Battle of the Somme Quiz

What was the fatal flaw with the British Army in 1916?

• The soldiers were mostly inexperienced new recruits
• Their rifles were out of date

The British had to attack at the Somme in 1916 to try and relieve the pressure on French troops fighting at... (begins with V)

(a)  

What was the ORIGINAL plan at the Somme? (before Haig changed it!)

• A weeklong artillery bombardment, until all German defences were destroyed

• A major cavalry charge followed by infantry assault
• Drone strike
• To cut off German supplies and simply wait it out

How did Haig change the original plan?

• He wanted to send infantry and cavalry over the top too, not just use artillery
• He wanted to include even more artillery guns and attacks
• He wanted to try and use new technology, such as planes, to attack the Germans
• He didn't change the plan at all

What orders were the men given for their attack?

• Walk in a straight line towards the Germans
• Carefully take cover in No Man's Land, and move in small groups
• Wait until nightfall and launch a surprise attack
• Stay back until the artillery has fully cleared all the trenches

Fill in the blank: These orders were given because most of the men were too … to cope with anything more complicated (begins with 'in…')

(a)  

How long was the artillery bombardment before the attack began?

• 1 week
• 2 days
• 12 hours
• 24 hours

What fraction of the artillery shells failed to go off?

• 1/3

• 1/10

• 1/4

• 1/5

What unexpected problems did the week-long artillery barrage create? Tick as many as apply.

• It simply gave the Germans lots of warning an attack was coming
• It was incredibly expensive and the government could not really afford it
• It was suprisingly effective and destroyed more than expected
• It churned up No Man's Land and made it very hard to cross

Why did the German soldiers all survive the bombardment?

• They were able to hide in their deep dugouts, underground
• The shells were fired at the wrong target
• They had expert medical care
• They were lucky