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THE SEVENTH MANCHESTERS
July 1916 to March 1919
By
CAPTAIN S. J. WILSON, M.C.
With a Preface by the Hon. Anthony M. Henley, C.M.G., D.S.O.
(Brigadier-General (retired), late Commanding 127th Infantry Brigade)
And an Introduction by Gerald B. Hurst, T.D., K.C., M.P.
(Lieut.-Col. Commanding the 7th Bn. Manchester Regiment)
Published by the University of Manchester at
The University Press (H. M. Mckechnie, Secretary)
12, Lime Grove, Oxford Road, Manchester
Longmans, Green & Co.
London: 39, Paternoster Row
New York: 443-449, Fourth Avenue and Thirtieth Street
Chicago: Prairie Avenue and Twenty-fifth Street
Bombay: 8, Hornby Road
Calcutta: 6, Old Court House Street
Madras: 167, Mount Road
[Illustration: The Hon. A. M. HENLEY, C.M.G., D.S.O. Brig.-Gen.
(retired), late Commanding 127th Infantry Brigade]
The Seventh Manchesters
Manchester
at the University Press
Longmans, Green & Co.
London, New York, Bombay, Etc.
1920
Contents.
PAGE
Preface by Brigadier-General A. M. Henley, C.M.G., D.S.O. vii
Introduction by Lieut.-Col. G. B. Hurst, K.C., M.P. xi
List of Illustrations xv
List of Sketch Maps xvi
Chapter I.--Holding up the Turk 1
" II.--Desert Life 16
" III.--For France 30
" IV.--Holding the Line 34
" V.--Belgium 47
" VI.--An Interlude 65
" VII.--Stopping the Hun 75
" VIII.--Worrying the Hun 94
" IX.--Hammering the Hun 113
" X.--Pursuing the Hun 134
" XI.--Aftermath and Home 142
Appendix I.--Honours and Awards to Members of the Battalion 144
" II.--Members of the Battalion Killed in Action,
Died of Wounds, Missing, etc. 148
Index 156
Preface.
I first met the 7th Manchesters early in May, 1917, when they were
gaining new experiences of warfare on the Western front, not far from
Epehy in the north of France. They, with the rest of the 127th Infantry
Brigade, and in fact the whole of the 42nd Division had already had a
long war experience in Gallipoli and Egypt, but they had only recently
been transferred to France. I was taking up the command of an Infantry
Brigade for the first time. I did not know then what a lucky man I was,
but it did not take me long to find out, and we worked together without
a break from that time until the armistice.
The writer of this book passes over with considerable sang froid a
certain operation which took place on a June night in 1917. If the 7th
Manchesters, and not only the 7th, but the 5th, 6th and 8th as well will
allow me to say so, I did not enjoy the same complete confidence as to
the result before and during the night in question. The operation
consisted of digging a complete new front line trench, a mile long, on
the whole Brigade Sector, five hundred yards in advance of the existing
front line, and half way across No Man's Land. June nights are short and
it needed practically the whole brigade to get the job done in time. We
had to find not only the diggers, but the covering troops and strong
parties for carrying and wiring. Now four battalions digging on a bare
hillside within point blank range of the enemy's rifles and machine guns
are not well placed to meet attack or even to avoid fire if they are
caught. So everything possible had to be done to avoid raising any
suspicion of what was on foot in the minds of the watchful Germans. The
troops had to work at high pressure and in absolute silence. The R.E.
who were to lay the tapes were the first to go forward after the
covering troops; then came the wire carriers, and, as soon as the R.E.
had had time to get the tapes into position, out went the diggers, who,
after reaching the line, had to be spaced out at working distances along
the whole front. We who stayed behind spent some anxious hours. However
complete the arrangements and however perfectly executed there was yet a
chance that some enterprising and inquisitive German patrol might find
out what was happening in time to give one of their local commanders an
opportunity of hindering our work. We had to make such arrangements as
would give the appearance that we were doing nothing unusual, that we
were in fact excruciatingly normal. There must be neither more noise nor
less than on an ordinary night, and so the artillery and machine guns
must fire their accustomed bursts into the likely places in the German
lines.
It was a great success. By dawn there was a trench, continuous at least
in appearance along the whole front, at intervals there were rifle and
Lewis gun posts in it; and if there were places where it was preferable
to pass along in the attitude of the serpent after his expulsion from
the Garden of Eden and ever since, there was nothing to show the Germans
which they were. There was wire in front, and the troops got back
without more casualties than averaged as a result of the ordinary
nightly strafes.
Though we took on many tougher jobs later I was never again anxious as
to the result.
Our great days were:--
Stopping the Germans East of BUCQUOY--
March 23rd to 29th, 1918.
The advance West of MIRAUMONT--
21st August, 1918.
The Capture of MIRAUMONT and PYS--
24th August, 1918.
The Capture of VILLERS AU FLOS--
2nd September, 1918.
The Battle of the HINDENBURG LINE--
27th September, 1918.
