At 7:30 hours on 1 July 1916, the devastating cacophony of the allied artillery fell silent along the front on the Somme. The ear-splitting explosions were replaced by the shrill sound of hundreds of whistles being blown. At the moment, tens of thousands of British soldiers climbed out from their and began to make their way steadily towards the German lines opposite. It was the first day of the Battle of the Somme.