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HISTORY
of the
11th FIELD COMPANY
AUSTRALIAN ENGINEERS
Australian Imperial Force
LONDON:
WAR NARRATIVES PUBLISHING COY.,
11, Pilgrim Street, E.C. 4.
1919.
DEDICATION
To the Memory of Those Who Fell.
PREFACE.
This History of the doings of a Field Company of Australian Engineers,
this little book about a little unit in the Great War, has been
written of the Company, by the Company, for the Company.
It lays no claim to interest the outsider, but does hope to provide a
framework on which the old member of the unit can build up memories of
his days in the field with the A.I.F. Memories both grave and gay;
mention of a dugout at so-and-so may recall that the job cost the life
of a mate; the name of a village may raise a smile at the recollection
of some good jest so likely to be conceived when high-spirited men are
gathered together. The framework is admittedly bare, and the tale
might have been made much longer, but it is necessary to restrict the
cost of printing in order that the intention may be realised, of
distributing at the expense of regimental funds one copy to every man
whose name appears on the muster roll. The unit records show the
address of the next-of-kin in Australia of every man, and to this
address a copy is to be posted. The same considerations of expense
prevent the inclusion of maps, but it is hoped that almost every home
in Australia will possess a map of the war zone in France, to which
reference can be made.
Bernapré, Somme, France.
March, 1919.
CONTENTS.
PAGE.
CHAPTER I. EARLY DAYS 7
” II. MESSINES, YPRES, AND AFTER 15
” III. THE DEFENCE OF AMIENS 21
” IV. THE GREAT OFFENSIVE 36
APPENDIX I. ROLL OF HONOUR 48
” II. “LINE” SERVICE 49
” III. STRENGTH STATEMENT 50
” IV. NUMBER OF PRISONERS 50
” V. VARIOUS STATISTICS 51
” VI. ANALYSIS OF OFFENCES 51
” VII. ROLL OF HONOUR (AWARDS) 52
” VIII. NOMINAL ROLL (continuous service, FRANCE) 53
” IX. MUSTER ROLL 54
EXPLANATORY NOTE 75
HISTORY OF THE 11TH FIELD COMPANY
AUSTRALIAN ENGINEERS.
CHAPTER I.
EARLY DAYS.
1. AUSTRALIA, ENGLAND, AND FRANCE.
The Company was formed in Australia, Headquarters and Nos. 1 and 2
sections being raised in the Fourth Military District, and two
sections in the First Military District. Selection of personnel
commenced in the beginning of March, 1916, but Officers had previously
been selected and trained at the Engineer Officers’ Training School,
Sydney. The O.C. (Captain R. J. Donaldson), 2nd in command (Lieut. O.
B. Williams), and a number of N.C.O.’s and men came from the 12th
Field Company A.E., C.M.F., at Broken Hill; 2nd-Lieut. J. M. Norton
from the 11th Field Coy., A.E., C.M.F. (Adelaide); while 2nd-Lieut. S.
W. Matters came from South Australia, and 2nd-Lieuts. R. W. Lahey and
H. St. A. Murray, from Queensland.
The quotas were collected and trained separately, that from South
Australia at Mitcham Camp, near Adelaide, and the Queensland sections
at Enoggera, near Brisbane, until 29th April, 1916, when the Company
concentrated at Mitcham. Work was then carried on with the full
Company, at the same time stores and equipment were slowly collected.
Horses were issued from the remount depôt, not for overseas service
but for training purposes, but proved so wild as to give the drivers
more practice in colt-breaking and riding buck jumpers than in the
routine of military horse mastership and drill.
The technical stores of a Field Company are very extensive, but by
ransacking Adelaide warehouses to fill the gaps in the available army
supplies, Ordnance succeeded in almost completing the equipment. Two
tool carts came from 12th Field Company, C.M.F., at Broken Hill
(afterwards re-numbered the 11th), and one from a Queensland Field
Coy. The pontoons were made at Cockatoo Docks in New South Wales, but
the Weldon trestles, bridging wagons, and water cart were not ready in
time. The Sappers were issued with green leather infantry equipment,
but this was afterwards changed in England for web. No rifles were
issued until the unit reached England.
