The Somme - Sneak Peek Part I

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This is a sneak peak to the Channel 4 show "The Somme". The whole show is longer than half an hour
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[@MattAttack54]

I had many relatives who served in the Austro-Hungarain. My Great Grand Father was a feldwelbel. Also had two or three great uncles who fought for Russia during the great war

[@moparteen637]

15 years later i am here to thank him for changing our world for the best

[@CelticCanuck4]

Vimy would be a great film as well ! My university history dept. which im apart of is going to france in two years and going all over the western front.i cannot wait to see where my countrymen made the world take notice of Canada.

[@mrperson0140]

The guts these men must've had to risk their life and fight knowing certain death lay away. I'm an American but I hve tremendous respect for the British and German soldiers. R.I.P

[@AScann3rDarkly]

The term "Allies" at the time applied to the german side. Entente was the british/french/russian

[@yohannbiimu]

The tactics employed at this time were insane. How generals could live with themselves as they sent wave after wave across open fields in the face of machine gun fire and heavy Krupp artillery, with losses counting in the tens of thousands with every attack, is beyond me. I suppose there was little else that could be done (until tanks entered the fray); however, this was a war that could never have had a satisfactory conclusion. Had they only been able to negotiate something before 1916...

[@stevenewf]

July 1, 1916, 801 men of the Newfoundland Regiment (it didn't become the Royal Newfoundland Regiment until later in the war) went "over the top" at Beaumont-Hamel. 68 answered roll call the next day; the remainder were killed, wounded, or missing. Since 1917, July 1 has been Memorial Day in Newfoundland.

[@lilbrothaaa]

The high German death toll derives to one part from the congenial thaught of always keeping the front trenches fully occupied and replace losses with reserves as soon as possible sending them into the barrage or infantry assault to die like the ones they were to replace. On the other hand the result of the barrage was much overestimated by the British which in combination with the missing of any surprise moment resulted in a massive drain of infantry. "nothing but stupid mutual mass-slaughter"

[@bjs1958]

Australian (3 divisions) and New Zealand troops were also at the Somme.

[@warth4546]

it has been check the somme from defeat to victory part 2

[@candr]

@Truth118 It would tire them out before they got there and reaction time would be slower.

[@floppybollox3]

Not quite so, the french wanted the harshest conditions in order to (understandably)neutralise any future german threat. It was the americans who tried to often the treaty, while the british stood somewhat passively on the sidelines.

[@Kettch23]

She is! Look it up on the imdb page (in the video info)

[@dafydd67]

@MrShaneVicious That is where you are wrong . It was the British who devised and started and led the final push under Rawlinson . There were three Indian brigades present who took part and because the French had suffered under the previous offensives they were propped up by the newly arrived Americans . The credit for the final push lies squarely at the feet of Britain , Cananda , Australia , New Zealand and the dominions .

[@tmcquad1]

My god, I am glad I was not in this war, or any for that matter. I am grateful to those who fought these wars. I saw a film about a 110 year old British World War I veteran who fought at the Battle of Passchendaele. 80 years after the battle, flickering lights under the cracks of his door at night when he was falling asleep gave him artillery flashbacks. How tragic... mankind is so aggressive, we've become so good at war that it cannot be fought (nuclear weapons). We know how to kill, not heal.

[@eisenkreuzmusik]

Entente was the alliance of the Brits/French/Russians before the war. During the war they were allies. The German/Austro-Hungarian/Turks were the Central Powers

[@dkstryker]

why isnt this MOVIE UPLOADED ON HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SOMEONE PLEASE UPLOAD IT SO I CAN WATCH IT.

[@floppybollox3]

Dying face down in the mud, riddled with bullets in no-man's land, torn to pieces by artillery shells or choking to death on your lung fluids by gas all for the glory of empire had no honour to it. Read a bit of Wilfred Owen, first world war poet, killed on the eve of peace and see what the soldiers of that war really thought.

