First Day On The Somme - Aftermath

Aftermath

As night fell — and there were only six hours of darkness in July — many survivors began to make their way back to the British trenches and stretcher-bearers went out in search of the wounded. Some bearers continued to operate the following day, despite the risks. Two Victoria Crosses were awarded to Robert Quigg and Geoffrey Cather (posthumously) for recovering the wounded. Even Maj.-Gen. Ingouville-Williams, commander of the 34th Division, participated in the search. Some of the wounded survived for up to a week in no man's land before being rescued.

The reaction of the Germans to the British attempts to recover the wounded varied from place to place. On 5 July at Beaumont Hamel two British medical officers approached the German trenches under a Red Cross flag and arranged an informal truce with their opposite number which lasted until the remaining wounded had been brought in. Elsewhere no such mercy was shown and anyone moving in no man's land was fired on.

The British Army's hospital system failed badly on 1 July. Prior to the battle General Rawlinson, preparing for the worst, had requested 18 ambulance trains to be provided to evacuate the wounded throughout the day. He was assured by the Quartermaster General, Lt.Gen. R.C. Maxwell, that the needs of the Fourth Army would be met. However, only three trains stood by during the day and these departed, partly filled, before the bulk of the wounded had been brought to the Casualty Clearing Stations, which only had collective capacity for 9,500 cases. Consequently many wounded were left untended in the open. It was not until 4 July that the Fourth Army's medical services were brought under control. Such was the strain on the system that some of the wounded reached hospitals in England still wearing their original field dressings.

Due to the primitive battlefield communications, the extent of the catastrophe that befell the British Army on 1 July was not immediately known to the generals. At 7.30pm Rawlinson figured his casualties at 16,000. The figure rose to 40,000 by 3 July and the final tally of 60,000 was not determined until 6 July (though exact figures were not reached for some time).

As an example of how far from reality the limited information reaching the headquarters was, on the evening of 1 July, General Haig wrote in his diary:

North of the Ancre, VIII Corps said they began well, but as the day progressed, their troops were forced back in to the German front line, except two battalions which occupied Serre Village, and were, it is said, cut off. I am inclined to believe from further reports that few of VIII Corps left their trenches.

VIII Corps had indeed left their trenches and over 14,000 men had become casualties. This statement of Haig's has been used repeatedly to portray him as being callous and indifferent to the plight of the soldiers under his command, though at the time he could only make an assessment based on the information given to him.