Embarkation took place at Outer Harbour (Adelaide) on 31st May, 1916,
on H.M.A.T. A 29, s.s. “Suevic,” in company with the 11th Field
Ambulance (Lieut.-Col. Downey).
After a rough trip round the Lleuwin the “Suevic” arrived at Fremantle
on 6th June, 1916, and embarked the 44th Battalion (Lieut.-Col.
Mansbridge, D.S.O., who became C.O. troops).
Crossing the Indian Ocean the vessel sprung a small leak which
necessitated calling at Durban for the services of a diver. The stay
was only twenty-four hours (21st June, 1916), but the troops had a
route march through the town.
Cape Town was reached on 24th June, 1916, and left on 27th. As was
expected the yellow flag was flown and no leave was granted, but the
troops had a route march and a sports meeting.
The next port of call was St. Vincent, reached on the 11th July, 1916.
No one was allowed on shore. The run from here was through the
submarine zone, and was attended with the usual discomforts. The
pontoons of the Company first saw service being installed on the boat
deck as emergency lifeboats.
Finally, after a long voyage, during which there was a considerable
amount of sickness and the death of one member of the unit,
disembarkation took place on July 21st, 1916, at Plymouth. The unit
entrained to Amesbury and marched to Camp 20, Lark Hill, Salisbury
Plains, joining up with the 3rd Australian Division, then slowly
concentrating. The Company was the first of the Divisional Engineers
to arrive, and at once came under the orders of Lieut.-Col. H. O.
Clogstoun, R.E., C.R.E., of the division.
Before commencing training, the members of the unit received four
days’ disembarkation leave, which was keenly enjoyed after the
confinement and discomfort of the troopship. Work had barely started
at Lark Hill before orders were received to proceed to Brightlingsea,
in Essex, for pontoon training, in the Engineer depôt there. No camp
being available, all ranks were billeted on the townspeople, and were
the first Australians to visit the place. Some surprise was expressed
at the lightness of complexion and English speech of the visitors, and
both the military authorities and the townspeople were agreeably
surprised to find that their lives and property were not appreciably
jeopardised by the wild Colonial soldiery.
The visit, originally intended to last only until efficiency had been
reached in pontooning, was afterwards extended to include a full
course of R.E. training, and some work on the East Coast defences, and
it was not until two months had elapsed that the Company rejoined the
Division at Lark Hill.
The unit took part in two sports meetings at Brightlingsea. In the
first it was beaten by a Highland Field Company, R.E., stationed in
the town, and in the second carried off a silver cup in competition
with the local Naval Forces and with the 10th Field Company, which had
arrived for training.
After the return to the division at Lark Hill, training in field works
in conjunction with infantry was undertaken; the trench system at
Bustard will always be remembered by the original members of the unit.
A specially interesting exercise was a route march, under tactical
conditions, lasting five days, from Lark Hill, through Chitterne,
Westbury, Devizes, Pusey, and back to camp.
Another interesting experience was a fifteen-mile route march of the
whole division with full transport. On another occasion, officers and
senior N.C.O.’s took part in a divisional tactical exercise, which was
memorable chiefly for the coldness of the wind, which preluded a fall
of snow――the first many members of the Company had seen.
Equipment was completed in every respect at Lark Hill, and horses and
mules “taken on strength.” On the 24th November, 1916, after three
months in England, the unit left for France with the 3rd Division,
going by train to Southampton, and embarking there on the B.I., s.s.
“Nirvana,” which reached Le Havre next morning. In pouring rain the
company marched to the wretched Docks “Rest” Camp and distributed
itself among sodden tents, thoroughly wet and uncomfortable. The field
rations were first encountered in this camp, and the Sappers often
laughed afterwards at memories of their eager search for pork in the
first tins of pork and beans. The march to the railway station on the
evening of the 26th was interrupted by numerous long and exasperating
delays; the entraining arrangements were bad, and the journey by train
very cold, and so much longer than was anticipated, that food supplies
left much to be desired.