[@seitengewehr98]

@Highice007 Even if HE rounds were used in the barrage, it probably wouldn't have made much difference in the end. The wire would be less of an issue, and concrete MG emplacements would have likely been destroyed, but the German soldiers would have remained. It was believed that the only way to keep the men moving was to walk together, with the Lt. pushing them along. They thought if men were allowed to run, take cover, etc, that most would just sit in a crater and nothing would get done.

[@hab699]

In Canada our Arctic Rangers sill use the Lee ENfield No4 MK1 because of its realiability in sub zero temperatures. Im sure the British Armouries still has stock piles of Lee Enfields. So many were made in England, Canada, the US and India that there are still millions in exhistance. I have the No4 MK1 myself and it was made in the US but I bought it here in Canada.

[@chaosdeviant62]

A creeping barrage was used at Vimy, also the canadian troops were taught differently then the other british soldiers, like each soldier was given a map and specific objectives.

[@ImperialGuard9001]

Yes it was Enfields were created in 1891 if I am not mistaken it was around 1891 and 1898.

[@SuperLordHawHaw]

Bullets don't separate the scared from the brave

[@floppybollox3]

Yes your right there, in fact the world war vintage MkIs and MkIIs were still in service at the beginning of WWII, however the MkIIIs came into service around 1942 I believe, shorter and without the typical snub barrel of the earlier models, they also had an uncharacteristically British spike bayonet and where excellent sniper rifles as well. These are unfortunately the one's seen in what is an otherwise excellent series.

[@floppybollox3]

Yes it should be recognised that Plummer was one of the more able and compassionate generals of that war, but it is undeniable that most were elitest officers, ditached from the true suffering of the men they lead. Haig didn't visit the frontline once in the entire war, not once. He gave orders to send men uselessly to their death when it was clear no breakthrough could be acheived.This didn't happen with the Australians or Canadians who would not allow their men to be slaughtered like cattle.

[@Kraftysot]

@Cisco650 For the US, 8 months deployment. For britian i believe it was the same. For every other nation (the ottomans might have had "tours" but i doubt it) it was "your in till its over"

[@Kettch23]

@ownarn yes it is simply called The Somme, someone else uploaded it to youtube (link in the video)

[@Kraftysot]

@minigun20 What made them advanced in 1939 and 40, were pretty much standard eqpuiment by the time of the invasion of the soviet union. Radios in every tank, 10x optical sights, armored ammo bins, and tungsten core APHE rounds were state of the art during the battle of france, but the soviets by the time of the invasion were at least capable of deploying the same things, even if they chose not to employ them in great numbers.

[@dafydd67]

@andii194 One must never forget the part us other 'Brits' played and more importantly the Canadians and Anzacs . There were no winners in WW1 and we are still living with its outcome today .

[@Kettch23]

THREE YEARS AGO

[@floppybollox3]

As you well know the casualty ratio between the germans and the allies in that battle is the still the subject of much controversy.

[@yohannbiimu]

The thing that gets me is that upon reading about it, this was was clearly one that some wanted to avoid, but others wanted to happen under ANY pretext. The Austrio-Hungarians obviously wanted a war with Serbia, because the Serbs were certainly willing to meet with nearly all of A-H's demands.The Kaiser was even seemingly relieved that things were appearing to be going well as far as avoiding an armed conflict. Yet, the Imperial court in A-H wanted to crush Serbia, and there was no turning back.

[@koreankid113]

Yea they were!

[@Kettch23]

It is both or neither of it. It is called a "Docudrama". A documentary with lots of reenactment and personal stories and of course a bit of history ;)

[@IanHunedoara8]

Sir Douglas Haig wasn't moronic- he was only fighting the war with the tactics of the previous ones. It was Churchill that frantically lobbied for the deployment of tanks to break the trench stalemate.

