Our men were told to march steadily towards the enemy keeping in line

as all the Germans would be dead

Our troops needed to running as fast as they could, the Germans were very much alive.

80 miles at a guess

Part II now bbc2

It tells us how long it takes flies to devour an unburied  human corpse. Not that I would have wanted to know

The assault on the 3rd German line of defence.

We see a couple of new ideas by ourselves, the debut of the tank, and the creeping barrage. The tank initially terrified the Germans,

but at this stage were unreliable and too heavy. They rarely lasted more than a day and could become bogged down in mud.

The creeping barrage just in front of our troops frequently got out of synchronization  with the troops. So could fall short or fall

too far in advance.


The Germans for their part continue to develop their flexible strength in depth, and introduced Storm Troopers. These were especially

trained elite troops who would immediately counter attack any British gains.

The battlefield is now nothing but mud making it very hard for the troops, and the battle drifts to a close at the end of 1916.

The maximum gain was 6 miles, no breakthrough of the German lines.

This cost well over 400,000 British and Commonwealth losses, over 200,000 French losses, up to 400,000 German losses.

Well over a million men killed, missing or wounded for a mere 6 miles.


The term heroes led by donkeys could be applied. For Hague and the British a painful learning experience.

The German seem more professional here...intelligence and interrogation of prisoners much better than the British(no torture used).

I am not giving you sarcastic propaganda breadnbutter, any more than that program was. It is showing what happened.

People may want to know, why so many of their loved ones had to die.

It was a fckn war ,we did not make the war and the alternative was what ?

Yes what???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

We did not have to fight.


Feel free to block my posts

I think you are a muppet yourself breadnbutter

I apologise if you think I besmirch brave soldiers, I did not intend that breadnbutter

They had to live, fight and die in appalling conditions, doing their duty, I feel desperately sorry for them.


It was just a tiff between cousins ,millions slaughtered on a whim and all easily avoided

yes that is my take, I admit it.


It cannot be all blamed on the Germans. We were all taken far too easily into this war.

So Burton are you trying to say a spiv supporter like yourself comes from a family of war heroes

I would have a sporting wager that there would be far more war medals among UKIP members and supporters than any other group.

Serbia was merely an ignition,the Kaiser had decided to prepare for war much earlier,their plans for invading France and turning on Russia were in place by 1912,if it hadn't been then it would have been later.Germany had aggresively boosted its navy and conscription with an army of 5 million trained servicemen while Britain had a 'contemptible little army' at the start of WW1.
Incidentally, Germany lost and Britain,despite all its failings won so we have to assume the Generals,much derided by Lloyd George a philandering politician who spread lies about Haig (a familiar style),must have had some merits.

watching twerps like swag and gerald debate the origin of ww1 is a dispiriting spectacle. they are full of received opinion. they know and understand nothing. serious historians still argue about it now.

it was not a row between dynasties, despite what that great student of history, gery says. and a greater rate of death occurred among generals(more than 200 died) than privates, so your class-hatred is based on a lie. ignorance and prejudice are dangerous, and you two wanchors are full of both.