Part 3 (1/2)
Pitman dug out Lance-Corpl. Sargeant and the other men, being disturbed during the operation by the appearance of a German on the parapet, whom they shot and wounded. Lance-Corpl. Sargeant was no sooner extricated than he collected bombs, and returned to his post only to find two wounded comrades being hauled off by a party of Germans. They received his bombs into their midst and ran back into the darkness behind Cha.s.seur Hedge, where their supports were waiting.
Meanwhile, Posts 4 and 5 remained intact and full of fight. Singing in the intervals between firing:--
'Pack up your troubles in your old kit-bag, And smile, smile, smile,'
they held off the enemy, who could be dimly seen filing through their wire and forming up outside in three lines, distinguished by white armlets. Post 5 soon received a reinforcement of some 20 men under Sergt. V. H. Taylor, who came up from Oxford Street. They had been summoned by Corpl. Page, a most gallant Wokingham man, who volunteered to go back through the fiery curtain of the barrage, which task he accomplished without harm. No further attack was made upon D Company, which escaped with comparatively light casualties. Captain Boyle was afterwards awarded the M.C. for the skill and coolness with which he organised the defence of his sector, and Corpl. Sargeant the Military Medal. The bombardment continued unabated until 2.45, and then ceased suddenly with the first light of dawn. The ruinous state of the trenches made daylight movement difficult and dangerous, as the enemy fired rifle grenades continually at broken points in the communication trenches, causing several casualties among men who were not quick enough in running the gauntlet. In spite of such difficulties all the wounded were evacuated by 10 a.m., though in some cases it took four hours to get the stretcher from the front line to the dressing station in the village. The losses had been heavy, amounting in all to 98, of whom 18 were killed and 29 missing; of these B Company supplied 60, thus losing half of its fighting strength. Many hours were spent next night by parties left behind after the relief of the Battalion in search of the missing, who afterwards were almost without exception reported as prisoners of war. This eventful night was the last spent by the Battalion in the trenches for five weeks; the 48th Division, which had established a record for an unbroken length of service in the line, was being withdrawn into Army Reserve. Thus the Battalion came through their first serious test, and were not found wanting. The praise which Colonel Clarke bestowed next day at Couin on their endurance, discipline and fighting spirit, was repeated by the Divisional General and the Corps Commander.
CHAPTER IX
BEFORE THE BATTLE
The day at Couin was spent in packing and loading up, a task rendered easier by the loan from our good friends, 3rd Warwick Battery, of two G.S. wagons. Early on the 18th we joined the Brigade at St. Leger and marched to Beauval. The day was very hot. The march was mainly through narrow valleys, dense with dust. The Battalion were short of sleep, and very weary, while the sun beat down upon their steel helmets, which they wore for the first time on the march. None the less, Sir A.
Hunter-Weston complimented Colonel Clarke on the way in which they marched past him at Marieux. Beauval was reached at noon, a quiet little country town, with long shady streets; and the billets were very good. The fortnight here was spent in route marches, grouping practices at the range, and platoon and company training in general.
The keen pleasure with which the men turned to drill and small company schemes after the months of trench monotony was very noticeable. A splendid compliment was paid to D Company by the Corps Commander, who met them one day on the march. Stopping their commander, Captain Attride, he said that he had never seen a finer body of men in France; that he was proud of them, and that they had every right to be proud of themselves, for their conduct on the night of the 16th. On the 31st the Brigade made an early start, rising at dawn and moving off at 4 a.m. in a bright, fresh, lovely morning, well-suited for the long march to the St. Riquier training area. The Battalion arrived at their billets, the small village of Maison Roland, some 7 miles north-east of Abbeville, before midday. The inhabitants, who had been unfortunate in the troops quartered on them just before, showed some hostility, closing their houses, and refusing to allow the men to enter. All ill-feeling, however, was rapidly removed. Colonel Clarke had warned the Battalion to do everything to create a good impression, and when we left the Mayor sent a letter thanking all ranks for their behaviour. The whole neighbourhood was a ma.s.s of troops rehearsing the Somme battles on specially prepared areas, where officers remarked on the advantage of being able to move freely without fear of damaging the crops. Some days in succession were spent in Battalion, Brigade and Divisional Training, and all learnt by experience how much the inevitable stagnation and immobility of long-continued trench warfare dull the initiative and lessen the quickness of mind and body. The days were strenuous; reveille, as a rule, was at 4 a.m., and work began at 6 and lasted until 1, leaving the afternoons free, while the nights were twice begun with Brigade attacks, and finished in bivouac.
