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100, Dawbeney Road, Clapton Park

The Battle of the Somme (July-November, 1916)

On 1st July 1916 The British Army launched a massive offensive along a section of the front line running north of the River Somme. The French attacked south of it. The first day was a disaster for the British army which suffered nearly 60,000 casualties, 19,000 of whom were killed, and made hardly any inroads into the enemy lines. But the battle had to go on, if for no other reason than to relieve pressure on the French at Verdun where they had been facing the full onslaught of the powerful German Army. So it continued all the way through to November with nearly every battalion and division then in France being drawn into it at some stage. In the end the German trenches had been pushed back a few miles along most of the line but the cost in lives had been staggering. By the end of the fighting in November, 1916, British Army casualties numbered over 400,000, killed, wounded and missing.

2nd Royal Fusiliers of 86 Brigade, 29th Division had lost heavily in the attack on the stronghold of Beaumont-Hamel on 1st July, sustaining over 500 casualties whilst gaining no territory. The focus of the battle now moved south, and these positions in front of Beaumont Hamel remained static until the winter. 29th Division remained here through most of July and on 15th July, 2nd Royal Fusiliers moved back into the front line where they remained until 23rd July. Late in the evening of 22nd July and carrying through to the early hours of 23rd July, the enemy began an intense bombardment of the trenches held by 2nd Royal Fusiliers, resulting in a number of casualties, one of whom was Albert Mitchell.