Historical Events
- The river is perhaps most famous as a result of the World War I Battle of the Somme (July to November 1916).
- The Invasion Fleet of William the Conqueror assembled in the Bay of the Somme at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, in 1066.
- The river featured in the 1346 withdrawal of Edward III's army, which forded the river at the battle of Blanchetaque during the campaign which culminated in the Battle of Crécy.
- Crossing the river also featured prominently in the campaign which led to the Battle of Agincourt some 501 years before the 1916 battles.
- The great battles which finally stopped the German advance in the Spring Offensive of 1918 were fought around the valley of the Somme in places like Villers Bretonneux, which marked the beginning of the end of the war.
Read more about this topic: River Somme
Famous quotes containing the words historical and/or events:
“Some of us still get all weepy when we think about the Gaia Hypothesis, the idea that earth is a big furry goddess-creature who resembles everybody’s mom in that she knows what’s best for us. But if you look at the historical record—Krakatoa, Mt. Vesuvius, Hurricane Charley, poison ivy, and so forth down the ages—you have to ask yourself: Whose side is she on, anyway?”
—Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)
“Whatever events in progress shall disgust men with cities, and infuse into them the passion for country life, and country pleasures, will render a service to the whole face of this continent, and will further the most poetic of all the occupations of real life, the bringing out by art the native but hidden graces of the landscape.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)