Bulletin de l’Aisne:
8 December 1917: ‘Un drame près de Guise.’
28 February 1918: ‘Les Allemands et les violations de sépulture.’
10 and 31 January 1918: ‘Une interview de Monsieur Edgar Dhéry – Le Conseiller Général du Câtelet, maire d’Hargicourt est rentré en France Libre.’
4 April 1918: ‘Les poisons boches de l’Aisne.’
2 May 1918: ‘Des nouvelles de chez nous – Nos Ruines – Villeret.’
16 May 1918: le boche Wilhem qui tire sur une femme sourde.
16 January, 1919: ‘On apprend que l’arrondissement de Saint-Quentin se repeuple.’
23 and 30 January, 1919, articles de Elie Fleury, sans titre racontant l’histoire de Mme Contant.
20 March 1919: ‘Les Anglais fusillés.’
22 May 1919: ‘l’épisode de La Fère.’
16 October 1919: ‘Nos Bourreaux.’
18 December 1919: ‘Bellicourt: un anamite tue deux personnes.’
29 juillet 1920: ‘procès des publicités Bouillons Kub.’
28 October 1920: ‘Le gouvernement anglais récompense Gustave Preux.’
17–27 December 1920: ‘Les heroines de la guerre: Mme Marguerite Contant’ – Elie Fleury.
ENGLAND
Public Records Office
wo 95/1439, BEF General War Staff, Diary.
W095/1449, 4th Division, War Diary and casualty lists.
wo 95/1477, HQ, ioth Brigade, War Diary.
wo 95/1486, HQ, nth Infantry Brigade, War Diary and Appendices.
W095/1495, Ist Batallion, Hampshire Regiment, War Diary.
wo 95/1501, 12th Brigade, War Diary. wo 95/1506, 12th Infantry Brigade, War Diary.
Notes
EPIGRAPHS/PROLOGUE
‘If I should die …’ extract from Rupert Brooke, ‘The Soldier’ in Jon Silken (ed.), The Penguin Book of First World War Poetry.
‘I have a rendezvous…’ Alan Seeger, ‘Rendezvous’ ibid.
‘What passing bells …’ Wilfred Owen, ‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’, ibid.
CHAPTER ONE The Angels, of Mons
‘Who has matched us …’ Rupert Brooke, Peace, Sonnet I, The Collected Poems, p. 5.
‘The evening was …’ Sir Edward Spears, cited in John Terraine, Mons, the Retreat to Victory, p. 70.
‘You make a mistake …’ Arthur Osburn cited in Richard Holmes, Riding the Retreat, Mons to the Mame, 1914 Revisited, p. 282.
‘It was heart-rending …’ Ernst Rosenhainer, Forward March, Memoirs of a German Officer, p. 13.
‘broken torrent’ Alan Hanbury-Sparrow, cited in Holmes, op. cit., p. 163.
‘An unthought of…’ ibid., p. 197.
‘the whole valley …’ ibid., p. 169.
‘We must allow …’ John Keegan, The First World War, p. 112.
‘Amongst all the …’ The Times, 30 August 1914.
John Lucy, cited in Holmes, op. cit., p. 205.
‘a most extraordinary …’ cited in Lyn Macdonald, 1914 – 1918: Voices and Images of the Great War, p. 21.
‘good many cases…’ General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien, cited in Terraine, op. cit., p. 203.
‘a perfect debacle …’ Kenneth Godsell, cited in Holmes, op. cit., p. 196.
‘We saw no …’ Henry Hamilton Fyfe, Daily Mail, 30 August 1914.
‘did not trouble’ Walter Bloem, cited in Holmes, op. cit., p. 180.
‘scallywags and minor …’ John Lucy, cited in ibid., p. 33.
‘adepts in musketry …’ British Official History, cited in Holmes.op. cit., p. 96.
‘It was the coward’s chance …’ Sir Philip Gibbs, cited in Terraine, op. cit., p. 204.
‘Where shall the traitor rest …’ Sir Walter Scott, Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field, Edinburgh, 1808).
‘the pleasure of seeing …’ Royal Hampshire Regimental History, Vol. II, p. 9.
‘The stillness was …’ Arnold Robinson Burrowes, The Faugh-A-Ballaghs in the Great War, p. 4.
‘as if every gun …’ Royal Hampshire Regimental History, op. cit., p. 11.
‘We marvellously …’ Private F.G. Pattenden, ist Bn. Hampshire Regt, 11 th Infantry Brigade, Public Records Office WO 95/1495, p. 2.
‘I am too …’ ibid.
