The failure of the first day was followed by four months of more limited
attacks, met by the usual German counterattacks. In these fierce follow-ups
to the slaughter of July 1 , the two sides bled more evenly. In the end, German
casualties at the Somme numbered approximately 465,000 compared to
British losses of 500,000. The British had dented, but not broken, the
German defensive line.
By the time the fighting eased in this comer of northeastern France, the
German high command had gone through its last great change of the war.
Having failed at Verdun, suffered a drain on his manpower at the Somme,
and been shaken by Rumania's entry into the war, Falkenhayn was compelled
to resign. The eastern generals, Hindenburg and Ludendorff, now
took command. One of their first actions was to visit the western front and
to order the retraining of German combat troops. Their efforts would come
to fruition in the smashing German offensive of 1918.
World History
