And how many armies have you commanded Raggy? How many battles fought with you in command where others have picked the time, the place and the enemy?

I would venture to guess that the answer to both of the above would be NONE - Yet for someone who says they know very little about the War and the period you trot out that rubbish ( Raggytash - 24 Nov 15 - 09:24 AM)

In the vast expanse of your relevant experience Raggy can you tell me how many Generals have resigned in time of war whilst on active service? IIRC "resignation" is not an option open to them, they can protest and complain all they like, they can act and seek dismissal but if done they face the music for it when they reach home.

Oh and for your information on the Somme the horrendous British losses were restricted to one area of quite an extensive front. Joffre insisted on feeding more men into that particular area but Haig refused, instead he reinforced commanders who were making ground and at the end of the battle:

"British and French forces had penetrated 6 miles (9.7 km) into German-occupied territory, taking more ground than any offensive since the Battle of the Marne in 1914."