Title: Dauntless courage on the Somme : officers of the 19th Division who fell at La Boisselle 1-10 July, 1916 /
Authors: Thornicroft, N. J.
Year: 2016
Subjects: Great Britain. Officers History; Great Britain.; Somme, 1st Battle of the, France, 1916; Armed Forces Officers; France
Abstract: "The main focus of the book concentrates upon the sixty-four officers of the British Army’s 19th Division (including a small number who were attached from elsewhere) who were either killed or died of wounds during the storming of the heavily-fortified village of La Boisselle, on the Somme, during early July 1916. The initial chapters deal with events from autumn 1914, when the area was captured from the French by the advancing Germans, through the deployment of British regiments the following year, the localised trench raids and digging of mine shafts, and the events of 1 July 1916, when the British attack was totally thwarted after sustaining heavy casualties. A separate section explores the reasons why certain individuals felt compelled to become officers in the first place, often dictated by their pre-war social standing, or simply because the authorities felt they possessed the necessary military attributes to do so.^
Contents: Preparations. La Boisselle: an obscure battlefield -- Early battles: August 1914-July 1915 -- The role of the British Army officer, and the journey to the front -- British occupation of the La Boisselle trenches (mines and raids): July 1915-June 1916 -- The 19th Division attacks La Boisselle. 58 Brigage -- 57 Brigade -- 56 Brigade -- Analysis. Aftermath and casualties -- The rest of the war -- Remembering.