Casualty rate

[jdajd]

Does anyone know what the average casualty rate was? By this I mean if a full company (227 men?) attacked how many could be expected to make it unharmed to the goal? I would think that the numbers would certainly shift as the war progressed and techniques, such as the creeping barrage, became more refined. I doubt that this sort of info exists as such, but any help or insight would be appreciated. Thanks

Jon

[Coldstreamer]

Hello

too hard to say. Some attacks where disasters and others had very few casulaties.

Perhaps your best bet is to get the total number of casulaties in the war and divide by the number of men who went to war - this would give the average number killed to involved and you can relate that to your company figure...

Ian

[the gunners dream]

Jon,

Here are some interesting links that list casualty figures in WWI:

http://www.worldwar1.com/tlcrates.htm

http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/FWWcasualties.htm

I can give you a list of casualties incurred on the Somme, totalling the top 32 battalions to lose 500 men or more. Figures include officers and men.

Obviously this did not happen every time the British went over the top, but this highlights when things went horribly wrong.

10th West Yorks: 710, 1st Newfoundland: 684,

4th Tyneside Scottish: 629, 1st Tyneside Irish: 620, 8th Yorks and Lancs: 597, Co Down Volunteers: 595, Donegal & Fermanagh Volunteers: 589, 1/8th Royal Warwicks: 588, 1st Hampshires: 585, Accrington Pals: 585, 1st Tyneside Scottish: 584, 1st Border: 575, 1st London Rifle Brigade: 572, 1st Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers: 568,

2nd Royal Fusiliers: 561, 1st London Scottish: 558,

1st King’s Own Scottish Borders: 552, 2nd Middlesex: 540, 8th King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry: 539, 4th Tyneside Irish: 539, 3rd Tyneside Scottish: 537,

Armagh, Monaghan and Cavan Volunteers: 532, Leeds Pals: 528,

The Cambridge Battalion: 527,

Public Schools Battalion: 522, 11th Border: 516, 1st Bradford Pals: 515, 1st Edinburgh City Battalion: 513,

Sheffield City Battalion: 512, Glasgow Boys’ Brigade Battalion: 511, Queen’s Westminster Rifles: 503, 1st East Lancs: 502.

Steve

[dycer]

Jon,

Here is the total War casualty figures for the 8th Royal Scots.They went to France in 1914 and became the Pioneer Battalion to the 51st Highland Division in 1915.(The Battlions own description of its role "The Pioneers are the handy men of the Division,and do everything,from building the G.O.C.'s fireplace to staunching enemy attacks,or leading the Division" over the top"")

Total Casualties

Killed-------------------209

Died of Wounds----------87

Missing--------------------76

Wounded and Missing----17

Wounded---------------1280

Total--------------------1669

Clearly the above figures do not equate to the figures Steve has given for losses on the Somme.The 8th Royal Scots ,however, suffered over 100 hundred casualties between noon 22 July 1916 and noon 23 July 1916, in its three months in Ypres in 1917 had 28 killed and 130 wounded and between 21 March/26 March 1918 had 35 killed,137 wounded and 45 missing.

George

[Old Tom]

Hello,

My reading suggests that a casualty rate of 30% was common for units attacking prepared positions. The figures Steve quotes are interesting in that many of the units suffered quite similar numbers of casualties. I suppose in rough terms a battalion of 4 companies was about 1,000 strong and that, in an attack, probably 2 companies would assault and 2 would be in reserve. I guess Steves figures were for the first day and could represent almost 100% of the soldiers in the first wave.

Old Tom