The Battle of the SELLE RIVER--
20th October, 1918.
In every one of these the 7th Manchesters were called upon to play a
part. Whether their original role in the plan of battle had been to lead
the attack or to act in support they were always in the picture before
the end of the fight. I am not going to pick out this or that as their
finest performances. The reader can choose for himself when he has
finished the book. It is enough for me to say that, whatever task was
given them, they took on cheerfully and carried through magnificently.
Not only that, but they were anxious to go beyond what was demanded of
them, as is well shown by the fighting at La Signy Farm which they
attacked and captured on their own initiative.
I can only wish them individually the same success in peace as they won
as a battalion in war. I think they will have it. For it takes
first-class men to make a first-class fighting unit. Perhaps many of
them will join again under the old colours. I hope so, and I
congratulate in advance any commander whose good luck it may be to lead
them.
A. M. HENLEY, _Brig. Gen. (retired)_
_late Commanding 127th Infantry Brigade._
_21st February; 1920._
Introduction.
Captain Wilson's book continues the story of the 7th (1st 7th)
Manchesters, which is recorded in my own book "With Manchesters in the
East," from July, 1916 until November, 1918. It is written with intimate
knowledge and much understanding, and will be enjoyed by all his
comrades. It was the good fortune of the Manchester Territorials (127th
Brigade) to belong to the first Territorial Division (the 42nd), that
ever left these islands for active service, and this active service
eventually took place on three fronts. The 7th Battalion garrisoned the
Sudan and fought through the Gallipoli campaign. It recruited its
strength at Suez, and then helped to clear the Sinai Peninsula of the
Turks. Finally it served for two and a half years in Flanders. It
translated its motto, "We never sleep" into its daily life.
This volume will be a useful supplement to any general history of the
War. It is based on the diary of a Regimental Officer, who won
considerable distinction in the field, and whose eyes missed little of
consequence. It is of even more value as evidence of what men of
essentially civilian habits and traditions can achieve as soldiers. The
numbers of the 7th Manchesters were never fully up to strength after
April, 1915, and for many months at a time while in the East they fell
to vanishing point. Yet from the day in September, 1914, when the
original first-line Battalion sailed from Southampton for Port Sudan in
the "Grantully Castle," each successive draft was of the same mould. The
men came from the same neighbourhood, were of the same capacity, and had
been bred with the same ideas. Their devotion was founded on a sense of
duty. They were personally utterly remote from what is called
militarism, and saw little fascination in its pomp. The survivors are
now absorbed once more in the undramatic industry of Lancashire. There
is nothing to indicate to an observer that they have ever left it. The
last time you saw your tramway conductor may have been as a bomber in
"the western birdcage" on Cape Helles; your fellow passenger may have
last talked to you as your "runner," when you tramped along the
duckboards from Windy Corner to Givenchy. What such men did for England
will therefore illustrate for all time the potentialities of a
Territorial Force.
Captain Wilson's style of expression and cast of thought are, in my
view, true to type. He is the Lancashire man of action, who affects no
literary arts. These pages are bare of heroics. There is a soldierly
brevity in his account of even of the bravest exploit. There is also
plenty of quiet humour. The reader will search vainly for any "villain
of the piece." The "Hun" is to Captain Wilson, as to the normal British
officer, just a "Boche" and no more; to the rank and file he was simply
"Jerry." If you want adjectives, you will have to look for them in _John
Bull_ or listen to speeches in the House of Commons.
For all who were in authority over him, whether Corps Commanders or
Divisional Generals, Brigadiers or temporary Commanding Officers,
Captain Wilson has a good word. A reader unfamiliar with soldiers'
psychology might deduce that all his superior officers had been
invariably models of judgment and efficiency. He would possibly be quite
wrong; but it is most fitting that this book should be framed on such
lines, for they are the lines which our soldiers have never failed to
accept. The rough is taken with the smooth. If ever there has been
incompetence men have simply blamed the system and cursed the War
Office. If they happened to have been five minutes in France they might
have philosophically added "c'est la guerre." The actual individual
responsible has not been worth worrying about. Thus even with regard to
this mere side issue, the author's story reflects a cardinal attribute
of the national character, and therefore in its essence conveys the
truth.
In my opinion, it is not, however, the whole truth. There is no reason
why England in her reconstruction should forget that want of sympathy
with the Territorials, which far too often marked men, to whose hands
their fortunes were from time to time entrusted. This vice should be
borne in mind not because the memory is bitter; but because by
remembrance we may make its repetition in later wars impossible.
Territorials ought never to be ousted from the command of their own
units, or to be excluded from staff appointments, merely because they
are not Regulars or because they fail to comply with needlessly drastic
and therefore non-essential codes of discipline. Discipline is, in fact,
degraded into servitude when it becomes a mere fetish. How fallaciously
it may be construed could often be seen in the tendency among powerful
martinets to "drive a coach and four" through the law and procedure
which regulate trials by Court Martial. The need for the
"standardisation" of all infantry units in France was quite genuine; but
unimaginative men in authority could make "standardisation" a burden to
the spirit, and the picture of some men of this class, which is painted
in A. P. Herbert's novel. _The Secret Battle_, is founded on the truth.
