A 16-mile Wide Area of Front Around the River Somme

Title: A 16-mile Wide Area of Front Around the River Somme
Description: A 16-mile wide area of front around the River Somme, at the extreme right of the British held front line, was selected for a joint British and French attack in late June 1916. On 1 July the attack, following a week long bombardment and heralded by the exploding of underground mines, did not break through strong German defences.
Despite the lack of a ‘breakthrough’, this Ordnance Survey map of the area has been overprinted with the successive Allied territorial gains by the British 4th and reserve armies (coloured red) and the French 6th army (coloured blue) up to 31 July.
It emphasises the greater success towards the right and south of the line of attack, which the allies attempted to exploit in successive attacks throughout July. The approximate ‘dashed’ lines indicate the uncertainty and confusion of the front line at the time of printing.
Date: July 1916
Century: 20th century
Decade material covers: 1910s
Type: Map
Subject: Western Front
Contemporary Country: France
Repository: British Library
Collection in Repository: World War One
Repository Item Record: Full record with image; Services
War: First World War
Army: Great Britain
Battle: Battle of the Somme
Rights: With permission from the British Library