On 1 July 1916, the Battle of the Somme began, with the objective of advancing on the French village of Theipval to penetrate the German trench network called Schwaben Redoubt along the banks of the river Somme. Crucial to the long–term success of the Allies winning the War, it eventually drew to a close in November 1916, when a meagre seven miles had been secured, and proved hugely costly in terms of human life – with a particular Irish resonance.
Both the 36th Ulster and 16th Irish Divisions were involved at the Somme and paid a heavy price. By the end of the second day, on 2 July, some 5500 soldiers of the Ulster Division lay dead, wounded or missing. Twelve days later on 14 July, the Church of Ireland’s main newspaper, the Church of Ireland Gazette, reporting from ‘a little village on the north coast which has sent most of its young men to the firing line’ published a heart–breaking piece entitled “Ulster’s Sacrifice” recording ‘there is hardly a house where there is not one dead’
Later in the year, when the 16th Irish Division became directly engaged from September onwards, its men too would pay a terrible price, with 4330 casualties, including 1000 dead.
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Church of Ireland Gazette 7 July 1916
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Both the 36th Ulster and 16th Irish Divisions were involved at the Somme and paid a heavy price. By the end of the second day, on 2 July, some 5500 soldiers of the Ulster Division lay dead, wounded or missing. Twelve days later on 14 July, the Church of Ireland’s main newspaper, the Church of Ireland Gazette, reporting from ‘a little village on the north coast which has sent most of its young men to the firing line’ published a heart–breaking piece entitled “Ulster’s Sacrifice” recording ‘there is hardly a house where there is not one dead’
Later in the year, when the 16th Irish Division became directly engaged from September onwards, its men too would pay a terrible price, with 4330 casualties, including 1000 dead.
Read more
Church of Ireland Gazette 7 July 1916
Read the full story
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