We have all seen such cases. The grinding necessities of the Western
front ended the joyous amateurism, which a Territorial unit was able to
preserve through all its vicissitudes in Eastern warfare, but they did
not require the prevailing banishment of individuality and of the
exercise of intellect from Regimental life.
After landing in France the 42nd Division had to make a new reputation
by rising from the ruck, and it is very notable that the personnel of
the 7th Manchesters, as of the other units in the Division, although
almost completely changed from the personnel of the Battalion when in
Gallipoli and drawn from a later generation of recruits, achieved equal
distinction and much greater technical efficiency. This fact points to
the wonderful resourcefulness of the English people. Historically it
shows how thoroughly our Army of 1917-18 was professionalised.
The later chapters of Captain Wilson's book detail very brilliant
fighting by our men, which it would be idle and impertinent to praise.
Such "crowded hours" are not, however, and never have been the most
typical of a soldier's life. Infinitely more numerous were the hours of
endurance and privation, which the 7th spent among the broken ravines of
Gallipoli, among the dreary mud flats on either bank of the Yser, among
the desolate craters in front of Cuinchy and Le Plantin. In their
patience and fortitude amid these wastes lies their strongest title to
the gratitude of Christendom.
Peace is already dimming men's memories of the War as effectually as the
grass is covering the ruins of devastated France. The Manchester
Territorial is back at his job. The broken home no longer feels the same
first poignancy of grief. "Man goeth forth unto his work and unto his
labour until the evening," and it is a good thing for the world that he
does. Nevertheless, all men and women who cherish associations with the
7th Manchesters will, I think, read and re-read Captain Wilson's work
for many years to come. From amid all the hardships and miseries of
soldiering which the Englishman readily forgets, the light of
self-sacrifice shines upon the human race with a never fading beauty.
Herein lies the true romance of war. As the reader turns over the
ensuing pages he cannot but realise something of the cumulative drudgery
and hardships which these men endured for their country.
To the 7th Manchesters themselves they mean much more. The very place
names of our warfare recall the memory of the comrades whom we have
loved and lost, the early enthusiasms which we shall never feel
again:--Khartoumn, Gallipoli, Shallufa, Suez, Ashton-in-Sinai, Coxyde,
Nieuport, Aire, Béthune, Ypres, Bucquoy, Havrincourt. When we are very
old, many of us will still conjure up the tune of "Keep the Home Fires
Burning" on the lips of tired men beneath the stars on Geoghegan's
Bluff; the thud of the shovel falling upon the sand ridges of Sinai
while a blazing sun rose over Asia; the refrain of "Annie Laurie" sung
by candle-light in some high roofed barn behind the lines in Belgium.
I hear them now.
GERALD B. HURST.
List of Illustrations.
PAGE
PLATE I. _Frontispiece_
Brigadier-General Anthony M. Henley.
PLATE II. _facing 8_
1. Group of Officers. N.B. Fleur de Lys.
2. Ridge occupied on August 5th, 1916.
3. Issue of Water: Morning of August 5th, 1916.
4. In Katia: August 6th, 1916.
PLATE III. _facing 18_
1. Bivouac Shelters on the Desert.
2. Making the Railway over the Desert.
3. At El Mazar.
4. Digging a Well.
List of Sketch Maps.
PAGE
The Sinai Desert 21
Nieuport and Coast Sector 57
Round about Bapaume 78
Attack on the Hindenburg Line, September 27th, 1918 125
Area covered during advance of 42nd Division, 1918,
_facing_ 143
CHAPTER I.
Holding up the Turk.
In September, 1914, the 7th Bn. Manchester Regiment set out for active
service in the East in goodly company, for they were a part of the 42nd
(East Lancashire) Division, the first territorials to leave these shores
during the Great War. After many interesting days spent on garrison duty
in the Sudan and Lower Egypt they journeyed to Gallipoli soon after the
landing had been effected, and took a continuous part in that ill-fated
campaign until the final evacuation. The beginning of 1916 thus found
them back in Egypt, where they were taking part in General Maxwell's
scheme for the defence of the Suez Canal. The things that befell the
battalion during this long period have been admirably described in Major
Hurst's book _With Manchesters in the East_, and this short history will
attempt to continue the narrative from the point where it left off.
At the end of June, 1916, the 7th Manchesters made a short trip by rail
along the Suez Canal, the last railway journey they were to make as a
battalion for many a long day. The 42nd Division left the defence of the
southern half of the Canal in the able hands of the East Anglian
Territorials, and journeyed north to the Kantara region. It was not
definitely known why we made this move, but there were persistent
rumours that we were destined for France, where events were speeding
towards a big battle. However, the 7th detrained at Kantara and there
met, for the first time since Gallipoli, the 52nd (Lowland Scottish)
Division. We knew very little of this coastal region of the desert.
