1. society
2. unrest and war

HOW
THE
TO
BATTLEFIELDS
SEE
Territory
over
which
the
B.E.F.
fought.
how
The
to
see
Battlefields
BY
^^
Daily
Chronicle
With
''''
AND
SpecialCorrespondent(1914)
Fourteen
New
FUNK
FLEMING
ATHERTON
CAPT.
Maps
York
WAGNALLS
COMPANY
y^^
5S?rJ
SIT
'
/
FOREWORD
book
This
the
is
of
light
period,
and
endeavour,
in
the
of
course
There
want
has
a
the
certain
collected
been
in
campaigning
years'
with
the
see
some,
and
should
use
repaid
to
for
mv
of
pathetic
than
in
France
will
a
pilgrims,
pure
mere
be
in
shall
feel
in
of
To
the
sightseeing,
prove
than
amply
trouble.
A.
Wiston,
the
nature
herein
more
took
others
view.
more
round
will
fighting
curiosity,
contained
I
who
people
the
object
information
the
these
which
out
journeyings
pilgrimage
a
of
over
doubt,
more
their
latter
ground
no
much
a
thousands
many
are
to
place;
of
which
four
over
possible,
as
an
before
set
to
simply
Flanders.
and
of
manner
a
is
It
one,
in
particular
any
War.
crude
very
a
describe
Great
the
information
of
amount
of
concise
as
to
regarded
be
to
means,
any
attempt
an
phase,
or
public,
by
not,
July,
1919.
F.
CONTENTS
PAGE
SECTION
1.
Ypres
NiEUPORT
Bailleul
"
2.
Bethune
Armentieres
Arras
"
3.
The
I
"
Somme
17
"
38
Cambrai
and
.
St.
4.
Quentin
Roye
Noyon
58
"
"
5.
montdidier
soissons
compiegne
6.
7.
The
Retreat
From
from
the
Marne,
75
"
"
Chemin-des-Dames
1918
Mons
QO
to
THE
III
LIST
Territory
Over
MAPS
OF
Fought
B.E.F.
the
which
Frontispiece
PAGE
Ypres
NiEUPORT
Bailleul
"
5
"
.
Armentieres
Bethune
"
ArMENTIERES
The
St.
(I.)
19
ArRAS
(II.)
27
BfiTHUNE
Somme
Cambrai
and
Ouentin
41
Roye
No
"
St.
Arras
"
Roye
Quentin
(T.)
61
(II.)
65
Noyon
"
"
Montdidier
yon
"
(I.)
Soissons
Compiegne
77
"
"
.
Compiegne
Montdidier
83
(11.)
Soissons
"
"
.
The
Retreat
(I.)
Mons
from
93
.
The
Retreat
(II.)
Mons
from
Chemin-des-Dames
TO
theMarne,
ChEMIN-DES-DaMES
TO
THE
Plan
of
Trench
System.
MaRNE,
lOI
1918
(I.)
113
I918
(II.)
119
Fo
r.-nip
page
24
THE
SEE
TO
HOW
BATTLEFIELDS
SECTION
Nieuport"
If
could
line
a
round
La
then
Soissons,
Berry-au-Bac
in
width,
of
the
whole
and
would
of that
To
British
to
interest
us
Second
occupied
very
was
the
short
handed
British
all
intents
we
and
Colonial
Battle
turning-point
a
which
farther
of
the
of
the
Army,
five
the
War
by
during
the
composed
the
French
battlefields
or
more
this
"
the
Western
call "the
to
the
line,
concerned,
are
in
1918
ceases
Until
British
"
to
of certain
except
"
retreat
the
had
troops
line
1914
decisive
the
"
"
far
so
Berry-au-Bac.
Marne,
Great
miles
fairly accurately,
purposes
than
east
to
ten
to
the
twenty
used
troops
Noyon,
Chemin-des-Dames
Chemin-des-Dames
period
over
to
and
Somme
Roye,
to
on
from
define,
area
and
out
the
through
places, notably
some
of
land
the
varying
bellying
as
not
at
line
Somme,
Front."
the
a
"
and
P^ronne,
along
Bethune
between
Arras,
and
Bapaume
country,
swath
of
coast
Dixmude,
through
down
Armenti^res,
front
in
Bassee,
and
and
Ypres
Sea
North
the
from
Flanders,
in
Bailleul
Ypres"
drawn
be
Nieuport
near
I
for
before
gth Corps
divisions
which
it
of
How
2
had
badly knocked
been
for
about
wishes
the tourist who
of the
battle line from
Swiss
frontier,there
battlefields
there
sent
were
for
lot; the
town
famous
know
and
think
I
female, will
be
which
the
with
flush
pride at the
comparativelyunaffected
is
but
natural.
it
much;
very
long
he
as
there"
I
going
am
any
to
of battlefield which
swath
to
see
places to
of my
the most
start
from,
various
There
a
points of
are
is sacred
to our
interesting
part
to use,
the tourist with
"
of
heard
interest him
and
so
line
blinkin'
is that
troops
own
;
of the line, the
and,
interest to
to
the best
be
at
seen
the tour.
+hree
fourth.
Ypres
describe
to
ability,the objects of
of
be
it.
about
attempt
the roads
and
France,"
the
into
;
would
had
in
more
Army
of Verdun
did not
was
"going
he didn't think
What
it
or
of the
woman
Atkins
"Somewhere
not
or
British
the mention
Thomas
was
was
by the
mention
Verdun, but exactlywhere
all is said
Britisher,male
man
by
is left of it; the
in that section
held
French
average
:
of the
bloodiest
it. When
average
was
visited
Vosges. I do not
fore
Berry-au-Bac,there-
of
east
interested
more
Front
just as
the
historic
be
to
the
to
the
describe
to
attempt
done,
Western
salient,and
coast
several
fronts
French
part of the line
I won't
Sea
instance,possibly the
of Rheims, or what
St. Mihiel
any
North
the
whole
the
investigate
to
are, of course,
the
on
Verdun,
how
and
rest.
a
For
it
Battlefields
See the
to
The
ways
of
first is
plentyof
seeing the Front
a
walking tour,
time
on
his hands,
"
sibly
pos-
and
to
this,in
Nieuport" Ypres" Bailleul
the
opinion, is
my
train to various
interest
of
centres
within
and
is
doubt,
no
then
a
will
be
second
the
foot to the
on
reach ; and
easy
I mentioned
motor-car.
there
ideal method;
3
the
third
is
points
is
by
that,
possiblefourth,and
the
inevitable
by
"conducted
tour."
port which
Calais, that famous
to
use
as
jumping-offground
a
England, will now
jumping-offground from
attack
a
Lord's
of the War
"
the ex-Kaiser
be
used
which
which
by the tourist
view
to
discomfiture.
from
tended
in-
Instead
the
to
as
scene
of "Nach
pointingin the opposite
signpostis now
Berlin."
direction; the writing thereon reads "To
Instead of going to Berlin, however, we take the train
for the "foot-slogger"this will be
to Nieuport; even
the best way
to get to the beginning of the line ; there
will be plenty of walking to do later.
The
quaint old Flemish
town, Nieuport,with its
of rubble, the result
but a mass
Templars Tower, now
of four years of fighting,
is to all intents and purposes
the beginning of the stupendous trench system which
Kales
the
stretches
time
bank
which
of
to
the Swiss
in 1914
the
Yser
it included
frontier.
the Allied
river
For
some
line followed
from
the
sea
then, turned
able
considerthe eastern
to
Nieuport,
sharply southwards
the canal, followingthe Ypres
way
across
Nieuport railembankment, passed in front of Ramscapelle,
and then on to Dixmude.
With
steadyforward pressure,
almost yard by yard the line was
advanced
until
Lombartzyde was taken, and our front line was just
"
outside
Westende.
How
4
The
to
the canal
between
area
Lombartzyde,
the flooded
take
and
The
the other side of the Yser.
where
one
gaze
may
of the
course
to
on
fighting
Dixmude,
is left of the
what
upon
the river,
and
through Pervyse
down
be followed
may
of
out
little distance
positionsome
new
advance
Ramscapelle
betw^een
a
up
to
sandy
the fall of
and
sea,
Allies
the
enabled
area
the
and
the
in
trenches
of
forward
pushing
Battlefields
the
See
once
parish church of St. Nicholas, which was
Dixmude
for its flamboyant rood loft. From
beautiful
noted
one
do
cannot
Canal, which
better than
through
runs
fightingin
hardest
follow
the
war
to
the line of the Yser
Ypres. Some of the
took place along this
and forwards
swayed backwards
this much-coveted
long
over
position for many
months, always leavingthe balance in the favour of
the Allied troops. Yet the cost was
heavy, as can be
in the immediate
wooden
crosses
seen
by the numerous
canal, and
back
then
by
Wood,
the battle
Across
areas.
the
road
which
the canal
eastwards
to
brings
us
Merckem
to
and
Houthulst
expensive obstacle to us
several times after the capture of Langemarck, when
the British attempted to open
up the Ypres salient
to the north.
Pilkem
and Boesinghe, Het Sas and
Steenstraate
one
marks
"
proved
what
another, and
the extreme
an
is left of them
are
mentioned
point reached
"
are
later.
by
all close
to
Boesinghe
the enemy
when
they settled down to trench warfare in 1914.
Through Poelcapelle we
get to Passchendaele
culty
diffiRidge. Passchendaele itself there will be some
in finding,
althoughthere ought to be a bit of
THE
MAFPA
CO..
LTD..
L0NDO"
How
6
endurance
of human
chendaele
hell it
to
reason
try and
the
foretaste of
"
have
who
go there
and
conditions
cost
"
their
at
mentioning,and
the
traveller wishes
the
unless
"
into what
farther westwards
to go
Pass-
knew.
Passchendaele
From
the
you
meant
weather
worth
cover
a
many
are
have
ridgewith the
all he
fighting
enemy
had
place. When
it must
no
during
man
ever
There
this
remember
worst, with
very
if
surelythere.
realise what
to storm
reached
was
"stunt," for
was
I think the very limit
of 1917.
there in the last weeks
fell
who
of respect to the thousands
slightmark
show
if only to
visiting,
left; but it is worth
the church
some
the Battlefields
See
to
was
German
tory
terri-
the best road is
during the four years of war
If you had any
through Broodseinde and Zonnebeke.
what
friends or relations in the Gunners, ask them
"
Zonnebeke
they thought of
as
a
health
resort ; and
a
bish
heap of rubthe site of Frezenbecq,turn sharp
which
marks
Menin
road about halfway
leftand cut into the Ypres
between
Hooge and Gheluvelt,both of which places
noted battlefields. From
Hooge a direct road
are
leads to Ypres, and
well, I am not going to try and
limit myself
that I must
describe the indescribable,
so
is to the British
anent
to a few remarks
a placewhich
when
little farther on,
you
come
to
the
"
"
what
nation
Let
suppose
the coast
from
that
us
a
is to the French.
Verdun
halt has
that the traveller has
with
been
vantage point or "O
country may
the
idea of
called
Pip
"
be viewed
at
from
straight
visitingYpres, and
come
Cassel, an
which
for miles.
excellent
the surrounding
Nieuport" Ypres" Bailleul
the windows
From
town
one
obtain
may
7
in this
principalhotel
firstsightof Ypres
of the
the
a
"
white
that four
ghost of a town
the pride of the Belgian people.
short years ago was
Ghent
For
than
or
Bruges, had
Ypres, far more
retained
its medieval
character,possiblyowing to
the fact that it had died,commercially,with the handhas just
weaving industry. As I write the news
arrived that the Belgian Government
has decided nol
patch
to
on
rebuild
it could
the
plain
"
the town.
do.
the
I for
One
do
one
see
and
restore
can
not
what
else
repair ancient
buildingswhich have been badly damaged by shell
of mere
restoration or
fire,but this is not a case
repair. Look at the crumbling heap of stones which
St.
now
once
barely marks the base of what was
Martin's massive belfry;one
Gothic arch is all that is
left of the nave
of the church, and all the old houses
of the Square, with their quaintSpanish architecture,
have been destroyed;whole streets have disappeared
under
masses
of
and
stones
rubbish.
Who
could
reproduce the stone carving of the old Cloth Hall ?
In the firstplace,there were
if my
eighty windows
all different
me
serves
rightly and they were
memory
! I agree with Emile
Cammaerts, who says that
who erected
Ypres could only be rebuilt by the men
her walls six or
centuries ago." The
town
seven
should be left as it is,untouched
by aught but nature,
surrounded
by what is left of its walls a monument
"
"
"
"
to
German
Ktdtur
of the value
For
over
and
a
constant
of the written
four
years
of
reminder
word
fierce
of
to
kind
man-
man.
fighting"the
How
8
salient of
can
under
by those who
fighting.Bad
sometimes
"
which
have
appallingodds and
cannot
possiblybe realised
actuallytaken part in the
not
conditions
on
nothing
ever
front of
Ypres. Ask
there have
bad
so
any
been
"
very
bad
parts of the front, but
other
many
was
soldiers
British
that
in the face of
own
conditions
proved
has
Ypres"
hold their
the Battlefields
See
to
as
old
line of defence
in
infantryman what
he
the
thoughtof the salient and get out of his way before
he replies.He wants
pied
occuto forgetit. Ypres was
by the British on October 14, 1914, and since
then proved to be the scene
of many
a
bloody fight
and an insuperable
obstacle to the Kaiser's march
on
"
Calais.
From
October
16
to
November
11,
which
over
period raged the First Battle of Ypres, the Allied
forces by attackingand counter-attacking,
and, to put
the "tin hat on it,"as Tommy
would
say, by finally
routingthe Prussian Guards, within a few hundred
strated
demonpositions,effectually
yards of our artillery
that the British soldier still possessed that
he
has
been
stubborn, dogged pluck for which
famous
The
ever
since
Second
Britain
has
been
a
nation.
Battle of
16,
Ypres began on March
1915, and lasted tillMay 17. On Thursday, April22,
the enemy
launched
his first gas attack
that day
on
German
Kultur
reached its zenith,and in the following
reached
theirs.
No
words
days .the Canadians
of mine could describe the sufferings
of these gallant
Colonials,of how they held on, hour after hour, with
and
grim tenacityin spiteof the poisonous fumes
"
"
How
10
to
See
the
Battlefields
bedding, furniture and household
goods carts
drawn
by horses, oxen, dogs, and very often with
between
the shafts,and a woman
child
or
only a man
the road
for miles and
blocked
pushing behind
proved a very great hindrance to the arrival of the
being rushed up
necessary reinforcements which were
with all possiblespeed. As an
instance of forced
Division
covered
marching the Lahore
thirty-three
miles between
i o'clock
on
April 24 and 10.30 a.m.
the next day.
north-w^est of Ypres, on April 25,
At Grafenstafel,
1915, the Durham
Light Infantrywere subjectedto a
very heavy gas shell bombardment, and had to fall
back to a positionon
the bank
of the Wannabeck.
On Monday, the 26th,our Indian troops of the Lahore
Division
received their baptism of gas in the attack
St. Julien,which they did in concert
with General
on
Riddell's Brigade. In this attack all but three Indian
officers became
and Jemadar Mir Dast, of
casualties,
the 58th Coke's
his V.C., and
in the
Rifles,won
of
"
"
afternoon
From
General
this time
Riddell
onwards
fell.
until
May
11
the battle
raged almost unceasingly between Steenstraate and
Frezenberg until the Germans, evidently"fed up"
with
their lack of success,
heavy losses, and our
stubborn
diary
defence, started shellingYpres with incenshells and set the town
fire in many
on
places.
On May 15 the littlevillageof Het Sas, near
straate,
Steenwas
occupied by the Zouaves, after they,
their way
helped by Algerian troops, had worked
dead behind
them.
forward, and left pilesof German
Nieuport" Ypres" Bailleul
The
neighbourhood of
graveyard of many
the
The
battlefield of
of
scene
so
The
is not
a
Pilkem
This
1917,
and
the Third
was
concrete
shelters.
shattered
houses
were
so
of bursts
shells.
Farm,
had
to
"do
to
it is
Battle
of
extremely
and
see
"
what
to
this district
be obtained.
and
episode
of what
Ypres,
the
been
There
Holleother.
or
I think
is
fortified with
been
on
concrete, and
strong that they had resisted the shock
from
8-inch
Farther
the
trace
has
July 31,
considerable
a
position of some
strength,
defended
by a wide and deep trench,in which
was
largelyused to strengthenthe trench
In the villageitself many
of the shell-
was
some
some
certainly
ought to be seen.
village,at the opening
termed
now
"
Langemarcke
for
noted
can
is
of Huns.
the visitor what
not
Steenstraate
fightsthat
yard between
square
and
"salient
ride if a horse
or
"
that is
beke
the
only satisfactory
way
it
is to walk
Sas
hundreds
Homeric
many
difficult to advise
miss.
Het
ii
to
remains
Mackensen
and
9.2-inch heavy
the south
of the
of the
German
Farm,
and
howitzer
villageone
may
posts of Gallwitz
Zouave
Farm.
These
posts proved
tough obstacles to the attackingforces,
A
as
they were
very stronglyfortified and manned.
German
that
prisoner told me after the engagement
he did not
think it possible for any
infantrytroops
to
survive
prisoner was
in
front of Mackensen
of
the
Farm.
As
this
garrison of the place he
what
he was
To the
probably knew
talkingabout.
Welshmen
belongs the credit for capturing these
formidable
defences, and having gained knowledge
one
How
12
See
to
the Battlefields
by bitter experience,they did not attempt a frontal
flanking
attack, but reduced the garrisonby a series of outmovements,
After
I should
a
areas
south
to
cessful.
completely suc-
were
"salient,"or possiblybefore it,
advise the tourist to make
back
farther
visit to the
which
before
Bailleul
a
tour
leaving the
and
diate
of the imme-
district to
Armentieres.
A
go
run
and
through Dickebusch
Reninghelst to Kemmel
Hill a magnificentview of the battlefield
(from Kemmel
be obtained),and then back to Locre. From
may
Locre, instead of taking the direct road to Bailleul,
Mont
Rouge and Mont Noir to
go by the road over
St. Jans Cappel, and I am
tary,
the Mayor's Secresure
the worthy M. Sagary, will be only too pleased
welcome
visitors and
to
give any details required
relatingto the surrounding district.
I had the very good fortune to be billeted at M.
little time during a rest
Sagary's house for some
thank either M. or Mme.
period, and cannot
Sagary
enough for their kindness to me during my stay there.
St. Jans Cappel was
of the few villagesin the
one
district which had totally
escaped the Hun "strafing
stunt" in April,1918,
up to the time of the "Kemmel
and then the Hun, with his usual preferencefor sacred
edifices,
punctured the church tower with one shell,
"
and
followed
the
by landing one or two
in the streets of the village,
more
much
to the surprise
and indignation
of the villagers,
who, after four years
of safety,had hoped to finish the war
"unchipped,"
to speak.
so
Before leaving the district I should
matter
up
Nieuport" Ypres" Bailleul
recommend
visit to
a
which
Monastery,
is within
Mont-des-Cats
famous
the
easy
13
Jans
of St.
reach
Cappel.
To
Bailleul
suffered
is but
a
comparatively
short
little
journey.
damage
up
This
to
town
1918;
and shelled intermittently,
occasionally
I think the
done.
but very
little real damage was
Hun
always had a sort of idea that Bailleul would
the '*rush to
make
a
very good headquarterswhen
the coast
developed,and,
projectwas a little more
than
therefore,he refrained from damaging it more
he could help. In 1918, however, during the heavy
of
fightingaround Kemmel, a very large number
bombed
it was
"
shells
with
sent
were
the Hotel
into the town,
de
Ville,was
and
the Grand
razed
practically
Place,
to
the
of the hand-to-hand
street
ground, and a repetition
took
fighting which
place in both Bailleul and
in 19 14 again happened in both these places
Meteren
in 19 18 before
the Allies finallyretook
the town.
Bailleul was
not
a
by any means
pleasanttown even
m
it was
looked
days; but during the war
pre-war
by the troops as a haven of rest a place in
upon
which
to buy food and
postcards,and the thousand
and one
thingsthe British soldier spends his pay on.
One could get an omelette
and a bottle of quitegood
wine for a few francs at the Faucon, and the familiar
Tina's"
used
as
be the
to
meeting-placeknown
"
*'
resort
of all officers who
line for
a
few
and
Boche
dry
outside
hours'
were
able
to
get down
the
respitefrom the Flanders mud
high-explosives.One could at least get
and
inside at "Tina's," a pleasant
wet
How
14
See the Battlefields
to
conditions
reversal of the usual
atmosphere was
it
was
used
outside
where
Divide
A
the
many
are
to
be
a
could
be
found
boys who
our
if the
line,and
hardly breathe
time
it lasted.
big hospitalin Bailleul,and
will
town
of
one
relief for the short
welcome
a
There
thick that
so
in the
just
a
British
cemetery,
have
crossed
the Great
laid to rest.
well-known
and
cheeryfigurein Bailleul during
the short time he was
in the vicinitywas
the late
Vernon
Castle,who was with a crack squadron of the
for a considerable
time lay
R.F.C., whose aerodrome
Vernon
Castle at the piano in
justoutside the town.
