suesalter1 Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 Hello all, I am planning a week long trip to the Somme region next September and will be based in Albert. What are the top 10 of places to see on the Somme? I went several years ago and I know there are some new museums there now. My friend and I want to make the best of our trip (she's never been), so recommendations would be very welcome. Also any good guide books I could purchase beforehand. Thanks, Sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaz Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 have a look through the NMP catalogue,many prices reduced. Ive used Martin Middlebrook's book, is there a regiment you are interested in? Ulster Tower should be back running the tour around Thiepval wood, also the new visitors centre at Thiepval. https://www.naval-military-press.com/?s=somme&post_type=product Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 It all depends, as said here above, which regiment / unit / action / nation you're interested in. Thiepval is a no-brainer !! Newfoundlandpark is very well worth a visit and of course Lochnagar crater! M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suesalter1 Posted 7 September , 2020 Author Share Posted 7 September , 2020 Well, we're definitely going to Mametz, because of family connections - both great-uncles fought there in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. Thiepval, of course and Newfoundland Park. Isn't there a museum at Peronne? Someone once said on this forum that the Ypres Salient is much better geared up for the battlefield visitor, which may be true. However, we've been to the region several times and although we love it there, my friend has never been to the Somme. Sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smawson44 Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 I'll give this a try (understanding that personal connections may affect your rankings) Top Ten (in somewhat of an order) 1. Newfoundland Memorial Park-No better place to get a sense of what the battlefield looked like 2. Sunken Road and Hawthorne Ridge Crater 3. Lochnager Mine Crater (and Tyneside Memorial Seat and Glory Hole) 4. Theipval Memorial 5. The windmill (and Tank memorial with its WW2 battle scars on it)- To truly gain a feel for the commanding site of Ponziers Ridge 6. Delville Wood 7.Butte de Warlencourt (not sure about access anymore) 8. Mansell Copse and the Shrine- Hodgson is buried there ("The Devonshires held this trench, the Devonshires hold it still") 9. Fricourt New Cemetery were the 10th West Yorks suffered the worst on July 1st 10. Mametz Wood Honorable Mention: Serre and the Pals battalion's cemeteries. I would imagine some would add this to the top ten above. Like the above I highly recommend Middlebrook's book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulkheader Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 Dont waste your time by going to the Peronne museum. If going to see the Disney Dragon at Mametz, make sure you pop into Flatiron Copse cemetery, just along the track. In my opinion, 1 of the most atmospheric and ‘friendly’ cemeteries on the western front. T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torrey McLean Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 Hello, Sue - To smawson44's excellent list above, I personally like High Wood/New Zealand Memorial. In addition to High Wood being a particularly historical part of the battle, the nearby New Zealand Memorial provides an excellent view of a large part of the Somme battlefield. Additionally, the Ulster Tower area provides a great view of the Schwaben Redoubt/Thiepval battlefields. I hope this information helps. Regards, Torrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 I see that the windmill has been suggested... very true... also the tank memorial just accross... but don't waste too much time on the "animals in war" site just on the other side... it's a mixture of "things"... and has been called far worse on this very forum... M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Michelle Young Posted 7 September , 2020 Admin Share Posted 7 September , 2020 My favourite place on the Somme Battlefields is the Redan Ridge. No museums, no memorials, just the cemeteries, the views and the birdsong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EAST YORKSHIRE Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 1 hour ago, Michelle Young said: My favourite place on the Somme Battlefields is the Redan Ridge. No museums, no memorials, just the cemeteries, the views and the birdsong. So very true... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 If you are going to Mametz, then spare a minute at The Devonshire Cemetery- men of the 8th and 9th Devonshires, including a war poet, William Noel Hodgson. Also, nearby the grave of Charles Campbell May, Captain 22nd Manchesters killed on 1st July 1916. He is in Dantzig Alley Cemetery, The Devonshire Cemtery is poignant becaiuse of it's padre's memorial, now maintained in stone. Charles May (a local casualty to where I live) wrote diaries and has been the subject of a TV documentary (played by Ed Stoppard no less) Try reading May's last letter to his wife -and then try to keep a dry eye at his grave. His last diary entry, at 5.45am on 1st July will bring a lump to your throat. Good accounts of the Devonshire Cemetery and of May are easily found on Tinternet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Tulloch-Marshall Posted 7 September , 2020 Share Posted 7 September , 2020 4 hours ago, Marilyne said: I see that the windmill has been suggested... very true... also the tank memorial just accross... but don't waste too much time on the "animals in war" site just on the other side... it's a mixture of "things"... and has been called far worse on this very forum... The pure simplicity of the Windmill Memorial makes it extremely poignant given the events of 1916 which it commemorates. How it came about that somebody decided that plonking the thing below right up against it is beyond comprehension. The field should be returned to agricultural use. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Kilkenny Posted 8 September , 2020 Share Posted 8 September , 2020 (edited) The Sunken Road obviously because of Malins's iconic film of the Lancashire Fusiliers waiting to jump off. Otherwise, try and do at least one decent walk. Paul Reed's 'Walking the Somme' is your best bet here. I'd recommend the walk from Bazentin up to High Wood just to get a sense of the kind of ground they had to traverse on the first day and after. Edited 8 September , 2020 by Tom Kilkenny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
