Capture of Ovillers 1916
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 16 July 1916 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1916 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | World War I era (1914–1918) | derived from year |
| Location | France | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Battle of the Somme | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 50.0322, 2.6986 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Capture of Ovillers (1–16 July 1916) was a British local operation during the Battle of Albert in France, the name given by the British to the first two weeks of the Battle of the Somme. The village of Ovillers-la-Boisselle (commonly shortened to Ovillers) forms part of the small commune of Ovillers-la-Boisselle, about 22 mi (35 km) north-east of Amiens in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France. By 1916, the village was called Ovillers by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) to avoid confusion with La Boisselle south-west of the road.
On 1 July 1916, the first day on the Somme, Ovillers was attacked by the 8th Division, part of the III Corps. The attack was a disaster and the division suffered 5,121 casualties, the defending Infantry Regiment 180 had 280 casualties and Reserve Infantry Regiment 110 35 casualties. The 8th Division was withdrawn and replaced by the 12th (Eastern) Division, which resumed the attack on Ovillers on 3 July and suffered 4,721 casualties by the time it was relieved. Attacks by the 25th Division continued and the village was captured during the evening of 16 July.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Capture of Ovillers (revision 1370609386), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of the Somme 1916 · 2 km
- Leipzig Salient 1916 · 2 km
- First day on the Somme 1916 · 2 km
- Capture of La Boisselle 1916 · 2 km
- Fighting for Mouquet Farm 1916 · 2 km
- Battle of Albert (1914) 1914 · 3 km
Other battles of the Battle of the Somme
- Attack at Fromelles 1916
- Battle of Albert (1916) 1916
- Battle of Bazentin Ridge 1916
- Battle of Delville Wood 1916
- Battle of Flers–Courcelette 1916
- Battle of Guillemont 1916
- Battle of Le Transloy 1916
- Battle of Morval 1916
- Battle of Thiepval Ridge 1916
- Battle of the Ancre 1916
All 19 battles of the Battle of the Somme →
Browse more: battles in France · Europe · World War I era battles