"Tina's"
worth
was
hearing, and one was
always
of a jollyevening. Another
the
sure
was
celebrity
officer in charge of the Officers' Clothing Depot
A.O.D., who, as a rule, used to be shelled out once
used to take a grim delightin
and who
a
fortnight,
showing visitors how "the last one" had justmissed
him by a few inches.
As a typicalexample of German
it may
humour
interest the reader to know
that during the short occupation
of Bailleul by the enemy
in 1914 they as a
joke liberated the lunatics in the asylum and allowed
them to wander over
the country. Many of these poor
miserable
creatures
afterwards found
dead
were
by
the roadside or in the woods, where
they had fled in
their terror.
Can
hideous kind
one
imagine a more
"
"
of humour?
Bailleul
on
October
the German
was
captured by
the British Third
14, 1914,
and
offensive
early in 1918.
remained
in
our
hands
Corps
until
Nieuport" Ypres" Bailleul
15
the
visitor,
area
leaving the northern
if motoring,should go to St. Omer, which
especially
for a long time the General
was
Headquarters of the
Before
time
severely bombed
was
It
bombing squadrons.
that Lord
a
died
Roberts
visit to the Indian
November
troops, and
to
night
German
in the town
was
on
the
by
time
from
which
France, and
in
Armies
British
of St. Omer
14, 1914,
during
in which
the house
pointedout by any inhabitant. There
several fairlylarge hospitalsin the town, and
were
in the barracks
might have been found the A.S.C.
(M.T.) School of Instruction, where a very large
he died
be
can
of
number
rankers
received
before
"course"
their
licked into shape
obtaininga commission, and were
taining
by one Captain Jarred,aided by a pocket-bookconlutely
all the latest stories,again aided by an absounique knowledge of where to dine, wine or be
entertained.
base
Those
do
cannot
Commerce
St. Omer
also very
is
make
to
Henri-Dupuis, and
France
de
St. Omer
the
at
put up
great place for
a
du
Hotel
there is also
in the Grande
convent
a
Place.
schools, and
is
interesting
historically.
traces
back
of
visitor,unless he
any
rue
Hotel
In all these
found
wish
better than
in the
the inevitable
who
French,
as
the younger
area
British
be
most
an
towns
camps
and
and
villageswill
billets,and
need
expert linguist,
of the
not
be
the
have
inhabitants,and
especially
speak quite good
can
fraternity,
English, and are very proud of the fact. It is the
has taught them, and
type of English that "Tommy"
in some
will be found rather weird, for Tommy
cases
How
i6
is somewhat
amuse
me
and
"
Madame
milk
and
ended
the
the
in
with
the
the
the
on
conversation
m'sieu
jour,
"Trays
is somewhat
to
up
trouble
no
follows
as
"
Madame
:
mother."
''Bongjoor,
"Bon
has
**
rolls
flushed
everything.
sans
hand,
simply
; he
language
other
often
parties
both
highly
a
to
eggs
very
of
of
to
explain
which
milk,
sans
used
purchase
exasperation
eggs,
Atkins,
effort
by
subaltern
to
to
high dudgeon
intact
up
young
some
wanted
logy
phraseo-
It
trying
an
complete
sans
Thomas
to
he
that
mess,
departure
youth,
and
the
for
in
listen
to
fact
picked
youngsters.
haltingly
the
his
and
point,
been
French
much
very
painfully
and
have
quick-witted
the
the
to
mannerisms
and
'*
and
blunt
Battlefields
the
See
to
beens
"
got
"
comment
ca
?
doo-lay
any
?
va
"
'*
m'sieu."
"Oui,
"Bong
"
and
o'
couple
a
oofs"
"
holding
up
two
fingers.
m'sieu
"Bien,
"Madame,"
and
a
and
the
time
as
"
returning
couple
of
transaction
it takes
presently
the
eggs;
to
is
and
minute,"
une
necessary
completed
describe
with
it.
a
of
bottle
about
milk
passes,
money
in
trots
away
as
much
How
i8
the
See
to
Thence
troops.
Laventie, and
then
the Battlefields
we
over
go
Fleurbaix
through
the famous
Neuve
Chapelle
the scene
of a "victory" which
battlefield,
over
casualties; 190 officers and over
12,000
other ranks
and
killed here in three
were
wounded,
8,174 men
and
days, 359
23 officers and
to
cost
us
2,350
officers
1,723
men
the pricewe
paid for a gain of
missing. This was
see
yards on a front of 4,000 yards. I cannot
1,200
why we call the Battle of Neuve Chapelle a victor}^,
consideringthe fact that our troops were successfully
the
objective,
prevented from gaining their main
Aubers
Ridge, and thus obtaininga footingon the
road to Lille. However, it is not my job to criticise
I merely point out the placesof interest,and Neuve
into
Chapelle may certainlybe considered to come
than usually
have a more
this category. It may
even
patheticinterest to some.
Chapelle, follow the road down
Leaving Neuve
and Richebourg I'Avoue
to
to Richebourg-St.Vaast
Festubert, Givenchy, and Cuinchy. One may pass
this latter place and
the old front lines between
over
"
Bethune
the main
Auchy-Lr Bassee, and so cross
La Bassee road.
Turning to the left along this road
well known
takes us past the
Railway Triangle
"
"
"
"
to
the Gunners
"
the station,and
so
on
into the town,
Country" of France, which
is very apdy described by
as follows :
Eye Witness
it^
industrial region, and, with
"It is mainly an
of mining and
combination
might I .^
agriculture,
compared to our Black Country with Fenlands int rspersed between the coal mines and the factories. In
the heart
of the ''Black
"
"
"
ARMENTIERESBETHUNE
^
ARRAS
Rx"ads
Main
Secondary
-
R.ailways
Canals
Scale
0,23
^TTFTurpTooTTTDTToNDcn;
How
20
direction the
some
this district has
of
"
which
and
cultivation,
close
described
as
one
by
immense
town
cultivated
cut
are
factories
of
groups
The
enclosed, and
the
togetherthat
places separatedby
some
others
unkempt hedges and
From
in
are
chimneys.
much
very
so
in
bristlingwith
are
villagesare
been
parts
Battlefields
the
See
to
up
portions
by high,
ditches."
visitor's
point of view, Bethune is a
much
more
place than La Bassee, and
interesting
instead of taking the main road back into Bethune
I
would
advise a detour through Hulluch
(reminiscent
of Loos
in September, 1915) and
Vermelles, the
of a gallantand successful French
scene
attack on the
de Vermelles, and also
Chateau
in the grounds of
the Brewery Chateau
old 9.2 howitzer positions
our
for the Loos battle. In Vermelles, not very far from
"
"
the cross-road
the
cemetery,
and
who
men
in the centre
There
of
resting-place
died of wounds
"
Lens
entered
old
road, and
one
days
as
testify.The
this
that
some
we
Farm,
then
passes
of the
many
on
a
to
justopposite.
ing
Loos, a dress-
littlefarther out.
the main
Bethune.
to
the six
be,
officers
Bethune
through Noyelles,Sailly-laAs
the
a
in the
unhealthy
most
its present condition
as
is
town
cross-roads,known
"Charing Cross," and
to
British
in the CCS.
pass
Beuvry
it used
corner
Rutoire
Vermelles
Bourse, and
is a
village,
also,for the battle of
was
station at La
From
of the
will
**
made
practiceof strafing"
district fairly
thoroughly,evidentlywith the idea
our
enemy
reinforcements
of the roads
"
and
a
and
so
relief troops must
they did for
a
time.
use
But
it
Arras
Armentieres"Bethune"
take
did not
for the authorities
long
done
Bethune
it
size the
to
Cross"
tion
posi-
given a
berth,with the result that very littledamage was
bouring
by the frequentshellingexcept to the neighI never
understand
could
why
property.
and
of affairs up,
wide
21
station
used
was
"Charing
suffered
was
little. For
so
three
almost
constantlyby our troops,
detrainingsupplies,leave men
and during that time it was
never
and
years
for
training
en-
and
inforceme
re-
really
Bethune
a great place
was
badly shelled or bombed.
the line" amateur
and some
for "behind
theatricals,
were
staged in the littlehall on
very excellent shows
the Vendin
road by that versatile band
composed of
all ranks
all units
who
and
styled itself "The
Shrapnels."
Like Bailleul,
Bethune
to the hungry, thirsty
was
"
and
"
mud-soaked
oasis in the
desert,and
the cafe in the
meeting-placeof
many,
the Marche
Poulets
only
be
shelled
I do
doors
aux
bombed
were
not
dining-room
number
back.
the
proprietorsout
"
which.
closed
until
Even
was
an
the
de France
meal
the
rest,
in
that could
enemy
either
of their house
then, however,
"
the
for
long, and although the big
put out of action, yet a certain
was
of meals
provided a
a
Square
the Hotel
Paris
remember
not
while
in
equalled
or
the line for
down
man
were
The
served
in
a
smaller
room
at
the
officers will go back
thoughts of many
to the old place for one
gratefully
thing at least,and
that was
the possibility
of obtaininga real hot bath
in a room
all to oneself,with plentyof boilingwater
and
clean towel
a
all, if I remember
rightly,for
"
How
22
the
Until
Frs. 1.50.
when
had
considers
one
line; but after March,
badly, and
was,
inhabitants
for
I
a
the
beginning of
offensive in 1918 Bethune
about
Battlefields
the
See
to
its
big enemy
not been badly knocked
proximity to the front
1918, the
suffered very
town
believe,evacuated
bloc
en
by
the
time.
Just outside the town lies Vendin-les-Bethune, on
for a long time was
the
the road to Choques, which
headquartersof the ist Corps, ist Army. Vendin is
noted for two
things first of all its mine, in which
"
H.R.H.
the Prince
of Wales
took
such
an
interest;
and
secondly,for the most comfortable billet it has
been my good fortune to occupy
during the whole of
overseas.
Any visitor to the district cannot
my term
the Veuve
do better than call upon
in
Degrugillier
the estaminet next to the saddler's shop on the corner
of the Annezin
cross-road.
There
be obtained
can
excellent
omelette,accompanied by
off by a cup
good wine, rounded
bottle of
a
of
an
really
coffee and
a
can
glass of brandy of a kind that only madame
supply. All these things can be procured at a very
low price,while madame
herself is a regularstorehouse
of information
in
connection
with
la guerre.
A
thoroughlygood-heartedFrenchwoman, she could
do enough for any
British soldier
be he of^cer
not
or
private who happened to have the good fortune
"
"
to
be billeted in the vicinity.
Leaving the Bethune
is presented one
routes
the
other
via
choice
road
of two
through
Aix
and
Noulette
to Souchez, and
to
Noeux-les-Mines, Hersin, and on
"
Noeux-les-lMines
the
district,
the
direct
Armenti^res"Bethune"
Arras
23
Coupigny Hill,from which a magnificentview of the
surrounding country is obtainable on a clear day.
The view at night from the top of this hill during a
"strafe" was
indescribablyfine; one could see the
flashes from
enemy
every
gun,
and
even
the streaks
riflesand
of fire from
displayof
with
a
and
all other
machine-guns;this,combined
fireworks in the form of V^ry lights
kinds
of star
shells,made
the
scene
Coupigny Hill sticks up like a
weirdly beautiful.
huge molehill in the midst of the surrounding
plains,and one could see for miles into the country
In the daytime, and
with
occupied by the Boche.
the aid of a good pair of field-glasses
and a map,
it
is possible to trace the fightingline from south of
Lens
to
well north
From
"
watch
"
Coupigny
the roads
and
then
Arras
road
is
along
the
road
Lorette
of Bethune.
make
we
in this
for
Bouvigny-Boyeffles
fusing
village,
they are very con-
to Aix-Noulette.
on
Here
again encountered, and
and
Ridge,
the
over
goes
what
a
eastern
the main
littlefarther
end
of
the
the
village
of Souchez.
Next
the fighting
to Verdun, I think
round
that is,at Notre Dame
this area
de Lorette,
Souchez, and Carency holds a very high place in
the estimation
of the French
people. As to its
the huge French
ferocity,
cemetery at the station near
Villers-au-Bois can
rounding
testify.Carency and the surwitnessed General Petain's triumph,
area
enters
was
once
"
"
and
was
the
the French
district must
scene
of
batteries.
be
seen
a
torrential bombardment
The
to
maze
be
^f trenches
believed; 20,000
from
in this
shells
How
24
rained
300,000
upon
the
From
as
traced
may
be
then
southwards
constructed
eastwards
"The
to
to
a
Neuville
Arras
line of defence
entrenchments
and
St. Vaast
Labyrinth"
"
which
fortified entrenchments
over
the main
These
Works."
the "White
and
about.
Targette,on
had
road, the Germans
known
round
area
to La
Carency
alone
of Carency
town
the
fell upon
the Battlefields
See
to
a
system
of
considered
the enemy
absolutelyimpregnable,and which, to quote
of the Morning Post, conthe specialcorrespondent
tained
device known
every speciesof death-dealing
numbers
of gas and inflammable
to science,including
liquidengines. "Underground tunnels coupled with
mines completewith small fortresses containingguns.
In a maze
to meet
one
constantlyturns corners
The
blank
walls of hedge. In
Labyrinth such
and from
their subterranean
blank walls are
death-traps,
refugebodies of the enemy are liable to appear
The Labyof the advancing attackers.
to the rear
rinth
is linked
by underground tunnels to
up
to
be
...
'
'
*
*
Neuville St. Vaast.
In addition
the
to
.
.
."
the intense bombardment
to
which
fewer than sevenno
teen
Carency sector was subjected,
over
mines, containing
twenty tons of explosives,
fired. The
well worth
craters
were
are
seeing,and
looking upwards towards the road from the dip in
which
of Carency is located the ground disthe town
placed
explosions gives the effect
by the tremendous
trict
;ofa small range of hills. The fightingin this distook placein May, 19 15, and the German
ties
casualwere
put down at over 60,000. I can well believe
How
24
rained
300,000
upon
the
From
Carency
as
La
traced
may
be
then
southwards
constructed
eastwards
"The
to
to
a
Neuville
Arras
line of defence
entrenchments
St. Vaast
Labyrinth"
"
which
fortified entrenchments
over
the main
These
Works."
and
about.
Targette,on
had
the "White
alone
Carency
round
area
to
road, the Germans
known
of
town
the
fell upon
the Battlefields
See
to
a
system
and
of
considered
the enemy
absolutelyimpregnable, and which, to quote
of the Morning Post, conthe specialcorrespondent
tained
device known
every speciesof death-dealing
numbers
of gas and inflammable
to science,including
liquidengines. "Underground tunnels coupled with
mines completewith small fortresses containingguns.
In a maze
to meet
one
constantlyturns corners
The
blank
walls of hedge. In
Labyrinth such
and from
their subterranean
blank walls are
death-traps,
refugebodies of the enemy are liable to appear
The
of the advancing attackers.
to the rear
rinth
Labyis linked
by underground tunnels to
up
to
be
...
'
'
'
*
Neuville
St. Vaast.
In addition
the
to
.
.
."
the intense
bombardment
to
which
fewer than sevenno
teen
Carency sector was subjected,
mines, containingover twenty tons of explosives,
fired. The craters are well worth seeing,and
were
looking upwards towards the road from the dip in
which
of Carency is located the ground disthe town
placed
explosions gives the effect
by the tremendous
iof a small range of hills. The
trict
fightingin this distook placein May, 19 15, and the German
ties
casualwere
60,000. I can well believe
put down at over
THE
The
black
]"ne
divides
the
Allied
and
German
lines.
MAPPA
LONDO"
LTD
CO
.
,
Armentieres
it,as
19
16
"
of the
February,
and
town
in the trenches
dead
British
the
when
bodies
attempt in many
the weather
began
when
the British
howitzer
had
been
washed
exposed
the rats
took
and
batteries,
tunnels
Some
made
25
in
early
each
side
the
and
to
ruins,
cellars
of
sort
an
bury them,
the meagre
away
the bodies to view. What
completed.
that sector,
over
as
slope on
itself amongst
the rain had
soil and
the
underground
everywhere.
cases
coveringof
this area
over
on
"
in the town
were
I admit, but
took
I believe
and
Arras
Bethune"
"
the
To
this
came
earlypart
place,
various
of 1916
was
I can
assure
readers,
springlike,
my
who arrived in Carency attached to a certain
as
one
8-inch battery,that the place was
little better than
have I seen
such rats, or such
a huge cesspit.Never
of them, as there were
in the Carency sector.
numbers
The
alive with them ; the only
literally
place was
to penetrate was
gated
corruthing they could not manage
The only part of one's kit that was
iron.
safe
the shrapnel helmet, and
I verilybelieve they
was
tried to eat the paintoff that.
As an example of the intensive burrowing system
of defensive
works, there is nothing on the whole
with "The
front to compare
Labyrinth," and it is
the enemy
method
of
to compare
very interesting
making his trenches in 1915 with his later ideas,as
exemplifiedin the Hindenburg and similar lines.
It would
be a pity to leave the district without
paying a visit to the famous Vimy Ridge, which, so
I have
been informed
by a Canadian, is now
part
quitewarm
and
of the Dominion
of Canada.
Throuofh Neuville St.
26
How
Vaast
and
Vimy
the
across
Thelus, then
to
See the Battlefields
to
Arras
north to Petit
work
proper.
main
A
Lens
"
Vimy,
and
thorough examination
district will well repay
road
from
of the
to
there
rounding
sur-
the trouble entailed.
of strong points,
regular network
trenches
and wire covering the Vimy
Ridge, the
Hill 145, justnorth-east
highestpointof which was
All the eastern
of Vimy.
slope of the Ridge and
the villagesof Bailleul-sur-Berthoult,
Farbus, Petit
Vimy, the plateauand the woods were very strongly
Two
defended.
as
huge tunnels,known
respectively
and Volker, had been cut through
the Prinz Arnauld
and suppliesto
the Ridge to enable reinforcements
systems of
pass safelyfrom the eastern to the western
defences.
ingenuitycould
Everythingthat German
pregnabl
suggest had been utilised to make the positionimNothing, however, is impossible to
Canadian
they are thoroughlyroused,
troops when
and on
Easter Monday, April 9, 1917, at 5.30 a.m.,
after an intense bombardment, and in the middle
of
the gallant
usual weather luck
a
severe
storm
our
Canadians followed up the barrage,and in less than
hour had climbed
the slipperyheightsand gained
an
first line,with
the plateau. The whole of the German
the exceptionof the northern end of the Ridge, then
There
was
a
"
fell into
While
our
"
hands.
the
fightwas
Hill 145, the concealed
open and column
poured into the battle.
burst
part of their lost
proceedingon
entrance
of
a
after column
the
tunnel
slopesof
suddenly
of Huns
were
They managed to retake a
front line,but the *'Byng Boys"
How
28
See the Battlefields
to
desperateand
bloody fight,which lasted until late at night,they
kicked
the Hun
next
out of it again. The
day,
had managed to complete
April 10, the Canadians
the conquest of the Ridge by finally
dislodgingthe
their redoubts
enemy
from
end.
During
Scottish and
excellent
after
yet, and
done
not
were
the
the
at
most
Hill 145, at the northern
on
early morning
Country troops
North
work
a
of
April
had
been
of
end
southern
the
doing
Ridge,
operationswhich resulted in the capture of
a
prisoners,
Brigade General and his Staff,25
and
few other odds and
a
Roclincourt
and
remains
by
from
Arras
Bailleul
to
of the defence works
which
the
was
and
arms,
3,500
guns,
district between
Bailleul-sur-Berthoult
of this disaster to the Hun
of the road
The
ends.
our
9
scene
both sides
on
be
may
the
seen
smashed
were
up
fire.
artillery
our
Take
the cross-country road from
Roclincourt
over
the road
leadingfrom Arras to Bailleul-sur-Berthoult
and on
to St. Laurent-Blangyon
the Arras
Douai
the road, and a littlefarther
road, go straightacross
turn
on
sharplyto the right,and you will eventually
"
arrive in the Place
that I
saw
many
thousands
citysince
tliat day,
Worthy
best
town
they
fallen
leavingit
first fell into
sacked the
the
Arras.
of the Caf6
of shells have
15, 1914.
of
Gare,
It
German
successors
from
on
Voyageurs
1914. Many,
the beautiful
battered
and
hands
on
to
late.
deso-
tember
Sep-
the Vandals
they ate and
find, although litde
in 407 a.d.,
could
was
des
the firstshell land in Arras in
Arras
who
la
of the top windows
one
old
de
drank
actual
How
30
One
features
interesting
of the most
its system
of
the Battlefields
See
to
and
caves
of Arras
is
In
passages.
hundreds
of the
subterranean
these
underground refuges many
inhabitants
lived through the whole
period of the
A huge mass
of crumbling masonry
is all that
war.
is left of the magnificentHotel de Ville belfry.Begun
in the year
a
splendid example of
1501, it was
sands
thouand drew many
Hispano-Flemish architecture,
of art-lovers to the town.
