THE BATTLE OF NEUVE CHAPELLE (1ST BATTALION)
[Sidenote: 1st Batt. March 1915.]
For a long time the question had been discussed whether it was humanly
possible to break through a line of trenches. Owing to the great
defensive power of modern weapons, the thickness of the barbed-wire
obstacles, and the dangers the attacking force would have to run in
leaving their trenches and crossing the open, it was generally believed
that no attack could possibly succeed. Further, in spite of repeated
attempts, the Germans had failed time after time to break through our
line.
But there was another consideration which we had to take into account.
The French had recently suffered enormous losses, with comparatively
small gains to set against them, and they were beginning to think that
since Ypres we had not taken our proper share of the fighting. Sir John
French determined, therefore, to prepare a regularly organised attack on
the enemy's line near Neuve Chapelle. He selected this portion in the
hope that, if the enterprise succeeded and the ridge overlooking Lille
was reached, the La Bassée--Lille line would be threatened. and possibly
the enemy might have to abandon Lille. He communicated his plans to Sir
Douglas Haig in a secret memorandum, and put him in command of the whole
attack.
It was arranged that the assault should be undertaken by the 4th and
Indian Corps in the First Army. The guns were to be massed west of Neuve
Chapelle, and were to smash the wire entanglements, and break down the
enemy's trenches before the infantry attempted to advance. Later they
were to concentrate their fire on the enemy's supports and reserves, and
prevent any more men from being sent up to the firing line. This was the
first time that we used what afterwards became a regular feature of the
attack--the _barrage_ of fire.
The sorely tried Seventh Division was again given a very difficult task,
and the 1st Battalion Grenadiers was once more to bear the brunt of the
attack.
The officers of the Battalion at the time were as follows:
Lieut.-Colonel L. R. Fisher-Rowe, Commanding Officer.
Major G. F. Trotter, M.V.O., D.S.O., Second in Command.
Lieut. C. V. Fisher-Rowe, Adjutant.
Lieut. J. Teece, Quartermaster.
2nd Lieut. E. H. J. Duberly, Machine-gun Officer.
Capt. W. E. Nicol, Bombing Officer.
Captain the Hon. G. H. Douglas-Pennant, King's Company.
Lieut. H. W. Ethelston, King's Company.
2nd Lieut. C. T. R. S. Guthrie, King's Company.
2nd Lieut. C. G. Goschen, King's Company.
Major G. W. Duberly, No. 2 Company.
Lieut. Lord Brabourne, No. 2 Company.
2nd Lieut. C. F. Burnand, No. 2 Company.
2nd Lieut. A. Foster, No. 2 Company.
Capt. E. F. F. Sartorius, No. 3 Company.
2nd Lieut. Lord William Percy, No. 3 Company.
2nd Lieut. G. R. Westmacott, No. 3 Company.
2nd Lieut. R. G. Gelderd-Somervell, No. 3 Company.
Captain the Hon. R. Lygon, M.V.O., No. 4 Company.
Lieut. M. A. A. Darby, No. 4 Company.
Lieut. A. S. L. St. J. Mildmay, No. 4 Company.
_Attached_--Captain G. Petit, R.A.M.C.
[Sidenote: Mar. 10.]
It was on the 10th of March that the attack began. At 7.30 A.M. all the
troops were in position, and a powerful bombardment from our massed
batteries was opened on the trenches protecting Neuve Chapelle, but the
enemy made no reply. After thirty-five minutes' bombardment the infantry
advanced; the Eighth Division and the Garhwal Brigade from the
Anglo-Indian Corps attacked, and captured the village and entrenchments.
But the success thus gained was more or less thrown away, owing to the
delay that occurred in bringing up the Reserve Brigades. All day our men
waited for reinforcements to continue the advance, but by the time they
arrived it was dark. So there was nothing to do but wait until next
morning, and meanwhile the Germans had had time to bring up more troops.
[Illustration: Battle of Neuve Chapelle. March 11th, 1915.]
[Sidenote: Mar. 11.]
