Haig's Reputation as the Butcher of the Somme Essay

Douglas Haig was a British general during the First World War. He first commissioned into the 7th Queen’s Own Hussars in 1885, and was made a Field Marshall in 1917. He held numerous positions of command, and was the commander of the British Empire’s forces at the Battle of the Somme. The Battle of the Somme was fought from the 1st of July 1916 to the 18th of November the same year, and the tactics used by Haig (such as walking towards the enemy, the war of attrition etc remain very controversial to this day. The Battle of the Somme was fought the relieve the French forces at Verdun by attacking the Germans north of Verdun, therefore forcing Germany to move some of their men away from Verdun and relieving the French. Allied forces won 7 miles of ground, and the British lost 481,842 fighting men.

Some people have the view that British generals such as Haig were useless leaders. Famous sources like ‘O What a lovely War’, ‘Blackadder’ and ‘The Trench’ support this. However from the 1980s many military historians have challenged this interpretation and states that under Haigs leadership, Britain and her allies won the war from encouraging new weapons and military tactics. After Haigs death in 1918, historians blamed him for needless laughter of nearly 750,000 British soldiers on the Western Front and biographers pilloned him for his overconfidence, insensitivity and logical

The British launched The Battle of the Somme to achieve two objectives. The first and most important goal was to relieve pressure on the French Army at Verdun, and the second was to inflict as heavy a loss as possible on the German Armies. The Battle of the Somme had to be fought to save the French Army from the crucifixion of Verdun. The head of the French Army, General Fock, and some leading British commanders did not believe this battle would help, but political masters in London and Paris supported the campaign. For many years The Battle of the Somme received much criticism for the way the battle was fought based on the number of casualties.

On 1st May 1915, Alfred E Haigh opened the entryways of the Haigh 's Chocolates store at 34 King William Street, Adelaide. Alfred started adding his own flavour to the business. In 1917 Alfred purchased the family home and land at Parkside South Australia where he manufactured a little industrial facility, now the Visitors Center. In 1922, he moved shops to the Beehive Corner. In 1933, Alfred passed away all of a sudden. His child Claude assumed control over the running of the business, which had by then developed to six stores. Alfred 's grandson, John Haigh, joined the business in 1946 with a dream to take Haigh 's chocolate making to new statures. John altered the way the chocolates are made and in 1959 he became the Managing Director.

controversial decisions made in the modern era due to the ability to end the war, but along with

The first day of the battle of the Somme was a dreadful scene but a victory for the Germans.According to Document B: George Coppard (British soldier) ,it states that ,” Hundreds of dead,many of the British 37th Brigade..Quite as many died on the enemy wire as on the ground,like a fish caught in the net...The Germans faith in the wire had paid off.” This evidence shows that a lot of the British army had died due to the German’s barbed wire and as a result is was an horrendous scene to look at.Also written in Document C: Ottis Lais(German soldier),it states that,”As the destructive British shell rushed towards our artillery which was firing courageously..the british keep charging forward...Despite the fact that hundreds are already lying dead

The Slopes of War written by N.A. Perez follows a realistic fictitious story about the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War, which is also told by the characters told in different perspectives, the Union and the Confederates. The story utilizes many historical facts regarding the battle, even including dialogues from Union and Confederate generals. It also tells us the audience the emotional and physical effects of war, and how the characters are affected by the end of the battle. Although the novel does portray many themes, imagery, and is told in different perspectives to convey the story, let’s take a look into the physical and emotional effects of the battle, and how those effects make the story.

In 1916, the battle of the Somme began, intending to end the war for the allies. It pitted an unexperienced British army, against a professional German one. It was also, however significant in many ways. Two of the main areas where the battle of the Somme was significant were in its military value, and the reactions it caused, on the home front.

The Battle of the Somme epitomizes the harsh realities of trench warfare for the Allies and represents the negligent battle planning and technological advancements that are associated with the stalemate of World War One. Trench warfare was common across the Western Front, with similar strategies being employed by both opposing sides. Sir Douglas Haig, one of the British coordinators for the Somme offensive is blamed with an offensive strategy destined for failure. The British offensive, an utter failure, resulted in a stalemate, which was common throughout World War One. The British development of the tank, while it eventually ended the horrendous stalemate, was ineffectively used during the Somme.

In “The Face of Battle,” John Keegan analyzed the experiences of the individuals involved in the battles of the Somme and Waterloo; he thoroughly examined the advancements of industrialization in warfare and battle strategy between 1815 and 1916. The industrialization of modern warfare during the battle of the Somme, while progressive, was very much still in its experimental stages. While the inventions during this time period were later evolved into much more useful products, it seems as though the organized warfare in Waterloo was much more effective; the soldier’s mediocre training for the Somme was obvious in the chaotic events that occurred. While each battle was disastrous in their own ways, industrialization certainly improved means of warfare and the experience that the soldiers had.

And soon I came to know, that I might not make it for another round.

This short story takes place in Montreal in a Jewish family. It begins during WW2 and continues 5-10 years. It appears to be a small and mainly poor working class community. Benny’s family seems to be wanting more from life, especially his father, who always compares his son to the other sons in the community.

A statue of Field Marshall Haig was crafted in 1936; a total of eighteen years after the ‘Great War’ had ended. This caused controversy with people across Britain, as some believed that his ‘leadership skills’ were lacking and that his ‘crucial decisions’ were not the right ones. But others say that although there were huge losses, these were the necessary decisions needed to win such an aggressive war. I will assess both arguments of Historians.

I consider the field marshal as a butcher and a hero for numerous reasons. While the insinuation of Haig as a butcher ignores many positives that he possessed, the implication of him being a hero also neglects negatives that the field marshal obtains. Although the winning of the war had come at the sacrifice of a vast number of soldiers, we must not forget that the general had achieved his primary objective even if it had been accomplished in the most gruesome ways. This essay will examine reasons which voice out opinions that support both arguments as well as my own.

Firstly in order to gain an understanding of the mind set of Douglas Haig when he took over command of the British Expeditionary force in 1915 we must look to his history of command prior to the war. Haig graduated from Sandhurst and was commissioned into the 7th Hussars as the Lieutenant. This direction into a cavalry based military career would fix Haig’s viewpoint on the role of cavalry during World War I. Haig believed that “the role of the cavalry on the battlefield will always go on increasing.” Historians such as Alan Clark heavily criticise Haig on this stagnated view surrounding the use of mounted troops. The development of static trench warfare combined with newly developed defensive weaponry had created a deadlock in which traditional