VCs of the First World War 1915 The Western Front

by Peter F Batchelor

  R. DUNSIRE

  Hill 70, France, 26 September

  The 13th Bn, Royal Scots (45th Bde, 15th Div.) were brought forward as part of a brigade attack to take Hill 70. Following the wet weather on the opening day of the Battle of Loos, conditions deteriorated on 26 September: mist and low cloud and rain covered the battleground. The 45th Bde was ordered to attack from the west at 09.00 hours. However, when the orders arrived at 05.00 hours, the brigade was in position astride the track leading to the Hill 70 redoubt; in the orders this track had been designated the left boundary of the brigade line of advance. To move the whole brigade over, and reassemble both the 45th and 62nd Bdes, in accordance with the orders, was deemed too risky so the brigade commanders decided to attack from where they were. The 45th Bde was to make a frontal assault against the redoubt and the summit of the hill with three battalions: the 7th Royal Scots Fusiliers on the right would attack the south face of the redoubt; the 11th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders would attack the centre of the strongpoint; and the 13th Royal Scots would deliver their assault against its northern face and northern flank. These units were supposed to withdraw during a short preliminary bombardment but the order to do so was not received until after the bombardment had started; although largely accurate, some shells did fall short at times, inflicting casualties in the British front lines, especially among the 13th Royal Scots. As the bombardment neared its end the mist cleared, leaving the attackers who went over the top at 09.00 hours clearly visible from the German position. Nevertheless, the assaulting battalions reached the perimeter trench and after fierce hand-to-hand fighting drove the enemy out. At 10.30 hours the Cameron Highlanders (see A.F. Douglas-Hamilton, page 205) were forced out of Chalet Wood to the east of Puits 14; this enabled the Germans to increase the weight of fire against the 13th Royal Scots on the left flank of 45th Bde. A Coy, under Capt. Penney of the 13th Royal Scots, took his platoon forward to reoccupy the Camerons’ position in the wood but failed, incurring heavy losses. Pte R. Dunsire had advanced with his battalion, the 13th Royal Scots, and they now held their ground in readiness to go forward again when reinforcements should arrive. It was then that Dunsire noticed a wounded man, lying in the fire-swept area between the opposing lines, waving an arm as if signalling for assistance. Heedless of the heavy fire Dunsire crawled out to the man and brought him safely in. Shortly after returning he heard another man shouting for help; this man was considerably closer to the German lines but, disregarding the danger, Dunsire went out and brought him in as well. The author of The Royal Scots 1914–1919 commented: ‘How he [Dunsire] managed to escape without a scratch was a mystery, for the earth was madly dancing to the continuous thud of bullets.’ No. 18274 Pte R. Dunsire was awarded the VC for his acts of bravery on 26 September, the award being gazetted on 18 November 1915.

  Robert Dunsire was born in East Wemyss, Fifeshire, Scotland, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth Anderson Dunsire. He later resided in Kirkaldy, Fife, and was married to Catherine Pitt of 107 Denbeath, Methil, Fife. He joined up when war broke out, and after winning the VC was decorated by King George V at Buckingham Palace on 7 December 1915. By mid-January Dunsire was back with his battalion and they took over trenches to the right of Hulluch on 23 January 1916. The Battalion War Diary’s entry for 30 January states they were ‘ … bombarded with rifle, grenades and trench mortars’. The next day’s comments were brief and prosaic: ‘Same trenches. Pte Dunsire VC mortally wounded yesterday by enemy trench mortar.’ Philip Warner in The Battle of Loos quotes Joseph Wallace of the 11th Argylls in reference to Dunsire: ‘ … his leg was blown off in a dug-out, and he was brought to hospital where he died. I had the honour of playing the pipes at his funeral.’

  Pte Dunsire died of wounds on 30 January 1916 and is buried at Mazingarbe Communal Cemetery, Grave 18. He is also commemorated on the War Memorial in Kirkaldy. His VC is held by the Regimental Museum of the Royal Scots, Edinburgh Castle, Scotland.