Being in the Reserve Brigade, the 1st Battalion Grenadiers did not reach
the firing line till the following morning, when the weather was thick
and misty. This made artillery observation impossible, and as many of
the telephone wires had been cut by the enemy's shells on the previous
day, communication between the different Brigades became a matter of
great difficulty. The position of affairs now stood thus: the Eighth
Division had carried the German trenches north of Neuve Chapelle, but
had not succeeded in crossing the River des Layes, and the Garhwal
Brigade on their right had also been held up in front of the Bois du
Biez. The Seventh Division was on the extreme left, with the 21st and
22nd Brigades in the firing line and the 20th Brigade in support. The
21st Brigade was reported to be holding a position with its right
resting on the captured German trenches some two hundred yards east of
Moated Grange, and in touch with the Eighth Division, but it was soon
discovered that it did not extend so much to its right as it imagined,
and the 20th Brigade was therefore sent up to fill the gap. The attack
along the whole line was delayed until the leading battalions of the
20th Brigade were ready.
The 1st Battalion Grenadiers was now ordered to move up into the old
British line of trenches. It started off at 4 A.M., led by
Brigadier-General Heyworth, and after passing down the Rue du Bacquerot
struck off across the fields, keeping along a trolly line. Dawn was just
breaking, and the flashes of the shells lit up the sinister sky. The
trolly line ended on a road where, in the uncertain light, glimpses
could be caught of trestles, barbed wire, and ammunition boxes, standing
near the remains of a house. Now for the first time bullets could be
heard striking the trees, and the men realised that they were nearing
the front line. The men in front eager to go forward moved rather too
fast, which made it difficult for those in the rear to keep touch with
them, and the platoon leaders, afraid of losing touch with the rest of
the Battalion, had even to urge the men to double. On reaching the Rue
Tilleloy, the Battalion followed it for a few hundred yards south,
keeping behind a breastwork until it came to a road which led to the
left, and apparently ended in a ruined farm. There it received orders to
go into some support trenches, and at 7 A.M. Lieut.-Colonel Fisher-Rowe
sent for the Company Commanders, and explained their orders to them. The
Battalion was to advance in columns of platoons at fifty yards interval
in the following order:
No. 2 Company The King's Company
Platoon 5, 2nd Lieut. Foster Platoon 1, Lieut. Ethelston
Platoon 6, 2nd Lieut. Burnand Platoon 2, 2nd Lieut. Guthrie
Platoon 7, Lieut. Lord Platoon 3, 2nd Lieut. Goschen
Brabourne
Platoon 8, Major Duberly Platoon 4, Capt.
Douglas-Pennant
Leaving the old British line it advanced across the open, over trenches
which had been captured from the Germans the day before. Almost
immediately after the advance began, Captain Douglas-Pennant was struck
by a shell, and mortally wounded just as he had emerged from a trench,
and was looking round to see whether his company was going in the right
direction.
When the accounts written by the Divisional and Brigade Staffs are
compared with those written by the Commanding Officer and individual
officers, there can be no doubt that the information, which trickled
back during the day's fighting, was often so incorrect, that it led not
only General Capper, but also General Heyworth, to form entirely wrong
conclusions as to what was happening in front, and the orders issued
were in many instances unintelligible. Communication between the
Battalion and the Brigade was maintained by orderlies, and on several
occasions when the orderlies were killed the orders never reached the
front line, or reached it so long after they had been despatched that
the situation in front had completely changed. It hardly seems to have
been realised at Divisional Headquarters, how much the artillery
bombardments on both sides had obliterated all landmarks. Roads were
mentioned of which no trace could be seen, and the four lines of
trenches, the old and the new German lines, and the old and the new
British lines, no doubt added considerably to the lack of clearness in
the orders.
The whole position was most complicated, as the Germans had been only
partially driven back on the 10th, and consequently their line in places
faced in different directions. Though Neuve Chapelle itself was in our
hands, the enemy still occupied part of their old line farther north. In
order to attack this position, it was necessary to come down the old
British trench, and then advance due west for a quarter of a mile, after
which the attacking force had to wheel round, and go in a northerly
direction.
Whether such intricate manoeuvres could ever have been successfully
accomplished in the face of machine-gun fire is very doubtful, but there
seems to have been no other way of attacking this part of the enemy's
line, which jutted out at right angles, and made any advance by the
Eighth Division an impossibility.
