Url
	https://dhprojects.bc.edu/s/bcdh/item/1712
Resource class
	bibo:Map
Title
	Trench Map from the Battle of the Somme
Subject
	Trench Map
	Western Front
Description
	This trench map was used by the Commander Royal Artillery (CRA) of 18th Division during the later stage of the Battle of the Somme. It is particularly interesting because it is ’embodying information from German prisoners’ and ‘corrected from air photographs taken on 3.10.16’. It shows how trench maps were frequently updated in the course of battle and how the use of photography was important for this. The map is hand drawn and annotated but only has a limited key in the top left. M.G. means machine gun, and the arrows on the symbols indicated their arcs of fire. German trenches are shown in red, while the hand-drawn coloured lines with numbers indicate the timings for the artillery barrage which would have supported an infantry assault – this would be directed on line ‘A’ between 0 and 2 minutes after Zero Hour, before lifting to line ‘B’ between 2 and 3 minutes from Zero, for example.
Date
	1916-03-10
Type
	Map
War
	First World War
Century
	20th century
Decade material covers
	1910s
Battle
	Battle of the Somme
Army
	Great Britain
Contemporary Country
	France
Repository
	The National Archives
Repository Item Record
	https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/medicine-on-the-western-front-part-two/battle-of-the-somme-trench-map/ National Archives item record
	https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/legal/copyright/ Copyright
Rights
	With permission from the National Archives

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