Oxford Graduate and Green-Grocer’s Assistant Win Their Spurs in the
Same Crisis
Sir John French has described the fight for Hill 60 as “the fiercest
fight in which British troops have ever been engaged.” The hill is
southeast of Ypres. Its possession was essential to the British, for
it dominated the surrounding country. The Germans held it, commanding
excellent artillery observation toward the west and northwest. For
months the British had been working to mine it. After much hard work
the sapping was complete and one hundred tons of explosives placed in
position.
Saturday, April 17, 1915, was the appointed day for the great event.
The explosion was timed for seven o’clock in the evening, and,
according to program, up went the hill—Germans and all. It was like an
earthquake. Simultaneously the artillery opened on the spot and poured
in shells at the rate of five a minute. At a quarter past seven the
infantry attack was launched, and the British were in possession of the
ruins.
Then came the second phase—the holding of Hill 60, which was the
hardest task of all, for the German reinforcements came to the assault
by the thousands; but as fast as they came rifle and gun fire mowed
them down.
During the next few days the Germans continued to attack ferociously,
so much importance did they attach to the position.
A private in the East Surreys, writing in the London _Evening News_,
gave the following vivid word-picture of the battle:
“The fight on Hill 60 was awful. The Germans used every kind of
explosive, from small bombs to shells that shook the ground like an
earthquake.
“This went on from four o’clock in the afternoon to about four the next
morning. Every German gun for miles around was trained on that hill.
“Some of the German shells were filled with a stinking acid, which
blinded one. I would rather take my chance in half-a-dozen bayonet
charges than face such an awful bombardment again. The enemy charged
four times, but we beat them back each time, and kept the hill until we
were relieved next morning.”
It was in these nerve-racking engagements that Second Lieutenant
Geoffrey Harold Woolley and Corporal Edward Dwyer were awarded their
honors for distinguished service.