The Struggle of Man versus Bomb

The Great War, from 1914 to 1918, caused over 37 million casualties: 8.5 million deaths and 21 million wounded, while the remainder are identified as “missing”, such as those who are commemorated at Thiepval Memorial. During the war, heavy artillery was mobile, accurate and powerful. Shells and shrapnel killed more soldiers than any other weapon. During the Battle of the Somme in 1916, for example, 1.8 million heavy artillery shells were fired at German lines in a single week. Visit the highlighted link to view a short clip of vintage footage.