  A.F. SAUNDERS

  Near Loos, France, 26 September

  Due to a shortage of seasoned troops and the great extent of line on which British troops would be operating during the Battle of Loos, Sir John French decided to retain a strong general reserve to meet any emergency arising from the battle. The 21st and 24th (New Army) Divisions, both untried units, were put into the reserve. Unfortunately, they were kept too far back. When the situation on 25 September became apparent, HQ formed a plan for both divisions to attack between Hill 70 and the village of Hulluch (see map on page 187). The plan was not changed despite the crucial fact that the 15th Div. had failed to capture Hill 70 and Hulluch was still in German hands.

  The 71st Bde, 24th Div., of which the 9th (Service) Bn, Suffolk Regt, was a part, arrived at Béthune at about 01.00 hours on 25 September. The 9th Suffolks were exhausted following a succession of night marches intended to bring the brigade (and the division as a whole) closer to Loos to support the action. They were promised 48 hours to recuperate but in the event they were ordered to be ready to move forward by 07.00 hours; in fact it was 11.30 hours before they set off for the battle line. The 24th Div. was to act as support to the 9th (Scottish) Div., the 9th Suffolks and 11th Essex forming the first line.

  At about 20.00 hours the 9th Suffolks wended their way across the Loos battlefield, being held up at about midnight when they dug in with the German second (support) line behind them. At 05.00 hours on 26 September they were ordered back to the German support trenches behind them. The 21st and 24th Divs were to attack again at 11.00 hours. The 72nd Bde was to deliver the assault with the 11th Essex (on the left) and the 9th Suffolks (on the right) as brigade support, 600 yards to the rear. This order was not received until 11.25 hours and as it was passed down the line the 9th Suffolks were ordered forward immediately, moving ahead under heavy artillery fire towards the previous night’s objective. The advance was maintained until about 200 yards beyond the Hulluch–Lens road where it was finally checked. At 17.00 hours the right flank began to give way but for three hours the centre held, during which time the flanks advanced and retired twice. The left flank then came under intense machine-gun fire from the direction of Hulluch, forcing it back and causing the greatest losses of the day for the 9th Suffolks. The Suffolks were relieved in the early hours of 27 September.

  No. 3/10133 Sgt A.F. Saunders had distinguished himself the previous day when his officer had been wounded, and Saunders unhesitatingly took command of two machine-guns and a handful of men and, although severely wounded himself, closely followed the last four charges of another battalion (6th Cameron Highlanders) and provided every possible support. As the remnants of the battalion were forced to withdraw he continued to fire one of the guns and, as the citation said, ‘continued to give clear orders, and by continuous firing did his best to cover the retirement’. Saunders himself never expanded upon the deed that earned him the VC, but many years later details emerged from memoirs written by Gen. Sir Philip Christison who had been a 2/Lt in the 6th Cameron Highlanders at the Battle of Loos and was with Saunders during his deed of gallantry. 2/Lt Christison was lying wounded in a shell-hole when the 9th Suffolks passed through his position. Things seemed to be going well at first but then, to his horror, the Suffolks and their flanking troops doubled back under fire, leaving him isolated. Christison takes up the story:

  But one stout fellow, Sergeant A.F. Saunders, refused to retire. He had a Lewis Gun he had picked up with a full drum on it. He crawled over to me and said he’d stay and fight. He made to crawl over to the next shell-hole and, as he did so, a shell landed and blew part of his left leg off about the knee. I crawled over and got him into the shell-hole, putting a tourniquet on his leg and giving him my water bottle as his was empty. I crawled back to my hole and a few minutes later … saw a fresh wave of German troops advancing …. There seemed to be no point in opening fire as there were, perhaps, 150 enemy advancing rather diagonally across our front. To my amazement, I heard, short sharp bursts of Lewis Gun fire coming from the shell-hole on my r
ight; this was Sergeant Saunders, more or less minus a leg. The Germans were taken by surprise and bunched, so I joined in and between us we took a heavy toll and the rest retired out of sight. I took down Sergeant Saunders’ number, name and regiment … stretcher-bearer parties from the RE … got me and Sergeant Saunders on stretchers … but shells dropped close and we were abandoned. We were lucky, a stretcher-bearer party from the Scots Guards picked us up and got us to an Advanced Dressing Station, where emergency surgery was carried out.

  … Sergeant Saunders, now without a leg, was awarded the VC, while I was given the MC. He and I correspond regularly.

  Although badly wounded in the leg, Saunders did not lose the limb as Christison suggests.