It was not until noon on the 28th that Bailleul was reached. From
there the unit proceeded at once to billets at Bleu near Vieux
Berquin, the transport by route march, and the Sappers in grey-painted
disreputable London ’buses.
The exposure and discomfort involved in these first adventures in
France――which contrasted so strongly with the expeditious and
altogether excellent arrangements on the other side of the
Channel――resulted in a good deal of illhealth in the unit, and when on
the 30th a move was made to Steenwerck, where Divisional Headquarters
had been established, a number of men were suffering from bronchitis
and similar troubles.
On the 3rd December, Company Headquarters and Nos. 3 and 4 sections
moved into Armentières, and billeted in the tram sheds at
L’Attargette, but Nos. 1 and 2 remained with the transport in the
Steenwerck area, and were kept busy on hutments and stables for the
division for some little time longer.
2. ARMENTIÈRES.
When the 3rd Australian Division first went into the line east of
Armentières, the 9th Brigade took over the right or L’Epinette sector
astride the Lille railway, while the 10th Brigade was on the left or
Houplines sector. The 11th Brigade was in reserve, and with it the
11th Field Company, which took over from the New Zealand Engineers of
“Franks Force” the care of the Lys River bridges and also various jobs
for the artillery covering the divisional front.
The billets in the town were a great improvement on the dilapidated,
damp, and entirely filthy hutments taken over by the division around
Steenwerck. The mud around the stables and horse standings in the area
was quite appalling, and the transport had no relief until the famous
frost of the winter ’16-17 descended on the land and made all clean
and dry for a time.
The tramway sheds at L’Attargette, on the northern outskirts of the
town, contained a number of cars, which were fitted up by the men of 3
and 4 sections as cubicles. Headquarters was established in the
tramway offices, and when Nos. 1 and 2 sections joined up some two or
three weeks later they found quite good quarters in the neighbouring
Rue de Flandres.
All the existing bridges over the river Lys around Armentières and
Houplines had been prepared for demolition, but charges, fittings, and
magazines all required a great deal of work.
A number of emergency floating bridges――both pontoon and barrel
pier――also required attention and repairs. To facilitate bridge
inspection No. 4 section built a rowing boat. Another little job was
the construction from salvaged material of a spring cart, which
accompanied the unit in all its subsequent wanderings, and was always
known as the Souvenir Cart.
Work for the artillery consisted in the construction of O.P.’s and of
gunpits among the ruins of Houplines and the outskirts of the town.
Lieut. R. W. Lahey was wounded in the head by shrapnel while on this
work and evacuated, but returned to the unit shortly afterwards.
The 11th Brigade relieved the 9th Brigade on the 24th December, and at
the same time the 11th Field Company took over from the 9th, after
spending several days in acquiring knowledge of the trenches. Nos. 1
and 2 sections had previously moved to Armentières. Very vigorous work
on trench improvements was at once commenced and an extraordinary
amount accomplished. In spite of the unfavourable weather large
numbers of dugouts for the accommodation of the garrisons were built,
new communication trenches dug, barbed wire put up, and the drainage
of the trench system greatly improved. Material was used in vast
quantities――sandbags literally by the million, “A” frames, revetting
material, duckboards, steel trench shelters, corrugated iron. All this
had to be carted to the forward dumps, “Tissage Dump,” at Houplines,
and “Fochaber,” near Chapelle d’Armentières, and night after night,
for nearly three months, every available vehicle of the Company
transport made at least one journey, without incurring a single
casualty to man or beast.
The first member of the unit to lose his life in action was Sapper
Dahl, of No. 3 section, killed by a shell in the support line on
Christmas Eve.
Christmas Day was spent the same as any other day of the period, hard
at work in the line. Shortly afterwards the frosty weather commenced,
which was to make this winter the coldest known for many years. The
Lys river froze over so completely that it could be crossed by troops
in fours and by horses and wagons; the soil was frozen as hard as iron
to such a depth as to almost preclude any digging; and the very breath
congealed upon the faces of those who wore moustaches. Still the work
went on, albeit more slowly, and the weather at least gave No. 2, the
drainage section, some respite from their labours.