To accomplish its difficult task, the 1st Battalion Grenadiers started
with the Gordons on their left. It had hardly reached the road when it
came in for a murderous enfilade fire from the German machine-guns on
its left front, which very much puzzled the men, who imagined the enemy
to be straight in front of them. Two platoons under Lieutenant Ethelston
and Second Lieutenant A. Foster had pushed on, and were quite one
hundred yards ahead of the rest of the line, but No. 2 Company on the
left, being nearest to the German machine-guns, lost very heavily.
Lieutenant Lord Brabourne and Second Lieutenant C. F. Burnand were
killed, in addition to a large number of N.C.O.'s and men. Soon
afterwards Second Lieutenant A. Foster was mortally wounded, being hit
in five places.
Meanwhile the Gordon Highlanders in the orchard were held up by the
enemy, and could make no headway against the machine-guns in front of
them. Lieut.-Colonel Fisher-Rowe, after having gone round the front
line, saw clearly that unless steps were taken to silence this
machine-gun fire on the left his Battalion would soon be annihilated. He
accordingly sent back a message to Brigade Headquarters explaining his
position. Apparently he was under the impression that the Battalion had
reached the River des Layes, but as a matter of fact it was astride a
small stream much farther back. General Heyworth ordered him to hold on
where he was, in the hope that when the Gordons cleared the orchard the
Grenadiers would be able to press home their attack.
The platoons had naturally telescoped up during this advance, as those
in rear were always pushing on to get into the front trenches.
Sergeant-Major Hughes, in command of the last platoon of the King's
Company, was joined by Lieutenant Westmacott with his platoon, and soon
afterwards by Lieutenant Somervell. Lieutenant Goschen also managed to
get his platoon up to the front trench, where Lieutenant Duberly with
his machine-gun arrived a little later. No. 4 Company under Captain
Lygon, having passed through two lines of trenches occupied mostly by
the Devonshire Regiment, had come up on the left of No. 2. Lieutenant
Darby with No. 13 Platoon managed to cross a ditch full of water by
means of a plank bridge, and get touch with the Gordon Highlanders; but
when Lieutenant Mildmay attempted to follow with his platoon, he found
the enemy had a machine-gun trained on it, and had to wade through the
water farther to the left. Captain Sartorius was seriously wounded as he
came along at the head of No. 3 Company; his two orderlies attempted to
carry him back, but were both shot. Second Lieutenant Lord William
Percy, who was close behind, was wounded in the thigh; Lieutenant A.
Darby was shot through the heart as he was lighting a cigarette, and
Second Lieutenant Mildmay, who was close to him, was badly wounded. The
casualties among the other ranks were very heavy.
The 1st Battalion Grenadiers found itself from the start in a hopeless
situation, and was enfiladed the moment it crossed the road.
But it continued to go forward in spite of the German machine-guns, and
stubbornly held on to the position it had gained. Men who had been
wounded early in the day had to be left lying where they fell, and many
of them were subsequently killed by shrapnel. The King's Company was
unfortunate enough to lose two of its best sergeants: Sergeant Russell
was killed, as he followed Lieutenant Ethelston into the front trench,
and Sergeant Annis fell somewhat later.
Just before dark the Battalion received orders to dig in where it was,
and the advanced position to which Lieutenant Ethelston and his platoons
clung had to be reached by a communication trench. The darkness made all
communication very difficult, and the piteous cries of the wounded and
dying, who asked not to be trodden on, added to the troubles of the
officers, who were trying to collect their platoons. When orders were
subsequently received for the Battalion to retire and get into some
reserve trenches, it was found that the casualties had been very heavy.
It was disappointing to learn that the British line on the right had
been 200 yards ahead of the Battalion, and that all the losses had been
incurred in passing over ground captured by the Eighth Division.
The Battalion assembled by degrees, and retired to the place appointed
to it, which was not far from the junction of the three roads. During
its retirement Second Lieutenant R. G. Somervell was mortally wounded,
and was picked up by a stretcher-bearer of another battalion. Rations
were brought up and issued, and the men afterwards got what sleep they
could, but they were wet through, and spent a most uncomfortable night.
Lieutenant Ethelston was now in command of the King's Company, and
Second Lieutenant Westmacott of No. 3, while Major Duberly and Captain
Lygon retained command of their companies.
[Sidenote: Mar. 12.]
