This book is designed to guide the visitor around the salient features, memorials, museums and cemeteries of the Somme battlefield, and to provide sufficient information about those places to allow an elemental understanding of what happened where.
PRIOR TO YOUR VISIT
Before setting out read this Section thoroughly and mark the two recommended maps with the routes you intend to follow. Make sure you take with you any essentials such as medication, emergency telephone numbers, waterproof footwear and binoculars etc…
CHOOSING YOUR ROUTES
The content and sequence of the itineraries are based upon our long experience of visiting the area with interested people. Itinerary One, therefore, contains those features that have been the most requested, and Itinerary Two those next in popularity, especially for British visitors… and so on. Thus, if you are a first-time visitor, you will probably wish to start with Itinerary One and follow the sequence. This is also the itinerary that you may well choose if you only have one day. ANZAC, North American, S. African and French visitors will probably first wish to see the sectors where their countrymen fought.
You should also decide upon your base for the tour and read the various Approach Routes offered before you set out – see below.
IF YOU WISH TO VISIT A PARTICULAR SPOT
Use the Index to locate what you wish to visit. If it is a particular grave, find the location from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Debt of Honour website before you set out (see below). Using your GPS you can go directly to your chosen destination.
THE ITINERARIES
There are six Itineraries. The first three are long – each approximately 8 hours of touring if followed in full – while the fourth, which is short, can be done on a return journey to the Channel Ports. Itinerary One contains what are probably the main features of remembrance for the British for the fighting of 1 July 1916 – north of the Albert-Bapaume Road, the Ancre and up to Serre. Itinerary Two focuses south of the road on the action at ‘the Woods’ (Mametz, Bernafay, Trônes, Delville and High) and Itinerary Three covers the action of the Australians in the 1918 Defence of Amiens, the Allied successes of August 1918, together with some lesser-known and French 1916 sectors in the Somme Valley. Itinerary Four covers British, French and Australian actions around Péronne and St Quentin to Bapaume (and extends to Bullecourt) of 1914, 1916, 1917 and 1918. This is followed by Itinerary Five which covers some of the American, Canadian and French 1918 sectors. Itinerary Six covers the Kaiser’s March 1918 Offensive. Details of the itinerary routes are given at the beginning of each so that you can mark them on your maps. Finally there are 4 suggested Circular Walking Tours of varying length.
These Itineraries and Approaches are copiously illustrated and, in order to fit them all in, some pictures are quite small. By using a magnifying glass on these pictures you will be able to see far more detail.
EXTRA VISITS/[N.B.]S
In addition extra visits are described to sites of particular interest which lie near to the route of the main Itineraries. These are boxed and highlighted in gray so that they clearly stand out from the main route. Estimates of the round-trip mileage and duration are given.
Boxed sections headed [N.B.] point out further sites of interest which you may wish to stop at as you pass or make a small deviation from the route to visit.
MILES COVERED/DURATION/OP/RWC
A start point for each itinerary is given, from which a running total of miles is indicated. Extra Visits and [N.B.] s are not counted in that running total. Each recommended stop is indicated by a clear heading with the running mileage total, the probable time you will wish to spend there, the Map Reference and GPS Location. The letters OP in the heading indicate a view point, from which salient points of the battlefield are described. RWC indicates refreshment and toilet facilities. Travel directions are written in italics and indented to make them stand out clearly. An end point is suggested, with a total distance and timing – without deviations or refreshment stops.
It is absolutely essential to set your mileometer to zero before starting and to make constant reference to it. These can vary from car to car, so your total mileage may differ slightly from that given in this book. What is important, however, is the distance between stops. Distances in the headings are given in miles because the trip meters on many British cars still operate in miles. Distances within the text are sometimes given in kilometres and metres, as local signposts use these measures.
LENGTH OF STAY
Some fortunate visitors to the Somme Battlefield may have the luxury of two weeks in the area – in which time a leisurely and thorough coverage of the battlefield would be achieved and all the itineraries and extra visits could easily be made. Most people, in our experience, have between one and three days.
The itineraries are designed so that sections of them can be followed at the individual’s convenience – you may not be interested in visiting every item that is described on an itinerary. All cemeteries that are on or very close to an itinerary are, at least, mentioned. Reading the descriptions in advance will help you decide whether you wish to stop or to embark on a diversion or not.