  Arthur Frederick Saunders was born on 23 April 1878 in St John’s parish, Ipswich, Suffolk. The 1881 Census has him listed as living with his parents and seven siblings at 63 Spring Road, Ipswich and later, according to the 1891 Census they had moved to Holly Cottage, Ringham Road in the same town. His father Thomas worked for Mr Henry Finn, a harness-maker, in Ipswich for forty-five years. Arthur Saunders attended the California School and at the age of 15 years and 9 months joined the Navy at Shotley Naval Barracks. He trained for the Merchant Navy on HMS Warspite, the Marine Society Training Ship, from November 1883 to February 1884, but later joined the Royal Navy, becoming a 1st Class Petty Officer and serving for fifteen years. After leaving the Navy he took up engineering and was employed at Ransomes, Sims & Jeffries in Ipswich. He enlisted in the 9th (Service) Bn, Suffolk Regiment on 19 September 1914, and was promoted to the rank of sergeant within a month. His regimental number cited in the London Gazette as 3/10133 indicates that he had served pre-war with the 3rd (Special Reserve) Bn, a Territorial part of the Suffolk Regiment and so was trained prior to joining the 9th (Service) Bn. After winning the VC at Loos, the first for the Suffolk Regt in the war, he was given a public welcome home on 22 June 1916, reaching Ipswich Town Hall via ‘gaily decorated streets and … cheering … and flag-waving’ to be met by the Mayor and Corporation, many Suffolk Regt officers and Lt-Col. Bretell, who commanded the 9th Suffolks at Loos. The band of the 3rd Suffolks was also present. Saunders was entertained to tea in the Town Hall and was later presented with a sum of £365, which had been subscribed by the residents of Ipswich and district and the Suffolk Regt ‘in recognition of his bravery’. He was then accompanied to his home in Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich, by the drum band of the 2/1st London Regt (Royal Fusiliers). Saunders had been in hospital at ‘Beaulieu’, Harrogate, on 10 May 1916, prior to returning home and he was back in hospital at Harrogate in July, apparently not having fully recovered from his wounds. It appears that at some point Saunders used his cash gift to purchase a new home, 354 Foxhall Road, Ipswich, where he and his wife Edith lived for the rest of their lives.

  In April 1920 he was made an honorary Freeman of the Borough and later, on 26 June, he attended the VC garden party at Buckingham Palace. Saunders was one of the Guard of Honour for Field-Marshal Lord Allenby on 6 October the same year, when he received the Freedom of the Borough of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Saunders gained further honours in January 1923, becoming a JP for Ipswich. The Prince of Wales visited HMS Warspite at Greenhithe in July that year, where he met Saunders who was present as an ‘old boy’. He attended the British Legion dinner for VCs at the House of Lords on 9 November 1929 and was present at several reunion dinners of the 9th Suffolks which were held at Bury St Edmunds; they had been instigated in 1926 and took place every two years. When the Prince of Wales visited Ipswich for the Royal Show on 4 July 1934, Saunders was one of the Guard of Honour made up of members of the British Legion and the Old Contemptibles. From 1940 to 1944 he served as an RQMS in the Home Guard. He died on 30 July 1947, aged 69 years and 3 months, having never really recovered from his wounds received in 1915. He was cremated on 5 August 1947 and his ashes were scattered in the Garden of Rest in the Old Cemetery, Ipswich. His name appears on a panel in the Temple of Remembrance there, in Room D, Panel 64. He left a widow, a daughter and two sons, both of whom were Mentioned in Despatches during the Second World War. In 1989 his widow, Mrs Edith Saunders, who was 99 on 11 February that year, presented her late husband’s VC to the Suffolk Regiment on her birthday. The ceremony took place at Howard House Retirement Home, Brig. Bill Deller receiving the medal on behalf of the Regiment in the presence of the Saunders’ family and friends. On the 95th anniversary of his action, 26 September 2010, The Ipswich society put up a blue plaque on 180 Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich, to commemorate Saunders’ VC, who lived at that address at the time of his award.

