Unraveling the Mystery: The Battle of the Somme Closing Date Confusion"

[angel_csi91]

Desperate Help Needed!

hey everyone,
i'm kinda new but i know how this works. this has nothin 2 do with science or even maths, its history but i really need help. I've been to several sites to learn about the battle of the Somme which occurred in world war one. sites are giving me different closing dates of the battle and I'm confused. did it finish after 6 weeks or several months?
please help i need this info for my assignment which is due the day after tomorrow!

thanx to anyone who helps i really appreciate it!

 

[Pengwuino]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Somme_(1916)

That should help you out. Seems like several months.

 

[honestrosewater]

My Encyclopedia Britannica lists two Battles of Somme (this may be the reason for the confusion).
The First Battle of Somme:

(July 1–Nov. 13, 1916), costly and largely unsuccessful Allied offensive on the Western Front during World War I.

The Second Battle of Somme:

also called Battle of Saint-Quentin (March 21–April 5, 1918), partially successful German offensive against Allied forces on the Western Front during the later part of World War I.

(If you need to check history facts often, you might want to bookmark http://www.bartleby.com/67/.)
http://www.bartleby.com/67/1800.html lists the First Battle.
http://www.bartleby.com/67/1812.html lists the Second Battle. Note that what Britannica calls 'The Second Battle of Somme' and 'The Battle of Saint-Quentin', this encyclopedia calls 'The great March Offensive'. And this encyclopedia calls other battles of the same year, lasting from Aug. 21 to Sept. 3, 'The Second Battles of the Somme and of Arras'. So relying solely on a particular name for a battle seems like a bad idea; Looking at what actually took place during a battle seems safest.

I assume you're interested in the First Battle, so here's some additional reliable info:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/war/wwone/battle_somme.shtml