Further reading | Ngā Tapuwae Trails

Further reading

Books - Somme 1916

On my way to the Somme: New Zealanders and the bloody offensive of 1916 by Andrew Macdonald
New Zealand’s great war: New Zealand, the Allies, and the First World War by John Crawford & Ian McGibbon (eds)
Somme by Lyn MacDonald
Walking the Somme by Paul Reed, (Battleground series)
Passport to Hell by Robin Hyde
The Hell They Called High Wood: The Somme 1916 by Terry Norman

Back to Somme 1916

Other Stories & Insights

Second Lieutenant Alexander Aitken

Wounded in no-man’s-land, Aitken had to find his way back.

Men of the Maori Pioneer Battalion take a break in a trench near Gommecourt. 25 July 1918.

Vital labourers

Digging and repairing trenches and roads was vital work, but the Pioneers could also be called upon to fight.

Tanks of the First World War

Second Lieutenant Hēnare Kōhere

As a Pioneer, Kōhere quickly developed a reputation for bravery and hard work.

Lieutenant Lindsay Inglis

Despite fierce German resistance, Inglis continued to lead his men forward during the attack.

Around one in seven of the 15,000 New Zealand men who fought on the Somme lost their lives, and many more were wounded.

The horror of the Somme

Sending troops 'over the top' produced horrific slaughter.

Glossary

A selection of First World War vocabulary and common phrases.

The Mark I, one of first tanks used in battle at the Somme, 1916.

Tanks

Although clumsy and slow, the Mark I soon proved its worth in battle.