Everybody has, of
course,
The
at
heard
of the famous
first shell landed
five minutes
the
renewed
which
in Arras
tapestries.
on
October
past nine in the morning.
beginning
quartierof the
was
Arras
of
deliberate
a
Hotel
each
de
day
on
bombardment
Ville.
the
The
6, 1914,
This
was
the
of
bombardment
7th, 8th, and
9th, by
body of the Hotel de Ville was
injured.
partially
destroyed,
though the tower was almost unArras is now
a mere
shell,another ghost of
and it is heartbreaking
the ruin of the
a town,
to see
Grande
Place and Petite Plrxe, and the remains of
shady colonnades so Spanish in their architecture.
During the whole period of the war a news-sheet,
Le Lion
d* Arras, Journal de Siege, was
produced
regularly. I have No. 28 before me as I write. Its
heading depicts the town in flames, whilst a lion
rampant holds aloft a flag blazoned with the town
arms, with the exhortation beneath, *'Pour la Citie.
Pour
la Patrie,tenir !
Well and nobly have they
time
the
"
held
"
and
Arras
suffered !
was
twice in German
they severelybooted
out.
hands, and twice
In both
cases
were
the occupa-
Arras
Armenti^res"Bethune"
31
by the enemy lasted but a few days.
that the
visit Arras
British people who
now
have meant
ponder well what it must
over,
tion of the town
All you
is
war
to
stay in that
God
island
for your
home
Possiblyyou will
fuller understanding of
French
people are called upon
it !
but
one
of many
ruined
greatest. 1870 and
1914
fair land of France
been
wonder
you
beast
was
now
that she
the
and
the
and
that the chance
has
the
German
the
which
is
the
means
no
claws
of the
Marshal
Foch
the
?
come
wise in his generation when
Armistice, and
by
cut
to
what
some-
fortyyears has the
Can
by the Hun.
laid waste
wants
a
bear, for Arras
twice in
"
with
burden
to
towns,
that preserved
Navy
away
go
thank
and
of war,
for four years
town
decided
he
on
the
in theirs
delegateswise
they accepted unconditionally.Had the French
man
poilu been constrained to fighthis way over the Gerdebts
there might have been one
two
or
frontier,
repaidwith interest.
Crossing the Place de la Gare from the station one
proceeds along the Rue Gambetta, passing the Post
Office on
the left and then coming to the Hotel du
Commerce
tered
the right-handside of the street. Baton
and splashed by shrapnel balls,yet this place
when
for many
months
thousands
or
beer,
real haven
men
out
of rest for many
of the line for
a
Every time I visited the hotel it
other,
or
who, somehow
hungry officers,
rest.
full of
managed
a
of officers and
temporary
was
was
to
find
at
a
dining-room
a
square
meal
fairlyreasonable
most
of
the
and
a
bottle of wine
price.
windows
were
In
the
big
shattered,
How
32
the Battlefields
See
to
or
boards, took
linen,or even
piecesof canvas
the placeof glazing. A hole in the ceilingin the far
where
showed
shell had
come
a
corner
through,
above and furrowing the plaster
wrecking the rooms
in the room
with countless
below
shrapnel tracks.
habitab
at all inYet, during all the time that Arras was
and
ments,
of the bombardeven
during some
and
waitresses
Commerce
soldier.
could
be
in
to
feed
bustling around
It is
Hotel
the
found
the
du
hungry
of very great credit to the proprietors
of the hotel that,in spiteof the almost unbelievable
a
matter
difficulties in
obtaining supplies,there
never
was
any attempt at profiteering.
Although there were several hospitalsin the town
the authorities realised that the situation was
itself,
too
close
the
majorityof
taken
which
to
the line for
to
situated
Beaumetz.
A
real
safety,and
the casualties in the Arras
farther back
was
anythinglike
on
the
area
w^ere
CasualtyClearingStation,
the Arras
"
Doullens
road
near
large burial ground will be seen
the right-handside of the road coming from Arras.
on
At Bellevue,farther along the road on
the way
to
Doullens,may be seen the site of a largeaerodrome,
which for many
months
the headquarters
of some
was
of the finest aerial fighters.
Doullens,if the tourist feels inclined to go there
very
"
and
I shouldn't
motoring
"
is not
be
a
keen
myself unless I were
habitan
place. The invery interesting
very
of this little market
suffered
an
at
all
occasional
during the
bomb, must
war,
have
which
town,
with
the
done
has
not
exception of
very
well
out
Arras
Armentiferes"Bethune"
of the British soldier,judging
to
when
pay
borrowed
see
car,
nearly so
occasional
very
get
decent
some
visit
the town
lorry-hoppedit into
had
pricesone
a
on
justto
food
once
buy a copy of the day-before-yesterday's
the line, was
not
Doullens, safe behind
hospitableas poor battered and scorched
Arras.
If any
of my
front and
place might
to
or
St.
it is
Pol,
which
justpossiblethat
in Aubigny, which
to St. Pol
"
a
Arras
explore the
find accommodation
be found
Arras
to
want
recommend
nice little town,
from
readers
unable
are
itself,I should
of
the
to
or
paper.
old
or
a
it felt like to
what
more
made
one
by
33
in Arras
is
a
some
very
sort
way
lies half-
littleoff the road to the
right. All the back area of the Arras sector will well
if only to show
to the uninitiated
repay investigation,
what a tremendouslyhuge organisation
modern
fare
wardemands.
Near
large
Dainville,on
ammunition
constructed
the main
road, will
sidings, which
for the Arras
offensive
were
in
be noticed
specially
19 17, and
one
of loading and unloading
easilypicturethe busy scene
sands
thouand
thousands
heavy ammunition
of rounds being absorbed by the greedy lorries
and borne off to the guns up in the batterypositions.
Pitchy black nights,rain and sleet,heaving,cursing
and
sweating drivers,lorries getting ditched and
pulled out again, horse transport trotting
past in the
darkness,a regularorgy of petrolvapour, noise and
from
steam
Chaos, apparently;
sweating beasts.
of organisation
yet through it ran a steady current
can
"
How
34
See the Battlefields
to
graduallyate up the chaos, and quietlyand
suppliedeverybody'swants, so that
unostentatiously
in the course
of some
few hours silence reignedover
tired
the dump, and all that remained
one
or two
was
evitabl
and dirty officers,
ditto orderlies,
and the insome
tread up and
sentry marching with measured
which
down
the road.
train
All
was
in and
came
batterypositionsto
the
ceaseless
few
some
blue
of
roar
miles
the lorries
load
up
the
in
guns
threw
the
still
And
more.
once
from
back
came
farther forward, and
flashes which
tion
ammuni-
until the next
over
positions
their
tric
the vivid elec-
everything into bold
relief !
The
enemy
tried very
hard
dump, even
going to the extent
15-inch shells,but they did not
than
make
to
hit the
of
manage
fairly
largeholes
Dainville
throwing
to
do
over
more
in the
vicinity.
Wanqueton, which lies west of Dainville through
Warlus, was less fortunate,for they managed to get
the dump there,though whether with gunfire
plane
or aeroone
or
two
I do not
bombs
remember.
Achicourt, which is almost a suburb of Arras,
and Agny, which
joinson to Achicourt, are places
worth
spending a little time in. Both suffered
very badly in the early days, and there is a fairly
large burial ground in the churchyard of Agny. A
part of the church still remains, and one of the bells
used
end
to
mounted
of the street
ground
as
be
the
round
maze
here
in
a
wooden
framework
at
the
give gas attack warnings. The
has been foughtover
several times,
to
of trenches
will show.
Armentiferes"Bethune"
Arras
35
were
operations during the Great War
thoroughness as the Arras
planned with as much
with
confronted
Vimy offensive of 1917. Haig was
in many
similar to that
a
problem which was
ways
Few
"
the Allied
which
Armies
had
that
to solve
Guns
in 18 13.
in such numbers
that
problem, and guns
would
have
given a gunner nightmare merely to
think of before the war
proved the solution of the
Arras
Vimy battle. Against the perpetual rain of
line crumpled up, masthe Boche
sive
heavy projectiles
concrete
defences, reinforced with steel rods,
The
shattered to atoms.
steel cupolas garriwere
soned
by machine-gunners,which were to play such
a
simply
great part in the defence of the area, were
death-traps.Our infantrymade short work of these
when
they got to close quarters, and the shellshocked and nerve-racked survivors of the garrison
in the majority of cases
were
render
quite ready to surof a rifle butt banged on
to the summons
the rear
have
been
absolute
doorway. It must
hell inside one
of these things during our
bardment.
bomsolved
"
"
"
From
photographs and visual observation,
a
large relief model oi the Vimy heights and their
constructed
as
a
vicinitywas
preliminaryto the
aerial
offensive.
On
this model
every
detail of the
rounding
sur-
set out, even
to road
accurately
stand
tracks, craters, and wire entanglements. I underthat the Mayor of Vimy, who
was
intimately
ance
acquainted with the ground, lent his valuable assist-
country
to
was
the constructor, and
was
able to correct
many
How
36
details
which
the Battlefields
See
to
had
clear
quite
been
not
the
to
observers.
roads
The
Arras
but
excepted
of course,
south-east
and
east
in the best of condition
not
are
the
on
"
I
side
main
"
of
roads,
afraid that the earnest
am
will miss
student of the battlefield area
very
if
much
dition.
only to those routes which are in good con"Foot-slogging"is the only way to see the
pointsof interest. Make an earlymorning start,
he sticks
real
with
sandwiches
some
haversack, a good
determination
if you
even
will
you
in
to
do
see
of
examined.
as
in
Tommy
the
On
much
up
Arras
the
"
one
as
day
you
weary
few hours than
a
You
head
put your
sides
see
bottle of
a
wine
pair of boots, and
finish the
more
country than
to
stout
volumes.
two
and
will
see
did, because
without
a
and
describe
of the
more
will be
road
side will be found
able
Both
being sniped at.
Vis-en-Artois
time,
dirty,and
I could
you
a
the fixed
in the
can
lot
in
should
be
Tilloyand
distance farther
Telegraph Hill, on the other some
east
Monchy-le-Preux. South of Tilloythere used
to exist an
irregularlabyrinthof trenches named
"The
Harp" by our soldiers. Farther south near
Neuville Vitasse,in an almost direct line from Tilloy
over
Telegraph Hill, was a network of barbed wire
entanglementsknown as "The Egg." It was against
such defences as these that our
tanks did such good
in the capture of Telegraph Hill and
work, especially
"The
Harp," while our aerial fighters
once
more
demonstrated
to the enemy
in the air.
our
superiority
Battles in the air between
quitelargeformations were
"
"
"
SECTION
The
III
SOMME
THE
of the Somme
Battle
First
The
July
of
approximately twenty
1916,
The
Montauban.
battle
approximately
which
then
road
in front
of Beaumont
the
over
Hamel
Achiet-le-Grand
just
of
with
Beaumont
South
again
in front
salient, in front
main
of
end
eastern
Albert
La
more
than
Gommecourt
Government
worth
are
and
mile
a
is
as
a
grass
grown
the
Leipzig
the
over
the
through
front
of
of Mametz,
a
just
in
of Montauban.
preserved
national
monument,
of
many
and
mentioned.
Then
slightly south
south
latter
this
to
Bapaume,
proper,
being
seeing, though
very
to
Boiselle
Fricourt, westwards
little
then
"
and
Ancre,
already
Thiepval,
ward
west-
Albert
the
confuse
not
Serre
swung
River
Hamel,
of
the
then
of Ovillers-la-Boiselle.
from
road
Do
line,
our
across
road,
the
Hamel.
place
south
Miraumont
"
was
and
behind;
Hamel,
railway,
front
in
due
almost
ran
the
of
day
territory; Hebu-
Hun
distance
same
to
Gommecourt
:
inside
front
a
Gommecourt
opening
follows
as
morning
attacked
from
"
the
on
line
the
on
mile
one
the
about
terne
miles
line
roughly
was
began
British
the
and
of
I,
Cambrai
and
Somme
almost
38
the
the
by
and
trench
obliterated.
French
is
well
workings
About
The
Cambrai
and
Somme
39
only thing which in any way marks the previous
de
existence of this villageis the site of the Chateau
Gommecourt, which is noticeable only owing to the
in the neighfact that it is the biggestheap of stones
bourhood.
the
justover six miles away, as the
an
immensely strong point,and
in its neighbourhood the "Wunderdefences
and the Schwaben
Redoubt
resisted
successfully
For two
advance for nearlythree months.
our
Thiepval,which
aeroplane flies,was
the
is
"
werk
"
"
years
the
their
engineers
called
Germans
the
"
on
the
stronghold
strong point was
elaborate
very
This
Wunderwerk."
might call the key of
trenches,and commanded, to a
what
all the skill of
concentrated
had
one
intricate
an
considerable
maze
of
extent,
the
on
surrounding country, situated as it was
high ground in front of Thiepval and behind Hohen-
the
zollern Trench.
It
New
Army
addition
few
not
was
to
until
stormed
many
casualties.
operation,but
it
the fact that
at
the time;
our
and
took
14
best
carried
I think
still,
were
the
men
with
out
fort,in
comparatively
said
been
rank
of the
as
one
attacks
of
this
of the
in the
Possiblyit is owing to
going ahead so rapidly
battle.
troops
that
this famous
prisoners,and
Very little has
reallyought to
organised and
historyof the Somme
best
September
"
Wunderwerk"
was
the
key position,and its capture decided the fate of the
later.
fightingwhich came
Taking a cross-country short cut almost due east
of the "Wunderwerk'*
strike Mouquet Farm, and
we
How
40
See the Battlefields
to
continuingsouth-east,Pozi^res on the Albert road.
both
This road is in a very good condition,and on
"
sides of it could
originaltank
Martinpuich. On
the
of the
Mouquet
yet been
not
which
going
be
a
road
to
troops; many
here, if theyhave
big memorial cemetery
farther along the road.
the
to
constructed
to
and
contains
which
British
and
relics of
"
of the
cemetery
a
one
ago,
of Courcelette
casualties rest
removed
has been
It is
Farm
earliest type
oppositeside
the
of Australian
graves
short time
a
in front
attack
there is
station
Pozieres
the
of the
derelict tanks
two
or
until
be seen,
for the
difficult matter
very
already soldiered in the war
of the
to get a real idea of the actual strength
area
area.
defences in the Somme
German
By this time,
of the wire has been
much
I suppose,
cleared,a
tourist
unless
"
has
he
"
in the wet
made
we
will
a
a
be
now
of
matter
season
"push"
in
a
are
"
were
and
that
to
up
better
minimum
amount
of you
in these
sort
of
a
was
time
in
mud,
the knees
will look
could
war
of trouble
a
as
a
if
quiteas
be carried
and
get this idea in your
placesjusttake
every
condition,and,
fact,parts of the front
If any
you
"
much
a
reallycomfortable
with
well
everything generally made
tidy. Many of the allegedroads and tracks
nice and
which,
Land"
"No-Man's
be
and
cultivation
under
to
dug-outs filled
trenches and
the
large proportionof
in, and what used
on
ence.
inconveni-
heads when
visit to the nearest
of the men
who
big cemetery and see the names
of the finest fighting
stock in the
belonged to some
world.
They found it difficultenough to advance.
:r
ARI
tcarT
SOMME
THE
CAMBRAI.
AND
Roads
Main
Secondary
"
"=.
""
Canals
-*"
Mile:
Scale
(Gormacourt
Gommecourt
nBucquoy
Hebuterne
lAchJet
'leGrand'
Puisieu"
aii-ivlont
nfcr^
iCji
tPAUME
Miraumon__,
umont^
tiamel
Warliocburt
Grancfcourt'
eSars
Hamel
^yrcelette
.Guedecourl
Thieayal
"teTransIoy
^i esboeiifs
och/MLJf.
Flers
oU\ers-o
y^^'^i^
3oi5elle,
^
MSaiify-Sailhsel
,
La^dfsdle
ALBERT
ombie.?
.^':;^srP;.rA
[ricourt
THE
WAPPA
CO
,
LTD.,
LONDON
How
42
advance
if they could not
and
My
could
They
could.
brother
own
the Battlefields
See
to
not
forward,
go
men
earth
on
died.
they
so
He
of them.
one
was
other
no
lies
near
Pozi^res.
about
a
Battle of the
the
High Wood
casualties.
its fortified craters
with
we
between
took
it,and
forced out
were
Flers
Territorials.
lazilyand
lumbered
street
with
the enemy
tough hide, much
cheered
who
"
British
and
and
to
to
found
be
while
Woods,
of
High Wood,
Trones
Wood,
all well-known
names
for their
daily paper
Somme
was
pilingup the
was
a
tough nut to crack,
and machine-gun nests, and
fell before the
until it finally
Colonial
"
eagerly looked
who
those
when
Bazentin
Delville Wood
Farm
with Waterlot
to
two
mile south-east will be found
fame, then
evil
the
and
Wood
Mametz
of Martinpuich will
south
litde
A
of it more
onslaughtof
the
north-east
troops, led by
a
than
once,
the London
"
fell
tank,
to
which
complacentlythrough the main
like hail on its
bullets rattling
the amusement
of our infantry,
it to the echo.
particularly
tough obstacle was found in
the "Quadrilateral,'*
a
position
strongly defended
the Morval
half a mile east of Ginchy, on
some
Ginchy road. Here our Guards suffered badly,owing
their left flank being held up in front
to the troops on
of this strong point. Although we lost very heavily,
Another
"
there
is every
likewise,for
best divisions
The
work
reason
to
believe
that the enemy
did
that three of his
definitely
were
hopelesslyput out of action.
performed by the tanks in this area
it is known
was
43
new
tank
of the comic
incident
Cambrai
engine of warfare
up" the Boche, followingas
thorough artillerypreparation.
invaluable; this dread
fairly"put the wind
they did our
very
The
and
Somme
The
in Flers did
more
for
would have
infantrythat a double ration of rum
It was
done.
during the attack on Ginchy that Lieut.
Guards, the
Asquith, of the Grenadier
Raymond
killed at
of the then Prime
eldest son
Minister,was
the
of his
the head
men.
neighbourhoodsof Courcelette and Flers were
mans
the scenes
of very heavy counter-attacks by the Geron
or about
September i6, the Canadians in the
Courcelette positions
rough time
having a particularly
for some
days and nights. After the fall of the
"Quadrilateral,"
Morval, Guedecourt, and Lesboeufs
was
seriouslythreatened
succumbed, and Combles
well as
from the north
as
troops
by the French
operatingto the south of the town, which was, before
the war, a comparativelyunimportant place of some
It was
the night of September
on
1,000 inhabitants.
and British troops joined
25 and 26 that the French
hands in Combles, and, although the total of prisoners
was
not
high, very large quantitiesof stores were
taken.
The
line then ran
from the eastern
edge of
St. Pierre Vaast Wood
hind
bethrough Sailly-Saillisel,
The
Lesboeufs, touched
over
Le
Bapaume
"
Sars.
The
were
the
wards
Guedecourt, and then eastAlbert road, north-west of
at
month
their
of the
of
October, 1916, justwhen
our
hopes
highest,owing to the successful operations
previousweeks, justwhen another two
How
44
or
fine weather
three weeks'
difference in the
month
worst
See the Battlefields
to
world,
under
ammunition
lorries got stuck and
8-inch
stuff,
and
to
keep
the howitzers
October
one
was
enough
and
time
a
many
would
had
"
be sent
did
we
to
the
"Salient"
at
remember
the road
of
the heart
that
pray
than
in order
fortunate
anybody unarea.
Many
lot
particular
to
our
of the
one
That
man
readers
of my
if any
Hebuterne?
to
member.
re-
heavy
"
comparative comfort
the batteries
supply. How
ammunition
I wonder
Ypres.
more
up
in the Somme
be
can
mud, guns
into position,
man-handled
to be
and
wettest
of
sea
a
supplied.
long nightmare
to
up
the
moved
they were
9.2
all the
made
of the year that I
vanished
got bogged when
have
about
was
for that time
Roads
would
road
broke
the ammunition
on
got ammunition
ever
at
people who
still think that the A.S.C.