  J.D. POLLOCK

  Hohenzollern Redoubt, France, 27 September

  On 27 September the 5th Bn, Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders, who had been part of the 26th Bde, 9th Div., assault against the Hohenzollern Redoubt on 25 September, prevented disaster when the 73rd Bde, which was holding the redoubt, was gradually forced to give ground in the face of repeated enemy attacks and incessant shelling. At about 10.00 hours 70 men of the Black Watch and 30 Camerons, among them No. 12087 Cpl Pollock of ‘C’ Coy, 5th Bn (26th Bde), were sent up to the redoubt; this party rallied the defenders and checked the German advance after several prolonged bombing fights. At about 12.00 hours a superior number of enemy bombers approached Hohenzollern Redoubt, working their way up the trench called ‘Little Willie’ (see map on page 186). Cpl Pollock, having sought permission from an officer, climbed out of the trench alone and walked along the enemy parapet ‘with the utmost coolness and disregard of danger’ to bomb the German bombing party in ‘Little Willie’ from above. He carried his grenades across to the trench under heavy fire and worked his way along it hurling bombs at the enemy. The Germans were taken completely by surprise and were held at bay for an hour by Pollock who, although under heavy machine-gun fire, remained unscathed until he jumped down into his own trench when he was wounded in the arm. His single-handed act of bravery earned him the VC.

  James Dalgleish Pollock was born on 3 June 1890 at Tillicoultry, Clackmannanshire, Scotland, where he spent his early years before moving to Glasgow in 1910. Two years later he was living and working in Paris, attached to the Paris branch of his London firm, and was in the French capital when war was declared. He quickly returned to Britain to enlist, only to discover that his local Territorial unit, the 5th Scottish Rifles, had mobilized to its full complement. He therefore joined ‘Lochiel’s Battalion’, as it was known in the area, of the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders, which was raised by Lochiel in Glasgow. This 5th Bn was in the first of Kitchener’s Army Divisions – the 9th (Scottish). Pollock crossed to France with his battalion in March 1915. After winning the VC on 27 September he was decorated by King George V at Buckingham Palace on 4 December 1915. Astonishingly, Cpl Pollock’s cousin, Cpl Dawson (see page 233), won his VC at Hohenzollern Redoubt just sixteen days later.

  In 1916, after recovering from his arm wound, Pollock attended the first officer cadet school at Gailes, Ayrshire. During this time he met his future wife. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 6/Camerons on 7 July 1916 and served with them for a time on the Somme. During preparations for the Battle of Arras in 1917, the then Capt. Pollock was injured by the premature bursting of a rifle grenade which caused the loss of sight in his left eye. He was invalided out and worked for the Ministry of Munitions for a while. After the Armistice he spent some time in France working with the board responsible for the disposal of war surplus stores before returning to marry in 1919, settling in Ayr with his wife. He attended the VC garden party at Buckingham Palace on 26 June 1920 and in September paraded at Inverness when the Duke of York (later King George VI) presented Colours to the 7th and 9th Camerons at the Regimental Depot.

  He moved to London in 1923, working as a director of an importing company. On 9 November 1929 he attended the VC reunion dinner held at the House of Lords. He returned to Ayr in 1940 and lived there for ten years before moving to Leicester. During the Second World War he volunteered for the Royal O
bserver Corps. He served as Observer Officer and full time Duty Controller in No 33 Aberdeen (Ayr) Group, before being stood down on 12 May 1945, having been the only VC holder serving in the Royal Observer Corps in its history. In 1955 he went back to Ayr. During this period he was both director and sales representative for Midland Hosiery Mills in Leicester. Pollock was on parade for the VC centenary celebrations on 26 June 1956. He had returned from a biannual business trip to Canada for the firm just three weeks before he died on 10 May 1958 at Ballochmyle Hospital, Ayrshire. He was aged 57 years and 11 months. His wife had predeceased him but his daughter, Mrs Clare Cottam, was willed his VC for her lifetime after which it was offered to the Regiment.

  A.B. TURNER

  Slag Alley, Fosse 8, near Vermelles, France, 28 September

  Several secondary attacks were made at Loos to push the British line forward, especially where local successes had left flanks exposed. On 26 September a provisional brigade under the command of Col. Carter was created from the 1/KRRC, 1/Royal Berks, and 2/Worcs, and was attached to the 7th Div. for an attack on the quarries between Hulluch and Fosse 8 (see map on page 186). The attack was made at 02.30 hours on 28 September. The assaulting troops had to pass over 800 yards of captured German trenches, then manned by British troops, on their way to their objective, the slag heap called Fosse 8. The War Diary of the 1/Royal Berks stated: