ARMENTIÈRES AND HEBUTERNE.
On 15th and 16th August the 153rd and 154th Brigades relieved the 1st
New Zealand Division in the line. The new front extended from Chapelle
d'Armentières on the right to the river Lys on the left. The 152nd
Brigade in reserve was billeted in Armentières. Divisional headquarters
opened at 98 Rue Sadi Carnot.
By 19th August the Divisional artillery had arrived from the Somme, and
completed the relief of the New Zealand artillery.
The tour of duty in the Armentières sector was remarkable for its
tranquillity. The weather was excellent, the breastwork trenches
reasonably comfortable, and the enemy's activity slight. The town of
Armentières itself provided many excellent billets for the troops in
reserve, and for all three brigade headquarters. The batteries were also
for the most part comfortable, some of them being in the unique position
of occupying houses for quarters, with their guns in the gardens and
conservatories.
Armentières was indeed fairly described by the Jocks as _bon_. In these
days it was still occupied by civilian inhabitants in large numbers.
There were in consequence plenty of the beloved "estaminets," as they
were usually called, and numerous shops. The latter all appeared to keep
the same articles in stock--"vin blonk," "oofs"--either to be consumed
on the premises or taken home; chips and those wonderful post-cards on
which patriotic designs were embroidered in alarmingly coloured silks,
and on which were superscribed such mottoes as "To my dear sweetheart,"
"To my darling wife."
The officers were equally well catered for, considering that
Armentières was within range of the lightest field-guns. There were a
few naturally expensive and equally naturally indifferent tea-shops.
There were one or two restaurants where dinner could be obtained, in
which the French cooking afforded a relief from the normal efforts of
the company's mess cook. And there was the famous Lucienne's.
Lucienne lived at a corner house in the Rue Sadi Carnot, and had
assisted in the management of a restaurant there since the early days of
the war. The majority of the neighbouring houses, including the large
church some fifty yards from the restaurant, had at one time or another
been struck by shells. Most of Lucienne's windows had been broken during
these bombardments. She, however, still possessed the most buoyant
spirits. She had ready wits, and in any form of badinage usually had the
last word. She, in fact, resembled a character from a light opera rather
than a player in the real drama of war. After the German offensive in
April 1918 she was driven out of Armentières, but remained undaunted;
and subsequently, after the tide had turned, opened a similar
establishment in Amiens. The officers of the Division had to thank
Lucienne's courage for many a pleasant evening spent in Armentières.
The sector, in fact, acted as a tonic to the Division, and with its
quiet trenches, wonderful weather, and good billets soon effaced all the
bitter memories of the Somme and the weariness of the Labyrinth.
The enemy's activity, such as it was, was directed chiefly against the
town and the suburbs of Houplines, both places being intermittently
shelled, particularly the latter. At times the bombardments were severe,
Divisional headquarters being ultimately shelled out of their house in
Rue Sadi Carnot, and being in consequence moved to Steenwerk.
On 11th September the Division sustained a considerable loss in the
death of Brigadier-General C. E. Stewart, C.M.G., commanding the 154th
Infantry Brigade. General Stewart and his intelligence officer were
walking through Houplines when a chance shell burst within a few feet of
them, killing them both. It was a case of the cruellest bad luck, as
this was the only shell which fell in that vicinity during the day.
General Stewart had commanded the 154th Brigade since its reconstitution
as a Highland brigade. His troops were considerably attached to him, and
his loss was much felt by them.
On 17th September, Brigadier-General J. G. H. Hamilton, D.S.O., Black
Watch, assumed command of the 154th Brigade.
Operations at this sector were for the most part confined on the part of
the enemy to a fairly consistent but only moderate activity with the
Minenwerfer. At times, too, he was active with his Grenatenwerfer,
known to the troops as the "Pineapples" or "Fishtail." "Yon
minnie-wafers" were fortunately clearly visible in the air, and so with
a little judgment could be avoided. They had, however, a most
devastating effect on breastwork trenches, with the result that, as a
rule, more damage was done in a day than could be repaired in
twenty-four hours by the troops available. Minenwerfer sentries were
posted who, whenever they saw or heard a "minnie" fired, blew a whistle.
The troops in the trenches then at once looked into the air to locate
the bomb. As soon as they had judged where it was going to fall, they
took the necessary steps not to be there at the time of its arrival.
Watching the "minnies" in the air rather resembled waiting for a high
catch in the deep field at cricket. If there was no wind it was
comparatively easy to judge them. If, however, there was a strong breeze
blowing, the wind would catch them and alter their flight considerably.
The men, however, soon learnt their idiosyncrasies, and it was a rare
occurrence for casualties to be inflicted by them.
The Grenatenwerfer was quite a different proposition. This form of
projectile was fired from a machine of about the same size and weight as
a typewriter, and in consequence it could be moved with ease from place
to place after every few rounds. It was thus difficult to locate the
position from which it was fired. Further, it was most unusual to be
able to see the projectile in the air, so that no steps could be taken
to avoid it.
As regards British operations, a discharge of gas from cylinders took
place on 31st August. The preparations for this discharge involved a
considerable amount of work. The cylinders of gas had to be carried the
full length of the communication trenches, each one being supported by
two men. The weight of these cylinders was so great that a second pair
of men were also required for each cylinder to act as reliefs.
Enormous carrying parties were therefore required to carry the cylinders
to the fire-bays in the front line into which they were to be installed
by the gas companies. This was always an unpleasant task, as the danger
of a bullet or fragment of shell striking a cylinder and causing a
leakage of gas in the midst of the carrying party was ever present.
The discharge on this night was followed by a raid half an hour later.
The enemy, however, was found to be alert, and he met the raiders with
such a heavy machine-gun fire that they were unable to reach the hostile
wire.
Subsequently raids became a frequent occurrence. On 15th September four
raids were carried out. In each case Bangalore torpedoes--_i.e._, long
tubes of ammonal with a time fuse--were used to destroy the enemy's
wire.
These raids were carried out by the 6th Gordon Highlanders, the 6th
Seaforth Highlanders, the 7th Gordon Highlanders, and the 7th Black
Watch.
Of these, the first and third failed owing to the torpedoes not
bursting; the second was an unqualified success, and is described in
detail later. The fourth was successful, but only two Germans were found
in the trench.
The following night two more raids took place. Of these, one carried out
by the 5th Gordon Highlanders was completely successful, and twenty-five
Germans are reported to have been killed. The second raid, carried out
by the 9th Royal Scots, was also successful, but only one German was
found in the trenches. He was killed.
On 22nd September the 6th Gordon Highlanders made a second attempt at
the raid which had been unsuccessful on 15th September. However, the
enterprise again had to be abandoned, as the torpedo failed to explode
and the wire remained uncut.
As raiding became so marked a feature of the war, space forbids that
each raid should be described in detail. General Harper was therefore
asked to select the raid he considered most suitable for description,
and he has chosen that carried out by the 6th Seaforth Highlanders on
15th September 1916. This raid is therefore now described in detail.
The area selected for the operation was a most prominent salient formed
by the German front line. Through the apex of this salient, and running
at right angles to the fronts of the opposing forces, ran the
Armentières-Lille Railway. Across the base of the salient ran a
well-defined entrenchment.
The general plan was as follows: The raiders were divided up into two
parties, each consisting of one officer (Lieutenants J. Sainter and D.
F. Jenkins), one sergeant, one corporal, and ten privates, with a
blocking party each of one N.C.O. and three men.
The scheme was that each party should cut the wire at its own point of
entry by means of Bangalore torpedoes, while the wire was to be cut for
a point of exit by the 2-inch mortars.
The two parties were to enter the salient from opposite sides and close
to its base. They were then to leave their blocking parties to cover
their rear, while they both worked forwards to the apex. By meeting at
this point it was hoped that the entire garrison of the salient would be
accounted for.
The Bangalore torpedoes, both seventy-five feet in length, were to be
placed under the wire thirty minutes before zero, Lieutenants Sainter
and Jenkins, each with two men, being responsible for placing the
torpedoes in position.
The raiding parties were ordered to leave their trenches and form up in
No Man's Land about thirty yards away from their torpedoes, ready to
rush through the gap in the wire as soon as the explosions took place.
The actual trench area to be raided had been reproduced exactly
according to scale in a large pasture close to Armentières. It was thus
possible to practice the men continually over the course, so that they
acquired a true sense of direction, and of the distances they would have
to traverse during the raid.
The parties paraded for the raid with their faces and knees blackened,
with their bayonets covered in mud, and with their steel helmets encased
in sandbags to which grasses and weeds had been sewn. These precautions
were necessary, as the men had to lie out in No Man's Land, where they
would be in danger of being observed by a German sentry, so that they
could enter the trenches immediately the torpedoes were exploded.
Ropes were also carried, as it was anticipated that there might be some
difficulty in getting the prisoners out of the deep breastwork trenches,
and it might be necessary to drag them out.
The men wore Dayfield body-shields to protect them from bomb splinters.
The arms carried were as follows: Officers. 1 revolver, 6 bombs, and 1
electric torch; N.C.O.'s, 1 revolver, 10 bombs, and a bludgeon; 4
bayonet men, rifle and bayonet, 6 bombs, electric torch attached to
rifle, 30 rounds of ammunition; 8 throwers, 10 bombs and a bludgeon; 8
spare men, a bludgeon, 10 bombs, and a wire-cutter; blocking party,
rifles and bayonets, 30 rounds of ammunition, and 10 bombs.
In the first instance the success of the raid was dependent on the gaps
being adequately cut in the wire. At the time many persons thought that
General Burn's scheme of using torpedoes seventy-five feet long was too
ambitious. Certainly when the torpedoes were constructed and were seen
for the first time, they looked awkward things with which to have
dealings in No Man's Land, being as they were considerably longer than a
cricket pitch. When the time arrived the torpedoes were hoisted out of
the trenches, and the torpedo parties set off with them. Lieutenant
Jenkins had little trouble with his; he reached the selected point in
the German entanglement without incident, and placed his torpedo in
position. This was difficult work. Here were two parties, each of three
men, within 70 yards of the German sentries, forcing a metal tube 3
inches in diameter, 75 feet long, and loaded with ammonal, underneath
the German entanglements. Very lights were fired by the enemy
continually, illuminating the whole country-side and making the work
more hazardous than ever.
It was further impossible to place the torpedoes in position without a
certain amount of noise being made, which the German sentries might at
any time hear. The whole wire entanglement stood in a mass of rank
undergrowth, through which the nose of the torpedo had to be forced. The
posts supporting the entanglements were not placed in regular rows, so
that occasionally as the torpedo was pushed forward its movement was
brought to a standstill by a wooden post standing directly in its way,
and its course had to be altered. The lower strands of wire also scraped
along the upper surface of the torpedoes, and made a horrible grating
noise.
In spite of these difficulties, Lieutenant Jenkins placed his torpedo in
position exactly as arranged, and in sufficient time to return to the
trench and to lead his party out to a point about thirty yards from the
German wire. The party followed the fuse which connected the torpedo to
the firing mechanism in the trench, so as to ensure joining up in the
right place.
Lieutenant Sainter, on the other hand, was completely out of luck. His
torpedo came apart at several of its joints on three separate occasions,
and had to be repaired by him in No Man's Land. Sainter reported that
had it not been for the German Very lights, he did not think that he
could have managed to repair it. Having finally arrived with it intact
at the right place, he had forced it nearly through the German wire when
it stuck and could be moved forward no farther. He therefore had to
extract it and make a second attempt at a different place. On this
occasion he was successful. The operation, however, had taken so long
that no time was left for Sainter to return to the trench and lead out
his party. The party was therefore ordered to advance, following the
fuse as Jenkins' party had done, until they came upon Sainter. This was
done, and the party had joined him and was in position just ten minutes
before zero.
At zero the two torpedoes were fired almost simultaneously, leaving
gaps clear through the German wire 15 feet broad and 25 yards deep. At
the same time the barrage opened. Major A. G. Graham, M.C., commanding
the 6th Seaforth Highlanders, writes in his account of the operations:
"The barrage opened punctually, and can only be described as perfect.
All ranks taking part in the raid were unanimous in their praise.
The efficacy of the barrage is borne out by the fact that no German
machine-gun fired for forty minutes. The casualties caused by the
barrage must have been heavy, as both parties report that on entering
the trenches parties of the enemy were seen rushing away from the
salient into our barrage."
Immediately the torpedoes exploded, the raiders rushed through the
gaps in the wire and into the enemy's trenches. The enemy was taken
completely by surprise. The first sentry encountered by Sainter's
party was bayoneted in the back, while still staring over the parapet
in blank amazement at the curious explosion that had just occurred in
front of him.
From now onwards all the luck came to Sainter, Jenkins meeting with
considerable difficulties. Sainter's men acted exactly as they had done
in the practices. They entered the trench at the point intended; there
they killed a couple of sentries. They then found a dug-out containing
four Germans, which they bombed until all were killed. At the next
dug-out two Germans came out, one being immediately shot by Sainter, the
other being killed by a bayonet man. Other Germans were killed in the
dug-out with bombs. Four Germans were then found hiding in the trench;
three of these were killed, the fourth being kept as a prisoner. Later
he refused to leave his trench, and was also killed. A lasso had been
put round him to assist in hauling him out of the trench. At this he
became so terror-stricken that he became incapable of movement, and so
had to be despatched. Unfortunately, his remains were left lying in the
trench with the rope still around them. The party then searched the
point of exit, where they found the wire well cut by the 2-inch mortars,
and returned to our lines, having been in the German trenches six and a
half minutes.