The clothing issued by Ordnance helped all ranks to withstand the
unaccustomed rigours of such a climate. Warm underclothing, extra
socks, worsted gloves, and fingerless gloves of sheepskin were all
appreciated, but the most useful “issue” was a sleeveless jerkin of
leather, lined with flannel or something of the sort and worn over the
tunic. This garment was extremely popular, as it kept the body warm,
shed rain or snow, and did not interfere with the use of the arms.
The active service rations, too, were much better than the unit had
been accustomed to in England. The only serious shortage was that of
fuel, but of course in a shell-torn country-side there were ways and
means of improving the supply.
At this time Armentières sheltered quite a large civilian population;
Estaminets, cafés, and shops were numerous; and it was very strange to
see the business of the town carried on so calmly within easy range of
the enemy’s guns. It was quite the usual thing to have a cup of
afternoon tea or a glass of beer in a café on return from the line, or
to buy the daily papers (including an occasional “La Vie Parisienne”)
at the little shop at the Five Corners.
The proceedings in the trenches themselves were characterised by a
certain amount of regularity. The hour of our daily artillery and
trench mortar “strafe” was advertised beforehand to all concerned,
except (we hoped) the Boche, and the garrison and working parties were
largely cleared in time from the front line and tucked away in some
spot sheltered from the enemy retaliation. The numerous raids by both
sides were the chief cause of casualties, and the occasional intense
Minenwerfer barrages put down by the enemy did a lot of damage to our
trenches, besides causing loss of life. The “trenches” were really in
most places breastworks built up above the level of the flat and
ill-drained country, and were very susceptible to damage from shell
fire, and required much labour to repair.
The whole system of defence works in the Brigade area was carefully
surveyed by the Company Surveyors, and a remarkable map produced, to a
scale of 1 to 2,500. While engaged on this work one of the surveyors
was arrested by some suspicious infantrymen and his section sergeant
had some trouble in persuading them that they had not caught a spy at
last.
Spy hunting was very popular, as it was firmly believed that whoever
caught a real one would receive a sum of money and be granted a
fortnight’s leave!
3. MESSINES PREPARATIONS.
The Company left Armentières (which was, however, still held by the
3rd Division) on March 14th, when it crossed the river and commenced
working in the Le Touquet sector, the defence of which was taken over
at the same time by the 11th Brigade. The whole company, including
transport, concentrated in Stuff Camp, Pont de Nieppe, which was taken
over from the New Zealand Engineers.
The Le Touquet sector was chiefly distinguished by drainage
difficulties, and time did not permit of much improvement being
effected, as on the 5th April the area including Plœgsteert Wood and
St. Ives Hill was taken over and work started on preparation for the
attack on Messines Ridge――the so-called “Magnum Opus.” The 105th Field
Coy., R.E., took charge of the Le Touquet area on the 7th, leaving the
11th Coy. free to devote all its time to Messines preparations.
These included a big programme of trench improvements and extensions
and Battalion Headquarters for the various attacking battalions, well
forward in our existing trenches. The Battalion Headquarters were made
of concrete, chiefly in the form of blocks and steel girders and
rails. The block construction was not very successful.
As the 9th and 10th were to be the attacking Brigades, and the 9th &
10th Companies to be associated with them, these two Field Companies
took over all these works from the 11th Field Company about 26th
April, leaving the 11th free to devote itself to such work as the
preparation of approach routes up to and through Plœgsteert Wood,
signboards and fixed maps throughout the area, and further
accommodation for various headquarters and command posts. Two
sections―1 and 4―were taken up with artillery work――preparing the
positions for the field artillery to be used in the attack; acres of
camouflage screen were erected over battery positions, scores of
splinter-proof shelters made for the gun crews, gun pits dug out and
protected, and tram lines laid. A very strong dugout for use as a
Divisional Command Post was made in the cellars of the lodge on the
road from Hyde Park Corner to Messines, and a great deal of work was
done fixing up the “Catacombs.” This was a very large dugout in Hill
63, dug some time before by the 1st Australian Tunnelling Company. It
was big enough to hold some 1,400 men, but had been allowed to become
rather dilapidated. It was cleaned out and improved in various ways so
as to accommodate a Brigade Headquarters, Battalion Headquarters, and
a battalion complete, together with a few stray detachments.