Having grasped the gravity of the situation, the Germans were now
hurrying up guns and men to the threatened portion of the line as fast
as they could. At an early hour they opened a savage bombardment on the
trenches, and almost continuously throughout the morning shells were
falling round the men in rapid succession. Only two actually dropped
amongst the Grenadiers, but these caused many casualties.
In the afternoon the Battalion was ordered to support the Scots Guards,
who were to undertake the attack with the Border Regiment. The orders
were to advance with the right on the Moulin du Piètre, but although
this looked on paper a perfectly clear landmark, it was not so easy to
locate from the trenches. In the orders the abbreviation Mn. was used
for Moulin, which was new to the majority of platoon commanders, but
even those who knew its meaning were quite unable to discover the mill.
They could not see much through their periscopes, and nothing at all
resembling a mill was to be observed. Presumably, as the Grenadiers were
to support the Scots Guards, they should have followed them, and made a
considerable détour; but the Staff Officer who directed the initial
stages of the advance appears to have told them to go straight for the
Moulin du Piètre.
From information obtained from a German prisoner it appeared that the
enemy intended to retake Neuve Chapelle that day at all costs, and that
reinforcements had been sent up to enable them to do so. Major Trotter
with the left half Battalion started off down the road leading past
Brigade Headquarters, where he was joined by Captain Palmer, the Brigade
Staff Captain. No. 4 Company under Captain Lygon was here ordered to
advance in two lines with two platoons of No. 3 under Sergeant Powell
and Sergeant Langley in support. After having gone forward for about
half a mile it came under enfilade fire from the right, which seemed to
indicate that it was not going in the right direction. Captain Lygon
decided to bear to the right, and sent word to Lieutenant Westmacott,
who was farther back with the remainder of No. 3, to swing round in that
direction, as they were all going too far to the left. He himself hit
off a communication trench which led to the front line, but after the
leading half company had passed through, the Germans trained a
machine-gun down this trench, which made it impossible for the remainder
to follow. Half of No. 4 Company and the two platoons of No. 3 therefore
took refuge in a ruined house. Captain Lygon endeavoured to move down
the front trench to the right, but found all farther progress stopped by
a deep stream which cut the trench in two. After several ineffectual
attempts to cross this stream, he turned back, but the German
machine-gun made all attempts to return by the communication trench an
impossibility. His half company was practically caught in a trap, from
which it would be impossible to escape in daylight. There was therefore
nothing to do but to wait until it was dark. Eventually, Lieutenant
Fisher-Rowe, the Adjutant, who had been sent in search of this lost
company, swam the stream, and told Captain Lygon what was happening on
the right.
[Illustration: Battle of Neuve Chapelle. March 12th, 1915.]
Major G. Trotter had been hit in the head by a shrapnel bullet, and
although the wound was not serious it placed him _hors de combat_ for
the rest of the day.
Meanwhile, the remainder of the Battalion, after waiting two hours,
received orders to advance, but after passing the old British line,
instead of keeping straight on, it began to swing to the left, in the
same way as No. 4 had done. Lieutenant Westmacott, observing this, ran
forward to tell the platoons to swing round to the right, but in the
smoke it was not easy for the platoon leaders to make out what exactly
was the objective.
There seems no doubt that for some time the Grenadiers were lost in the
labyrinth of trenches, but in spite of all their difficulties the right
half Battalion succeeded in getting eventually to its proper place.
About the same time Lieut.-Colonel Fisher-Rowe, who came up with the
companies in support, was struck in the head by a bullet and killed. The
death of "the old friend," as he was always called, was a great loss. He
had proved himself so good a Commanding Officer, and inspired the whole
Battalion with such confidence, that he was not easily replaced.
The Scots Guards and Border Regiment having made a most gallant assault
without any bombardment to aid them, managed to capture some of the
German front trenches, and the 1st Battalion Grenadiers which, with the
exception of No. 4 Company, had got up to its right place, was now ready
to support them. Seeing an opportunity of taking another bit of trench,
Lieutenant Westmacott advanced with some men of his company, who were
able to throw their grenades at the retiring Germans. Men of the
Wiltshire and Border Regiments joined in, and soon bombs were flying
about in every direction.
But the event which overshadowed all other trench fighting was the
advance of Captain Nicol with his bombers. This was watched with
admiration by the whole line, and the Germans could be seen pursued
everywhere by the Grenadier bombers, and surrendering in large numbers.