Occasional stories had floated down to us to supplement the very meagre
official communiqués as to events there, but it was recognised as a
place where opportunities of getting in touch with our invisible enemy
were rather better than in the south. So it was felt that, even if we
did not go to France, life would lose a certain amount of that deadly
monotony which we had experienced for six months.
It transpired that the 127th Brigade were to relieve detachments of the
11th Division, who, it was openly whispered, were definitely to sail for
France to try their luck in the more vigorous scene of this great
adventure. Most interesting to us was the discovery that we were to take
over posts occupied by the 11th Manchesters, the first Kitchener
battalion of our own regiment. Our astonishment and delight can be
imagined when we saw that they wore the good old Fleur de Lys for a
battalion flash on the puggarees of their helmets--just as we wore it,
but yellow instead of green.
The battalion marched east along a good road recently made for military
purposes, and eventually reached Hill 70, where the headquarters were
established. Early next morning, garrisons marched out before the heat
of the day to occupy a series of posts arranged in semi-circular
formation between two inundations about three miles apart. "B" Company
took over Turk Top and No. 1 Post. Capt. Smedley, Capt. Brian Norbury,
2nd-Lt. C. B. Douglas, 2nd-Lt. Pell-Ilderton being at the former, while
Capt. J. R. Creagh, 2nd-Lt. Hacker, and later 2nd-Lt. Gresty took charge
of the latter. "C" Company were divided between Nos. 2 and 3 posts, with
Lt. Nasmith and 2nd-Lt. S. J. Wilson at No. 2, and Lt. Nidd and Lt.
Marshall at No. 3. "A" Company, who were responsible for Hill 70, was
commanded by Capt. Tinker assisted by 2nd-Lt's. Kay, Woodward, Wood and
Wilkinson. The officers comprising headquarters were Lt.-Col. Canning,
C.M.G., Capt. Cyril Norbury (second in command), Major Scott
(Quartermaster), Capt. Farrow, M.C. (Medical Officer), Lt. H. C.
Franklin, M.C., Adjutant and 2nd-Lt. Bateman (Signal Officer), while
2nd-Lt. J. Baker was in charge of the Lewis guns of the battalion. "D"
Company were at Hill 40 in a reserve position under the command of
Capt. Higham supported by Capt. Townson, 2nd-Lt's. Grey Burn, G. W. F.
Franklin, Ross-Bain, Gresty, Morten, and R. J. R. Baker. The work of the
transport was divided between Capt. Ward-Jones, and 2nd-Lt. M. Norbury.
The posts consisted of self-contained redoubts which were capable of
holding out in the matter of food and water for about three days.
They had been constructed at the cost of great labour by the 52nd
Division. Routine was simple, our only duties being to man our posts
before dawn, then improve and maintain the trenches and wire until
about 7 when the sun entered his impossible stage. The same thing
happened in the evening. During the night patrols were executed from
one post to the next. All this carried a certain interest because we
knew that the Turk might come near at any time in the shape of a
flying raiding column to reach the canal. Rumours were frequent of
his proximity, and when Turk Top one night frantically reported
mysterious green lights, out towards the enemy, serious preparations
were made for his reception. The climax came, however, about noon
one day at Hill 70 when those who were not asleep heard, with a
mixed feeling of old familiarity, "s-s-s-sh-sh-SH--flop." Most of
us, after cringing in the usual manner, said, with a relieved air,
"Dud." Then followed commotion. They had arrived and were shelling
the post. The shimmering desert was eagerly scanned by the officers'
field glasses, and all kinds of things were seen and not seen.
Meanwhile someone went to look at the "Dud," and found not a shell
but a large stone, still quite hot. It finally dawned upon everyone
that we were bombarded from the heavens, and not by the Turk. It was
a meteorite, still preserved amongst the battalion's war souvenirs,
which had upset our composure.
Whilst on duty at these posts we had a visit from the Marquis of
Tullibardine, now Duke of Atholl, of the Scottish Horse, who was
responsible for this section of the Canal defences. Lieut.-Gen.
Lawrence, afterwards Chief of Staff in France, who was in command of the
northern section of the Canal defences also paid a visit, and
remembered us as part of the brigade which he had commanded on
Gallipoli. Important changes took place in the battalion at this time.
Lt.-Col. Canning, C.M.G., relinquished the command, and returned home
for duty in the Cork district. His departure was sorely regretted by all
ranks, for during the twelve months he had been with the 7th, his
capabilities as a commander had only been surpassed by his solicitude
for the men's welfare, so that he had made his way into our hearts as a
popular soldier. Major Cronshaw of the 5th Manchesters succeeded him and
was soon afterwards made Lt.-Colonel. Captain Farrow, M.C., R.A.M.C.,
was also invalided home, after having had almost unbroken active service
with the battalion since September, 1914.
