Capture of Stuff Redoubt

Capture of Stuff Redoubt
Part of The Battle of the Somme, First World War
Battle of the Somme 1 July – 18 November 1916
Date 1 July, 27 September – 9 October 1916 Location Picardy, France 50°3′16.3″N 2°41′18.2″E / 50.054528°N 2.688389°E / 50.054528; 2.688389 Result British victory
Belligerents
Britain	Germany
Commanders and leaders
Douglas Haig	General Erich von Falkenhayn
Stuff Redoubt class=notpageimage| Stuff Redoubt (Staufen Feste)

The Capture of Stuff Redoubt (Feste Staufen) was a tactical incident during the Battle of the Somme in 1916. The redoubt had been built as part of the fortification of the Somme front by the German 2nd Army (General der Infanterie Fritz von Below) after the open warfare of 1914. On 1 July, the First Day on the Somme, troops of the 36th (Ulster) Division occupied part of the redoubt before being forced out by German counter-attacks. British troops were not able to reach the redoubt again until the Battle of Thiepval Ridge (26–28 September) when parties of the 11th (Northern) Division captured part of the redoubt. The rest of the redoubt was taken by the 25th Division during the Battle of the Ancre Heights (1 October – 11 November).

Some German officers thought that the blow to German morale was worse than news of the fall of Thiepval. The loss of the redoubt and the success of an attack by the British II Corps on Stuff Trench, beyond the redoubt, on 21 October exposed the Ancre valley and Grandcourt to ground observation. The army group commander Crown Prince Rupprecht and Erich Ludendorff the deputy Chief of the General Staff of the German army wanted to retire from the salient that had formed from St Pierre Division and Beaumont Hamel but Below preferred to hold on since the remaining positions were strong and on high ground with good observation. The last big attack by the Reserve Army (renamed Fifth Army on 30 October) the Battle of the Ancre (13–18 November) against these positions was a great success.