1916 - Attrition in WW1

In 1916, in an attempt to break the deadlock of trench warfare, two of the bloodiest battles - Verdun and the Somme - were ground out, resulting in hundreds of thousands of casualties for both the Allies and Germans.

The Somme was a particularly brutal battle. British commander Field Marshal Haig finally called off the offensive after 5 months of costly and almost pointless attacks. For an advance of 13km the British Empire had suffered 420,000 casualties and the French 200,000. German losses were at least 450,000 killed and wounded.

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