Lieutenant Jenkins' party entered the German trench according to plan;
the first fire-bay they entered contained arms and equipment, but no
sentries. There was a dummy parados to this trench made of boards,
behind which dug-outs were found. Four of these were bombed until all
sounds within them ceased. The party then proceeded another ten yards
along the trench, where they encountered an organised German bombing
party. A bombing fight lasting some two minutes then ensued, the Germans
apparently being all knocked out. Lieutenant Jenkins' party sustained
five casualties in this encounter, three men being seriously wounded,
and two slightly. Orders were therefore given to retire by the gap at
which the trench had been entered. As the retirement was being carried
out a second party of Germans attacked. These were heavily bombed; many
were killed, the remainder running away. Three Highlanders had, however,
caught one of them alive, and hurled him bodily over the parapet, and
then jumped after him and pinioned him in a shell-hole. He was finally
taken back to the British lines as the solitary prisoner.
On a bugle sounding the two parties began their withdrawal. Sainter's
party regained our trenches without having sustained a casualty. Jenkins
on his return found that three of his men were missing. He therefore
returned to the German trenches three times with Private A. Macdonald,
and each time succeeded in bringing in a wounded man.
The Dayfield body-shields were found to have numerous splinters of bombs
sticking into them, and undoubtedly saved the raiders from several
casualties.
The German trenches were formed of enormous breastworks 12 to 15 feet
wide, and were revetted with brushwood. Let into the parapet were
numerous concrete dug-outs, each capable of holding from four to six
men. The floor of these dug-outs was level with the bottom of the
trench. The effect of a Mills bomb inside these confined spaces was
devastating, and there is no doubt that every German inside them was
killed. One of the Jocks was asked how he had dealt with these dug-outs.
He replied, "Och, we just boomed yon stone boxes until they stopped
their blether, and then went to the next one."
The barrage for this raid was worked out to the minutest detail. All
weapons were employed, the following amounts of ammunition being used:
2-inch mortars, 228 rounds; Stokes guns, 981 rounds; Vickers guns,
29,500 rounds; 18-pounders, 1200 rounds; 4·5 howitzers, 100 rounds; and
several hundred rounds of rifle grenades.
Every weapon had a particular task given to it. These tasks were
arranged (_a_) so that no fire could be opened by the Germans which
might be brought to bear on men crossing No Man's Land; (_b_) so that no
troops could run away from the area being raided to the rear; (_c_) so
that no troops could counter-attack the area raided over the open
either from the rear or flanks; (_d_) so that no movement could take
place in the German trenches within about 800 yards of the raid. Every
trench junction and every known trench and mortar position on a front of
1500 yards was steadily bombarded throughout the operation.
The results were beyond all expectations. No Germans were able to
reinforce the salient, so that the raiders could deal with its garrison
without fear of interruption. The Germans who broke from the salient and
fled to the rear ran into a barrage of 18-pounders, 4·5 howitzers,
Stokes guns, and 2-inch mortars. Not a single round was fired by the
enemy occupying the trenches on the flanks of the salient.
The barrage thus cut off the troops in the area raided from any support
which their neighbours might have given them, and enabled the raiders to
despatch them just as had been planned.
Many of the Germans on the opening of the barrage had left their arms in
the trenches and run into the dug-outs. When the raiders arrived and
began bombing a panic seems to have set in. The Boches ran about in
terror on seeing the Jocks with their blackened faces and knees and with
grasses in their helmets, holding up their hands, crying, "Kamerad
Kaffirs, Kamerad Kaffirs!" They had apparently mistaken the Jocks for
some species of native troops. This impression and the sight of the
ropes reduced many of them to such a condition that they were even too
terrified to be carried off as prisoners, and refused to move. In
consequence many had to be despatched who might otherwise have been
taken back to our lines alive.
The one prisoner captured turned out to be a good one. He volunteered
much information about the German position, the positions of
headquarters, routes to the trenches, hours of relief, hours and places
at which ration and working parties assembled. A series of violent
bombardments were accordingly arranged based on the information he had
given.
During the remainder of the night the area was occasionally subjected to
short intense bursts of artillery and trench-mortar fire for the benefit
of any Germans who might be inspecting the damage in the salient.
As a result of their gallant conduct on this raid Lieutenants Sainter
and Jenkins were awarded the Military Cross, and four men the Military
Medal.
During the remainder of the Division's sojourn in the Armentières area,
the only other noteworthy operations that took place were outbreaks of
the most excessive trench-mortar activity on the part of the Jocks.
