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Origin and history

La Boisselle Mine Hole, also known as La Grande Mine or Lochnagar Crater, is an emblematic vestige of the Battle of the Somme (1916), located 600 m southeast of the village of La Boisselle, on the Circuit du Souvenir. This crater, 90 metres in diameter and 22 metres in depth, is the result of the explosion of 35 tons of ammonia by the British Royal Engineer tunnelling companies. Ranked a historic monument in 1998, it is now the only mine crater of the Somme accessible to the public, although its internal access is prohibited due to the risk of collapse.

The explosion of 1 July 1916 at 7:28 a.m., triggered by Welsh miners from 9th Cheshires, marked the beginning of the Franco-British offensive. The detonation projected a column of earth at a height of 1,300 m, creating an initially deep funnel of 30 m. This site, owned by a Britishman named Richard Dunning, became a major memorial site, hosting annual commemorations on July 1 at the exact time of the explosion.

The crater houses a stele dedicated to Private Tom Easton (Tyneside Scottish) and a cross marking the location of the remains of Private George Nugent, buried in the Ovillers necropolis in 1998. A wooden cross-memorial indicates the site's entry, while progressive erosion threatens its conservation. In 2016, the centenary of the battle was celebrated in the presence of the Secretary of State for Veterans, Jean-Marc Todeschini.

This place also symbolizes underground war: both sides dug tunnels to undermine enemy defenses. In the vicinity, another mine (Y Sap) exploded simultaneously near the Bapaume road. Today, the crater, with a volume of 33,440 m3, undergoes natural erosion, its limestone walls risking collapse. There remains a poignant testimony of the 1914-1918 war techniques and a high place of international pilgrimage.

The series Peaky Blinders (season 2, episode 6) mentions this crater, fictitiously attributing its creation to the character Thomas Shelby, a former sapper of the Somme. This cultural reference illustrates the lasting impact of the site in collective memory, well beyond French borders.

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