DOES HAIG DESERVE

THE TITLE ‘BUTCHER

OF THE SOMME’?
WALT (What am I learning
today?)
 Why Haig got the title Butcher of
A

the Somme.
ss  What evidence we have to
prove/disprove it.
e  What you think about the two
ss interpretations
m
e
nt
WALT (What am I looking
for?)
 To identify that there are two ways
A

to look at Haig (4c)
ss  To select evidence to support each
interpretation (4a/5c)
e  To explain why you chose it (team)
ss (5b – 6c)
m  To think how other events and
debate may alter views (6-7)
e
nt
Starter Task:Blackadder
 Blackadder is a comedy series made in
1988 to 1989 by which time most
veterans of WW1 had died.
 The actors and writers were not historians
and the programme is a comedy and
not factual.
 Watch the clip. Think about the two points

 How does Haig come across in the clip

 How reliable a source is it?
Blackadder Goes Forth (1989)
Blackadder tries to get out of ‘going over the


top’ by phoning Haig who he saved in an early

battle before WW1 against a woman armed
with fruit!
Alternative view
 “The BEF (British Army in
Fro

France) under Haig developed
m
great battlefield skill. The
an
introduction of ideas such as
auth
Combined Arms assaults,
or
infiltration, creeping barrages and
on
overhead barrage fire by batteries
Worl
of Heavy Machine Guns all
d
reduced casualties.”
War
One.
How do we see Haig?
 Do we have just one view of Haig?
 Recap the Battle of the
Somme
 Haig wanted to end the war in
1916.
 He had to help the French or
they’d lose at Verdun so he
launched the battle of the
Somme.
 He used untested troops for
the most part with a simple
plan of attacking in waves.
 58,000 were killed or wounded
on day one.

Time (5 mins)

2)Look at sources 1 and 2 on the

Q

page ‘Haig’s views’. What do
you think Haig expected to
u happen on the first day of the
es attack?
3)
ti 4)Why did this not happen? (Look
o also at the key facts information)

n
2
Time (12 mins)

 Now in your groups, you are to look

T

at your interpretation and find
evidence from the sources to
A support it. You must explain why.
S 

K  You will then report back to the

class by choosing a spokesperson
Task
 As the groups go through the sources,
make notes on the quote and what they
say – it can be bullet pointed.
Time (8 mins)

 Does Haig deserve to be known as

T

the Butcher of the Somme? Write
up a conclusion paragraph –
A approximately 6 lines selecting
S your most important piece of
evidence and saying why.
K (Some of you can use the writing
frame provided)