The Great War
For over 90 years the sacrifice of the generation who served through the Great War has loomed large over Britain and the Commonwealth.
"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn"
There are a range of options for our Great War tours of which the following are only a small selection:
Suggested Itinerary
Fully guided
1-Day Somme or Ypres
2-Day Somme and Ypres
Day 1: Somme
Day 2: Ypres
3-Day Somme and Ypres
Day 1: Ypres
Day 2: Somme
Day 3: Ypres
Our Great War Tours
The Somme
The first day of the Battle of the Somme on 1st July 1916 was the worst day in the history of the British Army.
It was to be the Big Push to win the war and it was to be the battle that would make the reputation of the Kitchener Armies. More >
Ypres Salient
The horror of the First World War can be summed up in two words ‘The Salient’.
This small and militarily insignificant Belgian town was to become the eye of the storm that raged around the few square miles of its perimeter. More >
Vimy Ridge & Arras
Vimy Ridge was a fortress, studded with concrete pillboxes, deep dugouts and trenches, festooned with barbed wire where machine guns covered the long slope up from the Allied lines in front of Arras.
Up to the spring of 1917 attempts to take the Ridge had cost the British and French armies over 190,000 casualties. More >
Christmas Truce
During more than 4 years of bitter fighting one event stood out as a beacon of humanity – the Christmas Truce of 1914, when amidst the carnage, for the first time the fighting stopped. More >
Cross-curricular tours
Please contact us to discuss how we can help you create a cross curricular tour, allowing more of your students to explore the First World War battlefields.
Western Front – History and Literature
Our most popular cross-curricular tours combine a study of the Great War on the Western Front with the literature it produced. From the works of Owen, Sassoon and other famous war poets, through the post-war autobiographical writings of those such Vera Brittain, Edmund Blunden and R. C. Sheriff, to the modern works of Pat Barker, Sebastian Faulks, Sebastian Barry and Ben Elton, these tours provide the perfect combination for History and English departments.
For younger students (Years 6-9), please contact us about our ‘Private Peaceful’ Tour, following the themes and characters of Michael Morpurgo’s immensely successful novel.
Western Front – History and Science
A visit to Ypres or the Somme allows students from History and Science departments to look at a range of subjects such as the development and use of chemical weapons on the Western Front and medical advances made during the Great War.
Western Front – History and Maths
Whether it be the statistical analysis of casualties by age, rank, and nationality; a consideration of trajectories and weight of fire; or calculating the tons of supplies required to keep an army in the field, there are numerous means of combining the disciplines of History and Maths on a tour of the Western Front.
Western Front – History and Geography
A tour of the battlefields of France or Flanders readily lends itself to consideration of terrain, the geology and topography of a landscape riven by war. This along with the study of contemporary and trench maps means it is ideal ground for students of both Geography and History.
Specifications/topics supported by these tours:
AQA Specification B > Britain at War
Edexcel Specification A
> War and the Transformation of
British Society 1903-1928
Key Topic 2 ‘The part played
by the British on the Western
Front’
> War and the Transformation of
British Society 1931-1951
> The impact of War on Britain
1914-1955
Edexcel Specification A and B > Northern Ireland 1968-1999
New ‘A’ level topics: AQA Unit 1 > France in Revolution, 1774-1815
OCR ‘A’, Option B, KS3: > Napoleon, France and Europe, 1795-1815
Themes
- Causes of the Great War
- The Western Front
- The ‘actualities of war’ – the experience of soldiers on the Western Front
- Kitchener’s Army – the Pals Battalions
- The relationship between Officers and men
- The development of warfare – tactics and technology in the Great War
- The role of the Generals, in particular the Haig Debate
- The impact of the Great War
Other options
Edexcel Option 3A
Key topic 2
For many British students of
modern history the part played
by the BEF in France and Flanders
defines the Great War.
For students taking this Edexcel option ANGLIA is pleased to offer a tour which is designed specifically to amplify the key content of this course. It focusess on the BEF from its deployment to continental Europe in August 1914, through the stalemate and costly battles of 1916 & 1917, to the last hundred days and the advance to victory.
Discover the reality of life in the Trenches
Are you planning a visit to the Battlefields of the Western Front? Well what better way is there to get inside the mind of 'Tommy Atkins' than by walking the same ground wearing his boots, tin hat, tunic & webbing and carrying a Lee Enfield Rifle.
Developing the very successful 'Show & Tell' sessions we run as part of our Christmas Truce tour, ANGLIA is pleased to offer student groups touring with us to the Somme and Ypres, a unique hands-on experience and an opportunity to get to grips with authentic Great War equipment.
These engaging sessions are led by your ANGLIA guide and will include both a short brief on the equipment on display as well as the chance for one lucky 'volunteer' to don full kit - which makes a perfect photo opportunity.
If you are interested in adding a 'Show & Tell' session to you Battlefield Tour or would like further information please contact us.