About the middle of July a fairly large column of Turks began to make
their way across the desert from El Arish, intending to strike once more
for the possession of the Suez Canal. They moved with surprising
rapidity and wonderful concealment, and some excitement was caused when
a large enemy force was located by air reconnaissance, so near as
Oghratina Hod, within five miles of Romani, then held by the 52nd
Division. A battle seemed imminent, and this at the worst possible time
in the Egyptian year. A Brigade of the 53rd Division, consisting of
Royal Welsh Fusiliers and Herefords, spent a night at Hill 70 on their
way to occupy a defensive line between Romani and Mahamadiyeh on the
coast. There was an obvious increase in aerial activity on both sides,
and camel and other traffic on the Romani road became more feverish.
On July 23rd, the 7th Lancashire Fusiliers relieved the battalion in all
the posts and we marched back to Hill 40, where we found the whole
brigade was concentrating. There was much to be done in equipping the
men, and teaching them the correct method of carrying their belongings
on "Mobile Column," for that was what we were destined to become. The
equipment was worn in the usual "fighting kit" manner, with the
haversack on the back and under the haversack the drill tunic, folded in
four. This also served as a pad to protect the spine from the sun. Near
Hill 40 there was a large patch of hard sand which the Scottish Horse,
who were in the neighbourhood, had converted into a football pitch.
Small wonder then that we challenged the owners to a game, and a great
game it was. The Scotsmen had an unbeaten record in Egypt, which they
maintained, but only after a ding-dong game which the battalion never
forgot.
The next day the Brigade marched forward and made camp at Gilban, about
3-1/2 miles N.E. of Hill 70. An indefinite stay was to be made here, and
defensive precautions were taken, a ring of posts being placed all round
the camp. It was soon found that the principal difficulty was that of
patrolling by night from post to post. On a desert such as this there
were no landmarks of any sort, and as a belt of wire such as we had been
used to at Hill 70 had not been placed between the posts it was by no
means easy to preserve the right direction. As we had reached a
scrub-covered desert, however, this difficulty was easily overcome by
making a sort of track from one post to the next by clearing away the
scrub, and using this to make a clear edge to the track. The battalion
was augmented about this time by drafts from home, and the following
officers rejoined after having been invalided to England in 1915: Lt.
Douglas Norbury, 2nd-Lt. Bryan and 2nd-Lt. L. G. Harris, while a week
previous Major Allan had been posted to us from the 8th Manchesters as
second in command.
In the army coming events often cast their shadow before them; and this
shadow frequently takes the form of a visit by the Higher Command to the
troops who are to go into action. Hence, when the Divisional Commander,
Major-General Sir W. Douglas, had the 127th Brigade paraded for him at
Gilban, and when he complimented Brigadier-General Ormsby upon the fine
turn out, we gathered that our long period of waiting for the Turk was
over. He told us to husband our water, and these words I am sure rang
through many an officer's head in the following days. The 42nd Division,
he said, were expected to make a great coup, and many prisoners were to
be taken. Two days later the preliminary rumbles of the Battle of
Romani were heard, for the Turk had commenced an artillery and bombing
attack upon the garrisons there.
ROMANI AND KATIA.
The Turkish force, estimated at about 16,000, and much better equipped
than the flying column which had made the first attempt to cross the
canal in March the previous year, had been promised that they should
overwhelm the "small" British garrisons before the Feast of Ramadan.
They would then meet with no resistance and would enter victoriously
into Egypt, a sort of promised land after their hardships across the
desert. Many of them did enter Egypt and reached Cairo, but not in the
way they wished. They were marched through the city as prisoners, and
their presence as such undoubtedly created a profound impression upon
disloyal Egyptians.
Inspired by a number of German officers, however, they fought well and
vigorously in the early stages of the attack upon Romani. They had been
told that once they got on the hills in the neighbourhood of the British
positions they would see the Suez Canal stretched out below them, and
this probably urged them on to make almost superhuman efforts. In front
of Romani, in the region of the Katia oasis, mobile outposts furnished
by the Australian Light Horse were driven in after hard fighting, and
they fell back to other positions on the high sand hills to the south of
Romani, covering the right flank of the 52nd Division. Meanwhile a
frontal attack was delivered upon the redoubts occupied by the latter,
and the enemy made many brave attempts to reach the summit of Katib
Gannit, a high hill, in shape similar to the Matterhorn, which dominated
the whole desert. He gained a footing nowhere, however, and exposed to
merciless rifle and machine gun fire from the Scotsmen, suffered heavy
casualties. A similar reception was afforded him by the Welshmen of
158th Brigade further north towards Mahamadiyeh.
It was apparent, however, that the enemy's intention was to force his
way around the southern side and cut the railway and water pipe near
Pelusium behind Romani, and in this part of the battle the Australian
and New Zealand Light Horse, who had had to discard their horses and
fight as infantry, found it difficult to hold their own against repeated
assaults. More terrible than the Turk was the heat and the lack of
water.
