Douglas Haig's Impact On The Somme

Douglas Haig (1861-1928) was a British commander-in-chief on the Western Front from 1915 to 1918. When the UK went to war with Germany in 1914, Haig started out commanding the 1st Army Corps and eventually took over the position of commander-in-chief by 1915. Haig is best known for ordering the Somme offensive on July 1st, 1916. It was his way of breaking the stalemate on the Western Front. On the Somme, The British Army suffered the most causalities of any battle it ever fought, with 60,000 casualties on the first day alone. A year later, Haig began a new offensive, the Third Battle of Ypres. This battle ended in even more casualties, but it helped to weaken the German forces and help Britain win the war in 1918. Because of this, Haig was

World War One was a time of great nationalistic and patriotic pride in the UK. There was a huge surge in the number of men voluntarily enlisting in the military during this time. During the months of August and September 1914, a total of 478,893 men joined the army. It was expected that the able-bodied young man would do their duty and go off to war and defend his country. No one thought it was an inhumane thing to expect the young men to go off to fight for a nation that they may or may not return to. Society during this time held the belief that the country as a whole was more important that the individual self. This can be seen through perceptions of Douglas Haig during his time as Commander of the British First Army. While the people of Britain recognized that the Battle of the Somme in 1916 was a horribly deadly battle, they still praised Haig for his contribution in winning the war for the nation in 1918. The Times called Haig “Master of the Field” in his obituary in 1928. There were huge crowds of people and many high-ranking military officials in

One of the most notable riots in London was on March 17th, 1968 when 8,000 people marched from Trafalgar Square to storm the United States Embassy. Police and protestors fought, and more than 200 people were arrested. This was the beginning of the UK as an individualistic nation. Society was now more concerned for individual welfare over the welfare of the nation. Authority was starting to be questioned more, and war was no longer seen as a viable solution for problem-solving. No longer were massive amounts of causalities acceptable as long as the nation itself won the war. This shift in views of war can be seen in how Richard Attenborough portrayed Douglas Haig in the 1969 movie based on the 1963 musical titled Oh! What a Lovely War. The very first meeting of Haig is when he is a ticket collector at the World War One “boardwalk” collecting “tickets” from hundreds of future soldiers. He does this with a big smile on his face, knowing these boys are about to leave their loved ones and possibly never return. Whenever the men watching the stage production come forward, Haig acts excited and happy while in front of the audience, but when they go backstage he yells at the men, saying, “From now on, your bloody life won’t be worth living! And you won’t bloody die laughing either”. He is seen yelling and screaming at his men all throughout the film, sometimes even without a purpose.