fabrisse

100 years ago today, the battle whose name is a byword for the futility of war, began at 7:30 a.m. French time (1:30 a.m. EDT).

There were 19,240 killed just on the British side on the first of the 141 days of the battle. Another 40,000 men were wounded.

To put that into perspective, 58,315 were US soldiers were killed between 1964 and 1975 during the Vietnam War.

The German losses were between 10,000 and 12,000 (their records were lost to Allied bombings in WW2). German commanders were given no option for retreat by their command. They were required to hold to the last man -- mostly because there were so few reinforcements available.

The French only lost 1,590 on the first day, but they ended up with very heavy losses throughout the battle.

141 days of battle. There were several sub-battles, including Delville Wood (and the sub-sub battle of High Wood) where tanks were first used. This is the battle where Churchill, who as the architect of Gallipoli was no stranger to wasted lives, finally stood up and said, "We must find better ways of stopping a German bullet than with a khaki shirt."

elainasaunt sent me a link this morning: How J.R.R. Tolkien found Mordor on the Western Front. The Daily Mail, which I usually reserve for emergency toilet paper, has good photographs of the various memorial services.

For anyone who looks upon the Red Baron as a noble opponent, here's a quote from him:

During my whole life I have not found a happier hunting ground than in the course of the Somme Battle. - The Red Baron - Manfred von Richthofen

I don't know what else to say.