(M.T.) had a soft job !
Some
of them
had, no doubt, at the bases, but what
all beats
the
about
And
hollow.
me
devils
poor
yet there
who
times
many
"
are
worked
"
hours
on
end, at least half of the time
forty-eight
under shell-fire,
plunging and wallowing in and out
of shell-holes,
lorries heavily laden with shells and
well over
the axles in mud, no lights,
and
cartridges,
in
protection
very often no food, and not the slightest
the way of trench or dug-out when
the road was
under
fire? And
fed
yet, in spiteof it all,the guns were
and
shells
arrived
When
looking at these
the
other !
the Somme
try
to
area
imagine
"
roads
what
at
up
it must
the
to
batteries
roads
the
have
somehow
and
or
in
tracks
batterypositions
"
been
like
to
work
How
46
and
See the Battlefields
to
take the main
Arras
road, turningoff to
right
through
the
railwaycrossing
; go down
for its billets and
famed
Mondicourt
village once
then on to Pas, Souastre, and Fonquevillersknown
Funkvillers
as
to Tommy
.with very good reason
^from
there
Puisieux-au-Mont,
to
Gommecourt,
Martinpuich; then,
Miraumont, Courcelette, and
at
the Mondicourt
"
"
"
"
"
"
High Wood, or stopping
the surrounding country, as already recommended,
into
take the Guillemont
road,and so straight
passing the
to
view
eastern
The
Combles.
side of
return
run
can
be
made
via
Arrow
Copse and the southern ends of Trones Wood
and
to
Montauban,
Mametz, and
Bernafay Wood
Fricourt,and then direct to Albert.
of utter devastation,
To-day Albert is a scene
and
of the damage was
done
most
during the
last stages of the war.
For many
months
a
huge
the Church
figureof the Virgin,which surmounted
of Our
Lady of Brebieres, hung, at a perilous
angle,in a seemingly impossibleposition,
apparently
surveyingthe desolation spread out below. The pious
French
and
this as a miracle
people looked upon
prophesied that the day on which the statue fell
Head
into the street would
statue
did
mark
fall,some
the end
considerable
of the
time
The
war.
afterwards,
dislodgedby a shell,and although the war did
actuallyend the same
day, yet it only lasted a
months
longer,and so everybody was satisfied.
From
and
which
Albert
to
I recommend
is not
very
Meaulte
the
is but
motorist
to
and
interesting,
a
not
few
short distance,
miss
take
this
the
place,
direct
road
Bray-sur-Somme,which
to
road about
Fricourt
the
On
Meaulte.
places of
interest
is the
still,do
sharp
up
not
cross
from
the
follow
and
north
to be seen,
are
north
Somme
be
can
on
to
to
the direct
many
the route
and
"
of
north-west
Peronne
to
mended
recom-
Cappy, or, better
Cappy, but turn
of the river
bank
the eastern
which
heightsof
obtained.
From
place a
Suzanne
easterlyto Cleryroad to Peronne, which was
Peronne
in March, 1917.
Maricourt, and
to
sur-Somme,
Bray
the
Suzanne, from
into
mile
Bray
from
run
a
47
the Meaulte
crosses
quarter of
a
one
magnificentview
up
Cambrai
and
Somme
The
then
captured by the British
has been through a rough time and has been very
three
It has changed hands
badly knocked about.
in 1914, when
driven out
the enemy
were
times, once
of looting;
by the French after doing the usual amount
it then
retaken
by
fell into their hands
our
troops,
as
once
stated above.
more,
and
Once
was
again
during the great offensive in 1918 this ill-fated town
Foch's
changed hands, only to be evacuated when
great drive carried us forward again.
In 19 14 the enemy
made
a headquartersat Peronne
Castle,and while their officers held a drunken
orgy
for
searched the town
there, the men
systematically
what
they could find, even
going to the extent of
turningthe contents of a toyshopin the Grande Place
out
on
quitea
to
the pavement,
lot of innocent
off the wooden
where
amusement
they,apparently,got
by pullingthe tails
horses,blowing the tin trumpets, and
reducing anything they did not like to powder by
the simple process of jumping on
it. One
or
two
How
48
to
the Battlefields
See
choice spirits
conveyed "props" in the
particularly
grapher's
shape of toy swords, drums, etc., to the local photoshop^and insisted on being photographed
in all their drunken
glory,the place of honour on a
pedestalin the centre of one group being given to a
The heroes portrayed
looted bottle of champagne.
in this group
could
in this
when
the wanton
which
if their
men
N.C.O.'s
?
manner
things which will first strike the
visitingthe battlefields of the Somme
destruction
of the
by the Germans
almost
invariablylined the roads.
in many
doubt
the
What
of the
One
trees
of the Unteroffizier class.
expect from
one
behaved
were
such
cases
destruction
server
obis
fine
No
necessary
was
pointof view. The Arras
Bapaume
strategical
in point; but no amount
road is a case
of argument
can
explainaway the fact that fruit trees in orchards,
from
and
a
"
such-like small
trees,
cut
were
down
close to the
that of
at all save
ground for absolutelyno reason
be
savage spite. Many instances of this kind can
in the Somme
what is left of them.
seen
or
villages,
I remember
One particular
well was
in Bucquoy.
case
Part of a garden wall remained
standing,and against
this wall grew two standard peach trees fastened up
with
had
the usual bits of cloth and
been
slashed with
about
six
a
nails ; both
hatchet
inches
above
or
some
the
these trees
similar
plement
im-
ground; on"e
had been severed clean through and was
dead, the
cut
was
other, fortunately,
only half-way through,
and was
alive;not only alive but bearing some
very
excellent peaches. This, however, was
an
exceptionto
the rule,as
done
most
that it
of the work
obvious
was
Cambrai
and
Somme
The
been
had
to
anyone
49
thoroughly
that systematic
All Highest, or
so
by the
his immediate
understrappers. iWar is war, we all
understand, and such being the case, there is no place
for sentiment, and everythingis fair as in love, so
had
destruction
been
ordered
"
I
am
"
German
that the marvellous
we
more
all heard
have
successful
done, it is possible
all is said and
but when
told
might have been
principalobjectfor which it
been lost sight of in a maze
much
so
if the
which
machine
war
about
designed had not
the treeof which
of complicationsand small details,
cuttingepisodeis a typicalexample.
Bucquoy has not suffered quiteso badly as some
other villages by which
I mean
that several of the
wall left standing. There
houses
have at least one
was
"
used
to
be
an
went
by
the
name
estaminet
of the
*'
near
the
Red
Lion
cross-roads
"
;
a
small
that
board
in the breeze, and
suspended from a bracket swung
bore the legend painted thereon
(on the board, not
the breeze)"Lion
Rouge." It was quite a comforttable,well-run littleplace,and did a good business
"
this
was
time
I
The
people
in 1914.
it
saw
was
were
Then
in
the Boche
came,
1916, just after
gone,
and
and
the next
the Arras
the estaminet
was
stunt.
what
some-
chipped door gone, no glass in the windows,
and a big hole in the roof, but the board still swung
old breeze.
Then
the Boche
gaily in the same
came
again, and the next time I saw the place was in 1918,
the beginning of the
justbefore we took Cambrai
"
"
end.
This
time what
was
left of the estaminet
wasn't
How
50
See the Battlefields
to
worth
bit of wall
talkingabout; but the particular
which supported that board in 1914 was
stillfunctioning,
and the board looked as fresh as ever.
I passed
it several
times
there, but
day, coming back from Cambrai,
sooveneered
and it was
not.
Somebody
looked
in
it
"
it
and
still
was
"
up
was
bent
downwards
"
as
"
had
was
the bracket
I
standingpossiblyon the top of a lorry
At any rate,
given it a good hard wrench.
someone
cab
weeks
many
one
it,I suppose, for
if
as
and
gone,
If this should
I should
should
as
the eye
meet
very
have
I felt
much
taken
like
it
if I'd lost
old friend.
an
of the souvenir
to
myself
have
had
that
he
not
merchant
board,
as
I
forestalled
me.
Farther
there
along the road, in the same
village,
was
a Hun
Kantine,"the interior of which had been
decorated by various Hun artists,
and very well decorated
in the heavy and
too, if somewhat
gloomy
mailed-fist kind of style. Part of the
Kantine
was
reserved for N.C.O.'s, and the remainder
was
open
to the common
or
garden "cannon fodder." Liquid
refreshment
had apparentlybeen plentiful,
judging
by the great heap of lager beer bottles outside the
men's
reservation,whilst the N.C.O.'s
evidently
bottle of "Bols"
a
emptied many
gin and hock.
Looted champagne and French wines having all been
consumed
down to
long before,the Hun had to come
"
"
the level
have
once
gone
more
and
very much
In the very few
semblance
of their
pay
for his
drink,which
"
must
againstthe grain.
villageswhich still retain some
originalshape you can nearly
The
always
find
Cambrai
and
Somme
of these Boche
one
51
in
and
canteens,
some
rated,
reallywell decoand some
quitegood drawings in black chalk
of them
still be found, many
and colour may
quite
ambitious
efforts,
taking up the whole wall on one
I don't think Fritz expectedto be
side of the room.
interior walls have
the
cases
pushed out,
marks
P^ronne
and
I
car,
straightroad
Amiens,
from
perhaps he wouldn't
or
have
gone
to
so
trouble.
much
fast
been
the
to
those who
which
to
reaches
Brie.
fact that
splendidbridging work
we
captured P^ronne.
was
fast-runningstream
have
the
recommend
grimag
pila
long
side
Longeau, justout-
from
place is of interest
Royal Engineers did some
the same
there on
day that
This
our
Somme
our
motoring, and
are
thoroughly
can
of
limit
the
In
latter
less than
bridged
and
twelve
our
hours
a
infantry
reallysmart bit
of work.
This road is almost as straightas a line
with
the map,
ruler across
drawn
a
and, with the
two
or
stretches,had an almost
exception of one
perfectsurface, even
during the war, in spiteof the
fact that the French
used it as their main
supply
artery for a large section of the front. Convoys of
miles in length,could be seen
ing
careersupply lorries,
along the road in the earlymorning, at an average
speed of well over eighteenmiles per hour ; the dust
each
and
the distance between
was
simply terrific,
that
that
bad
small
marvelled
so
lorry was
one
were
enabled
smashes
The
were
to
not
best way
cross
of
to
the Somme
"
a
frequentoccurrence.
get to Brie is through Villers-
more
How
52
See the Battlefields
to
by followingthe
river bank south as far as the main
road, and then
interesting
turningdue east ; or what might be a more
Biaches
a
be to go
to
would
route
place which
proved a stumbling-blockto the French infantryfor
a
long time and then, through Barleux, down on to
then dead straight
the main road at Villers-Carbonnel,
which
Carbonnel,
reached
be
may
"
"
for Amiens.
During
the
Peronne
fightingfor
fine work
some
the Somme
by the French monitors on
Canal.
They used to creep along at night and take
and then blaze
secluded corner,
in some
up positions
line in and
with their heavy stuff at the Boche
away
done
was
around
the town,
Boche,
who
I met
the
much
tried very
skipperof
to
of the said
the annoyance
hard
to
spot them, but failed.
of these monitors
d|ay;
I was
introduced to him by a certain Captain Rogers,
of the Royal Engineers,who lived a very lonelylife in
a
dug-out near Frise,then in the French Army area.
Tough as they make 'em, Rogers had been a master
mariner
until war
broke out
a
big hefty Scotsman
with a marvellous
fund
of dry humour.
A
born
he
made
himself
known
to the
soon
story-teller,
French
and
troops in his vicinity,
rapidlybecame
quite a character in the district. He spoke French
with a good old Scots accent
and, when presenting
to the French
naval man,
me
gravely informed me
one
one
"
that he
He
"
the Frenchman
also conceived
shrapnel helmet
which
he
could
"
was
a
the gorgeous
a
"bloke
idea
de la flotte."
of
"battle bowler," and
always produce
a
callinghis
the way
in
of
the
sample
How
54
main
to
Bapaume
"
See the Battlefields
Cambrai
road to La
Vacquerie. After
General
Byng's magnificent attack with tanks on
November
he successfully
broke
the
20, by which
Hindenburg Line, it ran approximatelyfrom Bourlon
Wood
a bitterly
fought-forand extremelydangerous
salient through Masni^res, and then sank to Vend"
"
huille. On
November
30 the enemy
attack,for
made
their powerful
which
they had obviouslybeen
days, and the full
massing troops and guns for some
broke
of their advance
torrent
through between the
and
spectively
1 2th
55th Divisions on the left and right reThe
unfortunate
of Ravin
Vingt Deux.
of the
i66th Brigade "fair got it in the neck," as one
survivors of the 5th South Lanes, tersely
put it. This
of fact,nearlywiped out,
battalion was, as a matter
and all that remains to testify
to the heroic resistance
counter
it put up
is the number
of wooden
crosses
scattered
country-side.Although greatlyreduced in
by
strength,badly cut up and greatlyoutnumbered
their
the enemy,
the gallant55th Division re-formed
line and hung on like grim death to the new
defence
here surrounded
and
positions. The enemy
tured
capheld up
there definitely
Villers-Guislan,but was
over
the
so
Division
loth
long
could
as
be
the line of resistance
maintained.
In
of the 55th
this attack
the
Liverpool Scottish and the 5th Royal Lancasters distinguished
themselves by making the enemy
a
heavy toll for each yard he advanced, and
pay
worthilyupheld the reputationof the i66th Brigade.
While
the 55th Division,on the rightof Ravine
22, was
engaged in tryingto stem the flow of the tide.
The
Somme
and
Cambrai
55
neighbour, the 12th Division, composed of the
having an Homeric
35th and 37th Brigades, was
for the possessionof the
strugglewith the enemy
its
high ground and the Cambrai road, a part of the
units of the 35th
latter being stoutlyheld by some
and 36th Brigades. It was
during this part of the
battle that Colonel Elliott Cooper attempted to rescue
which was
all but
a party of the 8th Royal Fusiliers,
It was
surrounded.
a magnificent
attempt, and gained
in winning it,he
him the V.C. ; but, unfortunately,
got his death
blow.
Another
V.C.
Wallace, of the 36th Battery,who,
band
of three
or
four
men,
rained
hero
was
with
a
shells
on
Lieut.
devoted
to
the
advancing enemy to the very last moment.
The
of the Germans
not
was
rapid advance
stemmed
at Villers-Guislan,
tered
however, and they enGonnelieu
and
even
Gouzeaucourt, in the
of which was
the H.Q. of the 29th Division,
vicinity
under General De Lisle,whose
splendid handling of
this Division during the critical period of the battle
the subjectof a specialOrder of the day by Sir
was
Douglas Haig.
An exceedinglyinteresting
section of the Cambrai
battlefield I am
now
to a later phase of the
referring
October
on
war, justprevious to the fall of this town
9, 1918 is the line Noyelles-sur-l'Escaut
Marcoing
Masnieres, and possiblyextending to Cr^vecoeur.
The
road runs
all
alongside the canal practically
the way,
and
there are
bridges at all the places
named, which I sincerelyhope will be in better
condition by the time this book appears than they
"
"
"
"
E
How
56
I had
when
were
will
Drocourt
side
Its vulnerable
which
was
hence
the
An
the
possibleunless
The
to
way
north-west,
portant
im-
more
will not
systems
gather
and^
enemy,
of the
the visitor is blessed
best
existent.
non-
is,
of any
defence
enemy
been
the
to
was
examination
extensive
if the Hin-
lines had
thoroughly realised by
Queant system.
of the
time.
sufficientdefence
had
Queant
"
the
convince
satisfactorily
fortifications even
of natural
and
examination
An
last.
of Cambrai
visitor that the town
denburg
them
to cross
of this part of the Hne
in the way
the Battlefields
See
to
unlimited
with
the
of
idea
some
be
strengthof these lines is to tap them at various points,
preferablyin such districts as Bullecourt and Fontaine-les-Croisilles. It would
to
carry
from
on
after
Combles
instructive
would
route
Pierre Vaast
Wood
on
be
to
be
a
bad
idea
having inspectedthe
battlefields. The
part of the Somme
northern
also not
through
Rancourt
most
and
Manancourt, Nurlu, Fens
Gouzeaucourt, and thus either down
to
St.
au
Villers-Guislan
to La VacEpehy, or north from Gouzeaucourt
querie,crossing the railway at Villers Pluich, and
Gramthen up through Ribecourt, Flesquiereand
court-les-Havrincourt
to the sugar
on
factoryon the
Romerstrasse, and so through Fontaine Notre Dame
and
into Cambrai.
factory lies
A
littleto the north-east
Moeuvres
of
"
the
made
famous
of the sugar
by the little
Highland Light Infantry,
whose
to history. The
exploitswill go down
story
stuck to their job is too well known
of how seven
men
I have no doubt that by the time this
to repeat here.
bunch
of
heroes
The
book
at
the
appears
somewhat
Cambrai
have
returned,
and
shipshape,
of
is
it
Cambrai,
have
will
refreshment
and
accommodation
57
inhabitants
enterprising
who
those
least
and
Somme
just
of
things
got
that
possible
kind
a
be
may
obtainable.
I
have
great
and
drawings
on
an
the
as
the
whole
the
;
and
Statue
of
it
still
may
at
"
house
a
and
Liberty
any
be
of
in
Bus
"
example
wall,
one
Germans
by
one
Sailly-Saillisel
good
of
contrary
Armistice.
of
from
road
extremely
pistol
the
wall
the
decorations
paintings,
the
on
that
house
internal
on
found
mentioned
already
in
rate,
of
them
an
for
there
all
just
was
occupied
President
brandishing
existence
It
I
village
"
caricature.
was
which
little
a
of
means
Bertincourt
to
depicted
it
were
Wilson
automatic
I
know
before
to
the
SECTION
St. Quentin
which
MoNTDiDiER,
would
Amiens,
explore the
to
and
Chauny,
answer
after
much
damage
short
a
and
best
far
Australians
a
"
along
as
and
be
taken
and
seen
to
Those
Peronne
to
"
take
sacred
to
the
to
same
the
distance
short
A
the
right,with
Baynevillers, Harbonni^res,
Chaulnes.
by the
"
the
ing
earlier chapter describ-
turning
a
through
Amiens
the
advised
are
"
then
Abancourt.
and
will
an
is
Quentin
Brie, Estr^es-en-
Villers-Bretonneux
signpost pointing
Lihons,
was
district
Peronne
as
farther
in
recommended
as
St.
into the town.
already passed along
have
road
and
Wood
part of Holnon
northern
the
difference
a
Compi^gne
to
through
Vermand,
and
Chausee,
Amiens
from
route
straight road
the
"
place,
is tackled.
The
road
visit to
the
when
so
Montdidier
them, and
between
too
after
best
next
is but
there
done
own
caused
habitable
made
then, is the
and
German
our
have
it, will
Amiens,
Quentin,
the
that
of
which
from
1918, and
in
it to be
enable
later
fear
I
place
kilometres
ten
Soissons
who
the
S.S.E.
Nesle, St.