Meanwhile Private Barber advanced by himself down one of the enemy's
communication trenches with a bag of bombs: when a bullet from one of
the enemy's snipers struck the bombs he was carrying, he threw them
away, and they exploded. Gathering up a fresh supply from a dead man, he
rushed along, throwing them with such effect that a large number of
Germans put up their hands and surrendered. He continued his advance
until he was shot by a sniper, and was responsible for taking over one
hundred prisoners. For this conspicuous act of bravery he was awarded
the Victoria Cross.
Another gallant exploit was also rewarded by the Victoria Cross.
Lance-Corporal W. D. Fuller, seeing a party of the enemy trying to
escape along a communication trench, ran towards it, and killed the
leading man with a bomb. The remainder, finding no means of evading his
bombs, surrendered to him, although he was quite alone.
Major Nicol himself was later awarded the D.S.O., and many thought that
he should have received the V.C.
The enemy could be seen streaming away, and the rifle-fire consequently
dwindled to nothing. The ground was torn up by shellfire, so that all
landmarks were obliterated, and the dead and dying were lying about in
large numbers everywhere. Major-General Capper sent an order to the
Battalion to support the Scots Guards by attacking a point in the German
line to their right. The order was received by Lieutenant Westmacott,
who found that the situation had so altered since the order was written
that it would mean having his right flank in the air, and exposed to
enfilade fire. He therefore consulted Colonel Wood, commanding the
Border Regiment, who also thought the time had passed for an attack of
this nature, and advised him to remain where he was in support of the
Scots Guards.
Not entirely convinced, Lieutenant Westmacott ran back to consult Major
Duberly, and met him as he was coming up with the Adjutant, Lieutenant
Fisher-Rowe. All three officers returned to the firing trench to discuss
the point again with Colonel Wood, and although Major Duberly was at
first strongly in favour of carrying out the order, it was eventually
agreed that to take on the attack ordered some hours ago, under entirely
different conditions, would mean practical annihilation.
Soon afterwards orders were received for the Battalion to withdraw to
the original line fifty yards in rear, where they remained for the
night. The only officers left with the Battalion were Major Duberly, in
command; Lieutenant Fisher-Rowe, Adjutant; Lieutenant Ethelston, King's
Company; Second Lieutenant C. G. Goschen, No. 2; Lieutenant Westmacott,
No. 3; Captain Lygon, No. 4; and Second Lieutenant Duberly with the
machine-guns.
During the night Major Duberly and Captain Lygon went up to reconnoitre
the Royal Scots Fusiliers' trenches, from which the Battalion was
expected to attack the next morning. On their return Major Duberly went
to Brigade Headquarters to discuss the situation with General Heyworth,
who decided to go round the trenches himself. He accordingly started
off, accompanied by Captain Lygon, and having visited the front trench
gave orders for the Grenadiers to relieve the Royal Scots Fusiliers on
the right of the line, with a view to attacking Moulin du Piètre.
[Sidenote: Mar. 13.]
Unfortunately the rations had only just arrived, and were being
distributed when the orders were received. As it was essential that this
move should be accomplished before daylight it was impossible to see
that each man received his rations before the Battalion moved off. They
started at 3.30, led by Captain Lygon. Owing to the darkness and the
lines of trenches to be crossed, progress was necessarily slow. Though
the distance was only 1000 yards, the constant climbing in and out of
trenches in the dark, the shell-holes, and the remains of barbed-wire
obstacles, made it seem interminable.
On the way Lieutenant Westmacott, who was standing on the parapet
directing his men where to cross over a trench, was blown up by a bomb
thrown by a wounded German who was lying close by. He had a wonderful
escape, and although completely stunned, he recovered sufficiently to
join his company again later in the day. The Battalion was sadly in need
of officers, and he insisted on returning that evening in spite of his
dazed condition.
Captain Lygon led the Battalion over a maze of wet trenches and ditches
to where the Royal Scots Fusiliers were in front of the Moulin du
Piètre, and the companies as they came up were ordered to get into the
trenches. But as the day dawned slowly it was found that there was no
room in the trenches for the men, as the Royal Scots Fusiliers were
still there, and there was not time for them to get away. There were but
some mere scratches in the earth, which would hardly hold a quarter of
the men. The lighter it got the more obvious became the peril of the
Battalion's position. Major Duberly did all he could. Absolutely
regardless of danger, he went about shouting to the men to dig
themselves in where they were, and endeavouring to establish
communication between the groups of men who were making themselves some
sort of shelter.