[@bungeye09]

my great granddad was at the Somme and he was one of 7 brothers and he was the only one that survived the war

[@Windyshoot]

Looking at the events following WWI, if Britain had lost WWI instead of Germany, there could have been a real possibility that Britain (perhaps, along with the loyalistic commonwealth as well) would have developed into something similier to Nazi Germany. Especially since Germany intended to place even harsher repercussions on defeated-Britian, then the Treaty of Versailles did on Germany.

[@dafydd67]

Actually it was the final British push that won the war along with the ANZACS , Canadians & the Indian army . They pushed the Germans back by combining infantry support and tanks . However they didn't follow it up 21 years later , the Germans copied and you had Blitzkreig .

[@supressorgrid]

I dont necessarily fear , but will have a healthy respect for any one with a rifle and bayonet charging across a field at me.

[@rexmanager]

My grand uncle fought in Somme two times for the german site, and im proud that he survived, but im not proud to say, that he my killed some of your uncles or grandfathers. Let us stop war, however he is and however he fought it.

[@AirborneSoviet]

i agree. you're very right.

[@hab699]

The Lee Enfield SMLE came in to service in 1916. The ones in the Video are Lee Enflield Number 4 Mark 1 rifles. With a long bayonet they are meant to look like the SMLE I assume. The Number 4 Mark 1 Came in to service in 1943 right before the Invasion of Sicily. This is what it was like for Canada, Im not sure if it was the same for Britain but all commonwealth Nations used the same small arms.

[@dermott37]

whens the film come out in the UK?

[@Kalamakooya1989]

The German generals even admitted that a few more battles lik the Somme and the war was lost

[@Kraftysot]

@SGTGerman Merely pointing out youre incorrect about your assessment of operation barbarossa forces and OOBs. (order of battle) The germans invaded russia with little more than they invaded france with. The extra reserves were in Albania and greece. As for equipment, the germans never got proper winter gear for the first winter, nor did they have superior equipment than the soviets. The german infantry rifle was from 1898..the only thing modern about the germans was thier close air support

[@realitystrat]

Can anyone tell me where I can get a copy of this movie? I tried my locals libraries and they dont have it. Thanks Kettch for your uploads on the Somme. Watched most of them

[@floppybollox3]

Sorry but breezeman is right here, watching a somme video 90 years later is no substitute for studying the historical facts

[@51362879]

God rest those brave souls who fell with honor!

[@Kettch23]

@dayvisyc el documental se llama "La Somme seguir" en el enlace para ver el vídeo para verlo en youtube y hablar Inglés por favor;)

[@breezeman199]

Germany invaded Poland in 39. This was part of Hitler's drive for lebrensaum (living space). His ultimate goal was to attack and dissolve the USSR. The U.K. made a foolish pledge to defend Poland against an attack. It was a bluff which Hitler called. This meant an avoidable war between Germany and the U.K. But for the pledge Germany would have invaded the USSR. Even with it, the invasion began just 21 months later. U.K. could have waited and acted as the situation required.

[@nacho1560]

You should be very proud of your grandad. This was a generation forced into the most horrible warfare that no one in their wildest nightmares could have imagined. It was lunacy and evil, yet in the true traditions of humanity a lot did survive, against the odds, your grandad among them. God bless his memory.

[@mepilot85]

there was more to it then just that, there was a lot of militarism, natioinalism, and alliances that also led up to the war.

[@xGTxWaGoN03]

corp = core just spelled differently. Its what they call a small regiment in the army

[@A101stEagle]

I dunno if you want the full movie. But if you do the movie is called (1/11) The Somme I hope this helps you

[@floppybollox3]

What a heartless comment! The casualties are the most important objective in warfare. Those were men dying, screw the general's objectives, WW1 was cold-blooded murder by the donkey generals who failed to lead the lions under their command. In WW2 generals like Montgomery, veteran of the first war, went out of their way to ensure casualties were kept to a minimum, and still achieve their objectives.