But the men enjoyed their time; they grew hard for battle, with supple limbs and the indescribable thrill of perfect physical fitness. And in spite of the hard work time was found for recreation; cricket was played again for the first time since the summer days at Hebuterne in 1915, and a Brigade Horse Show created keen interest. In St. Riquier men from all the Division could foregather in the estaminets, one of which possessed a much-coveted billiard table, and sometimes it was even possible to spend a day in the pleasant town of Abbeville.
For the latter part of this training period the Battalion had moved to Gapennes, a village some 6 miles north of Maison Roland, where, as before, hostility shown at arrival was soon changed to friendliness and goodwill.
On June 10th the Battalion set its face again towards the east; and after two days' long and dusty marching we found ourselves again in the huts of Couin, which next day were exchanged for an undesirable and filthy bivouac at Sailly. The preparations of the last month had completely changed the aspect of these forward villages, and it was clear that the time was at hand. Sailly was full of camps and dumps; the bare and desolate slopes to the east harboured tier upon tier of guns. Reliefs from the Brigade worked day and night without a pause in Hebuterne and the adjacent trenches. When the Battalion took over H.
Sector on the 16th, they found every nook and corner of the trenches by night filled with parties digging new dugouts and Stokes mortar emplacements, bringing up gas-cylinders, smoke candles and all the diverse paraphernalia of the modern offensive; while the enemy's artillery and machine guns incessantly hara.s.sed these suspected activities. Otherwise, no incident of especial note occurred during this tour, except a forced landing by one of our machines in front of Puisieux, which drew immediately into the open a mob of inquisitive Germans estimated at several hundreds. The 24th found the battalion back at Couin, where they were to stay until the fateful 1st July. The damp, ill-ventilated and crowded huts were responsible for a good many cases of sore throat and rheumatism. But there was little time to be sick. In the interval between working parties, bayonet fighting and wire-cutting, the last and most significant preparations for attack were made. Blue hearts, the distinguis.h.i.+ng mark of the Battalion, were sewn on to the back of the steel helmet cover, and tin triangles affixed to the haversack, which was to be worn on the back in fighting order. It may be of interest to give in detail the equipment with which the men went into battle. Two sandbags were tucked in front of the belt; one Mills bomb was in each of the bottom pockets of the tunic; 50 extra rounds of ammunition were slung in a bandolier over the right shoulder. In his haversack each man carried one iron ration, cardigan waistcoat, soft cap, and pair of socks; the waterproof sheet was folded and strapped on outside, and the mess-tin fastened to the lowest buckle of the haversack. Every other man carried a pick or shovel slung; and the Brigade, with a more intimate solicitude, advised all ranks to carry a pipe, matches and tobacco.
The bombardment had begun on the 25th, and night after night from the hilltop at Couin watchers saw with exultation and confident expectation, reflected in many letters, the great sh.e.l.ls picking out the enemy's lines with fire.
On July 1st the 48th Division were in Corps Reserve, and took no part in the battle, with the exception of the 5th and 6th Warwicks, who covered themselves with glory in Serre, though suffering terrible losses, which included both their commanding officers. The Division was concentrated for the day round Mailly-Maillet, which we reached about 1 p.m. after numberless checks in the enc.u.mbered roads.
Detachments of Indian Cavalry were resting their horses by the roadside as we pa.s.sed through Bus. The rest of the day was spent in bivouac in an open field; the guns around fired incessantly, including a 15-inch close at hand, but no hostile sh.e.l.l fell near. We were about 3 miles west of Beaumont-Hamel, where the 29th Division were so furiously engaged. All the good news of the morning, the taking of Gommecourt Cemetery and of Serre, had fired expectation, and the disappointment was correspondingly bitter when it was known at nightfall that the 8th Army Corps were everywhere back in their original front line. Next morning the Brigade received orders to attack early on the 3rd, their objective being south of Beaumont-Hamel and beyond the Ancre brook, a piece of country which none of them had seen before. The Brigadier, with the Commanding Officers, tried to get forward during the day and pick up the lie of the land, but the sh.e.l.ling, smoke and dust made observation impossible. The Brigade, therefore, moved up that night to Mesnil, a small ruined village 1 mile behind the line, very much in the dark. As they moved in, many smelt for the first time the curious fragrant odour of lachrymatory gas, which seemed to come from the flowers of some wayside garden until the p.r.i.c.king and watering at the eyes proved otherwise. The Company Commanders went forward into the trenches to find out what they could; to their right loomed a great black ma.s.s, and they debated whether it was a hill or a cloud. Suddenly an array of lights and a flicker of rifle-fire running along the top revealed it as the steep western slopes of Thiepval. A Company was just filing into the trenches when a rumour was brought by Lieut. Hughes that the attack was cancelled; inquiries were made and its truth confirmed. The Battalion returned the way it had come and bivouacked again in Mailly-Maillet at daybreak. The men, who had moved out in high spirits, were greatly cast down by this conclusion. It is, however, a matter for congratulation that the Battalion was not called upon to make its first attack under circ.u.mstances so unfavourable on positions which had defied the elaborate preparations which preceded the a.s.sault on July 1st. Next day guns and limbers pa.s.sed in a steady stream going south--a sure indication that all efforts were being concentrated in widening the breach already made. That evening the Battalion returned to the huts at Couin much depressed at the prospect of taking up again the drab monotony of trench life after hopes aroused in the last few days. The weather now became very bad with almost incessant rain, and we relieved the 5th Gloucesters on July 8th in trenches waist deep in water, badly damaged by the bombardment, and affording the depressing view to right and left of the dead of the 31st and 56th Divisions lying out unburied. Meanwhile a great show of activity was kept up to foster among the enemy the idea that further attacks were intended; new stores of smoke bombs were sent up with instructions when and how to let them off, which were invariably cancelled before performance. Another a.s.saulting trench was dug by the Brigade, running some 700 yards south of that already described, for which the Battalion supplied a small covering party of 50 men, who suffered a few casualties in the bright moonlight. The weather fortunately improved, and we were able to hand over the trenches to the 5th Gloucesters on July 12th dry and in good repair. Next day 100 men went over to see the 5th Battalion in the Bois de Warnimont. Thirteen months ago they had come to us for their first experience of trench warfare; this time a small remnant, they were resting from their attack on Ovillers, where every officer except the C.O. had been killed or wounded. We were now immediately to follow them into battle, for next day a fleet of motor-'buses bore us south to the crowded village of Senlis behind the Ovillers--La Boisselle Sector of the Somme front.
CHAPTER X
THE JULY FIGHTING AT POZIeRES
The successful night attack of July 14th had eaten into the third German line between Longueval and Bazentin-le-Pet.i.t on a front of some three miles. The princ.i.p.al British efforts for the next six weeks were consequently directed towards getting more elbow-room on both flanks.
On the north progress had been greatly hindered by the stubborn resistance of the German Guards at Ovillers, which was not cleared up till July 11th. Our line now skirted the southern orchards of Pozieres, running westwards just north of Ovillers and then curving sharply back to the old front line near Authuille. All this sector was, to our great disadvantage, overlooked and enfiladed by the height of Thiepval; and progress, though steady, was for the most part slow and heavily bought.
On this occasion the Battalion was given ample time to view and get familiar with the ground, as the attack did not take place until July 23rd. Soon after arrival at Senlis the officers went over to La Boisselle. This first sight of the devastated area created the deepest impression. Afterwards such complete destruction became common enough; but till then no one had seen a village literally blown away. Not only the walls, but the very brick dust had vanished; its site could be fixed only by reference to the map and to the board stating ”THIS IS LA BOISSELLE.” Every kind of battle-wreckage lay about, including many dead bodies, ten days unburied in the midsummer heat. But though the guns had done their work so well, enough remained of the wonderful fortified labyrinth to suggest the difficulties of attacking troops.
