Support Ukraine through donations here

Shopping Cart

Your cart is empty

Continue Shopping

Andrew Roberts

Elegy: The First Day on the Somme

€17,95

On 1 July 1916, after a five-day bombardment, 11 British and 5 French divisions launched their long-awaited 'Big Push' on German positions on high ground above the Rivers Ancre and Somme on the Western Front. Some ground was gained, but at a terrible cost. In killing-grounds whose names are indelibly imprinted on 20th-century memory, German machine-guns - manned by troops who had sat out the storm of shellfire in deep dugouts - inflicted terrible losses on the British infantry. The British Fourth Army lost 57,470 casualties, the French Sixth Army suffered 1,590 casualties and the German 2nd Army 10,000. And this was but the prelude to 141 days of slaughter that would witness the deaths of between 750,000 and 1 million troops. Andrew Roberts evokes the pity and the horror of the blackest day in the history of the British army - a summer's day-turned-hell-on-earth by modern military technology - in the words of casualties, survivors, and the bereaved.

Format: Hardcover
Published: in UK in 2015
Publisher: Trafalgar Square
Pages: 320
Language: English
ISBN 13: 9781784080013
ISBN 10: 1784080012

Shipping & Delivery

Please allow us 24-48 hours to prepare your order. Once your order is ready to be dispatched, we will send it via Deutsche Post DHL which quotes the following delivery times:


Within Germany: 3-5 working days
Within Europe: 7-10 working days

We currently only ship to countries in Europe and the United Kingdom. If you have a request for shipping to another area of the world, please contact us at shakespeareandsons@gmail.com.

Refunds & Returns

At Shakespeare & Sons you can shop with confidence. We are happy to provide a refund or voucher of equal value where the goods are returned within 21 days of purchase unused, in original condition, accompanied by proof of purchase.

To return an online order within the refund policy period, please contact us and we will then give you instructions on how best to return your order so we can process your refund.

To return an in store purchase, please bring the purchased item and proof of receipt into the store, within 21 days of purchase.

Please note we do not offer discretionary exchange or refunds on Gift Vouchers, Sale Items, or damaged products. 

Gift Wrap & Cards

Shakespeare & Sons offer gift wrapping and greeting cards. To have your items gift wrapped, head to our Gift Wrap collection, choose the paper you prefer and add it to your cart. We will wrap the items for you and send them to the address you have submitted or have it ready in store for you to collect (depending on what option you select at check out).

Check out our Greeting Card collection here. If you would like us to include a message in your selected card, forward your purchase confirmation onto shakespeareandsons@gmail.com with some words and we will add these in for you. 

We're here to help

Can't find what you're looking for?

If the book you're after is not displayed on our website or is 'sold out' please feel free to contact us at shakesandsonsberlin@gmail.com or come into the store and we can let you know the cost of ordering it and expected arrival time.

Elegy: The First Day on the Somme

€17,95