

-plan and take France with one blow.

-It had a catastrophic effect

-on the British in the war.

-With France calling for help,

-General Haig agreed to support them.

-This strict Scot was a key figure

-throughout the war.

-When Haig hinted he might not be

-ready to attack until August...

-..General Joffre said the French

-army would not exist by then.

-Haig agreed to attack

-at the end of June, 1916.

-Haig had good reason

-to delay his attack.

-Heavy losses meant

-new armies needed to be trained.

-Recruitment drives at home

-and abroad were a success.

-Men from all walks of life

-fought for King and country.

-Miners, factory workers, farmhands,

-clerks, shops boys and graduates...

-..came from all over the empire.

-From Canada, Australia, New Zealand,

-South Africa and India.

-They joined up for many reasons.

-Patriotism, duty, boredom with

-their lives or for an adventure.

-They poured into France,

-knowing nothing of war...

-..and even less

-about trench warfare.

-Most of the experienced men

-of the pre-war army...

-..lay dead in the fields of

-northern France and Flanders.

-This new army was far from ready.

-The Somme offered no real

-strategic or tactical objectives.

-Winning 20 or 30 miles meant very

-little in the course of the war.

-The Somme had previously been quiet.

-This enabled the Germans

-to build strong defences.

-Haig wanted to attack

-the Germans at Flanders.

-This made sense,

-as the Germans were less prepared.

-Haig yielded to French persuasion...

-..and so they attacked at the Somme.

-We cannot be sure

-of Haig's real intentions.

-Would the battle

-yield a breakthrough...

-..or just wear the enemy down?

-This is where Rawlinson

-and Haig enjoyed the high life.

-Just a few miles down the road...

-..soldiers fought and died

-in the muddy, smelly trenches.

-The plan was to attack

-the first line of trenches...

-..that had been destroyed

-by the field guns...

-..attack the second line and use the

-cavalry to break through the gaps.

-Rawlinson thought it a little

-ambitious but he was willing to try.

-It was an 18 mile front,

-to the north of the Somme.

-Haig and Rawlinson

-were confident of success...

-..yet expected heavy casualties.

-They were always confident.

-Losses were to be expected

-despite their thorough preparation.

-New railways were built, roads and

-bridges were prepared and widened.

-Over 120 miles of water pipes

-were laid.

-They stockpiled supplies of food,

-ammunition and artillery shells.

-The enemy saw the preparations,

-so losses were to be expected.

-The bombardment commenced in the

-early hours of 24th June, 1916.

-Over 1,500 field guns were used

-to destroy German positions.

-Over 1 million shells were fired

-in that fateful week.

-This is more than was used

-during the first year of the war.

-The gunners needed time

-to fulfil the bombardment...

-..so attacks were delayed by a day,

-until 1st July 1916.

-Expectations were high.

-Many believed the bombardment had

-destroyed enemy wire and positions.

-They even expected the rats to die.

-Mines had also been dug

-under German strong points.

-These would explode

-shortly before the attack.

-One commander suggested his soldiers

-should light a cigarette or pipe...

-..as they would not see

-a living German for some time.

-Not everyone was as confident.

-Mr Sharp, sir.

-Something to do with Mr Hilton?

-I'm afraid it's got worse, they want

-us to go out and check the wire.

-Myself and four others will go.

-Get the men to black up.

-Patrols on the front line reported

-that many enemy dugouts were intact.

-The bombardment had been inadequate.

-Many shells failed to explode and

-the barbed wire was still intact.

-The information was ignored, so as

-not to dishearten the soldiers.

-Bloody wire has not been touched.

-Bloody wire has not been touched.

-

-You're joking!

-Not a shred of it.

-Division told us,

-they assured us, it would be cut!

-There was no real liaison

-between soldiers and officers.

-Many senior officers were not

-selected for their skill...

-..but because of their wealth

-and titles.

-This may have worked for Wellington

-but it was very different in 1916.

-Haig was no Wellington.

-On the eve of the battle, before

-going to his comfortable bed...

-..Haig wrote to his wife saying...

-.."I feel that every step of my plan

-has been taken with divine help."

-Thousands crammed into

-the front and support trenches...

-..in the hours before the attack.

-Despite rumours

-that the wire had not broken...

-..the new army was brave

-and ready to follow orders.

-Keep your head down and keep going.

-If anybody gets wounded,

-even if it's your mate, leave him.

-Zero hour was to be 7.30 am,

-1st July 1916.

-With full kit, they were to advance

-and

-walk

-towards the Germans.

-On that fateful morning, many noted

-the quiet hush over the battlefield.

-Bird song could even be heard.

-At 6.25am all hell broke loose

-on the German lines.

-The final bombardment had begun.

-Ten minutes before zero hour...

-..a huge mine was detonated under

-German positions at Beaumont-Hamel.

-Other mines were detonated

-along the line.

-At 7.30am, at the sound

-of the whistle...

-..the first British assault

-came out of the trenches.

-The Germans had rushed

-to their defence posts.

-As ordered, the new British army

-walked

-into the storm of metal.

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-The battle of the Somme

-on July 1st, 1916.

-The most bloody day

-in British military history.

-In order to get a perspective

-on this dreadful day...

-..we'll follow the line of attack

-from north to south.

-Yes, from one village to the next.

-Gommecourt and Foncquevillers,

-or Funky Villas as it was known...

-..were the most northern points

-of the attack.

-The attack was diversionary,

-to fool the Germans.

-The 46th division attacked,

-under a smoke screen...