Roye,
but
;
yon
ideal centre
an
evacuated
to
taken
along
of
all is said
of about
be
towns
we
period.
when
can
made
No
"
little distance
some
have
of
bombardment
Roye
"
lies
Noyon
IV
The
British
in
58
last-mentioned
the
"Hindenburg
place
Re-
Noyon
St. Quentin" Roye"
treat
"
in
March,
1917,
on
the
day
same
that
59
Bapaume
battle in September,
captured. During the Somme
1916,whilst the British troops were busy moving
the French were
Combles
on
very heavilyengaged on
front about fourteen miles from Barleux, justnorth
a
of Villers-Carbonnel,to Chilly,south of Chaulnes
which
A generalengagement was
and Lihons.
fought,
of
Allies capturing a large number
resulted in our
material and guns.
prisoners,
Instead of going straight
from Chaulnes
to Roye,
I should advise a detour through Lihons, Rosi^res,
Vr^ly, Warvillers to Bouchoir, where the road joins
Amiens
Roye road. Bouchoir, I
up with the main
well in 1914; it had been badly knocked
remember
tary
One soliin those earlydays of the war.
about even
inhabitant remained
in the village an old man,
lutely
apparentlyabout seventy years of age. He was absohouse,
dazed, sittingamidst the ruins of his farmwas
"
"
and
was,
all that he
that
there
could
had
in
say
been
a
answer
to
*'bigbattle
tions
quesat
the
and that everybody had been killed." At
cross-roads,
house
the same
cross-roads,two days before,a largefarmand
had been razed to the ground by shell-fire,
two
of the unfortunate
of the front
inhabitants
were
killed in
of the house; their feet could
rooms
one
be
stickingout from under the debris.
ordinary
extramost
a
Just in front of this farm I saw
Dragoon officer
thing happen a French
hit by a shell (a direct
the road was
canteringacross
hit),and both he and his horse simply vanished from
seen
"
my
gaze
with
a
loud
bang
and
a
cloud
of grey-green
How
6o
smoke,
was
to
and
all
horse's head
a
modern
From
saddle
with
Bouchoir
bad
almost
and
like
Roye
about
be
a
afterwards
found
blanket
and
part of
the bit still in its mouth.
the road
of
the
It
power
the
was
of
straightinto Roye,
is pretty bumpy, the pave
rightly,
if I remember
being
could
convincing demonstration
high explosives.
most
and,
that
of
piece
a
the Battlefields
see
and
narrow,
bog
in bad
is another
then
the soft mud
at
the side
weather.
which
town
in 1914, and
leads
became
got badly knocked
important
comparativelyunoffensive of 1918.
place until the German
It was
pany
quite a pretty littletown, and when, in comwith
other
two
correspondents, I passed
about
through in the very early days of the war
the
had evacuated
twenty-fourhours after the Huns
place we all three got a tremendous
receptionfrom
some
people in a cafe when we pulled up to try and
"scrounge an omelette,a bo_ttleof wine, and a few
apples. These good people loaded up the car with
almost.
provisionsfor a month
Strangelyenough I
passed through the place during the 1918 retreat, and
repeated the performance; the same
people w/ere
has
there. I hope that caf6 is stillstanding; the name
but it is in a street justoff the
slippedmy memory,
a
"
"
"
"
square
and
church.
the
not
It
enemy
of the green
delightto
was
near
lost
a
Roye,
in
was
in the town,
September, 1914,
the French
motor
left stranded
and
is left of the
what
lot of brand-new
of them
lorries;one
from
very far away
was
kiddies,who
a
that
transport
in the middle
great
clambered
source
all
of
over
How
62
it,tooted
See the Battlefields
to
the
horn,
and
the
generallyhad
time
of
their lives.
Leaving Roye by the Nesle road and passing
tance
through Carrepuis and Rethonvillers,a short disfarther
takes
on
into the
us
of Nesle,
town
was
a
uninteresting
except for the fact that it once
British Army Headquarters at the time of the big
offensive in 19 18. Passing from Nesle through
enemy
ing
Eppevilleon to the main Ham
Noyon road and turnThis
sharp north at Eppevillewe get into Ham.
of the principal
Boche objectives
town
was
one
during
the initial stage of the March
21
break-through. Its
importanceduring the war lay in the fact that it was
a
large railhead,both for rations and ammunition,
"
and
had
served
this purpose
for the
enemy
when
previouslyin their possession. So far as Tommy
Atkins
is concerned, Ham
was
chieflynoted for the
fact that, provided a lorry could
be requisitioned,
quite good beer in barrels could be obtained from
the local brewery; an
inestimable
blessingto men
down
the line for a rest.
There
member
was
also, if I reof the E.F.C. in operation.
a branch
rightly,
"
The
town
"
of Ham
entered
by
the
German
the
evening of March 23. Very
littlehas been heard of the splendidwork of General
of
Seely's Canadian
Cavalry, the officers and men
which
to save
fought so gallantlyin their endeavour
the town.
They charged the enemy so viciouslythat
they drove them out of the place time after time to
fall back again and again with grievouslythinned
ranks, owing to lack of support. These
gallant
cavalryon
or
about
was
"
Noyon
St. Quentin" Roye"
troopers did great execution
Canadian
the enemy
when
and
and
placesinto
enter, the
not
them
which
man
a
on
dismounted
Canadians
with the sword,
hide
to
in
horseback
and
outs
dugcould
followed
in hand.
foot,sword
on
infantrytried
63
Quentin from Ham,
which
passes to the left of the villageof Aubigny,
and it would
be worth while to go through this place
have a look at the bridgehead which
to Tugny, and
was
so
gallantlydefended by a brigade of the 20th
Division
22,
during the rearguard action on March
Tugny to Happencourt is but a short
1918. From
distance,and a littlefarther brings us to the bridge
There
is
the
across
Thence
a
good
Crozat
due
road
Canal
St.
to
into Grand
and
Seracourt.
Essigny-le-Grand
then north-east
Urvillers.
From
and
to
captured
orders and from the statements
of prisonersit
enemy
that the enemy
is known
vance
plan for the first day's adgoing
east
we
in the 1918 offensive
the
Crozat
broken
advance
the
get
was
to
to
occupy
the line of
Canal, and, having by that time badly
British line,to make
a
rapid westward
day by day. During this particular
period
of the offensive fog was
and although
very prevalent,
this undoubtedly hampered the defence,owing to the
fact that masses
of enemy
infantrywould appear out
of the mist at about
twenty or thirtyyards' range,
to believe that great confusion
yet there is also ample reason
reigned in the Hun
lines,many
fairlylarge
partiesgettinglost and cut off,as well as severelycut
up, by our troops.
The line in the St. Quentin sector on the opening
How
64
day
of the March
Quentin,
Itancourt
hands
from
ran
in front of St.
Urvillers
midway between
this latter place being
"
and
The
attack
21
south-east
Urvillers in
occupiedby
was
See the Battlefields
to
ours
Urvillers
was
place and
on
enemy's
Moy, which
to
the British.
full force of the attack
developedon
the
in
down
"
and
that
particular
part
the
of St.
south
centre, and
Quentin
of the line of which
directed
was
on
this
Essigny-le-Grand.From this latter
place a road runs to Benay, and then east to Cerizy,
where
it joins the St. Quentin La F^re main
road
the
through Vendeuil, passingTravecy and following
line of the Crozat
Canal
and
the twisty Oise into
to
"
La
F^re.
It
was
put up such
this sector
on
that
our
London
men
good fight Surreys and Kents, Rifle
Brigade and London Regiment. Men of the good old
with men
of the i8th
58th Division, in company
the huge wave
Division, fought desperately
to stem
of
Boche
a
"cannon
of two
matter
to
to
the
passed, but
that, and
our
"
fodder."
the enemy
one,
odds
their
If it had
were
very
only been
never
have
heavier
than
would
much
a
ible.
apparently, inexhaustWave
after wave
of storm
troops poured over
positions,and the inevitable happened; we had
fall back, but not without inflicting
heavier
a much
loss and
by
From
and
when
a
much
the
La
reserves,
serious
more
check
than
was
pated
antici-
Imperial Staff.
Fargniersand Tergnier
then to Chauny through Viny, hugging the railway
line and the west
of the canal.
bank
Chauny,
it in February,19 18,was
then very badly
I saw
F^re
we
go
on
to
THE
MAl-l
A
CO
LTD
.
.
LONUO"
How
66
See the Battlefields
to
and
absolutelylifelessand desolate.
An
soldier or two
of the genie,or engiodd French
neers
the equivalentof our
own
Royal Engineers
the only signs of life in the place. One or two
were
and
camouflaged motor-boats
barges on the canal
showed
that a certain amount
of activity
took place
at night,but there was
nothingdoing in the daytime.
This town
which before the war
had a population
smashed
up
was
"
"
"
of
some
10,000
inhabitants
pretty place,and it was
and desolation which
think
good 50 per
destroyedby mines.
a
the Germans
"
to
pitiful
had
war
view
been
in many
a
very
the destruction
effected.
of the
cent,
As
have
must
houses
other
I should
had
been
places,when
evacuated
Chauny, they took with them
all the young
girlsand boys to work in their factories
beyond the Rhine.
Chauny is well worth seeing.
To Noyon
through Ognes and passing Baboeuf
off to the rightof the road
the going is quitegood,
though the surroundingsare somewhat uninteresting.
"
"
It would
be almost
justsouth
better to
cross
the canal and
river
of
Chauny, and, followingthe south bank
of the river through Manicamp, Quierzy and
Breeast
tigny,strike the Noyon road at a point just southof Pontoise.
Thence, crossingthe Oise river,
the canal and the railway,
it is a straightrun
into the
of Charlemagne, with its historic
quaint old town
Hotel
have
de Ville.
been
so
to
or
get back
The
beautiful cathedral
badly damaged by fire,whether
not I do not know, as I have not
there since the hurried
placeon the nightof
March
cloisters
and
ably
irretrievbeen
evacuation
25, 1918.
able
of the
Roye" Noyon
St. Quentin"
67
tions
Noyon from the two direcand Chauny
of Guiscard
heavy fightingtook
placein the neighbourhoodof Baboeuf, which village,
by the enemy, was recapturedby
having been overrun
carried out by troops of the
brilliant counter-attack,
a
i8th Division, in which
they took 150 prisoners.
drawal
Marshal
Haig's dispatchin connection with the withthis section of the front clearly
on
emphasised
the fact that we were
very greatlyhandicapped by the
shortageof men ; but I do not think that anybody who
During
did
the advance
on
take part in the withdrawal
not
Guiscard
and
Noyon regionhas
any
from
the Ham,
conceptionof
the
actual facts.
On
of March
the afternoon
23' I
located with
was
Noyon (incidentally
this barracks
had
been burnt out by the Germans
when
and there was
they retreated a year previously,
nothing left but the bare walls). Headquarters had
part of my
received
unit in the barracks
orders
rumours
were
Guiscard
had
to
retire to
afloat that
and
fallen,
at
Montdidier
Ham
had
that the Hun
; all sorts
been
was
of
captured,
advancing
to a
was
Noyon. This disquietingnews
certain extent
teries
supported by the sight of several batof French
tion
75 's enteringNoyon from the direc-
rapidlyon
of Guiscard.
material
As
I had
a
considerable
and
amount
of
thingswere, apparently,
getting
serious,I conferred with the onjy other officer present
Australian
named
an
Finley and we decided that,
it seemed
as
quiteimpossibleto obtain any reliable
from anybody, the only course
news
open to us was
the positionfor ourselves. We
out
to scout
got hold
"
to move
"
How
68
of
old
an
See
to
closed
car
Battlefields
the
that would
have
made
a
good
anythingelse,and was
nicknamed
**the hutch," usuallywith the addition of
and
an
adjective,
proceeded shortlyafter midnight
road. The night
slowly and carefully
up the Guiscard
clear with a bright moon
was
beautifully
; but there
of ground fog and an extremely
a certain amount
was
hearse but
ominous
silence.
meet
we
then
about
at
Not
soul until
a
saw
we
littlegood for
was
few
a
a
"
a
near
could
gun
the
very few
had
After
evacuated
and
a
infantrylying
halt in Guiscard
good look round
deserted site of a Heavy Artillery
the now
Siege Park,
justto see if there was anything worth "scrounging
(therewas, and Finley can tell you all about it),a
"
been
French
"
the side of the road.
which
heard, nor did
outskirts of Guiscard;
be
"
a
"
move
made
was
Still the dead
up
the road
in the direction of Ham.
broken
silence,
now
every
then
and
by
the
tant
long-drawn-outand echoing boom of a very disfour or
gun ; still no signs of troops, until,some
five miles out of Guiscard, the car
was
pulled up
suddenly,and a tin-hatted infantrymajor shoved his
head
into the window
"Where
and
said
do
you
the
:
think
you'regoing
"
eh?"
Finley
that
we
and
were
the best
I
explained as conciselyas possible
lost transport, this being
tracking some
excuse
we
could
manufacture
at
short
notice.
"Well
turn
"
round
if you'lljusttake my
and get back as fast
the front line
advice,boys, you'll
as
you'rejustcrossing!
you
"
can
;
said the
this is
major,
How
70
we
made
our
to
way
See the Battlefields
back, thoroughlyagreed that
what
enough to show us that a retreat was
inevitable ; and so it happened.
The followingnight,about midnight,in what was
in Noyon, whom
should I
called the "officers' club
friend the machine-gun officer. He was
but our
meet
very tired,had had a rough time, the major had been
had put up a splendidscrap, but
killed,the men
the
He went
his hands
to sleepwith his head
on
on
food fell asleep
table,and when we found him some
again two or three times whilst eatingit.
In the meantime, guns
and howitzers,largeand
small
left of them
what was
were
blocking up the
roads leadingfrom Guiscard
and Chauny into Noyon,
and gunner officers were
tryingtheir utmost to evolve
order out of the chaos ; collecting
stray personneland
ordnance, making up one batteryout of the remains
of two or three,and gettingready for the stand which
had not taken placebefore. One
everybody wondered
gotten
taught us which will not be forthing the Germans
in a hurry, and that is heavy ordnance, anything
we
had
seen
was
"
.
"
.
.
"
"
bigger than
retreat, however
is,in
an
a
field gun,
useful
it may
is
utterlyuseless in a
be, and undoubtedly
advance.
Historically,
Noyon is a celebrated place; for here
crowned, Calvin (the Protestant)
Charlemagne was
and Hugh Capet was
first saw
the light,
made
king.
due north leading out of the town
Almost
is the
road to Guiscard and Ham, and on the right-handside
of the road, oppositethe wall which
surrounds
the
will be found
cavalry barracks already mentioned
"
"
St. Quentin" Roye" Noyon
a
be found
graveyard,inside of which may
specimens of the stonemason's
failed to do, and
Germans
never
honour
to
doubt
to
was
so
far
as
it
part of
was
make
his
have
on
of any
seen
It
cemetery
the left-hand
due
to pay
was
monuments
ornate
the line.
behind
at
"
goes
nation
he
least
that the enemy
"
with
culated
cal-
great man
a
also the fact
the
of these
this fact
"
thing the
plan,
well-thought
was
many
struck with
of it is reserved
corner
a
observation
I have
own.
Another
found
dead.
own
my
been
and
the soldier feel what
treated the dead
as
that
fine
some
One
art.
in all his cemeteries
when
even
"
Massive
the fallen.
numerous
No
Hun
substantiallystone-built enclosure, a
very
were
71
respect
same
and
cemeteries,
again and again.
French
this
side of the Rue
for French
time
"
de Lille ;
coloured
be
may
one
troops,
as
the queer
the headstones
will testify.
on
inscriptions
Leaving the town
by the Compi^gne road, we
travel south for a very short distance,and then turn
off to the right,
where the signpostshows Lassigny to
be a comparativelyshort run
of some
thirteen kilometres.
The
road runs
which
has
through territory
stiff fights.Larbroye is the first village
seen
many
to be entered,then Suzoy, Cuy, and
through Dives
into the
It
town.
in the
region of Lassigny in September,
that some
1914,
very heavy fightingtook place
the French and Germans, and after the place
between
in Le Matin
was
some
captured so runs an account
officers made
a
thorough examination of a chateau
which
had for a long time been in the hands
of a
was
"
F
"
How
72
See
of the German
member
noted
was
to
courts
the
DiplomaticCorps
for its numerous
were,
as
built concrete
a
Battlefields
lawn-tennis
of
matter
and
courts.
which
These
fact,coveringvery solidly-
emplacements, ideallysituated to
command
the
surrounding country with
heavy
howitzer
or
gunfire; another
example of German
thoroughnesswhich failed to mature.
The
ceasingly
French, under General Castlenau,foughtunin this district from
September 25, 1914,
until almost the end of the month, and w^ere eventually
driven back by very much
heavier forces which
the
alarmed
by the threat to their St. Quentin line
enemy,
of communication, had brought to bear in order to
make
It
a
was
that
gun
determined
effort to stem
the French
advance.
after October
i
during the rearguardfighting
the French, by a brilliantly
executed strategical
movement,
ambushed
largeenemy force,inflicting
and securing between
750 and
a
heavy casualties
800 prisoners.I believe the German
report classified
this action as a "gloriousvictory";if so, then the
action which
took place a few days later must
have
been even
and Roye
Chaulnes
more
so, for between
the French
added
another
1,600 prisonersto their
bag.
very
All
the country
and
interesting
well
round
about
this district is very
worthy of study, for Lassigny was
in the front line for many
moons.
The
track of the
easilybe followed up from Lassigny through
Fresnieres, Crapeaumesnil, Beauvraignes, Popincourt, Laucourt',I'Echelle-St.-Aurin,
Andechy, and
and Chillyto Lihons and
so
on
through Maucourt
war
can
Quentin" Roye"Noyon
St.
Chaulnes.
Amiens
"
Chaulnes
very determined
the
held
were
road
Wood.
by strong
This place was
and
up
which
is
in the
little bit of advice
to
of the
positionsin
only capturedafter
those
and
attacks,
counter-
obvious
and
vicinity,
the enemy
strong points is easilyto
visitor likes to do a littleexploringon
One
south
tember,
Sep-
enemy
bloodthirstyattacks
severityof
graves
numerous
in
the Battle of the Somme
During
1916, the French
Brie
73
the
be
by
the
strengthof
seen
if the
foot.
who
*'footslog"
undergrowth in any of these woods or in any
place over which heavy fightinghas taken placeand
which
is heavilyovergrown
a
good
by grass : Wear
pair of heavy boots and leggings that will resist the
possiblescratches from hidden strands of rusty barbed
In these places it is a matter
wire.
of ''watch your
step." There are many thousands of old unexploded
hand-grenades still lying about in the undergrowth,
and some
of them, owing to the fact that the pins are
I do
almost rusted through, may
go off at a touch.
not say they all will explode so easily
; the later types
when
are
handled; but it is
comparativelysafe even
always better to be on the safe side,and anything of
Do not
an
explosivenature should not be touched.
or
even
poke suspicious-looking,
ing,
unsuspicious-lookobjectswith your stick or you might finish your
amongst
tour
sooner
quitea
than
you
lot of trouble
expect and
cause
detachingyour
the authorities
remains
from
This
surrounding district for burial purposes.
sound
funny, but it's good advice for all that.
Whilst
the subjectof ''duds," I once
saw
on
the
may
in
How
74
See
to
Bucquoy
two
three
or
the
4.2
had
howitzer
going
was
be
to
with
caught
them
basket
shell-containers
just
sought
considered
that
withdraw
all
distance,
take
the
proceedings
He
told
with
me
was
Chinese
the
out
the
the
British
best
other
Chinks
point
some
up
could
quite
much
labour.
be
candidly
better
the
of
vantage
of
for
the
riedly
hurHe
him
to
from
and
precept
I
charge.
vicinity
he
fire
mm.
and
be
in
that
than
in
would
viewed,
77
some
up
N.C.O
remedy
Boche
the
kindling,
as
of
complete.
breaking
use
side
of
composed
were
to
the
which
under
cartridge-case
they
as
in
man,
fully-fused
as
was
parable
incom-
Corps
oven
an
grating
started
shells
field-gun
example
The
that
Labour
materials
shells.
of
specimens
building
such-like
of
out
Battlefields
"Chink"
finished
just
road
bright
the
creature,
who
the
await
found
had
when
a
to
safe
which
results.
that
dealing
SECTION
Montdidier
The
town
the
German
1918, is
a
of
Httle
road
Avre
into
farther
the
road
just short
Amiens.
Montdidier
traveller
has
the
place,
the
town
My
own
and
it has
and
Roye
is
recollections
with
at
the
the
bits
after
"
when
our
of the
hour
of
deadly tired,
drink,
and
not
find
that
even
a
Headquarters
bed
bagged.
bed
there
rooms
and
Not
saw
when
the
the
billeted
that
I
various
at
I had
the
of
75
hungry,
the
Chateau,
to
one
of
the
or
"
Noyon,
very
nothing
into
before
I arrived
that
expected
"
started.
constant
to
be obtained.
to
in
see
particularly
not
fact
was
members
if the
about
evacuation
peeped
return
to
advance
dispiritedat
blanket
the
much
are
into
direct
on
morning,
there
Roye
"
artillery,just
place
little
a
knocked
19 18
the
of
Lassigny,
or
hurried
somewhat
my
; but
to
in
three
and
retreating,to
the
in
badly
Allied
pleasant, possibly owing
then
nothing
the
by
bank
Amiens
taken
be
been
retaken
was
Longeau,
There
time.
Pierre-
Boves;
to
up
main
could
along
Amiens,
eastern
the
from
I believe,
mostly,
of
Amiens
to
into
runs
highway,
journey
then
and
in
offensive
passing through
the
follows
"
Moreuil,
on
after
which,
from
of
finish
the
Flanders
kilometres
30
north
going
"
over
marked
the
after
Soissons
"
which
Montdidier,
picturesque
pont
Compi^gne
"
advance
a
V
and
eat
I found
and
find
two
every
even
a
of the
gilded
Staff
How
76
to
See the Battlefields
eiderdowns
snoring luxuriouslyunder
make
the floor of the
soundly on
a
hours
few
later
by
and
corridor,
someone
I
However,
feel rather envious.
one
well
"
"
it did
sleptquite
awakened
was
and
me
fallingover
ungentlemanly kind, to
using language of a most
which
I repliedsuitably.
looked like an
hotel in the place which
The
one
hotel was
impossibleto get
pretty rotten, for it was
anything to eat there unless one got it for oneself,
and
then
even
the
proprietorwas
not
as
pleasantas
evacuated
Montdidier
was
might have been.
shortlyafter that,and then a few of us took the matter
meal toin hand
gether
and managed to get a respectable
he
out
The
of the debris.
extreme
the enemy
map
which
on
point west of
May 8, 1918,
I have
before
Montdidier
is
me,
given
and
on
shows
reached
a
by
German
their line,
justeast of the villageof Cantigny, slightlywest of
Fontaine, and running through Alesnil-St. Georges.