Soon after daybreak the firing became intense, and the whole ground was
ploughed up with shells and furrowed with machine-gun bullets. Major
Duberly was killed early in the day, and Lieutenant Fisher-Rowe, who
came down a communication trench filled with water, was wounded in the
leg and unable to move, just as he had nearly reached the trench. His
satchel, containing the orders, was passed up by the men to Captain
Lygon in the front trench. The orders were to the effect that the
Grenadiers were to attack Moulin du Piètre in co-operation with the
Eighth Division on the right after a bombardment, which would last from
9 to 9.30 A.M. The Gordons were to attack on the left.
[Illustration: Neuve Chapelle. March 13th 1915.]
Captain Lygon, on whom the command of the Battalion now devolved, found
himself in a position of extreme difficulty. Owing to the distances
between the groups he had no means of sending messages to the men on the
right and left, and the roar of musketry and bursting shells made all
communication by word of mouth out of the question, though it was
evident that before an attack could be carried out with any prospect of
success, the men would have to be formed up and got into some sort of
order, in spite of the withering fire.
To make matters worse, some of our own heavy guns were dropping shells
on the trenches occupied by the Gordon Highlanders, under the impression
that that part of the line was held by the Germans. The Gordons wisely
withdrew to their support trenches until the mistake was rectified.
As our attack was to be made at the same time as that of the Gordons, it
was more than ever necessary to wait until they were in a position to
co-operate. The enemy on the right front was causing most of the
casualties, and owing to the curve in the trenches would have enfiladed
any advance on Moulin du Piètre. Captain Lygon wriggled down the shallow
trench, over the legs of the men, to consult the Gordons, but found that
any attack from them was for the moment impossible. The Eighth Division
was in equal difficulties, and found it impossible to attack.
There was, then, nothing to be done but to lie out in the open and wait
for further orders, and in the infernal din of shell-fire the Battalion
went through a terrible ordeal. The shallow scratches they had managed
to dig gave little protection, and the casualties were consequently very
heavy. One incident may be quoted to give some idea of the way in which
the men's nerves were strained. Two men were observed to get up and walk
about, and were shouted at, and told to lie down. All they did was to
smile inanely, and very soon, of course, they were shot by the enemy.
They had gone clean off their heads.
Twice orderlies were sent back with a report of the position occupied,
and when it was dark Captain Lygon sent Lieutenant Westmacott to report
the situation to Brigade Headquarters, while the Gordon Highlanders sent
a subaltern on the same errand.
Captain Petit with the stretcher-bearers behaved in the most gallant
manner, and succoured the wounded oblivious of shells and bullets.
Orders were at last sent to the Grenadiers and Gordon Highlanders to
withdraw, and to march to Laventie, but owing partly to a mistake on the
part of the guides, partly to the darkness, the Battalion did not reach
its billets until 2 A.M. The only three officers left with the Battalion
now were Captain Lygon, Lieutenant Goschen, and Lieutenant Duberly; but
Major Trotter, who had recovered from his wound, met them on arrival,
and took over command.
It was a source of deep disappointment to the men to feel that many
lives had been lost, and little accomplished. On each day the Battalion
had been given a very difficult and intricate task, and it was entirely
owing to the indomitable pluck of the men that, in spite of all their
difficulties, they had invariably succeeded in reaching their
destination.
The casualties in the Battalion at Neuve Chapelle were 16 officers and
325 N.C.O.'s and men. Lieut.-Colonel L. R. Fisher-Rowe, Major G. W.
Duberly, Captain the Hon. G. H. Douglas-Pennant, Captain E. F. F.
Sartorius, Lieutenant H. W. Ethelston, Lieutenant Lord Brabourne,
Lieutenant M. A. A. Darby, Second Lieutenant C. F. Burnand, Second
Lieutenant A. C. Foster, Second Lieutenant R. Gelderd-Somervell were
killed, and Major G. F. Trotter, D.S.O., Lieutenant C. V. Fisher-Rowe,
Second Lieutenant C. T. R. S. Guthrie, Second Lieutenant Lord William
Percy, Second Lieutenant G. R. Westmacott, and Second Lieutenant A. L.
St. J. Mildmay were wounded.
The total British losses during three days' fighting were: 190 officers
and 2337 other ranks killed, 359 officers and 8174 other ranks wounded,
and 23 officers and 1728 other ranks missing.
Ten days later Major-General Capper sent the following message to the
Battalion:
The Divisional General has now received the report on the action of
Neuve Chapelle on March 10-14. He desires to express his
appreciation of the steady conduct of the 1st Battalion Grenadier
Guards, which maintained a difficult position in the open under very
adverse circumstances. The conduct of Lance-Corporal W. Fuller and
Private T. Barber and the grenade-throwers of this Battalion
commands the admiration of every one who heard of their exploits,
and testifies in the highest degree to the gallant spirit which
animates this Battalion.
At the end of the month the Commanding Officer conveyed to the Battalion
stretcher-bearers a message received from the G.O.C. Seventh Division,
expressing his appreciation of the courage and devotion to duty
displayed by them during the recent action.
Moreover, when Sir John French, the Commander-in-Chief, inspected the
Battalion with the rest of the 20th Brigade in April, he made them a
short but most impressive speech, in which he praised their conduct at
Neuve Chapelle, and referred to the heavy losses they had suffered. He
made a special reference to the gallant death of Lieut.-Colonel
Fisher-Rowe.
In a private letter written by command of the King to Colonel
Streatfeild, Lieut.-Colonel C. Wigram said:
The King has read your letter of the 17th inst., and is much
distressed to hear how terribly the 1st Battalion suffered. It is
indeed heart-breaking to see a good Battalion like this decimated in
a few hours. His Majesty has heard from the Prince of Wales, who has
seen the remnants of the Battalion, and he told His Majesty how
splendidly they had taken their losses.
Major G. Trotter, in spite of his wound in the head, insisted on
returning, and took command of the Battalion, and Lieutenant Charles
Greville, who had rejoined the Battalion on the last day of the battle
of Neuve Chapelle, was appointed Adjutant. Captain Nicol and Lieutenant
C. Mitchell, who had been employed at Brigade Headquarters, returned to
the Battalion.
On the 15th Major Lord Henry Seymour and Captain J. Hughes came from the
2nd Battalion. On the 20th a draft of 350 men arrived with the following
officers: Captain M. Maitland, Captain G. C. G. Moss, Lieutenant the
Earl of Dalkeith, Lieutenant Lord Stanley, Second Lieutenant the Hon. C.
Hope Morley, and Second Lieutenant A. B. Lawford.
On the 21st Lieut.-Colonel C. Corkran arrived and took command of the
Battalion, and on the 24th Lieutenant C. Mitchell was appointed Adjutant
in the place of Lieutenant C. Greville, who proceeded to Brigade
Headquarters for duty with the Grenade Company.
The greater part of the rest of the month was spent in billets, when the
Battalion was reorganised, but the usual routine was followed, and the
Battalion took its turn in the trenches.
[Sidenote: April.]
Nothing worth recording happened in April. The days that were spent in
the trenches were uneventful, and when in reserve the Battalion went
into billets at Estaires. On the 2nd, Lieutenant Corry and Lieutenant
St. Aubyn, on the 21st a draft of thirty men under Second Lieutenant C.
Dudley Smith, and on the 27th Captain F. L. V. Swaine, Second Lieutenant
E. O. R. Wakeman, and Lieutenant L. E. Parker joined the Battalion.
[Sidenote: May.]
The first few days in May were spent in the trenches, which the enemy's
artillery at times shelled very heavily. It was thought at first that
this denoted an attack, but although the Battalion stood to arms nothing
serious in the way of an attack developed. On the 3rd Captain J.
Morrison was wounded, and there was a certain number of casualties. On
the 2nd Captain T. Dickinson, 16th Cavalry, Indian Army, was attached to
the Battalion, and on the 12th Captain W. S. Pilcher arrived.
On the 9th the 1st Battalion Grenadiers with the remainder of the 20th
Brigade moved up to the support trenches in rear of the Eighth Division,
but was not called upon to go into action.