APPROACHES
On the assumption that most visitors reach the Somme from one of the Channel Ports, the Tunnel Terminus, or Paris, several interesting approaches are suggested. The Eastern Approach takes the short and direct route to Péronne via the A26/A1 and takes the visitor into the eastern edge of the battlefield thereby starting the tour by visiting the important museum, the Historial at Péronne,. It offers a longer alternative Extra Visit en route. The Central Approach peels off from the Eastern on the A1 Autoroute to go straight through to Albert – the very heart of the British Sector. The Western Approach goes directly to Amiens on the A16 and offers alternative Extra Visits en route.
If visiting the Somme from Paris one would probably arrive by train or via the motorway to P[e with an acute accent]ronne, or from Normandy via Abbeville to Amiens.
Note that most of the Autoroutes are Toll roads (Péages).
MAPS
The guide book has been designed to be used with Major & Mrs Holt’s Battle Map of the Somme, packaged with this book, and the words ‘Map –’ in the heading indicate the map reference for that location. Frequent use of this map will also assist you in orientating, give a clear indication of the distances involved in possible walks and show points of interest which are not included in the itineraries or extra visits.
Also recommended is the Michelin No 301: Pas de Calais-Somme. 1cm= 1.5km. A warning, however – French road numbers change with alarming frequency. Be philosophical if the road numbers given either in this guide or the map have changed when you reach them.
GPS LOCATIONS/TRENCH MAPS
In view of the increasing use of ‘sat navs’ for navigation and for the convenience of readers who wish to go directly to specific locations, we have added GPS references to all stops in this guidebook. We have used the digital form of GPS as this is the simplest. It can be typed directly into most modern sat nav devices and into Google Maps. The references apply to the nearest parking place to the site. Though a satellite navigation system can be of great help, we do not recommend that you rely exclusively upon it as it may direct you away from a route that is integral to the understanding of the ‘shape’ of the battle.
Great War Digital has released a searchable DVD set containing 750 British Trench Maps for France and Belgium called LinesMan. This innovative software permits navigation on screen between modern IGN French maps and trench maps, and when used with a GPS receiver the user’s real-time position is shown over a moving map display. The software has to be registered by internet or phone to obtain full functionality and some patience and application are needed to become familiar with the system, but for the enthusiast this facility will become a must. Details can be found at www.greatwardigital.com
HISTORY OF THE BATTLE
The historical notes given at each recommended stop can in no way be continuous and sequential. It is therefore recommended that the visitor precedes his/her tour by reading the Historical Summaries starting on pages 16
The Département of the Somme is a particularly beautiful region of France and there are some excellent restaurants and hotels in the area. Some handily-placed hostelries are mentioned as they appear in the itineraries (indicated in a distinctive typeface) For more information, read the Somme Past and Present (page 339) and Tourist Information (page 339) sections. Make sure that you keep your tank well topped up with fuel as petrol stations are few and far between in remote parts of the battlefield away from the Autoroutes and main towns. Also, if you wish to take a picnic, stock up at the nearest supermarket or local shops before you set off in the morning as the rare village shops may well be closed for lunch.
A WARNING
It is most unwise to pick up any ‘souvenirs’ in the form of bullets, shells, grenades, barbed wire etc that may be found on the battlefield. To this day, builders making foundations and farmers on the Somme when ploughing – especially fields which have been used as pasture for many years – turn up the sad remains of World War I soldiers, bits of equipment and ammunition. The latter are then piled up at a corner of the field to await collection by the French Army bomb disposal unit. During the making of the TGV railway line, 140 tonnes of WWI ‘hardware’ were collected, and an average year yields 90 tonnes. It is known as the ‘iron harvest’, and it is extremely dangerous to handle – accidents still often occur. Indeed, in the summer of 1985 several deaths occurred on the Somme from WWI ammunition, much of which is extremely volatile. Leaking gas shells are particularly unpleasant. The authors once saw one smoking in a field next to the CWGC Cemetery at Delville Wood. Cuts from sharp, rusting objects can cause blood poisoning or tetanus. It also seems more fitting for such items to be left where they are, as many of them find their way into local museums, where they can be seen by generations of future visitors. Safe souvenirs can be bought at various museums and hostelries on the itineraries.
Iron harvest displayed in the Ulster Tower