First Phase 1-17 July 1916
July 1st-13th, Battle of Albert: The first 2 weeks of the Anglo French offensive operations. The allied artillery bombarded on June 24th, and the infantry attacked on the 1st of July. The Armies beat the German defenders but many British were lost with a total of 60,00 casualties.
July 19-20th, Battle of Fromelles: It was an attack to help support the Fourth army on the Somme river. The plans for the attack were rushed and the generals underestimated the German defenses. The attack did litter to deter the German forces and no ground was gained.
Second Phase July-September
July 14-September 15th, Battle of Delville Wood: An operation to help secure the British's right flank. They wanted to hold higher land to help call in artillery and offer other advantages in battle. The South African 1st infantry, held Wood for 5 days from the 15th of July, to the 20th.
July 23- August 7th, Battle of Pzieres Ridge: The only success the British had on the 22/23 of July. An attack with the French was supposed to be carried out but with miscommunication multiple smaller attacks were made. The German counter attacks started on the 23rd of July, and ended on August 7th. The fighting ended with the Australian reserve army taking a plateau near the village.
September 3-6th, Battle of Guillemont: On the right flank of the British forces was a village called Guillemont held by the fourth army. Some observers said this to be the supreme effort of the German forces during the battle. Multiple meetings were help with the armies to coordinate an attack, all of which failed. A pause by the counter attacks marked the end of the battle.
September 9th, Battle of Ginchy: The Irish 16th division captured a German-held village. After the Battle of Guillemont, the British were asked to advance to a position observing the German third army to prepare for a mid September attack. The 7th Division took the village, but were soon routed out by a German counter attack. The French then mounted an assault finally taking and holding the village. They inflicted 130,00 German casualties in that month.
Third Phase September-November
September 15-22nd, Battle of Flers-Courcelette: The third and final offensive mounted by the British army who had to break through 2 lines to reach Morval. They inflected many casualties on the German defenders and advanced the front line by 2,300-3,200 meters.
November 13-18th, Battle of the Ancre: The last battle of the Somme offensive, the British 5th army attacked the Germans in the Ancre valley to exploit the German's fatigue front he previous battle. They wanted to gain ground to help in future offensives the next year. The last trench taken was the Desire support trench taken by the Canadian 4th Division on November 18th. The battle ended afterwords due to weather conditions and didn't spark conflict until January of 1917.
July 1st-13th, Battle of Albert: The first 2 weeks of the Anglo French offensive operations. The allied artillery bombarded on June 24th, and the infantry attacked on the 1st of July. The Armies beat the German defenders but many British were lost with a total of 60,00 casualties.
July 19-20th, Battle of Fromelles: It was an attack to help support the Fourth army on the Somme river. The plans for the attack were rushed and the generals underestimated the German defenses. The attack did litter to deter the German forces and no ground was gained.
Second Phase July-September
July 14-September 15th, Battle of Delville Wood: An operation to help secure the British's right flank. They wanted to hold higher land to help call in artillery and offer other advantages in battle. The South African 1st infantry, held Wood for 5 days from the 15th of July, to the 20th.
July 23- August 7th, Battle of Pzieres Ridge: The only success the British had on the 22/23 of July. An attack with the French was supposed to be carried out but with miscommunication multiple smaller attacks were made. The German counter attacks started on the 23rd of July, and ended on August 7th. The fighting ended with the Australian reserve army taking a plateau near the village.
September 3-6th, Battle of Guillemont: On the right flank of the British forces was a village called Guillemont held by the fourth army. Some observers said this to be the supreme effort of the German forces during the battle. Multiple meetings were help with the armies to coordinate an attack, all of which failed. A pause by the counter attacks marked the end of the battle.
September 9th, Battle of Ginchy: The Irish 16th division captured a German-held village. After the Battle of Guillemont, the British were asked to advance to a position observing the German third army to prepare for a mid September attack. The 7th Division took the village, but were soon routed out by a German counter attack. The French then mounted an assault finally taking and holding the village. They inflicted 130,00 German casualties in that month.
Third Phase September-November
September 15-22nd, Battle of Flers-Courcelette: The third and final offensive mounted by the British army who had to break through 2 lines to reach Morval. They inflected many casualties on the German defenders and advanced the front line by 2,300-3,200 meters.
November 13-18th, Battle of the Ancre: The last battle of the Somme offensive, the British 5th army attacked the Germans in the Ancre valley to exploit the German's fatigue front he previous battle. They wanted to gain ground to help in future offensives the next year. The last trench taken was the Desire support trench taken by the Canadian 4th Division on November 18th. The battle ended afterwords due to weather conditions and didn't spark conflict until January of 1917.