At the start of the Battle of the Somme, a powerful German fortified redoubt stood at this location on a hilltop protecting the approach to Beaumont-Hamel. On July 1, 1916, while all the mines exploded at 7:28 a.m., two minutes before the assault began, Hawthorn Ridge exploded at 7:20 a.m. This was a decision made by Lieutenant-General Hunter-Weston, commanding the 8th Corps. Its explosion certainly caused damage to the fortifications and the German troops, but they had plenty of time to set up their machine guns, much to the misfortune of the British infantrymen who set out to assault this ridge carrying thirty kilos of equipment over a distance of approximately 500 meters.
On November 13, 1916, the final phase of the Battle of the Somme began, ending three days later. Beaumont-Hamel, one of the objectives of July 1st, was still in German hands. This time it was up to the Scots of the 51st Division to capture the village. In support of this attack, a second mine exploded under Hawthorn Ridge (November 26, 1916) a few minutes before the troops rushed from their positions, this time located less than 250 meters away, where today stands the monument to the Scottish regiment of the 8th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. The ruins of Beaumont-Hamel railway station and the village were this time captured.