Such is a rough outline of the situation when the 7th Manchesters along
with the remainder of the 127th Brigade were suddenly ordered to
concentrate at Pelusium. The morning of August 4th opened quietly for
us, although gunfire could be heard, and bursting shrapnel could be seen
in the direction of Duedar. We had settled down to ordinary routine, one
company setting out for a short march, and others preparing for kit
inspections and other camp duties, when suddenly, "B" Company received
orders to fall in and move off, and in a short space of time they were
entrained during the heat of the day for Pelusium. Before noon the whole
battalion was collected on what was supposed to be a bivouac area at the
new destination. But we had seen General Douglas going along the train
at Gilban and he said: "Well, good luck lads, make a good bag," so we
were not surprised when we found that settling down for bivouac was not
to be our fate.
The 5th Manchesters had arrived with us, and the 8th were following on,
while the 6th were already here, having been sent up the previous day.
Our task was to go to the assistance of the Colonials and attack the
Turk on the flank along with the 5th, the 6th and 8th being in support
and reserve. We marched out about 4 o'clock, moving first south and then
south-east. Meanwhile the battle was obviously increasing in intensity,
and when we halted previous to extending, we could see the Turk shrapnel
severely peppering a high ridge in front where a detachment of the
Australian Light Horse, having resumed their horses, were gradually
massing for a charge.
[Illustration: _PLATE II_
1. Group of Officers. _N.B._--Fleur de Lys
2. Ridge occupied on August 5th, 1916
3. Issue of Water--Morning of August 5th, 1916
4. In Katia, August 6th, 1916]
With the 5th on our right we extended into lines about 2,000 yards from
what appeared to be the Turkish position on a ridge to our front. As we
swept into view the enemy opened fire at long range, but very soon it
was evident that they had no stomach left for a further fight. They were
extremely exhausted with their exertions of the previous days,
particularly of the past twenty-four hours, and the sight of lines of
fresh British Infantry moving steadily toward them was more than their
jaded bodies and nerves could stand. As our men climbed the enemy's
ridge white flags began to appear. They were the long white sandbags
carried by every Turk, and very convenient for their purpose. Large
bodies surrendered and they were collected and sent to the rear.
Meanwhile the Colonials had swept round the hill away to the right, and
in a comparatively short space of time about six hundred Turks were seen
being marched back by a few Australian troopers. The enemy's artillery
had ceased fire and were obviously making attempts to escape eastwards,
so with the exception of a few rifle shots from the direction of the 5th
the battle in our sector was over for the day.
This was the death blow to Turkey's and Germany's hopes of ever getting
within striking distance of the Suez Canal, and a vindication of
Kitchener's principle that British soldiers should get out on the desert
to defend the canal, and not allow the canal to defend them. But more
important still, it was the beginning of that forward move so slow and
weary in its early stages, which later developed into General Allenby's
wonderful sweep through Palestine.
Before nightfall "C" and "D" Companies established themselves in support
to the 5th Manchesters, who had now joined up with the Australians on
the left, but there was very little possibility of the Turk attacking
again that day, so all the troops were rested, in preparation for a
strenuous attack on the morrow. Sentry groups were posted, and the
battalion sat down and made a scanty meal of bread accompanied where
possible with a mouthful of water. This was the first meal most men had
had since breakfast. Numbers of prisoners came in during the night,
each of them carrying a full water bottle. The Turk knew how to preserve
a water supply, and what was of greater interest to us, he knew where to
get it. It speaks well, however, for the chivalry of the British soldier
that none deprived their prisoners of their water, although they were
probably almost without themselves. This sporting attitude towards the
enemy, the spirit of "play the game" whether fighting the clean Turk or
the not so reputable German, I never failed to observe throughout the
war.
Stand to at 3.30 the following morning indicated that work was still to
be done, for in the half light, troops of Light Horse could be seen
collecting behind a hill preparatory to a sweep forward. When they
emerged in the increasing light, the enemy could be seen fleeing from a
trench about 1,200 yards away. Very soon word came through that we were
to go in pursuit, and while we were exercised in mind as to what we
should do for water, we were greatly relieved when we were ordered back
to the ridge to fill our bottles. There the welcome sight of camels
loaded with water fantassies met our eyes and the men eagerly assisted
in the work of distribution. Three-quarters of a bottle and a "buckshee"
drink was the ration, and this obtained, men felt more fit for their
labours. Food, however, there was none, and we had to be content with
what remained of yesterday's rations. But it was felt that food was not
so important if only the water would not fail.
