The Battle of Verdun & the Battle of the Somme

The Battle of Verdun One of the biggest battles of WWI Fought in 1916, from Feb – Dec Fought between the French and Germans Part of the Schlieffen Plan Key to determining who would win on the Western front At the time: the longest battle history had ever known

Goals of the Germans: German Army’s chief of staff wanted to strike a fatal blow Verdun had important symbolic value to the French Germans thought the French would bleed out their army trying to defend it Thus, they saw Verdun as a chance to destroy the French army

Soldier’s Experiences of Verdun

The Toll Verdun resulted in 306,000 battlefield deaths 163,000 French 143,000 German And at least 1/2 million wounded

In the end Counts as a strategic victory for France But – was a costly stalemate for both countries in terms of death tolls

Verdun today Land around Verdun is still marked by war War memorial Thousands of shell holes in countryside Trenches slice through the woods Mine craters still visible Barbed wire and remains of fortresses still can be seen War memorial Remains of 130,000 French and German soldiers

Battle of the Somme An overview of the battle

Dead German soldiers at Battle of the Somme Overview July 1 – Nov. 18, 1916 One of the costliest battles of WWI Approximately 1.2 million casualties 420,000 British 200,000 French 500,000 German Image Credit: John Warwick Brooke (Photographer). (1916). [German dead in a trench and machine gun post near Guillemont during the Battle of the Somme], Retrieved October 17, 2012, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:German_dead_Guillemont_September_1916.jpg Dead German soldiers at Battle of the Somme

British gains Image credit: [Map of the Battle of the Somme]. Retrieved October 30, 2012, from: http://www.greatwar.co.uk/battles/somme-1916/index.htm

Cause and effect Attempt by the British to “push through” the German lines Fought along northwestern part of the Western Front After months of fighting, and several assaults up and down the front, resulted in small gains in land for England Greatly weakened German war effort overall

Causes of high death toll Massive loss of life due to new military technologies: machine guns artillery/mines hand grenades gas airplanes first use of tanks Image Credit: John Warwick Brooke (Photographer). (1916). [British Vickers machine gun crew wearing PH-type anti-gas helmets], Retrieved October 17, 2012, from: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vickers_machine_gun_crew_with_gas_masks.jpg British gun crew wearing PH-type anti-gas helmets

Central Historical Question: Who won the first day of the Battle of the Somme? Image credit: John Warwick Brooke (Photographer). (1916). [A British trench near the Albert-Bapaume road at Ovillers-la-Boisselle, July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme], Retrieved October 17, 2012, from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cheshire_Regiment_trench_Somme_1916.jpg A British trench July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme

Document Analysis Worksheet Our job today is to investigate what happened on the first day of the battle, July 1, 1916, by reading three historical accounts of the day: a British newspaper article written by a journalist who was at the battle the memoir of a British soldier who fought in the battle the memoir of a German soldier who fought in the battle

Read Document A Answer the questions on the graphic organizer.

Read Documents B & C Answer the questions on the graphic organizer

Free Write Who won the first day at the Battle of the Somme? Use evidence to support your answer!

Discussion Questions Why are documents B & C so different from document A? Which of the documents is most trustworthy? Why?

Central Historical Question Who won the first day of the Battle of the Somme? Day One Casualties: 57,470 British 8, 000 German 7, 000 French Which documents does this data support or corroborate?