The “fixed maps” already mentioned consisted of small maps, done in
waterproof ink on linen and varnished on to boards, erected in correct
orientation at trench intersections, road and track junctions, and all
such places throughout the divisional area. They proved of great use,
particularly to the numerous strangers which the approaching battle
brought into the area. Another job of the Company Surveyors was a
relief map or model of the battle area. This was carved out of wood to
a scale of 1.2500 horizontal and 1.400 vertical, and shewed everything
known of the enemy’s lines in great detail. It was used throughout the
battle by the 11th A.I. Brigade in their headquarters in the
Catacombs, and was subsequently sent to Australia.
Dumps of Engineer stores for use during and after the battle were
gradually built up in various forward positions, particularly in the
north-east part of Plœgsteert Wood. One of these dumps in the wood was
shelled one day and a sapper of the company, a tough old veteran of
the South African Campaign, was hit in the leg by a splinter. He
started to hobble down the duckboards towards an aid post, but after
proceeding a hundred yards or so his indignation overcame him, and
returning to the dump, he demanded his rifle in a voice choked with
anger, saying, “I’ll make the ―― pay for this!” It was with some
difficulty that the old warrior was smoothed down and started afresh
for the aid post.
Lieut. W. H. Thomas was in charge of the dumps during both the
preparations and the battle itself, and he and his party of sappers
and attached infantry had a bad time from gas, which was used in
shells very largely by the enemy at this time, Plœgsteert Wood, in
particular, being drenched with it immediately before and during the
attack.
For his work during the period, Lieut. Thomas subsequently received
the Military Cross, but was evacuated suffering from gas shortly after
the action.
The increasing rain of shells of all calibre which was poured on the
enemy defences in preparation for the battle, provoked heavy shelling
in reply, particularly counter battery work, and while Messines
village could be noticed visibly dwindling under the fire of our
heavies, many farmhouses on our side of the line, which had hitherto
escaped, were battered to pieces. Plœgsteert Wood, with its clean
duckboard tracks and rustic cabins, was no longer a suitable spot to
study the phenomena of spring. The scent of the violet became lost in
the odour of lachrymatory gas, and the note of the cuckoo, while still
to be heard, alternated with the whistle and the crash of shells. Pont
de Nieppe and its vicinity were shelled on two or three occasions, and
on June 6th, the day before the battle, the company lost four men
killed and three wounded in Stuff Camp itself.
Some little time before this the enemy had fired a few shells at the
bridge itself, the Pont de Nieppe, on the main road into Armentières,
and had succeeded in putting one shell through what appeared to be the
crown of the arch. In reality, the arch had no proper crown, the
central 23 feet or so of the span being bridged across by girders
connected with brick jack arches. From underneath these girders looked
like, and had always been taken for, steel, but the shell, which broke
three of them, disclosed the interesting fact that they were only of
cast iron. While just strong enough to take 3-ton motor lorries, there
was certainly not sufficient margin of safety for heavier loads. The
damage was repaired and the bridge incidentally strengthened by a
party of sappers from the company, who stripped the damaged portion
and replaced the broken cast iron beams with steel girders. These had
to be slowly and painfully shaped by hand to fit exactly to the cast
iron seating at each end.
Part of the medical arrangements were carried out by the 11th Company,
who built an R.A.P. near Hyde Park Corner and some extensions to other
posts and dressing stations.
Early in June the elaborate preparations were at last complete, and Z
day was fixed for the 7th of the month. The 3rd Australian Division
had reached the eve of its first large scale offensive.