By seven o'clock the whole Brigade were on the move, and in tropical
countries in the hot season, the sun's heat is considerable at this
time. After we had travelled some distance the hardship of desert
marching under these conditions began to really hit us, and undoubtedly
the exertions of the previous day were having their effect. Every moment
the heat increased, the sand seemed to become softer and softer, and the
whole ground sloped gradually upwards. Men dropped and officers had to
use all the powers they possessed to get them on, but many had to be
left behind to struggle along afterwards in their own time. Meanwhile
another long column of prisoners could be seen streaming away towards
Romani, which we were now leaving well to our left rear. The battalion
proceeded over the desert in this manner in artillery formation with
platoons as units, and halting as frequently as possible. After a great
physical effort we reached the base of a hill with a steep soft slope,
and a sort of knife-edge ridge at the top, where an Australian outpost
had been surrounded a few days before. Australian and Turkish dead still
lay as evidence of the fight, and the stench from their bodies produced
by the sweltering heat did not diminish the grimness of the scene.
This ridge was the battalion's position for the day, so after a short
rest we scrambled to the top and surveyed the desert on the other side,
lying thoroughly exhausted under the almost vertical rays of the sun,
for it was now mid-day. The other side of the hill was exceptionally
steep and dropped into a large hod (plantation of date palms), the first
we had met on our desert travels. In this there appeared to be a well,
and the temptation to go down for water was great, but how could one
struggle up again? An occasional trooper visited this place but none
could persuade their horses to drink, which seemed to indicate that the
water was not good. Out over the desert the cavalry could still be seen
pursuing the enemy, and our guns were occasionally flinging shrapnel
amongst them.
Strange sights were seen. A captured convoy of Turkish camel transport
was captured, and they presented a very motley appearance. They were
evidently collected from the desert lands of the Turkish Empire. They
had come to the war dressed as for their more peaceful habits, so that
no two men were alike. Several wore brilliantly coloured garments and
head gear. Occasionally a German officer would be seen amongst the batch
of weary prisoners. The navy's assistance in this fighting was marked by
a monitor, miles away, standing as close to the shore as possible,
although to us she appeared like a tiny toy ship. Suddenly a big flash
belched forth, followed a long time afterwards by a roar, which in turn
was followed by a terrific explosion over the desert to the right where
the shell had arrived in the wake of the retreating Turks. One of these
shots at least had been an O.K. as we afterwards discovered, for it had
destroyed a large part of a Turkish camel convoy. At four in the
afternoon the battalion received orders to move on and occupy another
ridge about one and a half miles in front, and "A" Company immediately
set out, moving round the shoulder of our present hill. "C" Company
dropped down the steep slope and waited in the hod for further
instructions. They found there a batch of wounded Turks waiting to be
carried off by the ambulance. It was with some astonishment that they
heard Major Allan shouting to them from above to get back to their
former position, so they struggled up the hill again with a very ill
grace. However, plans had been changed and it transpired that the
Lancashire Fusiliers had arrived and they were to take over our position
while we went back a few yards to bivouac for the night.
It was now much cooler and men felt disposed to eat their very scanty
meal. Those who had water were fortunate. Just as we were settling down
for the night word came through that Katia was to be taken next day, and
that we should move out at four in the morning. The enemy were believed
to be holding the oasis basin fairly strongly. In our extraordinarily
tired condition, brought about by strenuous exertions and lack of
nourishment, we did not view the prospect with too much confidence, but
hoping that a few hours' sleep might refresh us we rolled into the
shallow scoops we had made in the sand, and lay down to a rather chilly
night, our only extra cover being the khaki drill tunic whose weight we
had roundly cursed during the day.
At 3 a.m. we prepared to move. In the dim light the eternally-blessed
water camels could be seen wending their way towards our bivouac. As
before there was abundance of volunteers for this vital fatigue, but
most hearts drooped when it was found that the ration worked out to a
pint per man! Officers and N.C.O's. sadly but vigorously emphasised the
extreme urgency of preserving the water supply. Some resorted to drastic
action and insisted that no man should drink at all without first
obtaining permission of his officer, and on the day's business I am
inclined to think that these officers obtained the best results. The
Brigadier came to tell us we had done magnificently, but he said we
should have a worse day to-day; water was to be had at Katia--when we
got there. The men were also warned that it would probably be of little
use to drop out, in fact it might be extremely dangerous, for the
chances of being picked up were rather slight.
The cheery soul of the British Tommy, however, is proof against all
things, and he started out on this day's trip in the same spirit with
which he tackled all jobs during the war: "It has to be done, so do your
best and put the best face on it." The Fleur de Lys led out the Brigade
and trudged steadily through the soft sand in artillery formation. The
6th gradually got up into a position on our right, while the 5th and 8th
followed in support. The march forward proceeded monotonously in the
increasing heat, the men becoming more and more taciturn as the sun's
power gathered. Allowance of course had to be made for the weariness of
the men and the heavy going. Then a halt was called and we waited for an
hour. It appeared that the L.F's., who formed the left of the 42nd
Divisional front, had been rather late in starting, and it was necessary
to wait for them. Then the forward movement commenced again, and after
some time another long halt was necessary. Our men were now in a great
hollow in the sand in which there was not a breath of wind, and the sun
now at the height of its fury beat down mercilessly.