‘I lost my army …’ Robert Digby to Ellen Digby, cited in Major S. Ashmead-Bartlett, From the Somme to the Rhine, p. 128.
‘Private Robert Digby …’ Ist Battalion Casualty Roll, Royal Hampshire Regimental Journal, October 1914.
‘dense as the crowd …’ Colonel J. H. Cowper, The King’s Own, Tlie Story of a Royal Regiment, Vol. III, p. 9.
‘A full 7 to 10 minutes …’ Anonymous account in King’s Own Lancaster archives, possibly written by Colonel Bois.
‘greatly reassured’ Cowper, op. cit., p. 90.
‘could not possibly …’ anon/Bois, op. cit.
‘not to talk nonsense …’ ibid.
‘New life came …’ ibid.
‘A valiant attempt’ Cowper, op. cit., p. 10.
‘some tried …’ ibid., p. 12.
‘of those who got …’ anon/Bois, op. cit.
‘terrible sight…’ Captain H. C. Hart, Narrative of the Retreat from Mons, 24th August, 1914, PRO:CAB45/196.
‘There was no reconnaissance …’ Field Marshal The Viscount Bernard Montgomery, Memoirs, p. 32.
‘terrible work …’ Montgomery, cited in Nigel Hamilton, Monty: The Making of a General 1887–1942, p. 76.
‘There was nothing …’ Cowper, op. cit., p. 15.
‘singing and cheering …’ Burrowes, op. cit., p. 4.
‘Outnumbered and …’ ibid., p. 9.
‘I do not understand …’ ibid., p. 6.
‘as if in a …’ ibid.
‘with only the remains…’ ibid., p. 6.
‘physically unable …’ ibid.
‘to our rear …” General Sir Aylmer Haldane, cited in Peter T. Scott, Dishonoured, p. 33
CHAPTER TWO Villeret, 1914
‘nature is beautiful …’ CharlesPoëtte, Promenades dans les environs de Saint-Quentin, Imprimerie de Charles Poëtte, 1892-1906, p. 318.
‘What with the war …’ Denis Winter, Death’s Men, p. 23.
‘How many workers…’ Villeret municipal archives, 16 August 1914, dossier 4H2, télégrammes d’août 1914.
‘Extend help to …’ ibid., 17 August 1914.
‘The rich folk …’ interview with Bernard Bétermin, 4 Feb 1999.
‘frank and united …’ Dominique Grenier, Introduction à l’Histoire générale de la Province de Picardie.
‘Chacun s’n pen …’ information from Lydia Delectorskaya, cited in Hilary Spurling, The Unknown Matisse, Vol. I, p. 13.
‘Before the war …’ Departmental archives of the Aisne, 15R 1041, dommages de guerre, dossier 411, Morelle-Dessenne Samuel Alphonse.
‘thoroughly mediocre …’ account of Monsieur Duchange, cited in Evelyne Dubuis, Villeret à travers les ages, p. 43.
‘would not want …’ ibid., p. 45.
‘Oh, France, beautifully …’L’invasion de 1914 dans le canton du Câtelet par les témoins, (henceforth referred to as Le Câtelet), 1933, P. 9
‘295 francs …’ Departmental archives of the Aisne, 15R 1041,dommages de guerre, dossier 505, Morel-Saby.
‘They had the unspeakable …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 12.
‘They had only one …’ ibid.
‘It is very sad …’ Macdonald, op. cit., p. 22.
‘as rich as a …’ information courtesy of Monique Séverin, Société Académique de Saint-Quentin.
‘polished brass …’ MoniqueSéverin, Le Château de Priel, unpublished account, archives of Société Académique de Saint-Quentin.
‘He had to sit…’ interview with Jean-Paul Plume, 1 Feb 1999.
‘He waited until …’ ibid.
‘I’ve just seen …’ ibid.
‘bearing the inscription …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 15.
&nbs
p; ‘an abandoned factory interview with Louise Vanasche (née Dessenne), 13 Dec 1999.
‘swung around …’ Henri Lelong, Notes sur l’Histoire de la Commune de Villeret pendant le Guerre 1914— 1918, unpublished account, 1928, archives of Société Académique de Saint-Quentin, p. 1.
‘It was the last …’ ibid., p. 2.
‘hand-to-hand combat …’ Arthur-Daniel Bastien, Avec le Corps de Cavalerie Sordet, Témoignage d’un dragon de 1914, private archive of Jean-Paul Plume, p. 12.
‘sent to war …’ ibid., p. 2.
‘With the Germans …’ ibid., p. 12.
‘charge, without hesitation …’ ibid., p. 14.
