Trench Warfare on the Western Front 1914-18 (3) - General Haig Special Edition Flashcards
Who was initially in charge of the BEF and why did he resign?
- Initially Sir John French was in charge
- Received criticism after the Battle of Loos Sept 1915
- This forced him to resign and Sir Douglas Haig took charge
What are the two opposing quotes that summarise the split view of historians on Haig as commander in chief?
- “Butcher of the Somme”
- “Man who won the war”
What was Haigs role before being a commander and how did this affect his attacks?
- He was a former cavalry man and believed in attack
- His army was not as well trained due to being volunteers so Haig believed he needed detailed orders to keep the attacks flowing
When did a conference agree on joint attacks with the French? Why did this not happen in 1916?
Conference in November 1915 agreed that the British would attack in joint offences with the French
- This did not happen as the French got caught up in Verdun due to attritional attacks from the Germans through 1916
- Haig wanted to relieve them from this with a major offensive
What was the growth in infantry divisions in Haigs army by June 1916 and why was this?
4 —> 56
- This is because the government had brought in compulsory military service (conscription)
How many of Haig’s commanders had previously commanded a division?
Only 2
How many did the French lose at Verdun?
More than 300,000 killed and wounded
What was Haigs plan at the Battle of the Somme?
June 1916
- Haig faced strong German defences but believed with enough artillery they could launch an offensive
What did the Battle of the Somme begin with after a week of?
- A week long bombardment from 2,200 British guns which fired 1.7 million shells
- Artillery did not have enough heavy guns or right shells to do the job, it failed to cut German barbed wire and deep dugouts
- Shells that did detonate made no mans land hard to cross, 1/3 did not even detonate
How many casualties did the British amount on the first day of the Battle of the Somme compared to Haig’s prediction?
- They lost 58,000 and 20,000 of these were dead
- Haig had expected 40,000 in the first three days
How many casualties in total did the British, French and Germans lose a the Battle of the Somme?
- 420,000 British
- 194,000 French
- 500,000 Germans
What three lessons were learnt at the Battle of the Somme?
- Germans were too well entrenched
- British had insufficient big guns and 1/3 shells dd not explode
- German troops survived the barrage and were full of fight
What was Haig’s ‘Active Front Theory’?
- A mix of attrition and offensive in his attempt to achieve a breakthrough
- He believed trench warfare could make his army passive so he ordered frequent raids on smaller German lines
What things had changed by Passchendaele (Third Battle at Ypres) in 1917?
- Russia was lost as an ally due to the October Revolution
- America had joined as an ally bringing new resources
- Germany were losing strength due to industrial output falling below 60%
- French commander Robert Nivelles ambitious offensives had failed in April 1917 so he was replaced by Pétain
- French army had many mutinies
Why did Haig launch an ambitious plan to exhaust the Germans in 3 months at Passchendaele?
- Optimism based on a report by the American Relief Committee
- Suggested that German Morale was low, they knew they were beaten
- There as detonation in uniform, equipment, rations and rolling wagons
What did the Battle of Passchendaele begin with and why did this slow down so quickly?
- Began with the use of tunnel mines successfully to blow up German defences on Messines Ridge
- Quickly slowed as German artillery was better than expected
- Heavy rain had turned the ground into deep mud, ‘porridge of mud’
What was a result of the deep mud at Passchendaele?
- General Gough’s Fifth Army had become bogged down
- Haig had to replace Gough with Plumer who advocated for ‘Bite and Hold’
What was the ‘bite and hold tactic’?
- The infantry only advanced as far as artillery fire could reach
- They would hold what they have and move forward for another ‘bite’
How many casualties were amassed on both sides at Passchendaele?
Quarter of a million on each side
Despite the horror show at Passchendaele what did the Times report?
‘GERMAN DEFENCED BROKEN’ and Haig claimed 135/137 divisions had been pushed back and Germany would run out of fit men by June 1918
How did PM Lloyd George criticise Haig’s performance as a commander at Passchendaele?
- He said Haig could not follow the plans of others as he believed they were inferior to his own
- Haig’s army was overstretched
What was evidence of Haig not listening to the French at Passchendaele?
- The French wanted to wait for the build up of American strength but Haig kept encouraging unnecessary offences on a massive scale
When did Haig first send our tanks and what was the result of this?
15th September 1916
- He sent out 49 tanks to battle
- Only 3 made it further than a mile off the start line
- Winston Churchill (munitions officer) had criticised saying he gave up the element of surprise for a few villages
Mark V Tanks were slow, at walking pace, what impact did they have on the Germans?
A large psychological impact