There is little doubt that this lying unprotected in the heat simply
sapped our energy, and everyone wished that we could have pushed on
ahead. General Douglas came to cheer the men up, and announced that over
3,000 Turkish prisoners and a large quantity of material had been
captured to date. For the moment, however, men had lost their grip of
interest in such matters, and were chiefly concerned with their own
personal affairs. They behaved splendidly and with great physical effort
resisted the need to drink. Officers were grateful to one or two men in
their platoons who proved a moral support to their comrades by keeping a
cheerful countenance, interposing a ribald remark when things looked
black, and explaining to their weakest pals the rigours of the necessity
in a rougher but more intelligible manner than their leaders could have
done. Such men are invaluable and are always to be found on these
occasions.
Reconnoitring patrols of Australian Light Horse and Yeomanry passed
through, and from remarks dropped by returning troopers it soon became
apparent that little if any resistance would be met with. A detachment
of Ayrshire and Inverness Horse Artillery were keeping pace with our
column and occasionally they opened fire, obviously upon fleeting
targets of retreating Turks. A thick wood of date palms in the distance
indicated Katia, and all men gazed upon this as the Mecca in which water
was to be found. Some eight hundred yards from this, however, was
another hod which had to be traversed by the 127th Brigade, and as we
were leading, it devolved upon us to make quite sure that it was not
occupied. The 6th and 7th therefore extended and assumed attack
formation to pass through the hod. This was a difficult moment and
tested the fibre of men and the battalion as a whole to the utmost. The
extra physical exertion and the loss of companionship which one gets in
the close formation served almost as a breaking point to endurance.
Perhaps the best summary of the psychology of this period is found in
the words from the diary of one of the officers:--
"Then it was that my energy gave out. I moved about along the line
shouting at the men to preserve their dressing and correct
intervals. Much had to be done. We inclined first to the left and
then to the right and it was very trying. Men began to drop and I
could not help them now that I had lost touch with them. Then I
began to lose all interest. I had become purely self-centred--if
the whole platoon had collapsed I am afraid I should not have been
concerned. I had almost got to such a state that if the Turks had
suddenly appeared from the wood I should not have cared what the
consequences were. Yet I was determined not to touch water for I
recognised that that was required for the last extremity. My head
dropped and my knees would not straighten. The load on my shoulders
was ten times its weight. The haversack and tunic on my back seemed
to pull me down, but the greatest weight was an extra haversack
which I had attached to my equipment on the left. It contained all
manner of necessaries and comforts, and ties with home. I was
determined not to part with it, although I confess I was almost
impelled to fling it away. In other words I think I had got to the
limit of my endurance, when a halt was called in the hod. I dropped
under a palm tree with a group of men, slipped off my load, and
then lay quite still for a long time. After a while I had my first
drink of water for that day. We stayed there some time, and one or
two of the men had found a well. But it was brackish and the men
should not have touched it, for it made them worse. Several were
knocked out altogether by it."
Word had come through that Katia was unoccupied by the enemy, and
although it required a tremendous effort the battalion got together and
proceeded to the final destination in column of route. Although not much
over half a mile those last yards seemed interminable, but in course of
time we were all settled in the cool shade of the hod and were
speculating about water; a problem which seemed to be solved by the
arrival of the camels. When it was found that no fantassie was full and
many were empty it required the utmost exertion of a British soldier's
good temper to prevent him from killing some of the Gyppies who had
accompanied them, for it was obvious that they had been selling water to
men who had dropped out of the column. Then we reflected that these poor
devils needed it badly, so it was hard to apportion the blame. We
wondered, nevertheless, why other camels had been detailed to carry on
an occasion like this, flour, fresh meat (once fresh but now unfit for
consumption) and candles, when they might have been better employed
carrying water! Still, we were thankful to have achieved our task and
although we had lost more than seventy men en route, we were proud to
know that we had arrived the strongest battalion, some having left more
than half their effectives on the desert.
The day's work was complete when the battalion had formed an outpost
line well in front of the wood, and had dug short section trenches.
Through the night desultory rifle fire could be heard in front where the
mounted troops were still in touch with the retiring enemy. Next day a
serious conflict took place between the cavalry and the Turkish
rearguard at Oghratina, and rumours were prevalent that we had to
continue the forward movement. We were not sorry, however, when it was
found that we were to remain in Katia. During the succeeding days
hostile aircraft were very busy, and dropped several bombs in the
vicinity of the wood, the 52nd Division, who were north of us, suffering
more severely than ourselves.
Those not on outpost duty took advantage of the rest and made themselves
as comfortable as possible. Stakes sent up by the R.E. were used for
constructing bivouacs, but perhaps the palm trees provided as much
assistance as anything else. Although we had not yet learnt to use the
word "camouflage" we knew its meaning, and whenever we settled down on
the desert we put it into use as a protection against inquisitive
aircraft. At Katia the palm trees gave us all the protection we required
in this way.