Capture of Schwaben Redoubt

Schwaben-Feste (Schwaben Redoubt)
Part of the Battle of the Somme of the First World War
British aerial photograph of German trenches north of Thiepval; Schwaben Redoubt is the network of trenches in the upper right of the photograph.
Date 1915–1916 Location Picardy, France 50°03′30″N 02°41′03″E / 50.05833°N 2.68417°E / 50.05833; 2.68417 Result British victory Territorial changes near Thiepval
Belligerents
United Kingdom  France	German Empire
Commanders and leaders
Douglas Haig Hubert Gough Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch	Erich Ludendorff Kronprinz Rupprecht Fritz von Below
Units involved
Reserve Army/Fifth Army	1st Army
Strength
parts of 4 divisions

The Capture of Schwaben Redoubt (Schwaben-Feste) was a tactical incident in the Battle of the Somme, 1916 during the First World War. The redoubt was a German strong point 500–600 yd (460–550 m) long and 200 yd (180 m) wide, built in stages since 1915, near the village of Thiepval and overlooking the River Ancre. It formed part of the German defensive system in the Somme sector of the Western Front during the First World War and consisting of a mass of machine-gun emplacements, trenches and dug-outs. The redoubt was defended by the 26th Reserve Division, from Swabia in south-west Germany, which had arrived in the area during the First Battle of Albert in 1914. Troops of the 36th (Ulster) Division captured the redoubt on 1 July 1916, until forced out by German artillery-fire and counter-attacks after dark.

The British kept the area of the redoubt under bombardment until 3 September, when the 49th (West Riding) Division attacked the area from the west, in a morning fog. The 36th (Ulster) Division infantry got across no man's land but were defeated when German artillery and machine gun-fire swept the Irish troops as German infantry counter-attacked from the flanks, using hand grenades. In late September, the British gained a footing in the redoubt during the Battle of Thiepval Ridge (26–28 September). Attack and counter-attack followed until 14 October, when troops of the 39th Division, captured the last German foothold in the redoubt and repulsed German counter-attacks from 15 to 21 October. The site of the redoubt lies between the Thiepval Memorial and the Ulster Tower.