[@aaguado1]

my great grandad and his one of his brothers died at the somme and the other 2 brothers died at a different battle and only 1 survuved

[@breezeman199]

I know the Somme battle was in WW1. I was replying to BENTSIMON's comment about WW2. Did you even read the post? I believe the decision by Britain to fight at that time was a bad mistake. The wars cost Britain her empire and her position as a global power. They also ruined the British economy. Britain, with a strong navy and moated by the Channel and North sea should have pursued a more measured foreign policy.

[@Canpunkrocker]

Lee Enfields were used in WWI too

[@yohannbiimu]

The thing is, intelligence ought to be a factor in this "learning curve." I mean, up to that point, this war was clearly the deadliest, most bloody conflict mankind had ever faced, with weapons that could fire more rounds faster than had been imagined in any other major conflict. Yes, machine guns had been used before WWI, but not nearly to the extent as they were in 1914-15. Not to mention the artillery, poison gas, and flamethrowers. Tactics really hadn't changed since the mid-19th century.

[@Paciat]

Some old movies (Patton, Battle of the Bulge) used post war american tanks as both german and american WWII tanks. You should be glad it wasnt a mauser rifle or better yet an AK-47.XD

[@CelticCanuck4]

In Canada we have a movie coming out about Passchendale,I think its great how they are bringing these films to show our generation and pride and honour our families fought for. When does this movie come out?

[@pimpompoom93726]

There was a Battle of the Somme documentary that started with British troops playing a soccer game, but I can't find it anywhere anymore. It was very good as I recall and focused on the 1st day of the battle. Anyone know the name of that documentary?

[@Kraftysot]

@SGTGerman Germans werent better persay. The Kar98 rifle was subpar compared to the Mosin, the PPSH was better suited to cold and urban warfare than the MP40. The 12.7mm Shvak was better than the mg34 (mg42 came out in, 1942, by 42 it was all but over for the germans in russia) The T-34 was frontally immune to everything the germans had but 88s and Pak40s (no panzer higher than a IVD at the time) the germans had two things working for them, stalins officer purge, and combat experiance.

[@jpo375]

they're making a movie on passchendaele Its trailer is on youtube type passchendaele movie trailer

[@Atomduck]

Is this on DVD? I'd love to buy this

[@sixlotties]

what is the classification for this film?

[@walmartian]

They were trying to fight traditionally, as they knew how, but with the tech jump of machine guns the battlefield became more horrific and a new variable was needed leading to The tank- was the next step in battle evolution,. to smash enemy defensive positions like machine gun positions.. but the concept and tactics of the tank had not yet been learned and would not be applied effectively until the next world war.

[@guardsman101]

i'm watching this in history @)

[@darrenbent321]

Its a tv show not a movie. You could look on the channel 4 website

[@Andygharrison]

I know, i know. It was an unnecessary war ran by aggressiveness. I have full respect for all empire troops that played a role in the ending of the war and sacrificed their lives for this.

[@Kettch23]

It looks like there is no DVD of this but somone else uploaded the whole program.

[@breezeman199]

Germany had no sealift capacity to "take" Britain. There was nothing in the treaty of Ghent that demanded the U.K. defend Belgium or declare war against any country that violated her territory.

[@Gurumze]

The narrator has a sexy voice

[@HillBillyDrew]

When did this come out or when it it's release day?

[@eviltwin777]

yeah but usually when someone thinks of victory they think of killing and not being killed but in this case they where fighting for land so the did complete there main objective

[@Kraftysot]

@SGTGerman In world war one, the germans didnt kick russias ass, russia, as usual, kicked its own ass. Most of the entire russian army was swept up in the communist revolution and thier army marched home and gave up. In world war two, the russians tore the germans to peices after the initial assault on russia. The germans had about 4 good months before it all went south for them.

[@MonolithSlasher]

@ownarn try 'The Somme - From Defeat to Victory'

[@Kraftysot]

@aaronharms123456 The romanians did an execellent job in the encirclement of Svestopal in the Crimea in world war two. Thier PE-2 pilots were also exceptional, scoring kills against every airframe the soviets fielded and destoying over 10,000 soviet vehicles during the course of the war. Better than Italy ever did.