‘The dragoons made …’ ibid.
‘The lieutenant …’ ibid.
‘The infantry scattered …’ ibid., p. 15.
‘The convoy of soldiers …’ ibid., p. 16.
‘nerves at full …’ ibid.’ Having thanked …’ ibid., p. 18.
‘As night fell …’ ibid.
‘The Germans don’t…’ ibid., p. 19.
‘raw rabbit …’ ibid.
‘three new occupants …’ ibid.
‘I gave them a gift …’ ibid.
‘I will never …’ ibid., p. 35.
CHAPTER THREE Born to the Smell of Gunpowder
‘here’s another …’ cited in Spurling, op. cit., p. 10.
‘Children of a …’ ibid., p. II.
‘powerful personage …’ Poëtte, op. cit., p. 323.
‘Jean, seigneur …’ Laon departmental archives, Fonds Piette, no. 808.
‘rude and rough …’ Gabriel Hanotaux, cited in Spurling, op. cit., p. 13.
‘foreigners, notably …’ Poëtte, op. cit., p. 346.
‘What an unforgettable …’ Le Câtekt, op. cit., p. 16.
‘où sont les …’ ibid., p. 29.
‘the other two …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 22.
‘sat playing cards …’ ibid., p. 20.
‘Only two …’ ibid.
‘The English …’ ibid., p. 21.
‘Hundreds of soldiers …’ ibid., p. 22.
‘Hand over the …’ ibid.
’Bring us the …’ ibid., p. 24.
‘The German officers …’ ibid., p. 25.
‘cleaned out …’ ibid., p. 26.
‘The body of the horse …’ ibid.
‘that imbecile who …’ interview with Georges Mercier, 28 Sept1998.
‘they wanted to …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 17.
‘had the audacity …’ ibid., p. 38.
‘rode about …’ Major-General Sir Edward Spears, Liaison 1914, p. 519.
‘My God …’ interview with Louise Vanasche.
‘I always tried …’ interview with Marcelle Sarrazin, 12 Jan 2000.
‘Marie Goulette …’ interview with Jean Dessenne, 3 Feb 1999.
CHAPTER FOUR Fugitives
‘set off to …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., P. 94
‘Nach Paris …’ ibid., p. 17.
‘home before …’ cited by John Keegan, Daily Telegraph, 6 Nov 1998.
‘The French are …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 41.
‘wept with joy …’ Léon Legé, Journals, archives of the Société Académique de Saint-Quentin.
‘It’s over …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 48.
‘Villeret became …’ Lelong, op. cit., p. 1.
‘cavalry division …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 41.
‘there was an exchange …’ Lelongop. cit., p. 1.
‘We were trapped …’ adapted from the account of J. Magniezin Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 94.
‘For her …’ interview with Philippe Delacourt, 31 Jan 1999.
‘taking advantage …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 44.
‘It couldn’t …’ Magniez, cited in ibid., p. 94.
‘For several days …’ ibid., p. 49.
‘Pillage took …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 51.
‘We heard a loud …’ interview with Henriette Lege.
‘I decided …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., P. 94.
‘With only civilian …’ ibid.
‘The mayor …’ ibid.
‘They lived a quiet …’ ibid.
‘clever …’ telephone interview with Thomas Leyland, 13 Mar 1999.
‘as a God …’ interview with Thomas Leyland, 3 Mar 1999.
‘an odd sort …’ telephone interview with Thomas Leyland,13 Mar 1999.
‘He was…’ ibid.
‘If you want …’ interview with Hélène Cornaille, 17 Mar 2001.
‘He was quite …’ ibid.
‘natural …’ interview with Thomas Leyland.
‘He was never …’ ibid.
‘very common …’ ibid.
CHAPTER FIVE Behind the Trenches
‘the cannons …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 54.
‘We came through …’ Rosenhainer, op. cit., p. 88.
‘A mighty blow …’ Mme Hénin, Journals, cited in Le Câtelet, p. 52.
‘a vast …’ quoted in Helen McPhail, The Long Silence, p. 55.
‘telling everyone …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 57.
‘when soldiers …’ ibid., p. 55.
‘delivered a lecture …’ ibid.
‘Of medium height …’ Joseph Cabaret, Journal, unpublished, in the archives of the Société Académique de Saint-Quentin.
‘Initially he displayed …’ Lege, op. cit.
‘He was wicked …’ Madame Salandre, cited in Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 55.
‘little people …’ Cabaret, op. cit.
‘a young squirt …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 55.
‘a ferocious …’ ibid., picture caption, p.65.