Organised bombardments of the enemy's lines were repeatedly taking
place, with the result that whole sections of the breastworks were
obliterated. Whenever rain occurred and his breastworks became sodden
they were heavily bombarded, so as to give them the necessary incentive
to collapse and bury the Germans in them.
On one occasion over 1200 rounds of Stokes mortar bombs were fired in a
single day by one light trench-mortar battery. It soon transpired that
these bombardments produced very little retaliation from the enemy. It
was therefore felt that we were in a position really to bully him and
make his life a burden to him. The bombardments therefore became more
frequent than ever, and he was unmercifully harassed day after day to
the great delight of the troops.
It was not a sector in which the Germans were much exposed to view.
There was, however, a barricade across a road near Prémesques, where
both men and waggons tended to congregate. This barricade could be seen
from an O.P. at Square Farm on the extreme right of the sector. An
electric bell was therefore rigged up in the gun-pit, with a bell-push
in the O.P. A gun was then kept permanently laid on the barricade. Every
time the observer saw a reasonable bag of people and waggons collected
round the barricade he rang the bell and the gunners fired. This sport,
however, became too popular, with the result that, after a day or two,
no Boche would show himself anywhere in the vicinity of the barricade.
The holding of the Armentières sector will always be regarded as the
most pleasant period of trench life which the Division passed through.
On 12th September 1916 the first Divisional Horse Show was held. It
proved an unqualified success, and stimulated a great interest in the
condition of horses, harness, and vehicles throughout the Division. To
the delight of the Jocks, the officers' jumping competition was won by
General Harper on Charlie, a big bay horse well known to many members of
the Division.
In the Armentières sector, the 152nd Infantry Brigade received a large
parcel of picture post-cards, displaying types of Russian soldiers, from
the 152nd Vladicaucasian Regiment, with the following message printed on
them:--
"_21 May 1916._
"Friends! The birthday of your king is also a holiday for
us. Long live our alliance of the fight with the lie and may
the victory triumph the ingression of low force. From your
comrade, a soldier of the Vladicaucasian Regiment."
General Pelham Burn retaliated by sending the Vladicaucasians half a
dozen haggises, a case of whisky, and a tin of oatcakes.
On 25th September the Division was relieved in the line by Frank's
Force, and moved to the area Bailleul, Meteren, Estaires. On the 30th
the Division entrained again for the south at Bailleul and Merville,
Doullens and Candas being the destination.
On 1st October the Division proceeded by march route to the area
Bus-les-Artois, Bois du Warnimont, Authie, Vauchelles, Thievres, and
came under the orders of the XIIIth Corps.
On 4th October the 152nd Infantry Brigade relieved the 6th Brigade, 2nd
Division, in the sector east of Hebuterne from John Copse on the right
to Sixteen Poplars Road on the left. The Divisional artillery came into
the line on 6th October.
The next ten days were devoted to preparations for an attack on
Puisieux. The scheme was that the Division should attack on a
one-brigade front, all three brigades being employed on the leap-frog
principle. The attack was to be carried to a considerable depth,
Puisieux being the first objective. Those who were to take part in this
attack had strong misgivings as to the likelihood of its success. The
natural fortress of Serre, which had been enormously strengthened with
every modern artifice, lay on the flank of this attack on the summit of
a crest. Thus if the operations against Serre failed, the whole
Divisional attack would be compromised. Urgent representations were made
on this score, and finally the attack in its original form was
abandoned. Meanwhile the whole German trench system had been reproduced
by means of tracing tapes, and practice of the attack had been well
advanced.
In this sector the trenches had been named after characters in French
history, the pronunciation of whose names tried the Jocks very high.
Jean Bart they could manage, though they assumed that the trench was
named after some female celebrity. Du Guesclin and Vercingetorix in
particular were, however, a sore trial to them. "What's the sense in
giving a trench a name like that?" said one of them, referring to
Vercingetorix. "I suppose," replied his platoon commander, "you would
like it called Sauchiehall Street or Auchtermuchty Avenue." "Aye," said
the Jock, "anything that a decent body can pronounce." There were
probably only three French place-names which the Jock really
appreciated; they were Auchonvillers, Villers Plouich, and Martinpuich.
On 17th October the 153rd Brigade, which was then in the line, was
relieved by the 92nd Brigade of the 31st Division, and the 152nd
Brigade relieved the 189th Brigade of the 63rd Division in the
Beaumont Hamel sector. The remainder of the Division moved to the
Lealvillers-Forceville-Varennes area.
On 20th October the 153rd Brigade came into the line on the right of the
152nd Brigade and took over part of the front. Systematic and deliberate
preparations were then made for the capture of the village of Beaumont
Hamel and the ridge beyond it.