麻豆社

Weatherman Walking: Mametz Wood, part of World War One from 麻豆社 Wales.

Weatherman Derek Brockway visits Mametz Wood in the Somme, the site of the most famous battle fought by Welsh soldiers throughout the First World War. His guide is Phil Davies, a retired teacher from Cardiff, who describes how the battle developed and the brutal fighting to take the wood.

The Battle of the Somme started on 1 July 1916 and was the biggest battle on the Western Front, with over a million men killed or wounded. Now a quiet area of rural northern France, in July 1916 it was hell on earth, as the British bombarded the German trenches prior to the attack. But the Germans withstood the shelling and on July 1, over 20,000 British troops died in a failed attempt to storm the German trenches. A week later, it was the Welsh soldiers' turn, as they were charged with the task of attacking a German defensive strongpoint in Mametz Wood. The first attack on July 7 was poorly organised and many Welsh troops, who'd never been in battle before, lost their lives. But a second attack three days later forced the Germans from the wood, albeit at huge cost. There were 4,000 Welsh casualties, including 1,200 killed. With Phil's help, Derek follows the route taken by the Welsh soldiers and hears the stories of some of the individual soldiers who died. Then he enters the wood itself, finding shell fragments and craters still evident a century after the battle. From there they go into the village of Mametz, where an enduring friendship has grown between the villagers and the people of Wales.

To complete his journey, Derek visits two nearby landmarks. The Lochnagar Crater was caused by a huge explosion when mines were detonated under German lines on July 1. It's now preserved as a memorial to those who died, and is so big that a football pitch could fit inside the crater. Lastly, Derek goes to the Thiepval memorial, a huge arch where the missing of the Somme, over 70, 000 in total, are listed on its walls.

Phil Davies has been fascinated by the First World War since childhood. He was involved in organising the famous Dragon Memorial at Mametz Wood and is organising the centenary events there on July 7 2016.