horrocks Posted 9 September , 2020 Share Posted 9 September , 2020 On 07/09/2020 at 22:28, Tom Tulloch-Marshall said: The pure simplicity of the Windmill Memorial makes it extremely poignant given the events of 1916 which it commemorates. How it came about that somebody decided that plonking the thing below right up against it is beyond comprehension. The field should be returned to agricultural use. Tom I too am aghast at this, though I think that now it is out of agricultural production, meadow grasses and wildflowers might be more appropriate. There is a poignant photo somewhere of the windmill mound with windblown grasses, and a tree in the corner, probably dating from the 1930s or 1950s, so much more evocative than its neatly preened and completely sterile appearance nowadays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 9 September , 2020 Share Posted 9 September , 2020 23 hours ago, Tom Kilkenny said: The Sunken Road obviously because of Malins's iconic film of the Lancashire Fusiliers waiting to jump off. Got two books lines up for that... thank you Defence Library !!! M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy davidson Posted 9 September , 2020 Share Posted 9 September , 2020 Hi Sue. If you visit Mametz, have a short walk up from the Welsh memorial ( heading right if your facing the woods). A short walk brings you to Flatiron Copse cemetery. Reason to visit: locate the grave of Edward Dwyer, VC. I visited his grave in August, sat down and played a saved youtube recording from my phone ( youtube search Edward Dwyer VC). On a trip back to the UK after winning his VC at Hill 60 outside Ypres, he was used to encourage recruitment, and his voice was recorded. He can be heard talking about the retreat from Mons amongst other things. Quiet emotional to be sat listening to a young man who is resting before you. I can't be certain but is he the only soldier who died on the Somme to be recorded? Anyway, well worth a short detour from Mametz. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suesalter1 Posted 10 September , 2020 Author Share Posted 10 September , 2020 Thank you to all who have suggested the top places to visit on the Somme. My list is almost complete. Some kind soul sent me a simple sat nav guide to the area, which will prove invaluable. Am also ordering the Holt's battlefield guide and Paul Reed's 'Walking the Somme' book. So, I should be well-equipped. Just got to wait another year and I sincerely hope it will be better than this one! Sue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaz Posted 10 September , 2020 Share Posted 10 September , 2020 Sue, if you are taking a sat nav, can I recomend you download and program into the nav poigraves, very useful if you need to make your way around cemeteries. even covers single graves in churchyards and can also be used here. https://www.poigraves.uk/pages/cwgc.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suesalter1 Posted 10 September , 2020 Author Share Posted 10 September , 2020 This sounds good. It's something we will use. I'll inform my friend, the driver. Thanks, Sue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Mackenzie Posted 10 September , 2020 Share Posted 10 September , 2020 Next time I am in the area I am hoping to do the walk on the attached pdf which may be OK depending on your time availability and the mobility of your group. I will park at Avril's for a coffee and end there for a beer and lunch. It covers the route that some of the men of 29th Div took on their way up the Hawthorn Ridge Crater, passing the cemetery on the way. Down to the Sunken Road and the Beaumont Hamel cemetery and 8th ASH memorial. You can always carry on up the Sunken Lane to visit the Redan Ridge cemeteries as well which are just off the north edge of the map. Coming back you then walk past where Malin did some of his best known filming (roughly where the star is) before returning to Avril's for refreshments. Auchonvillers_Walk.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marilyne Posted 10 September , 2020 Share Posted 10 September , 2020 21 hours ago, Andy davidson said: youtube search Edward Dwyer VC goosebumps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fattyowls Posted 10 September , 2020 Share Posted 10 September , 2020 15 minutes ago, Marilyne said: goosebumps... If I remember correctly his singing voice was not fabulous, but who cares. There are also some newspaper illustrations of him repelling a German attack at Hill 60 with what appear at first sight to be hair brushes, but which were actually early grenades. I'd concur that Flatiron copse is worth a visit, but the access road is a little narrow. Pete. 4 hours ago, suesalter1 said: This sounds good. It's something we will use. I'll inform my friend, the driver. Thanks, Sue Sue, is your own list of ten starting to emerge? Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hyacinth1326 Posted 18 September , 2020 Share Posted 18 September , 2020 Try visiting a cemetery at midnight. Hold a two minute silence followed by a discrete pull on the bottle. An Agape the lads would comprehend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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