It then bends
eastwards,cuttingthe railwaymidway
far
and Ayencourt village. Thus
the town
between
and
did they come,
and they remained
but no farther,
in until the beginning of the end.
dug themselves
This line of defences can
be followed
down
through
the
Assanvillers
leave it to cross
to Rollat,where
we
St. Just Roye main
road, and so on to Cuvillyand
Ressons, and then through Marqueglise and across
the Oise into the Foret-de-Laigueto Choisu-au-Bac
;
of the Foretfrom there along the north-west
corner
de-Compi^gne into the town itself.
"
The
route
I have
mapped
out
is not
the
most
direct,
78
How
See the Battlefields
to
the most
interesting.
by any means, but it is certainly
Strong as the enemy were in 1918, their strengthwas
not
enough to enable them to reach Compi^gne, the
less
fall of which
or
place would have been more
In September, 1914, in the thickly
of a disaster.
wooded
country to the south of Compi^gne, the ist
German
overtaken
Cavalry Brigade was
by some
well
as
cavalry,and lost a batteryof horse artillery,
as
several
Aided
by
officers and
detachments
some
their
operating on
and
counter-attack,
was
but
guns,
not
succeeded
wounded.
killed and
men
3rd Corps, which
of the
left,they
made
brilliant
a
all their
only recovered
in capturing
twelve
own
of
the
enemy's.
In
connection
with
the
fightingin
the
regionof
Compi^gne, I cannot do better than quote an account
soldier,which appeared in the
given by a wounded
London
Evening News :
in a field when
"We
the Germans
were
dropped
on
us
all of
presence
out,
was
sudden.
a
when
panic
turns
far
at
first hint
batteryof guns
a
dropping shells
for our
The
into
a
mob
the wash-tub
as
I saw,
soon
as
of
"
on
us
had
we
the
who
of their
rightsang
were
ing
wait-
the river. There
was
of our
fellows,
only some
who
hadn't had a wash
for a long time, said strong
the best chance
thingsabout the Germans for spoiling
we'd had for four days. We
all ran
to our
posts in
response to bugles which
rang out all along the line,
and by the time we
all stood to arms
the German
into view in great strengthall along the
cavalrycame
no
as
left front.
As
they
came
within
range
we
Compiegne"Soissons
Montdidier"
79
deadly volley into them, emptying saddles
right and left,and they scattered in all directions.
Meanwhile
their artillery
kept working up closer on
the front and
right,and a dark cloud of infantry
ing
showed
out against the sky-line
on
our
front,advancpoured
in
a
a
opened
our
fire on
rifle
We
rather loose for the Germans.
formation
them,
they made
and
fire,which
was
well
very
fire from
artillery.The
the range
effective,
our
fine target for
a
our
supported by
guns
was
very
being found with ease, and we
could see the shells dropping rightinto the enemy's
ranks.
Here and there their lines began to waver
and
give way, and finally
they disappeared. Half an hour
later more
infantryappeared on our rightfront,but
it was
could not say whether
the same
we
body or not.
This
well
time
they were
supported by artillery,
machine-guns, and strong forces of cavalryon both
flanks.
All
plan
came
at
on
a
smart
pace,
with
the apparent
of
seizinga hill on their right. At the
into view, and then
moment
same
our
cavalrycame
Guards
the whole
It was
Brigade advanced.
really
the two partiesto reach the hill first,
between
a
race
but the Germans
won
easilyowing to their being
nearer
by half a mile.
"As
soon
position,the
the intention
were
nearest
terrific to
us
recoil in the
the
path
their guns
and
infantryhad taken up
with
cavalrycame
along in a huge mass
of ridingdown
the Irish Guards, who
as
to
them.
in the
When
the shock
distance,for
came
the Irishmen
least,but flung themselves
of the
German
it seemed
horsemen.
We
didn't
rightacross
could
hear
How
8o
the
impaled
rifles and
the
of
crack
bayonets of
the
on
Battlefields
See the
to
the
horses
German
the
see
front
of the
ranks
infantryand
mixed
confused heap, like so
cavalrywere
up in one
piecesfrom a jig-sawpuzzle. Shells from the
many
batteries kept dropping close to
British and German
the
and then we saw
the tangledmass
of fighting
men,
fast
German
horsemen
as
get clear and take to flight
as
their
horses ;
this
was
the
whole
force
could
carry
them.
; then
Guardsmen
horses
they were
going
the
there
was
confused
a
had
Some
they stood.
bayoneted where
on
of
no
While
movement
German
infantry,as though they were
going to the assistance of the cavalry,but evidently
they did not like the look of things,for they stayed
where
After this little interruption
the
they were.
among
Guards
continued
advance
to
"
the
Coldstreamers
leading this time, with the Scots in reserve, and the
Irish in support.
tween
Taking advantage of the fightbethe cavalry and
the infantry,the German
had advanced
from which
to a new
artillery
position,
Our
they kept up a deadly fire from twelve guns.
infantryand cavalryadvanced simultaneously
against
this new
which
position,
they carried togetherin the
face of a gallingfire. In the excitement
the enemy
mainder
managed to get away two of their guns, but the refell into
our
hands.
cavalry supporting the
of
our
our
didn't
but bolted
the
infantryand
like
wait for the
slaught
on-
mad, pursued by
cavalry, and
infantryand
We
men,
guns
The
heard
galled by a heavy fire from our
which quicklyfound the range.
artillery,
later that the Germans
were
in very
great
Montdidier"
force,and
and
had
Compiegne"
attacked
in the
Soissons
hope of drivingus
left,but they got
8i
back
more
uncovering the French
than they bargained for. Their losses were
terrible
in what
littleof the fightingwe
and when
our
saw,
men
captured the guns, there was
hardly a German
left alive or unwounded.
Altogetherthe fightlasted
seven
hours, and when it was over our cavalryscouts
reportedthat the enemy was in retreat."
so
This
letter apparentlyrefers to the
interesting
action of Sept. i, which
I have already mentioned,
but the gallantguardsman who
it is two
short
wrote
in his account
of the number
of guns
taken, for we
take Sir John French's
must
dispatch of Sept. 17,
In this he definitely
correct.
that
states
1914, as
twelve guns
were
captured.
The Forest of Compiegne is well worthy of a prolonged
of inspection,but as this section of the
tour
book
the
very
is
dealing also
east, possiblywe
the
which
with
the
had
battlegroundsmore
to
take the road
of
better
out
through the neck of wooded
country joiningthe Forest of Laigue to the Forest of
Compiegne. The road runs south of the River Aisne,
and the first place of any size we
reach is Attichy
town
cuts
"
which
is
across
the river.
relics of the past in the
Here
shape
will be
of
found
some
destroyedbridges
had
when
they
signs of the task the R.E.'s
bridged the river under heavy fire from the northern
From
banks.
Attichy to Vic-sur-Aisne, another
and
of 1914,
memory
river is crossed
"
Soissons
is but
a
again, and
road
at
short
distance.
we
come
La
Vache
on
to
Here
the
piegne
the Com-
Noire.
I
re-
How
82
the Battlefields
through Attichy and Vic-surin both
the fact that the river crossings
and a
violent fighting,
of some
scenes
the
commend
See
to
detour
Aisne
owing to
placeswere the
good idea will be gained of
which
troops
our
were
the great difficulties with
faced
these
when
crossings
forced.
were
The
road
sides of
to
on
it will
Soissons is a
be
seen
old
good
French
dumps, and visible evidence of
is necessary
organisationwhich
modern
warfare.
Some
one,
the
in
littledistance
and
on
both
encampments,
huge
back-area
these
before
days of
getting
signpostwill be seen on the left-hand
side of the road, which
the way to Pommiers.
shows
About
three hundred
yards down this side road there
used to be a huge dump of captured war
material
Here could be seen
coveringabout thirtyacres.
guns,
steel helmets
sands,
howitzers,tanks, enemy
by the thouand
suits of the special
hundred
many
which
was
toughened steel armour
provided for the
here in huge quanstorm
was
troops. Ammunition
tities
howitzer shell
anything from the largest-sized
and automatic
to small arms
pistolcartridges.
A most
charming artillery
captainwas in charge
of the place,and he had arranged what he called his
in which, carefully
numbered
and labelled,
museum,
could be found a specimen of every deadly weapon
of
warfare which the Boche
had ever
produced, with the
of course,
which
were
exception of field-pieces,
parked outside; a most
interesting
exposition,and
which
I hope is stillthere.
It is certainly
one
worth
into Soissons
a
"
while
to
make
a
short detour
to
find out
if the exhibits
How
84
See the Battlefields
to
view.
are
still on
the
right-handside
big to be missed
too
But
I first
then
the
and
was
remains
in
cathedral
had
the
it has been
last
"
into dust.
well, and
it is
and
1914,
had
in these
even
badly
escaped the
very
rained
enemy
Kultur,
into
the
earlydays,
side of the cathedral
although
when
I
saw
the
east
the cathedral
badly damaged. Needless
glasshas vanished long ago,
very
say all the fine stained
shattered
to
been
of the streets
remained
or
on
turningis
monuments
September,
which
"
was
road, and
the Pommiers
burnt
Many houses were
the largechapelon the north
absolutelydestroyed, and
window
to
from
few
park
in existence.
of the many
very
of shells
torrent
if now
splendidold
and
the
of the Pommiers
this town
saw
smashed,
town.
another
"
to
entrance
stone's-throw
a
Soissons
The
The
Germans
knew
their Soissons
their
accurate,
gunfirewas extraordinarily
the barracks being completelywiped out earlyin the
It is said that several spieshad been
bombardment.
for the accuracy
arrested,and this possiblyaccounts
of the German
gunfire.
In the Boulevard
Jeanne d'Arc, in which might
have
been
hardly a
these
found
house
houses
had
remains
of the better-class residences,
standing.
In
1914
some
of
presentedcurious
had
standingopen
like one
most
to
of those
the whole
the street
in parsights,one
ticular
front destroyedand was
from ground to attics,
juot
big sectioned doll's houses which are
in toyshop windows.
All the furniture was
to be seen
in position,
and bedrooms, drawing-room and diningall apparentlyuntouched
were
room
as
regards the
How
86
colonel,with
goodly
a
lunch;
for
Lion"
Red
''The
at
See the Battlefields
to
the party included
of ribbons
selection
a
his
on
In the dining-room, thoughtfully
manly bosom.
wielding a toothpickand straddlinga chair, arms
who
a largeAmerican
rested on the back, was
officer,
for full
stared at us all in turn with great persistence
five minutes; then
suddenly making up his mind
in a
over
and pocketing his toothpick he slouched
and gave us good day :
manner
leisurely
I guess you'll
be English officers am
"Say now
"
"
"
"
I
"
right?
We
pleadedguilty. He
once
jestwhat
"I'm
"and
rank
what
still
our
might
ribbons
"Now
"
stillthoughtfully"
Uh-hum,"
"
on
the colonel's breast.
explainedin
were
rather
was
fully
thought-
all
?
queried
might that coloured chart mean
acquaintance,pointing to the
inquisitive
ribbons
medal
us
the colonel:
at
be, sir ?
you
"
colonel."
a
halted
and
more,
examined
taken
althoughthe
detail
aback
"
by
various
The
"coloured
the
wearer
chart"
designation and our American
gave us each another
that it was
remarked
a "peaceful
thoughtfulinspection,
and finished up with, "I
at present,"
sort of war
thank you vurry much
gentlemen good day," before
"
"
off.
he went
north
and
and
of Soissons
one
of the
road, which
best
crosses
defence
of the German
examination
An
the Aisne
routes
the
is well worth
is the
old
systems
while,
Coucy-le-Chiteau
trench
lines
between
Crouy and Cuffies,then east to Clamecy, Villers,
These places
Nouvron-Chevillecourt,and Autreches.
I have
mentioned
all that remains
board
with
the
Soissons 87
Compiegne"
Montdidier"
rightin the Hne, and possibly
identifyany of these villagesis a
paintedupon it. Desolation and
were
to
name
reignssupreme, and the French soldiers
have
fought and died in their thousands in this
in this district
front-line area
region. All the immediate
ought to be done on foot, as it will be found
it thoroughly otherwise, and
impossibleto examine
devastation
there
is
much
be
to
It should
always be
defences, as
usually invisible
seen
remembered
well
until
one
as
"
and
missed
that the
the most
here.
"
most
portant
im-
are
interesting,
gets close
to
them.
On
to the enemy
depended both their
invisibility
importance and efficiency.
and
Some
wondrous
out
dugunderground caverns
section of
systems will be found on this particular
the front.
One
a
w^as
place I well remember
huge
underground quarry, which had been developed by
until it was
the enemy
capable of housing a whole
division complete with transport.
Officers' quarters,
and
N.C.O.'s
men's
quarters, and officers' stables,
kitchens, every imaginable kind of accommodation
had been hewn
thousands
out of the solid rock. Many
of beds, complete with mattresses, were
still there,
and were
miuch appreciated
by the Allied troops when
the placewas
captured. Water was laid on, and there
a
was
complete electric-powerplant, which enabled
underground hostel to
every section of this enormous
be illuminated by electric light. Il must
have cost the
their
German
taxpayer
nothing!
a
great deal of money
"
and
all for
How
88
Places
like
suppose
for
miss
them
to
See the Battlefields
to
a
this
are
"
I don't
seeing,and
that the tourist will be allowed
moment
if he
worth
or
she
"
is in the
for by
district,
thriftyFrench peasantry will be back again
of the value of these
their land, and well aware
on
I grudge
would
relics of the war
as show-pjaces. Nor
them
a franc or
two; they have five very lean years
rebuilt
after their houses
are
to make
up for, even
and their farms once
more
are
bearingcrops.
As
in the majority of districts adjacent to the
now
the
battle areas,
be
found
in
main
roads
in France
comparativelygood
and
Flanders
condition
;
will
many
secondary roads also are not too bad. Care should be
taken, however, with secondary or tertiaryroads
which
the old trench lines,as some
of them are
cross
still almost impassable,and
should
motorists
bear
this in mind
when
darkness
comes
on, or it is likely
be a few broken
there may
springs,cracked frames,
and ruined tyres. It is is always advisable to carry
enough petroland oil to last for a considerable time
by that I mean
plenty and to spare for the journey
there and back, whatever
the day's plan may
be, as
it will be difficult to obtain suppliesin any of the
devastated
districts. The same,
naturally,
appliesto
the
photographicplates and films, for I suppose
majorityof tourists will want a photographic record
of the trip. It is,indeed, a great pitythat the British
allowed
not
to use
cameras
troops were
during the
of imaginationcan
amount
as
no
picturesome
war,
of the placesor the conditions under which our troops
worked
and fought.
"
that
time
the
By
the
one
there
stay
from
all
by
to
however,
as
who
person
any
satisfied
far
without
eighteen
kilometres
Soissons,
through
it will
is
is
to
as
put
a
a
the
over
go
as
seeing
far
south-east
Fismes
habitable
is
sometimes
spelt.
should
also,
expect,
this
will
is
under
Braisne
"
it
is
hotel.
back
go
which
and
and
the
excellent
as
Rheims,
centre
Chemin-des-Dames
I
east
then
Otherwise
to
Berry-au-Bac.
gets
so,
splendid
and
way
if
;
and
large
his
repaired
there
make
long
a
Rouge"
and
up
89
possible
"Lion
the
importance
there
wish
to
quite
investigations.
any
Compiegne,
country
;
conduct
where
reader
able
means
Compiegne,
the
of
is
reorgartised
so
be
of
place
it
appears
proprietor
may
which
nearest
book
have
may
that
hotel
this
enterprising
Soissons
at
Soissons
Compiegne"
Montdidier"
not
only
sixty
or
Braine
that
rest
about
from
as
VI
SECTION
The
MONS
LE
"
CATEAU
from
retreat
the dimensions
was
one
history to
our
go
down
in
in
much
the
same
episodes
episodein a war of
of those
one
than
it more
of the
"
MARNE
Mons
hardly call
can
one
VILLERS-COTTERETS
"
THE
The
Mons
from
Retreat
an
justconcluded
children
the
as
way
"
"
which
will
and
grandchildren
Charge of the Light
loo
Brigade, the Indian Mutiny, or the Battle of Wateror
Trafalgar have left their imprint on our own
It proved again if proof were
minds.
that
needed
"
British troops do not
them
in
retreat
to
the
"
recognisedefeat
face, as
it did
even
times
many
if it stares
during
the
the Marne.
After the fall of Namur
August 23, 1914, Mons
was
obviously the next point of importance in the
advance, and so, on the same
path of the German
day
that saw
the fall of Namur, the enemy
attackingin
forced our
2nd Corps, holdingthe line
great strength,
of the Conde
Canal encircling
the town, to fall back
and abandon
their positions. Lying as it does on the
main
line from Paris to Brussels,with a line also running
towards
Mezieres
and
the eastern
a
branch
on
frontier
line to
through Hirsons
Laon
this latter place being to the French
90
and
Army
Chalons
what
and
"
Alder-
shot
the
is to
British"
Mons
from
Retreat
The
Mons
important
most
a
was
91
centre.
capitalof Hainault,
The
before the
of
war
a
population
inhabitants,and
important of
of the most
the centre
near
29,000
some
had
Mons
Hes
Belgian
August 23,
the
coal-miningdistricts. It was here that,on
had its first
1914, the British ExpeditionaryForce
hordes.
great trial of strength with the German
used as a
was
occupation Mons
During the enemy
and quitea lot of our
base hospital,
sort of advanced
wounds
died from
who
men
buried in the
were
tery
ceme-
there.
To
reach
as
mentieres
Lille
road
south
turn
through
until
then
take
strasse."
This
Cauchies, in
almost
before
the map
into Leuze
may
road
favour
continues
down
and
little villagecalled Villers-en-
a
of the Valenciennes
Valenciennes
parallelwith
after Cambrai,
the
road
on
road.
to
Mons
runs
the
but
I recommend
be
able to
see
it because
more
to
revel
in the
of the fact that
of the enemy
of their lines of communication.
be able
and
just
railway,which it crosses
reachingthe town.
Looking this route up on
the reader may
consider it rather a long way
round,
one
then
de Baudour.
left at
be
From
through Artaking the Ath
is
route
Personally,I should
and
Arras had been thoroughlyinspected,
the long straightroad which goes direct to
called
the
"Romerby the Germans
"
should
and
justafter going
the Bois
wait
Cambrai
Tournai,
"
part of the
the northern
Bailleul,the best
front,such
"
from
the town
tion
organisa-
Motorists will
long,straightstretches,
and,
How
92
more
with
See the Battlefields
to
this road is in very good condition,
important still,
owing- to the fact that it was, in conjunction
arteries of supply
the railway,one
of the main
for the enemy
lines
on
the Western
Front.
Coming out of the town of Mons on the eastern
side and takingthe road to St. Symphorien on to Bray
and Binche
brings the tourist to the district in which
our
cavalry patrols engaged the enemy and *'held
of fact,it is established
their own
well." As a matter
beyond doubt that our cavalry,not only here, but at
made
mans,
with Gercontact
was
any other place where
than held its own.
more
Quantity,
very much
that British cavalry,
not
quality,was the sole reason
instead of advancing, had to fall back.
A good road takes one
down
to Bavai, which
place
is interesting
from the fact that here would have been
found
French's
General
Advanced
Headquarters on
de
Bavai
is just north of the Foret
August 24.
Mormal
and on a straight
road to Le Gateau, in which
the pukka G.H.Q. during the critical stages
town
was
of the retreat.
east
During the retirement to the southof Conde
by the 2nd Corps, some
ing
very stifffightoccurred, the brunt of it having to be faced by the
Here
5th Division.
again the cavalry Hussars,
Lancers
and
to the rescue
came
Dragoon Guards
and
harassed the enemy's flanks with such success
"
"
as
to
hold
up
their
advance
fall back
enable
our
hard-
order.