[@walter0bz]

"do not run" ... what was the logic behind that

[@Kettch23]

The genre is called Docudrama they mix facts with real actors.

[@evetsreiriop]

the british solder was the canadian corp :)

[@seitengewehr98]

All one need do is look at a few of these hate-filled, racist comments to see just how many people can watch something like this, and learn ABSOLUTELY NOTHING from it. How many times must we go through this before we learn that one people is no better or worse than any other people? We can be proud of ourselves and our country without putting down others. Trust me. I've been to war. We're all the same inside. We shouldn't have to cut each other in half to figure this out anymore.

[@chopinandliszt]

of course

[@Kettch23]

No idea. Updated the video info with an imdb link.

[@Digmen1]

This doco and another one called The trench both have the men wearing brand new clean uniforms. Whilst I appreciate that probably cleanliness was important in the Trenches, surely the producers should have made then men look more realistic. My Grandfather was a British machine gunner in the war, he joined up when he was 17 and lied to get in. He came back alive with a hand wound.

[@liozac0261]

Seems like this is a great documentary, has anyone seen it in its entirety?

[@Andygharrison]

charles may is in the russian standard vodka advert

[@ChuckyJJCthulhu]

Irony is, I'm part-Irish, don't like the British Empire, but feel sorry for the poor British troops (mostly working-class guys) tossed into that bloodbath, for no benefit to Britain at all, since Central Powers didn't even want to hurt Britain. We talk about WWII, but WWI was the history-deciding war- if England stayed out, they'd rule the world today. Instead, they dragged in whole UK and lost everything. Even right after WWI, Irish, Iraqis (1921-30 rebellion), Afghans defeated the British.

[@minigun20]

well the panzer divisions were quite modern for the time, but the blitzkrieg strategy was ineffective due to the winter, the shear size of western russia, and the stretched supply lines of fuel, invading russia is a suicide move because of the size and the climate, it was a stupid move on the high commands part, one that sealed the war in defeat for them

[@hungryasshit]

can you believe those people are actually wearing shirts and ties up there? Olden times are strange beyond comprehension.

[@BardCoennius]

Dig a little deeper, mon ami. All the major powers either had colonies (Britain, Germany France) or colonial aspirations (U.S., Japan), on which their industrial capitalist economies were being built. Competition for those colonies had been heating up for many decades before. In addition, weren't there a lot of old French politicians at the time still bitter about the Franco-Prussian War and the subsequent humiliation of losing Alsace and Lorraine(and thus land, resources and tax revenue?)

[@SuperLordHawHaw]

They prove that it is easy to be stupid-tough when you've never experienced war

[@peterroberts5565]

Man against metal. No contest.

[@xHydrojetx]

What is the name of this program? Just "The Somme?"

[@Fallen616]

damnnnnnnn youuuuu great war.

[@happymradrian]

They're charging entrenched machineguns over flat terrain, with rifles, logic is of no concern at this point.

[@lordazn]

Well my diplomat, try going back and solve at least half of the wars back then and then talk to me.

[@BardCoennius]

That may have been true for the French - I don't see where there was any action between French and German forces in North Africa or Indochina - but the Brits and the Germans mixed it up a few times in those regions. Would also be interested in your views on the Franco-Russian treaty, which appears to have dragged your country into a conflict that was certainly not in its own interest.

[@Kettch23]

The Somme? Click on the imdb link in the video info ;)

[@Kettch23]

The Somme

[@oldenough13]

@TheKraut88 Verdun was the embodiment of trench warfare , the senseless and the cruelty of this first big industrial war, but the most casualities were "achieved" at the Battle of the Somme. Brave men died on both - "innocence dies at first" isn't just a saying. I dont believe mankind will be able to learn from its failures, there won't be any peaceful ending until the last man on earth stops breathing. Call me a cynic..