The Battle of Guillemont was a British assault on the German-held village of Guillemont during the 1916Battle of the Somme. Guillemont lay on the right flank of the British sector where it linked with French forces and by holding it, the Germans prevented the Allied armies from operating in unison.
Guillemont came in range of British forces following the Battle of Bazentin Ridge on 14 July and it was subjected to a number of costly attacks in late July and August. This sector contained a number of German strongpoints — Delville Wood, Falfemont Farm, the villages of Guillemont, Combles and Maurepas — each providing protection for the other.
On 18 August a combined British-French offensive was launched on the sector with three British corps attacking around Guillemont while the French attacked Maurepas. The British managed to seize Guillemont Station but otherwise failed to reach their objectives.
The capture of Guillemont weakened the German hold on this sector. Delville Wood was finally secured and the neighbouring village of Ginchy fell relatively quickly on 9 September. By 15 September the British were in a position to mount their next major offensive on a broad front — the Battle of Flers-Courcelette.
One purpose of the battle was to draw German forces away from the battle of Verdun; however, by its end the losses on the Somme had exceeded those at Verdun.
In one significant respect, the Battle of the Somme was a major strategic success for the British as on 12 July, in response to the Somme fighting and the situation in the east, Falkenhayn called off the German offensive at Verdun.
The attack, known as the battle of Bazentin Ridge, was aimed at capturing the German second defensive position which ran along the crest of the ridge from Pozières, on the Albert–Bapaume road, southeast towards the villages of Guillemont and Ginchy.
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