The Battalion moved up by degrees, bivouacking on the 18th east of Albert in support of the Oxfords; and taking over trenches west of Pozieres next night from 7th Royal Warwicks. Only two platoons of B Company held the short front line; which was naturally of a rough and ready description, shallow and blocked in places by earth or bodies.
The enemy, in hourly antic.i.p.ation of attack, were very restless; their infantry, who appeared to be very thick on the ground, sent up showers of lights and fired at intervals throughout the night hours. Their guns, mostly 5.9-inch and 8-inch, fired almost incessantly; even a comparative lull, it was remarked, would have been counted a heavy bombardment in the old quiet days. Many gas sh.e.l.ls were used, mainly on road junctions and a.s.sembly points in the rear. We had only some seven casualties from this source--our support and reserve companies moved up or down constantly in accordance with the ever-s.h.i.+fting situations. Battalion Headquarters remained in a German dugout in La Boisselle. Though tainted by the foul reek from the village, it earned the admiration of its tenants by its solid and elaborate construction.
The 21st was a day of great activity, stores were brought up all day, and the trenches improved for the attack as far as intense enemy fire would permit. Lieut. Downs that night took out a patrol from the right, who explored the south-west corner of Pozieres in spite of the extreme alertness of the Huns, and returned safely with the most valuable information for which the Anzacs, over whose attacking frontage the patrol had gone, were most grateful. Everyone was glad to have them on our flank, for they were splendid men, full of confidence and keenness.
[Ill.u.s.tration: Map.]
Next day detailed orders were issued for the attack of the 145th Brigade. The two a.s.saulting Battalions, 4th Oxfords and 5th Gloucesters, were allotted a frontage of about 500 yards a-piece. The right flank of the Oxfords rested on the Anzacs at a point some 500 yards west of Pozieres. We were in support to the Oxfords, and, therefore, concerned only with their objectives. To understand the events of the following day it is necessary closely to study the map.
The irregular curve of Sickle Trench, prolonged along the north side of the main road, const.i.tuted our front line. The Huns held a somewhat similar line, with a marked southward bulge; the Oxfords had orders to take the whole of this trench from Point 81 to Point 11. The difficulties of a simultaneous attack on such a p.r.o.nounced salient are obvious, and were increased by the trench running southward from Point 81 for 150 yards, which terminated in a hostile strong point at 97.
The Oxfords attacked at dawn, but were immediately pressed at both flanks, and began to be squeezed into the centre near Point 28. B Company (Captain Aldworth) and C. Company (Captain Lewis), Royal Berks, had come up the main road under cover of darkness and were deployed by 3.30 a.m. (summer time), along a tape running east and west some 250 yards south of the centre of the Oxfords' objective.
Here they waited for information and orders. It was still twilight and no certain information could be gained. Shots were now heard intermittently, and wounded men came back, telling, as wounded men will, contradictory stories. Some said that the Oxfords were wiped out; others that they had captured the trench. Two men were sent forward to reconnoitre, and came back to report that the position was critical. It was now 3.55 a.m.; the day was coming and the enemy barrage was growing more intense. Captain Aldworth at once ordered the two Companies to go forward to the a.s.sistance of the Oxfords. For this prompt decision, which undoubtedly secured the success of the whole operation, and for his bravery throughout, Captain Aldworth was awarded the M.C. The two Companies now advanced into the captured trench, losing some men en route from sh.e.l.l fire, especially on the right, where 2nd Lieut. Clayton was killed. During the advance B Company got split in two, Nos. 5 and 8 Platoons being divided by C Company from Nos. 6 and 7, who entered the left of the trench with Captain Aldworth. The congestion of the men of the two Battalions in the centre of the shallow trench was great, and there could be no security until the flanks were cleared and made good. Point 97 was soon gained, and Lieut. Downs pushed resolutely forward beyond 81, endeavouring to get in touch with the Australians. He reached the heavily-wired German second line, which ran north and south through the outskirts of Pozieres, but was forced back. Returning with about 20 men from all three Companies he barricaded and secured Point 81, after killing 11 Germans in hand-to-hand fighting and capturing 2.