Workbook in English

for school groups

Contact Details:

Email – musee@somme-1916.org

Websites in three languages –

www.musee-somme-1916.org IN FRENCH

www.somme-trench-museum.co.uk IN ENGLISH

www.somme-westfront-museum.de IN GERMAN

Tel – 0033 (0) 3 22 75 16 17

Fax – 0033 (0) 3 22 75 56 33

These questions have been formulated to keep pupils focussed on the different displays and trench scenes (in alcoves) when they come into the museum. The questions expect pupils to take note, visually, of what is shown and written about WW1, but pupils are also expected to try to form an opinion of what they see or read and express themselves in their answers.

As we accommodate school groups who are studying not just History but also the war poets in English Literature or even marketing a museum in Business Studies, and of course:  French, the questions do not test a person’s knowledge of WW1 in great detail. We expect our visitors to respond to what the  museum reveals about The Battle of The Somme.

It is also worth mentioning that French lycéens studying English at Baccalauréat level can attempt this workbook too.                                                                                                                                                      PFK  

A Soldier’s Story

1.      What do you understand by the term Pals Battalions ?

2.      Why did soldiers flock to join such battalions?

3.      What do you think motivated working class men to sign up for the army?

4.      Do you know why the attack on Thiepval, and indeed the majority of the British attacks on July 1^st 1916, came to nothing and led to an incomprehensible loss of life? (If you have read about WW1 or already visited the battlefields you will have some idea).

5.      If you look at the map you will see that John Courtney covered a lot of northern France and part of Belgium. How did the regiments move from one place to another?

6.      Do you know of any other theatre of war during 1914 – 1918 outside France?

7.      Do you think that ordinary people today would act as John Courtney did? Give reasons for your answers.

You may now prefer to answer question 37. before visiting the alcove scenes.

THE TRENCH SCENES SET IN ALCOVES:

(These are described in three languages. A’ Level French pupils may wish to write their answers in French)

8.      How did trench warfare actually begin?

9.       Give a number of reasons to explain why the German positions were so difficult to capture.

10.  Where did the Western front begin and end?

11.  Why did the French uniform change during WW1?

12. How did German machine-gunners identify themselves?

13.  Describe the three different hats / helmets worn by the Germans in WW1. You may wish to draw them too.

14.  It is often said that people in southeast England could hear the rumble of guns and shells across The Channel during WW1. Find statistics that could go some way towards explaining this.

15.  There were different kinds of trenches. Can you name them?

16. How did soldiers in the different trenches stay in contact with one another?

17.  Who wore orange sashes over their uniforms, and why?

18.  Why do YOU think Captain Nevill thought up his bold plan of attack, and why did his soldiers accept the challenge?

19. Name two home-grown inventions that helped the German army:

20. Explain how the soldiers from the colonies wore different uniforms from the British Tommy.

21. What were toffee apples and flying pigs?

22. Give reasons why trench life was more often than not thoroughly unpleasant.

On the other hand, can you think of anything positive about trench life?

23. How did soldiers keep an eye on No Man’s Land?

24. It is often remarked how cheerful the average Tommy sounded when writing home. How were soldiers prevented from being utterly frank in their letters to family?

25. How did scientific and medical research make progress during WW1? (Quote three areas)

26. Who was responsible for digging the tunnels beneath enemy lines?

27. When and where did chemical warfare really begin, according to the majority of reports?

28. What do you presume was the purpose of the Hague Convention in 1899?

29. If you read the extract from E. Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front (Gas Attack) how would you, as an inventor, attempt to improve the gas mask being used at the time?

30. What do you think about the fact that the Scottish regiments all wore kilts during WW1? What were the reasons for this? What disadvantages/advantages may there have been?

31. How and why were kilts and helmets disguised?

32. What was a Hotchkiss?

33. Why was chainmail used in WW1?

34. Why are French WW1 soldiers referred to as Les Poilus ?

35. Which French elite regiment was sent to the Somme?

36. The final alcove mentions artwork produced in the trenches. Can you find any examples of this in the museum? (see the various display cabinets)

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37. What happened to the town of Albert in WW1 and in particular  its stunning Basilica? (You will need to look at the wall display at the bottom of the stairs to glean this information).

END

Paula Flanagan