Every inch
of the ground in this district has been stubbornly
fought for,and many of the "Old Contemptibles fell
whilst coveringthe retirement of their comrades, and
pressed troops
to
in
and
good
"
How
94
the
Corps
Douglas Haig
ist
"
received
for the
morning
of
August
is reached
arrived
defence
days
thus
offensive.
through Maroilles we
through Pommereuil
I mentioned
to
Le
Landrecies
at
Le
for
the
Avesnes
Cateau, which,
G.H.Q.
of the old
line
at
is
small
a
town
mills.
junction
of
An
as
ingly
exceed-
this from
was
this latter place and
stifffight.
a
before
"
the
war
"
noted
principallv
was
Standing
of
wards
west-
Landrecies, and
the British troops put up
its woollen
being
Le
to
inhabitants,and
10,000
to
get
Cateau, for both
Cateau
some
From
British
before,was
interesting
part
Avesnes
direct road almost
a
from
of the German
on
by
Maubeuge, was the headquarters of
Sordet's
French
Cavalry Corps, but newly
brilliant
from adding to its laurels by most
work with our
Belgian Allies in the opening
south
General
mander-inhigh praisefrom the Combrilliant work they did on the
24, 1914.
Avesnes, which
due
Sir
of General
command
the
under
"
the Battlefields
See
to
as
it
does, and
important roads,
well as on
the main
as
line to the French
capital,
it had
certain strategicimportance, which
a
no
doubt
led to its being chosen
for G.H.Q.
It was
during the night of the 25th that Fritz bit off
a
little more
turn
than
by the
he
several
could
chew
and
got bitten in
British
bulldog. Pushing up troops
Forest
he
through the Mormal
violentlyattacked
Landrecies and got badly trounced by the 4th Brigade
(Guards), commanded
by Brigadier-GeneralScottKerr.
The
Guards
it afterwards"
"had
"
as
a
one
of their number
regular picnic,"and
described
actually
The
killed
in
a
much-criticised
to
rightor
was
Le
Cateau
of
the
wrong
added
who
"
was
the decision to remain
has not
heard
a
advised
critics
and
fight
can
story of the guns
Le
at
of it ?
line of retreat
bad
2nd
the
deny that the battle of
gloriouspage to the history
the
be
not
who
"
And
Following the
it would
Smith-Dorrien, who
another
nation ?
Cateau
of the
scene
of
whether
say, and
the
was
rifle fire
and
preferredto fight. Whcitever
retreat, but
may
95
magnificent stand
but
General
under
Corps
Cateau
Le
short time.
very
Mons
by machine-gun
Germans
800
over
from
Retreat
through Bohain,
down
off and
idea to branch
take
a
quick survey of the country both east and w^est of this
place,callingat Le Catelet on the west down through
Lempire, Roussoy, Hargicourt,Nauroy, Joncourt,
Ramicourt, and working over
through Fresnoy le
Grand
afterwards
to Wassigny, then
bearingsouth
again through Grougis,Montigny, Fonsomme, Hombli^res,into St. Quentin.
It is more
that General
generally understood
French
had an idea of making a stand on the Somme
south of St. Quentin, a projectwhich
he abandoned
owing to the "shattered condition of the troops, which
had fought at Le Cateau," so the retreat
continued
in the direction of the line, La
Fere
Noyon, to
"
which
latter town
26th.
Here
just in
a
and
of
sky,
be
may
crosses,
of
corner
the middle
two
transferred on
the
G.H.Q. was
there" by the roadside or, possibly,
a
or
a
wood
or
orchard
"
sometimes
in
field,silhouetted against the evening
seen
three
little groups
of
weather-worn
together,perhaps
one
isolated
How
96
a
few
Examination,
yards away.
score
that
reveals
See the Battlefields
to
gallantOld
the
they mark
Army who
of these isolated
rule,
a
of
men
crosses
of
the memory
to
are
heavier
to save
our
Many
fell during the retreat.
sacrificed themselves
who
of
graves
as
men
cavalrydisaster,
simply and whole-heartedlydoing their duty, asking
of the
some
not the reason
why. Hardly decipherable
the last time I saw
them in August, 1918;
names
were
the
crosses
and
overgrown
green
with
and lichen.
moss
good work has been done
been
by the Graves Registration
; the country has
and
from end to end, the crosses
numbered
scoured
re-named, and everything made
ready for the day
when, as I understand, all isolated graves will be
carried to the big
opened, and the remains reverently
Since then,however,
memorial
many
which
cemeteries
in
being arranged
are
districts.
As
I have
faults,seem
and
before,the
noted
to
the dead.
care
lot of
a
have
Many
attention
a
certain
of respect for
amount
show
of their cemeteries
has
been
paid
all their
with
enemy,
to
that great
the French
and
One
cemetery
equally with their own.
in particular,
near
Boisleux-au-mont,off the Arras
Bapaume road, was
exceptionallywell cared for.
French, British,and Germans
lay side by side, each
British dead
"
with
grave
an
elaborate
cross
and
marked
out
with
box-edging, paths carefullytended, and the whole
place planted with flowers. At the far end a huge
cross
with
had
an
been
ornate
the fallen.
erected,constructed
carved
wood
out
of tree
trunks,
tablet to the memory
of
However
and
until
one
is
which
visiting,and
Ham
Noyon,
to
I
the
in 19
badly
the
direct
through
road
the
knocked
place
evacuated
people
own
the French
75 's.
to
about
very
about
the
Noyon
was
in
noted
for
"
mother.
and
Mademoiselle
knew
was
a
most
two
town
the
things when I got there first one was
hotel, and the other the paper shop in
presided over by Mdlle. Louise and
market-place,
two
be
yet, although
there
be
may
used
18, settingfire to the Cathedral
with
26
is well worth
of whom
the memory
Boche
after my
company
which
Aug.
a
market-place,and
believe
days
on
town
on
"
"
piece of sculptureto
in the
a
97
picturesque route all the way
of Charlemagne
a
the old town
Guiscard,
arrives at
Mons
with the Retreat
continue
to
"
moved
G.H.Q.
from
Retreat
The
cellent
ex-
the
her
attractive person
shop presentlybecame a sort of
for certain Staff officers,
who
daily rendezvous
parently
aphad nothing better to do; so that it became,
in time, somewhat
of an ordeal to face the assembly
of "brass
it,and
hats"
of the
the
in order
Daily
Mail
to
make
modest
one's
chase
pur-
days old or a packet
of letter-paper
if madame
and envelopes. I wonder
her charming daughter managed to get away
and
safelybefore the Boche arrived?
On
the 28th G.H.Q. was
from Noyon to
moved
Compi^gne, and remained there about four days. A
direct and
picturesqueroad leads from Noyon to
The roads through
Compi^gne through Ribecourt.
the once
Royal Forest of Compi^gne are charming,
and
this place in itself is well worth
short stay.
a
Excellent
accommodation
"
two
may
"
be
obtained
in
the
How
98
See the Battlefields
to
make
long time, was a most important
Headquarters. There is an excellent hotel,
would
has quitea Parisian savour,
and which
a
headquarters,from
very handy temporary
which
the country in the direction of
town,
French
which
which, for
a
Soissons,Villers-
explored. There is a splendid road from
down
to Senlis,and across
to Creil,then on
be
could
Clermont
and
Cotterets, Cr^py-en-Valois,Senlis,
Clermont
where an important rearguard
Villers-Cotterets,
action was
fought on September i, the same
themselves
at
day that **L" Battery immortalised
heroically
againstoverwhelming odds.
Nery, fighting
The day before this G.H.Q. had gone to Dammartin,
and on September 2 went
to Lagny, and on
ber
Septem-
country
to
3 to Melun.
September 5
from
of the retreat
the end
saw
Mons,
preparations in full swing for the forthcoming
and
defeat
crushing
of
Battle of the Marne
fact that the
Had
the
was
years,
war
German
the
"
battle
a
Allied
"
would
after
retreat, in
after the
on
have
never
in
rations,sometimes
During
the
no
four
defeat for the
would
which, I believe,
To
round
turn
"
the
troops who
the
affair.
whole
that Paris
recovered.
Corps'
at
a
First
spiteof
weary
the
ended
the
ally
parts very disorderly especi-
some
2nd
blow
smashing
credit
of
catastrophe from
a
France
a
another
Forces, there is littledoubt
fallen
have
in
which,
dragged into
deciding point
the Battle of the Marne
in
hosts
stand
enemy,
had
been
rations
period when
at
"
and
deal
reflects the
enduring hell
such
a
greatest
on
half
all,for fifteen days.
the B.E.F.
was
moving
The
up
from
the
rough diary
of
There
many
is
are
Worcester
3rd
so
quite worth
Mons
99
district to Flanders, I
the Aisne
of
from
Retreat
the
met
Regiment, who
it appeared
as
retreat
human
poral
cor-
a
kept
him.
to
in it,that I think
notes
a
it
reprintinghere,
"Disembarked
sleptin the sheds at
night,left for the train at 7.30 a.m.
Sunday, August
16, at Rouen
station,and left for Aulnoye at 11.35
a.m.
Stopped at a station,Abancourt, at 3 p.m.,
where
they (the French) provided us with cigarettes
;
We
then left for Bifur
they were
very good to us.
We
at 4.30 p.m.
were
greetedat all stopping places.
We
then went
to St. Quentin,arrived at 8.20 p.m.,
on
and all the populationturned out to see us (the unknown
quantityor qualityas the case may be). W^e
to
went
on
Aulnoye, detrained, and stayed three
days, when we went through our usual routine work.
After
at 5.30 a.m.
Thursday, 20, Reveille sounded
cleaningup our various sleepingplaces,and having
to Dombreakfast,we fell in at 9 a.m., and marched
distance about
four
pierre,arrivingat 10.30 a.m.;
miles.
at
Detailed
Dompierre
is
6 p.m.,
at
a
9.55 p.m.,
we
large and
visited the Roman
billeted in barns, etc.
pretty place. We
very
Catholic
church
here.
At
the
of the
population of Avesnes (about seven
from Dompierre) the English troops were
taken
route
march
to
that
place (Avesnes). We
greeted by all
''Friday, August
a.m.
Breakfast
at
4
in
21.
a.m.
a
very
"
were
quest
re-
miles
on
a
where
every-
hearty manner.
Reveille
Parade
at
sounded
4.45.
at
The
2.30
whole
How
100
See the Battlefields
to
through St.
Brigade left Dompierre and marched
Austin, Wattigmes, and reachingthe coast, marched
the
towards
Belgian frontier, passing through
Fontaine,
Limont
billeted
having
Reminal
St.
Feigniers,reaching there
at
marched
three miles
at
The
miles.
twenty-one
and
Hautmont,
p.m.,
2.30
frontier is
here.
from
'*
Sunday, August 23. We took up positionand
We
trenched
enput obstacles; fightingstarted at 4 p.m.
ourselves along the railway,and pulled up
"
of
some
No
the
Firing ceased
lines.
about
7.30
p.m.
sleep.
"Monday,
We
24.
about 3 a.m.
Fightingcommenced
ten miles, losingfifteen killed and
"
retired about
about
eighteen wounded.
of
Most
men.
fire;very few
^^
about
No
men
by
file. Took
Germans
were
sands
lost thou-
killed
riflefire. The
up
by artillery
Middlesex
and put
position,
post
out-
sleep.
Tuesday,
25.
and
3 a.m.,
killed,one
blew
our
killed
were
lost 600 rank and
out.
of
The
opened fire at
continued
fightinguntil
"
We
officer and
two
wounded.
the
enemy
about
day;
mid-
Six
mans
Ger-
and
villageclose by us ; the women
children were
lying dead and wounded, with their
heads and legs blown away
by shell fire. We retired,
and marched
until Wednesday
morning. No sleep
since 23rd.
We
were
Wednesday, 26.
waiting for the
up
the
"
"
enemy
to
advance, when
positionwas
were
moving
not
we
suitable for
forward
in
were
our
informed
GeneraPs
when
singlefile,
that
plan.
our
We
the Germans
How
102
opened
on
us
with
rifle
their fire,and
fire caused
them
"
we
fire,and
had
to
"
to
5
the march
Another
which
fell. We
with
the
our
night(4 a.m.
march, and
down
will go
of
forced
hour's rest
an
turned
re-
careful.
be extra
After
Thursday, Aug, 27.
a.m.), we carried on
men
the accuracy
usual
as
retire.
to
march, in which
the Battlefields
See
to
in
tinued
con-
historyas
accomplished.
"From
Monday midday till Thursday, distance
hour only, and
about
130 miles, with a rest of one
having no food from Sunday until Thursday; we
couldn't get anything except apples,pears, carrots,
Received
swedes
this is all we lived on.
great praise
one
of the finest
"
from
Smith-Dorrien
for this.
"Marching all day Saturday and Saturday night,
blowing up all bridges we passed over, a few wellplaced shells doing the trick ; we had two hours' rest
tinued
on
Sunday morning (4 a.m. to 6 a.m.),and then conthe march
We
to Vic-sur-Aisne.
stayed in a
brewery for the night,and heard that the French had
held
the
enemy
back.
We
well
were
here, having plentyof wine and
filled our
bottles before
we
looked
beer, with which
after
we
marched.
''Monday, August 31, 1914. Marching to Vicsur-Aisne,we arrived at 5.30 p.m., about fortymiles.
We
had a good reception
there,and billeted in a wine
manufacturingplace,we had plentygiven us to drink.
No sign of the enemy
that day.
We
left Vic-sur''Tuesday, September i, 1914.
Aisne
and
marched
south, startingat 5 a.m., and
arrived at the boundary of a small village.We
had
"
"
The
to
Ret
three
back
turn
patrols;this
at
from
Mons
times
owing
four
or
numbered
force
i,ooo,
but
who
are
captured600, leaving400,
has fired
Our
lines.
artillery
have
arrived
"
all the
103
German
to
the
French
behind
our
woods.
We
twenty miles.
here at 7.30 p.m.;
Wednesday, September
Marching out
of camp
at 2.30, we
drawing
put outposts in position,
Paris
left for a placenear
them in at 5.30, when
we
fifteen miles
and did outpost duty until 5.30 p.m.
1914.
2,
"
"
"
in from
Came
and
made
shave, which
were
number
a
lost.
us
quitefresh.
precaution of outpost
for the
We
went
of Uhlans
out
at
dinner ; had
cooked
outpost and
7 p.m.
Our
wash
reason
the fact that there
was
who
a
strayedand were
all night outpost
had
for
duty.
^^
Thursday, September
outpost
at
after
had
5
a.m.,
and
3, 1914.
We
"
marched
retired from
through Meaux;
passed,the bridgeswere blown up. We
about
marched
three miles,then halted for dinner
on
and two hours' rest.
We
enjoyed ourselves fine in a
huge fruit plantation,where we
helped ourselves,
lage
our
haversacks; continuingthe march to a vilfilling
named
Sancy, arrivingat 6 p.m., we were settled
at
we
7 p.m.,
and
cooked
our
When
supper.
a
German
ordered to open
aeroplane came
over, the troops were
fire on it,bringingit down
in a field three miles away.
Our
cavalrywent out and secured
''Friday,September 4, 1914.
a.m.
stand
and
to,
cooked
not
until
our
it.
We
"
breakfast,and
being able
dinner,and
to
we
leave
were
our
got up
at
received orders
arms;
this
6
to
tinued
con-
stillawaitingorders
How
104
to
See the Battlefields
Immediatelyafter tea we received news
had captureda force of Austrians
that the Russians
Lemberg.
75,000 strong and 150 guns, at a placenear
This news
was
given to us by the Commanding
Colonel Stuart. About 6.15p.m. an Austrian
Officer,
the troops were
over
our
aeroplanecame
camp;
its
but with no apparent effect upon
ordered to fire,
flight.At 7 p.m. we had an issue of rum per man,
which had a very comfortingeffectduring the night.
off at 11.30 p.m., and marched all night.
We
moved
"Saturday,September 5, 1914. We arrived,and
immediatelywent on outpost for the Brigadeat 8 a.m.
after marching twenty miles,which brought
This was
rested during the
into the Charpre district. We
us
allowed to
day, cooking,etc., excepted. We were
to obtain water.
go to a small village
''Sunday. During one of our halts,we received
from a staff officer saying that a force of
a
message
five Army Corps
to our
Germans, 200,000 strong
(63,000).We were now making tracks towards them.
French
The
are
are
gettmg round them, and we
their centre.
attacking
''Sunday,September 6, 1914. We commenced
at
tea-time.
"
"
"
our
advance
towards
the north
at
5 a.m.,
and
were
which
sixteen miles away at 8 p.m.
at Lamonti^res,
of the enemy
some
occupieduntil our troops
drove
them
about
"
out,
800 of them.
in reserve;
We
it
was
a
few, and capturingabout
killing
finished the remainder of the night
here
that the first reinforcements
joinedus.
"Monday, September7, 1914. We
"
were
ordered
The
stand
to
to
at
arms
had
off; we
move
from
Retreat
and
a.m.,
4
breakfast
and
Mons
105
await
to
orders
dinner, and
C
to
pany
Com-
duty, and killed four Germans,
and kept their rifles,
bayonets, and revolvers; took
after havingbandaged them.
the wounded
to hospital
We
allowed to go into the village
to buy bread,
were
and
and we
found
house
a
brew^ery that had been
ransacked; the place had been turned upside down
and
left in the evening, and
in a frightful
state; we
completed a march of fifteen miles at 10.30 p.m. The
place is a very largetown.
Tuesday, September 8, 1914. We stood to arms
at 3.30 a.m.,
and awaited orders, having breakfast at
We
marched
at 7 a.m.,
continuing our
4.30 a.m.
went
outpost
on
'*
"
advance
due
north
passed two or
eight wounded
as
solace
a
of the human
treated
the
three
"
we
officers
some
until
of
8
p.m.
our
men
several Germans
had
our
way
killed and
were
captured 500
(thesemen
On
we
about
lying around;
German
be amongst
men
and
the
biggest
race);they had cut all telegraphiccommunication,
and killed all the cattle,
illabused
and
of all the villages,
women
the
especially
must
girls.
Wednesday, September 9, 1914." Moving off at
6 a.m.,
marched
we
through a town named
Vitry at
8 a.m.
There were
a good number
of German
killed
and wounded, and
counting
5,000 prisoners,our
brigade acfor 300;
also captured much
we
of their
mechanical
ing
transport, motor
cars, and cycles. Cross"
a
the
wide
enemy;
river
they
we
met
held
with
some
some
resistance
risingground
on
from
the
How
io6
other side.
a
One
regimentseventuallycaptured
thirtyor forty officers. We
ing
slope of this ground in skirmish-
of
battery and
advanced
See the Battlefields
to
our
some
down
the
order,and
awaited
from
orders
2
until 5.30
p.m.
going on outpost duty at 8 p.m.
''Thursday,September 10, 1914. We commenced
advance at 6 a.m.
our
Alongside a wood we saw a
German
batteryout of action, and about 300 men
killed. I took a bayonet and bolt from the dead as
souvenir.
We
port,
a
passed much of the enemy's transand
which
had been blown
artillery,
up by our
all their commissariat
to be composed of is
seems
the French.
food they have looted from
They are
ing
frontier. Marchin a hurry towards their own
retiring
full of wounded
a church
saw
we
through a village
who
and about 500 German
were
standing
prisoners,
outside.
noitre
My section was sent to the flank to recona wood
capturedtwo Germans, and handed
; we
p.m.,
"
them
before
over
and
until 8 p.m.,
marched
we
;
billeted in
''Friday,September
miles, startingat
the march
orchard.
an
11, 1914.
5 a.m.,
continued
we
"
marched
We
arrivingat
twelve
billeting
noon,
for the
night.
"Saturday.
"
continued
day;
and
our
a
wet
billets at 9.20
left our
march
towards
until 8 p.m.;
march
had
We
we
the enemy
went
on
night,all gettingdrenched
;
a.m.,
a
very
and
wet
outpost duty,
to
the skin.
had
left at 7.30
September 13, 1914. We
named
for a large town
Braine, which the enemy
only a few hours before vacated,after ransacking
the
town,
"Sunday,
a.m.
throwing
"
the
merchandise
out
into
the
The
street, settingfire
the
moved
and
at
Mons
ready
4 p.m.;
we
107
formed
We
houses.
the
to
side of the town
other
p.m.,
from
Retreat
for attack
at
moved
then
on
up
10.30
the
to
rightof the town and stayedfor the night.
''Monday, September 14, 1914. We moved at i
had taken up
towards the river,where the enemy
a.m.
"
waited
positionand
blown
up
for
the
us
to
They
cross.
bridges,and
every
time
had
our
viously
premen
attemptedto cross, they were met by a heavy fire from
A good many
lives were
lost
the enemy's big guns.
in crossing,and as soon
arrived on
the other
as
we
side we
had to take cover
under
a
high wall, with
earth on
the oppositeside; the enemy's shells were
lost ; my comlives were
pany
burstingall around us ; some
escaped with two killed and three wounded.
''Tuesday,September 15, to September 20, 1914.
We
moved
at 2 p.m.
to take up a position;we
structed
con"
trenches
receive any
rifle fire;we
did not
days and three nights.
We
still
are
September 16, 1914.
"
trenches, and
"
shell and
ration for two
"Wednesday,
in the
from
the enemy
apparently seven
have
constructed
lines of trenches.
fences
de-
We
are
all
hanging on to our positions,and I believe that a
is going on
the part of the
on
flanking movement
French.
They [the enemy] have tried two or three
times to break through our
have been
line,and some
cut
off.
These
finish about
no
12
headway.
"Monday,
positionsin
attacks
about
commence
6 p.m.,
midnight. The Germans
We
are
remaining here for
We
September 21, 1914.
the trenches
are
a
"
until
10
a.m.,
when
and
maJving
while.
held
we
our
were
How
io8
to
The
has
in the
leaving the
relieved
Leinsters
relieved.
been
See the Battlefields
us.
firingline just one
trenches
retired to
we
a
The
regiment
month.
After
villagenear
the
river.
arrived in
''Tuesday,September 22, 1914. We
our
camping ground at 7.30 a.m., and cooked our
breakfast and dinner there,moving off again at 3.30
through a village,and took up outpost duty during
the night. Three
on
companies were
outpost, four
and one
was
changed daily. You
billeted,
company
behind the firing
will note that this outpost was
line,
being so placed to protect suppliessent along the
in the daytime for
line.
We
retired into the wood
"
cover.
''Thursday,September 24, 1914. We are
the same
position,and remain here until
"
orders.
river
Our
from
line
firing
is
now
on
still in
further
the other side of the
Braine; this is the positionwhich
the
days in 1870. It has been
left
in our
We
possessionsince September 13-14.
billeted
and marched
at 5 p.m.
to Braine, where
we
for the night at 10 p.m. and stayed for a few days
Reserve.
to recuperate, and then joinedthe General
"Tuesday, September 29, 1914. Had breakfast,
then
and had a general clear-upafter breakfast ; we
heard some
of the latest news
of the Germans
losing
also heard
that Pte.
of the
heavily. We
shot for cowardice
the
on
Regiment, was
26th inst. Running away from the firing
line. I have
with twelve men
for guard at the
to go into Braine
Divisional Headquarters. We
parade at 4.45 p.m.
French
held for seventeen
"
"
,
How
no
in
localities
regard
section
north
of
land
French.
the
Aisne
to
first
of
such
La
German
the
beginning
of
time
up
and
the
in
was
big
this
1914,
well
retreat
with
that
Ribecourt
which
is
part
for
a
1918.
the
de-
was
of
the
simpler
little
remained
behind
in
much
very
it
and
hands
the
in
Mons
to
affected
Boche
from
Berry-au-Bac,
long
The
1914.
undoubtedly,
be,
extends
a
rush
in
interest,
investigations
will
Fere
war
fell
who
conduct
to
of
places
out
those
of
which
for
the
as
point
line
From
matter,
hands
the
the
bateable
and
lighting
1914
of
the
district
to
Battlefields
See
places
difficult
most
the
detail,
burial
the
and
to
after
in
lines
the
until
VII
SECTION
Chemin-des-Dames
the
From
CHEMIN-DES-DAMES
THE
the
Possibly
the
was
of
26,
May
attack
Dames
second
retreat
and
the
the
Marne.
of
apex
The
mant
after
north-east
of
huge
took
place
the
the
German
heavy
as
those
conscience.
British
and
of
enemy,
fought
troops
more
over
had
less
the
On
have
losses,
time
this
ground
again
end
called,
than
been
their
not
as
enough
**01d
in
July
plateau
in
though
a
that
of
laid
our
heap
as
this
heavy
a
is
"
fierce
as
the
not
Alle-
between
or
1917.
were
across
simply
celebrated
French
Since
road
now
wounded
the
well
was
almost
August,
the
and
temptibles"
1914,
of
captured
was
Berry-au-Bac
nothing
Verdun
at
dead
thousands,
and
Fighting
first weeks
and
and
is
graveyard.
which
all
what
through
runs
Soissons
ruins,
grass-grown
the
as
which
retreat
a
"
salient
enemy
Chemin-des-Dames,
"
began
the
and
Germans,
Chateau-Thierry
the
Chemin-des-
bloody
the
by
Marne
the
to
finished
only
taken
again
was
and
Soissons
between
and
famous
the
ing
overwhelm-
Prince's
front
Allied
the
on
war
morning
the
with
in
Crown
the
8, by
when
Rheims,
of
1
19
ushered
was
whole
the
of
phase
dramatic
most
which
one
1918.
Marne,
the
to
in
Con-
September,
in
the
lines
How
112
so
far south
to
See
until four
the Battlefields
divisions
were
moved
down
rightflank of the French in May, 1918.
In September, 1914, the ist Corps confronted
the
Germans,
strongly entrenched, along the
very
Chemin-des-Dames
ridge. In those days the woods
much
denser than they are now
after four years
were
of shell-storms
the fighting,apart from
and
its
units being unable
was
severity,
very patchy, many
another through the wooded
to keep in touch with one
there
on
the
"
"
country, which
resulted in several
narrow
escapes
for
brigadesand diyisionsengaged. The
3rd Division,for instance,was extricated from a very
dangerous corner
by the cavalry,and instead of being
surrounded
and cut off managed to beat off the German
consolidate a positionwhich
attacks,and finally
from near
La Bovelle
the
Farm
and Cerny, on
ran
high ground, down through Troyon, Chivy to Soupir
of the slope,and then on to the Chaat the bottom
Soissons road.
To this positionthey stuck
vonne
for nearlythree weeks.
tenaciously
During the action
of September 14, 19 14, the ist Corps not only inflicted
heavy losses on the enemy, but capturedover a dozen
hundreds of prisoners.
guns and some
To
visit
the
Chemin-des-Dames
battlefields,
Soissons should be used as a starting
place. Taking
the road which leads out of the town
by the Faubourg
St. Medard
the route
is through Crouy; from there
used to be a sugar factory at the
once
past what
cross-roads about three miles out of Crouy
and then
till the Chavignon turning is reached.
Here
the
on
northerlyroute is taken, and about a mile farther on
certain of the
"
"
"
THB
MAPF*
CO,,
LXi"^
LTlNUOti
How
114
there
with
Fort
Malmaison
lies
on
a
Prince
the
Germans
delivered
front which
Chevreux
"
a
direct
from
the
to
on
eastwards.
turn
yards off
to
the
is worth
and
the
fightingin
war
distance
of
certain
a
be
to
In
from
both
by
point of very
July, 191 7, the
a
assaults
of his memorable
one
extended
Some
kilometres.
and
considered
was
strategicalimportance.
Crown
if there is time
"
dominated
Malmaison
plateau,and
and
French
a
this fort.
de
Fort
of the
great
hundred
of the fiercest
some
as
visiting,
took place around
amount
few
a
sharp
a
Pinon,
to
side of the Chemin-des-Dames,
left-hand
The
leads
right-
the
on
Chavignon,
to
road
south-west
the
Chemin-des-Dames
the
Vauxaillon
to
across
by turning east, get
or
"
be taken
can
seen
Continuing on
side of the road.
hand
cut
will be
of AUemant
the remains
Battlefields
See the
to
the fort to the woods
of
approximatelytwenty-three
60,000 troops
forth
launched
were
French
ment.
positionafter a short bombardThe French Intelligence
Department had been
busy for several days, however, and knew almost as
much
about the forthcomingattack as the enemy
did,
against the
so
that when
the Huns
started
across
No
Man's
Land
they ran into a veritable tornado of French shells,a
regulatedthat,with the excepbarrage so beautifully
tion
of one
two
or
were
sections,the enemy
cally
practiwiped out before they got half way across ; those
who
did arrive at the French
front line
with
bomb
the result of the attack
was
an
advance
and
enormous
near
bayonet,and
loss of
Cerny by
men
by
the French.
were
the enemy
received
and
an
Chemin-des-Dames
there is a littlehillock which
Bovelles
Pantheon."
"
go
It
was
in
down
in this
Chasseurs
mostly
troops
and
Fort
Malmaison
Between
Marne
to
historyas
"
the
mill
was
called "The
positionthat
put up
a
the
at
heroic
les
French
fightwhich
of the most
one
115
will
of the
gallantmen
which
numbered
hordes
heavily outrepulse the German
them
and after about twenty hours' fighting
of the
of the position. Many
remained
masters
brave
defenders
were
killed,but the ground around
"The
Pantheon"
covered with ^ead and
was
literally
dying Germans; "in one place bodies were
lying on
selves
another so that they constituted in themtop of one
additional parapet,"so one
of the defenders
an
writes in a letter to his mother
describingthe fight.
Heroes
all,these French Chasseurs, magnificentboth
in attack and defence.
The
Ladies' Way
might well
have been renamed
that day the Way
of Blood.
Many and many a fighthas taken placealong the
slopes of this ill-omened ridge,and from Allemant to
Craonne
Allies have fought it inch by inch until,
our
after losingmany
at Verdun, the Hun,
thousands
as
of men,
finallygave it up in despair,and left the
French
the dominating positionfor many
to hold
It is estimated
months.
by a competent French
authoritythat in the battles which took place for the
Chemin-des-Dames
ridgein June and July,1917, that
whole
Time
war.
after
did
time
these
"
"
the
German
casualties
the end
armies
over
one
of that time
importanceto show
under
the Crown
hundred
had
thousand
Prince
men,
gained nothing of
for it.
lost in
and
at
the least
How
ii6
After
until
the
May,
19
take up
to
a
brilliant
from
retreat
Mons
in
1914
18, that British troops
their
des-Dames,
the Battlefields
See
to
and
positionsin
then the
the Chemin-
on
gth Corps, which
reputationin Flanders, took
not
was
called upon
were
the line
it
made
over
such
the line
the
and
right of the French between Courtecon
the 21st,
Berry-au-Bac. The divisions engaged were
8th and 50th, and the 25th was
in support.
on
There
with
our
has
a
withdrawal
positions,and
should
been
no
from
doubt
not
have
had
suffered
lot of criticism
the
in connection
Chemin-des-Dames
thingshappened
many
which
happened. But any war
great or
small
It is but fair,
can
provide similar instances.
however, that the public should thoroughlyrealise the
actu-^l facts. First of all,the divisions which
I have
"
"
named
severelyindeed in various
through
parts of the line since the beginning of the breakMarch
on
21, 19 18. They had suffered to such
extent that they had been picked out specially
for a
an
rest in a quietpart of the line. The
quietpart of the
line chosen was
the Chemin-des-Dames, or a portion
to get down
thereof,and very glad the divisions were
south for a time, miles away
ferno.
infrom the northern
It should
has
very
also be realised that
a
been
division which
weeks
engaged in heavy fightingfor some
sustains proportionately
heavy losses,and to replace
these losses in
an
1918 was
exceedinglydifficult
The
matter.
reinforcements,when
they did arrive,
of the
latest classes,trained
were
and
very well
trained too, to a certain extent
at home.
Practically
all the drafts were
composed of youngsters who had
"
"
How
ii8
to
to
get clear.
The
See the
Battlefields
withdrawal
to
came
Vesle be-
the River
general. During the rearguard fightingthe
Light Infantry,and
Lancashires,Berkshires,Durham
Fusiliers added
to their laurels by
Northumberland
putting up
a
stubborn
very
resistance,and
the
were
saving several heavy guns by holding up
the enemy
long enough for the gunners and Army
hauled by
Service Corps to get them
the move
on
maximum
the huge caterpillar
speed
tractors, whose
of
means
"
is about
two
a-half miles
and
drivers
caterpillar
I have
per
hour.
For
the greatest admiration
these
;
they
than one
through anything,and on more
and
occasion they have been attacked by the enemy
have beaten him off. In one
case
literally
so, for the
a
implement used was
large spanner, with which a
hefty North-countryman brained several over-eager
Huns
who
attempted to rush the tractor.
In their eagerness
into
to hurry fresh troops up
would
drive
the line the Huns
full view
of
made
free
use
of motor
lorries and
infantry,though out of effective
These
rifle or machine-gun range.
lorries could be
seen
disgorging troops on to the roads at various
into
points,whence, when formed up, they advanced
ward
support ready to take their positionsin the next forIt was
most
wave.
a
tantalising
sight,and we
all hoped that even
into
one
i8-pounder might come
action.
Nothing in that way happened, however, as
all the guns were
either capturedor out of action from
in
one
cause
or
I think
intends
to
our
another.
the
carry
best
on
routes
to
southwards
follow, if
to
the
the
tourist
Marne,
will be
THB
MAPPA
CO
,
tTD,,
LONDO^
How
120
See the Battlefields
to
Berry-au-Bacto Cormicy, then westerlyto Confrom there along the road which
hugs the
cevreux;
from
there
from
our
then
and
a
; then
Merval
if this has
the last time
the
Here
road
Maizy
is crossed
is made
turn
; and
by
due
continue
the
on
(Euilly
south, down
"
high ground down to
which
was
a
thrivingand attractive litde
arrived there in May, 1918, and went
when
we
to await the arrival of
nice, comfortable billets,
which
was
followingby train. Fismes
artillery,
the railway station,
possessed one hotel, near
through
Fismes,
into
till the
road.
Fismes
town
of the canal to
bank
southern
not
I
saw
fightingwhich
station
been
smashed
took
up
"
it
was
intact
possiblysuffered in
place in the vicinityof the
it,but
of
accommodation
"
the
over
very
a
kind
can
be
obtained.
thirty
yards away from the Hotel de Ville,where excellently
cooked food could be obtained,the proprietor
having
chef in Paris and Versailles,
been rather a well-known
There
is also
a
caf6
in the
main
street,
not
produce specimens of the
culinaryart to those who could appreciatethem. As
might be expected,he possessedan excellent cellar,
which, I am afraid,must have been pretty well looted
the place
when
the Huns
arrived in 1918 and made
their headquartersfor a short time.
Through the main street of Fismes runs the main
Soissons
Rheims
road, which, with the exceptionof
in excellent
occasional patchesof very vile pav6, was
I last went
condition when
through the town on the
is less than twenty miles
to Jonchery. Rheims
way
from Fismes, and reallyought not to be missed.
and
who
was
"
very
keen
to
Chemin-des-Dames
Much
I wanted
as
to see
Marne
to
the
place,I
121
got there
never
;
thingsdeveloped too rapidlyto allow any stolen joy
rides. Still,
episodesin the long tale
though many
the destruction of
will quicklybe forgotten,
of the war
has
Rheims
is a thing apart; it is a crime which
struck
The
into the hearts of all civilised nations.
horror
followingon
thingswhich
"
those
help
German
any
Fismes
From
after
routes
trader who
years
southwards
is the
is
"
dares
direct
Heaven
show
to
of
one
his face
!
to come
there
reaching the pretty
One
Gilles.
pillageof Louvain
be explainedaway.
cannot
the
for many
in the town
dral
of the cathe-
bombardment
inexcusably wanton
two
are
alternative
little villageof St.
road
through Crugny,
Serzy and Savigny and then through Coemy to
Lhery, which takes one on to the main road through
Chatillon-surand
to
Olizy-et-Violaine
Romigny
The
Marne.
reasons.
French
never
then
courtesy and
to in
went
mattress
billet
"
which
cubicles
that
we
of
"
the
tremendous
order that my
billets. We
clean
road out
through Brouillet into Lagery a place
I shall not
forget in a hurry, for several
In Lagery there lived a most
charming
Town
Major, M. le Capitan Foret, and I can
thank
this officer enough for his unfailing
Crugny,
which
other is to take the due south
and
could
salad
men
of trouble
amount
should
have
he
comfortable
actuallyserved out with bedsteads,
in the
and pillow cases, and
covers,
was
beautifullyclean separate little
bunks
for the N.C.O.'s.
Everything
cepting
possiblyhave wished for not even exand fresh butter
was
suppliedby this
were
"
"
"
How
122
See the Battlefields
to
most
incomparable of
some
of
our
Town
own
lesson from
his book
Captain Foret
of service and
that
Majors. Would
Majors could have taken a
Town
is
been
!
a
cavalryman,who
severelywounded
has
seen
a
lot
in the earlier
in dress and in manner,
Immaculate
days of the war.
a
soldierly
figurewith several decorations,he is the
beau ideal of a gallantFrench
soldier,and my only
much
too busy to get in touch
regret is that I was
with him when
had to evacuate
the place,and so
we
had to leave the district without thanking him for all
during its short stay there.
of the things which
I particularly
noticed
One
while at Lagery was
fantry
the rapiditywith which the inadvance
followed up by observation
loons.
balwas
To the north of the village,
two
some
or three
miles away, there is a ridge,and in the short space of
he did for my
hour
one
balloons
they
unit
I counted
rise
were
our
no
fewer
slowly into
own,
than
the air.
but
fourteen
At
first I
inquiriesmade
of these
thought
from
some
French
infantrywho were
fallingback
which
soon
dissipatedthis idea, as did the shelling
took placea littlelater in the day.
With
the exceptionof one
that from
Lhery to
all the roads in the district between
Romigny
Lhery
and Romigny are mere
country lanes,abounding in
very
weary
"
"
bad
turns
Owing
to
and
add
to
one
or
two
short
this,the congestionwhich
these tracks
to
with
during the
the confusion
Boche
twenty-five
retreat
was
but steep hills.
took
place on
and
indescribable,
covey of about twenty to
planesharried the retreating
troops
a
Chemin-des-Dames
with
machine-gun fire from
men
and
us
horses
hours
two
over
a
very
killed and
were
to
get
Marne
to
123
low ahitude.
it took
and
wounded,
transport from
our
Many
Lagery
Lhery, a distance of under one mile ! The scene
try,
may be imagined,with all the transport, guns, infanambulances, etc., etc., converging on Lhery from
the high
all possible directions
all trying to make
road leadingsouth.
From
Romigny it is a very pretty drive down to
Chatillon,and then to Pont-^-Binson, at which place
the Marne
Evidences
of the fightinghere
is crossed.
to
"
are
all too
south
of the
on
to
Pont-k-Binson
should
Marne
bridge which
there
From
apparent.
the
crosses
Vincelles
and
be
the road
taken, as
far
river into Verneuil
Dormans
where
"
as
the
from
;
the river is
again crossed
continuing along the south bank
it is advisable
Here
through Soillyto Courtemont.
to cross
to Jaulgonne; and from there it is but a short
"
distance
to
Charteves
Charteves
a
"
it is but
very pretty littlespot. From
comparatively short
a
to
run
Chateau-Thierry.
The
story of the Americans
at
is
history,and those who view
destruction wrought in this once
can
reconstruct
of the
these brave
From
for themselves
Marne
and
Allies of
the
Chateau-Thierry
the
beautiful
scene
the recapture
and
desolation
old town
of the
ing
cross-
of the town
by
ours.
Chateau-Thierryto Epernay is one of the
that could be possiblyimagined,
motor
runs
prettiest
and although this latter town
has been somewhat
damaged by bombs, the damage is not obtrusively
How
124
noticeable.
See the Battlefields
The
champagne cellars in Epernay are
those of Moet et Chandon,
seeing,especially
worth
and
to
there
r
is also
excellent
an
hotel
"
the
Hotel
de
Europe which is an ideal placeto put up at, for the
cooking is perfect.
In bringingthis littlebook to an end I should like
to pointout that in many
where there has been
cases
choice of routes
I have
a
not
always advised the
reader to take the best
that is,of course, lookingat
the matter
from
motorist's point of view.
a
My
choice has always been guided by a desire to point
out placeswhich
from a war
of interest entirely
were
standpoint.
In many
it will be impossible to take a
cases
within
half a mile or so of the point named,
car
"
"
and
even
very
bad
then
one
tracks
to
boils
simply
have
would
get
as
near
as
itself down
to
traverse
this.
to
some
The
this
"
tion
quesif
you
reallyinteresting
parts of the lines you
do quite a lot of "foot-slogging"
must
over
rough
of
ground; in other words, go to a certain amount
In any case, "foot-slogging"
trouble.
may be tiring
want
and
to see
bad
the
for the boots, but it is excellent for the liver
than one
can
aperitif
get out
bottle. After
a
day or two trench hopping
dodging shell-holes an appetitewill be created
would
appreciateeven bully beef and biscuits.
and
a
much
Thomas
Prin'ted
finer
Cassell
"
CoMPAN'Y,
La
F. 40. 819
Limited,
Belle
Sauvage,
London,
a
and
that
Ask
!
Atkins
by
of
E.C.4