What did a tunneler do in war?
Table of Contents
What did a tunneler do in war?
Royal Engineer tunnelling companies were specialist units of the Corps of Royal Engineers within the British Army, formed to dig attacking tunnels under enemy lines during the First World War.
What caused the Lochnagar Crater?
The Lochnagar Crater was created by a large mine placed beneath the German front lines on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, it was one of 19 mines that were placed beneath the German lines from the British section of the Somme front, to assist the infantry advance at the start of the battle.
How deep were the tunnels in Ww1?
100 feet
Tunnels were now regularly dug to a depth of 100 feet and at Messines, on 7th June 1917, the full force and ability of the British tunnelling companies was displayed in the most vivid manner.
What was a Tunnelers job?
On the Western Front during the First World War, the military employed specialist miners to dig tunnels under No Man’s Land. The main objective was to place mines beneath enemy defensive positions. When it was detonated, the explosion would destroy that section of the trench.
How many German soldiers were killed during the Battle of the Somme?
British troops sustained 420,000 casualties—including 125,000 deaths—during the Battle of the Somme. The casualties also included 200,000 French troops and 500,000 German soldiers.
What was the Lochnagar mine in WW1?
The Lochnagar mine south of the village of La Boisselle in the Somme département was an underground explosive charge, secretly planted by the British during the First World War, ready for 1 July 1916, the first day on the Somme. The mine was dug by the Tunnelling Companies of the Royal Engineers under a German field…
What was the charge at Lochnagar?
The charge at Lochnagar was one of 19 mines that were dug under the German lines on the British section of the Somme front, to assist the infantry advance at the start of the battle. The mine was sprung at 7:28 a.m. on 1 July 1916 and left a crater 98 ft (30 m) deep and 330 ft (100 m) wide, which was captured and held by British troops.
How was the Lochnagar crater created?
The Lochnagar Crater was created by a large mine placed beneath the German front lines on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, it was one of 19 mines that were placed beneath the German lines from the British section of the Somme front, to assist the infantry advance at the start of the battle.
What happened to the 19th Division in the Battle of Lochnagar?
The troops took German trenches to the north and north-east of Lochnagar crater, around Scwaben Hohe and on the norther slopes of Sausage Valley. However, there were no reinforcements available, and so the 19th Division were detailed to carry out an attack on la Boiselle after dark.
