The Battle of Somme
On Saturday, July 1, 1916, the opening day of the Battle of the Somme, the 1st Newfoundland Regiment was virtually annihilated at Beaumont Hamel.
On that fateful day in July 1916, 100,000 Allied soldiers, the Newfoundlanders among them, set out on the "Big Push" - a colossal infantry offensive along a 40-kilometre stretch of the Western front called the Somme. It was confidently expected they would smash through the German defences and clear a path for the cavalry to advance to the Channel coast.
Beginning soon after daylight, the attacking soldiers climbed out of their trenches and marched as ordered: slowly, wave upon wave, with bayonets held high. Each man was burdened with roughly 30 kilograms of equipment, including shovels, wire-cutters and sections of bridges which, once assembled, would enable passage across the enemy's trenches. Few made it that far.
The Germans had been long forewarned of an infantry assault. To make matters worse, the Allied artillery siege which had been aimed at the enemy throughout the preceding weeks had missed most of its targets. It had not destroyed the enemy's guns, the bulk of their formidable barbed wire defences nor the deep dug-outs which concealed scores of platoons. The overburdened Allied soldiers became easy targets for the readied German guns.
With the advancing forces was a sole infantry battalion from the island of Newfoundland. Raised within just two months of Great Britain's declaration of war, it had already fought with distinction in Gallipoli. The Newfoundlanders arrived in France in March 1916 and on July, at 2 a.m., they completed a five-hour march to the trenches of the Somme.
Part of the 88th brigade in the 29th British Division, the 1st Newfoundland Regiment was assigned a role with the second attacking wave. At 7:30 a.m., platoons from the 87th Brigade were to set out to capture the first two lines of German fortification at Beaumont-Hamel. Together with a battalion from the Essex Regiment, the Newfoundlanders were to take the third enemy line 70 minutes later. It was assumed they would face little opposition.
Little, however, went according to plan. A huge mine was ignited under a German trench at 7:20. Although it destroyed its intended target, the blast also alerted the enemy to the impending infantry attack. German soldiers prepared to defend their lines, and their artillerymen countered by shelling Allied ground. At 7:30, in the face of this military barrage, the 87th Brigade embarked. At 8:45, the Newfoundland Regiment and the Essex Regiment were ordered to provide them with support. Their battle lasted less than 30 minutes.
It was a terrible experience. Because the forward trenches were clogged with bodies and debris, the advance of the Essex regiment was delayed and the Newfoundlanders were forced to cross 900 metres of exposed front independently. Few made it to the beginning of the Allied barbed wire entanglements, 230 metres beyond their starting point. Those who did had to follow the zigzag lanes between pre-cut, highlighted openings in the wire which were well covered by the enemy machine-guns. If they managed to emerge through these gaps, the men of the 1st Newfoundland Regiment then discovered that at least 500 metres of open ground lay between them and the fully intact first line of German defences.
Some of the Newfoundlanders progressed far enough to hurl bombs at the enemy trenches, but most had been struck down long before that point. Many were killed at the start, as they clambered out of their trenches. By 10 a.m., little remained of the 1st Newfoundland Regiment. Their casualties numbered more than 700, one-third of which were fatal. Every officer who went into battle that day was either killed or wounded. Only 68 of the regiment escaped serious injury.
For the British Army, it was the bloodiest day of the war. They suffered 57,470 casualties, while German dead or wounded totalled 8,000. Precious little ground had been gained and months of deadlocked fighting followed.
In Newfoundland, news of the tragedy arrived July 13, nearly two weeks after the battle at Beaumont-Hamel. Members of the clergy then began what seemed an endless succession of condolence visits.
Meanwhile, the remnants of the 1st Newfoundland Regiment resumed training. A support cadre plus the traditional 10 per cent of total strength had been spared from the morning assault. In all, 150 members remained of a battalion which, at its fullest strength, had boasted 1,000. Reinforced with 130 new recruits, the regiment transferred to the Ypres Salient.
The Allies launched a second major offensive at the Somme on September 15, 1916. The following month, the Newfoundlanders returned to the region and distinguished themselves in action near Gueudecourt. The brutal Somme campaign finally ended in November. In the end, the Allied forces had gained only 10 kilometres of ground. The terrible cost was approximately 600,000 casualties.