-..which hid the fact that the

-barbed wire ahead was still intact.

-They got stuck in the wire and

-were shot to pieces by the Germans.

-The 56th division had better luck

-and reached the German front line...

-..but German artillery

-fired shells on them.

-The attackers were cut off

-from the supporting troops.

-Whole companies were wiped out.

-Despite the immense gallantry

-of the British, it was all in vain.

-Gommecourt remained

-in German hands until 1917.

-When they left, British bodies were

-still rotting on the barbed wire.

-The 31st division attacked

-the village of Serre.

-They were men from Leeds,

-Bradford, Accrington, Sheffield...

-..Barnsley and Durham and were

-known as the Pals Battalions.

-They were a brotherhood from towns,

-cities, workshops and factories.

-Despite a courageous attack, they

-were perforated by machine gun fire.

-Their native towns experienced

-a catastrophic loss.

-The Germans held strong positions at

-Beaumont-Hamel and Hawthorne Ridge.

-A mine was blown under the Germans,

-ten minutes before the attack.

-This alerted the suspicious German

-defenders to the imminent attack.

-'Y' Ravine was another German

-strong point near Beaumont-Hamel.

-It was a deep site, crammed

-with machine guns and barbed wire.

-These guns had a taken a dreadful

-toll during the initial attacks.

-The 1st Newfoundland Regiment losses

-echo the massacre at Beaumont-Hamel.

-The British front line was

-crammed with the dead and wounded.

-Of the 752 officers,

-over 680 were lost within minutes.

-A memorial was built

-to remember their efforts.

-Nearly 13,000 soldiers died,

-went missing or were wounded...

-..at Beaumont-Hamel

-on July 1st 1916.

-Despite agreeing

-a temporary truce...

-..it still took three days to

-clear the bodies from no-man's land.

-The South Wales Borderers

-also suffered heavy casualties.

-Thiepval, on the German line...

-..was possibly the most difficult

-place to take on the first day.

-The area was strongly defended

-by the Schwaben and Leipzig.

-The task fell to the 32nd and 36th

-division, supported by the reserves.

-The Ulster men of the 36th division

-had the sense to charge...

-..instead of walking like lambs to

-the slaughter, as was the practice.

-They almost broke through

-as they reached German lines...

-..but once again, German

-machine guns opened up on them.

-They gained some land

-around Thiepval...

-..but at a cost of over 9,000 lives.

-The story remained the same

-at Ovillers and La Boisselle.

-British soldiers were shot down

-by guns and hung on the barbed wire.

-This is Lochnagar Crater

-by La Boisselle.

-It was created by a mine that

-detonated prior to the attack.

-It's 300 feet across

-and over 90 feet deep.

-As we move further south along the

-line of attack we reach Fricourt.

-In order to capture enemy positions

-around the village...

-..they decided to attack the flanks

-instead of making a direct attack.

-Once again, the German machine gun

-posts and barbed wire stayed intact.

-It was absolute carnage

-for the West Yorkshire regiment.

-The British continued to attack and

-by nightfall, the Germans withdrew.

-The Welsh will never forget

-the village of Mametz.

-The village was taken

-at a cost of 8,500 casualties...

-..but the battle

-was deemed a success.

-This spurred the British on

-to win more land.

-Mametz Wood lies behind me.

-British units wanted to carry on and

-take the wood the following day...

-..before the Germans

-reinforced their position.

-The attack was delayed by a week.

-The decision was to have dire

-consequences for many Welshmen.

-Carnoy and Montauban lay at the

-southern end of the attacking line.

-British and French lines met here.

-A mine was detonated near Carnoy

-but it was too late...

-..as the British had started

-their attack and many were killed.

-Here, Captain W P Neville kicked

-a football towards enemy lines...

-..and encouraged his men

-to follow it.

-Neville did not live

-to see half time!

-With the help of French artillery,

-they won these strategic positions.

-The French were successful in their

-attacks south of the Somme.

-Once again, the nearby wood and open

-ground were ripe for the taking...

-..and the order to advance

-was sought.

-General Rawlinson refused.

-It was a poor and costly decision.

-Behind the lines of attack...

-..thousands were carried

-to the makeshift hospitals.

-There, doctors and nurses

-fought in vain...

-..to save

-the badly wounded soldiers.

-Without doubt, the attack on July

-1st, 1916 was a complete disaster.

-It cannot be argued otherwise.

-The official figures show,

-that on a hot summer's day...

-..100,000 soldiers attacked

-the 18 mile-long front.

-Nearly 60,000 soldiers

-were lost or wounded...

-..and they can be categorised.

-20,000 were killed

-or died from their wounds...

-..35,000 were injured...

-..2,000 were presumed missing,

-probably blown to pieces...

-..and 600 men were taken prisoner.

-There's not a lot to say.

-Haig himself said the machine gun

-was an overrated weapon!

-In German hands, it accounted

-for 60% of all casualties.

-Many British and Allied soldiers

-were killed in no-man's land...

-..before they even reached

-enemy lines.

-When you think about that first day

-and what followed at the Somme...

-..I'm reminded of the words of

-the Reverend Lewis Valentine.

-He came to the Somme three months

-after the attacks and wrote...

-.."We are in Hell and here is the

-devil's fire dance to entertain us."

-He asked a question

-at that scene of carnage.

-"Have all the rulers

-of every nation gone mad?"

-The big question is...

-..how did Haig and Rawlinson react

-to this most bloody of days?

-Exactly.