‘responsible for overseeing …’ ibid., p. 61.
‘He was a fantastic drunk …’ ibid.
‘liked to creep up …’ ibid., p. 68.
‘The Big Red …’ ibid., picture caption, p. 65.
‘His attitude was …’ Legé, op. cit.
‘Barbarians’ interview with Henriette Legé.
‘terrorised the population …’ Legé, op. cit.
‘The windows looked out …’ ibid.
‘Every time …’ interview with Henriette Legé.
‘All eggs are …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 57.
‘He saw all …’ interview with Jean Dessenne, 28 Sept 1998.
‘all enemy soldiers …’ Spears, op. cit., p. 382.
‘the manhunt for …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., pp. 54, 89.
‘All mayors …’ cited in ibid., p. 89.
‘The officers …’ Magniez, cited in ibid., p. 94.
‘An inhabitant …’ ibid.
‘I have strongly …’ ibid., p 18.
‘On 1 November …’ ibid., p. 94.
‘château was …’ ibid., p. 92.
‘lent some female …’ ibid.
‘On horseback with …’ ibid. p. 94.
‘I sent the poor …’ ibid.
‘I brought them …’ ibid.
‘chickens on various …’ Departmental archives of the Aisne, 15R 1041, Dommages de Guerre, dossier 356, Emile Alphonse Foulon.
‘because the …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., P. 95.
‘their situation …’ ibid.
‘to change methods …’ ibid.
‘Why should they …’ Spears, op. cit., p. 519.
‘a veritable garrsion …’ Elie Fleury, Sous la Botte, Tome II, p. 98.
‘it would be more …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 95–6.
‘live as country …’ Lelong, op. cit., p. 5.
‘like a poplar …’ interview with Georges Mercier.
‘It was feared …’ Le Câlelet, op. cit., p. 95.
‘They were each …’ Lelong, op. cit., p. 5.
CHAPTER SIX Battle Lines
‘as everywhere …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 62.
‘You got the feeling …’ ibid., p. 65.
‘Lelong agreed …’ ibid., p. 96.
/> ‘They had to be …’ interview with Jean Dessenne, 3 Feb 1999.
‘She was hard …’ interview with Louise Vanasche.
‘She picked up …’ interview, Etienne Dessenne, 30 Oct1999.
‘they slept in …’ interview with Louise Vanasche.
‘Our house was …’ ibid.
‘Once Florency and …’ ibid.
‘strong character …’ interview with Michel Lelong, 28 Jan 1999.
‘Their curtains …’ interview with Louise Vanasche.
‘The Englishmen were …’ ibid.
‘We all lived …’ ibid.
‘The bread oven …’ interview with Michel Lelong.
‘like two pistols …’ interview with Robert Boitelle, 14 Oct 1998.
‘she considered …’ ibid.
‘They were …’ Lelong, op. cit.
‘the occupation of Villeret …’ ibid.
‘December 16 …’ Departmental Archives of the Aisne, Dommages de Guerre, dossier 505, Morel-Saby.
‘in dread …’ Spears, op. cit., p. 519.
‘The most private …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 71.
‘At this time …” Lelong, op. cit., p. 2.
‘They were confined …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 95.
‘they walked around …’ ibid.
CHAPTER SEVEN Rendezvous
‘our garrison now …’ Lelong, op. cit., p. 2.
‘an old man of eighty-two …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 77.
‘It’s nothing to do …’ interview with Louise Vanasche.
‘They never altered …’ Legé, op. cit.
‘He would play …’ interview with Hélène Cornaille, 28 Sept 1998.
‘It’s almost like …’ ibid.
‘pure Hell of …’ interview with Thomas Leyland.
‘the landscape …’ Siegfried Sassoon, Memoirs of a Fox-Hunting Man, (London: 1932) p. 372.
‘I still had …’ Thomas Digby, poem dedicated to Robert Digby,1930.
‘Far behind …’ Winter, op. cit., p. 80.
‘the three pretty …’ Article byabbé Pierre Gourmain, 13 Jun 1858 on building of church, archives of the Société Académique de Saint-Quentin.
‘slow pulsation …’ Jünger, Ernst,The Storm of Steel, p. 1.
‘a shell landed …’ interview with Marcelle Sarrazin, 12 Jan 2000.
‘The Germans made …’ Lelong, op. cit., p. 2.
‘under the surveillance …’ ibid.
‘They left the …’ ibid., p. 5.
‘The officers have …’ Le Câtelet, op. cit., p. 66.
‘a return to …’ ibid., p. 56.
A Foreign Field Page 24
