Delville Wood

by Ian Uys

  “I think they must have brought every available gun they had to try to flatten out the wood and kill every living thing in it. The Battle of Spionkop was only a flea-bite in comparison. All the time I was there the bombardment never ceased; it was a continuous roar all the time; high-explosive shells, Jack Johnsons, which kill within an area of 200 yards.

  “While the bombardment was going on the Germans made repeated infantry attacks in close formation. How we managed to keep them off I do not know. Before attacking they sent over tear-shells, which blind your eyes with tears, tears streaming down your face. The pain is awful. The idea is to interfere with your shooting; you cannot see the sight on your rifle.

  “Now that the Germans are on the move they cannot use poisonous gases against us, thank goodness.”

  *

  Ernest Solomon described the results of the Longueval fighting as they passed by that morning.

  “At about 7 am we passed through the ruins of the village. Traces of recent fighting were seen at every step; dead bodies, some very much mutilated by shell fire, lay about. Kilted men of the 9th Division they were, and amongst them probably some of those we had seen off to the attack two nights before. Longueval had been taken by the British, but not entirely, as was evidenced by sharp exchanges of rifle fire in parts.

  “Between ruined buildings, over debris strewn roads and lanes, we moved, until we came to that part of the village where the last of its houses mingled with the first trees of Delville Wood.

  “Delville Wood covered a large area; its trees, closely set, towered to a great height, where the leafy branches intermingled and formed a screen so thick that, in parts, the view of the sky was almost obscured. Here and there was a clearing, here and there a narrow road, here and there a footpath: but for the most part nothing but trees and thick undergrowth. Seen in any other circumstances its grandeur would have excited comment, but not so on the occasion I write of. True, that quality impressed itself subconsciously on our minds, but it led to no voiced appreciation at the time.

  “In order to explain my inability to record other than the events in the vicinity of the company I belonged to, it should be stated that the irregular contour of the wood, and the abundant foliage, rendered the observation of movements in other parts of the line eventually taken up, a matter of great difficulty.

  “Our regiment’s position extended over a long curved line, and except to men on the flanks and to those whose duties took them from place to place, the activities even of adjoining companies were veiled from us.

  “Word reached us from time to time as to the general state of affairs all round, and although the conditions under which we were placed may have applied equally to others, yet the diversity of incidents at the various points was so great, that a complete account is impossible without collaboration.

  “A short distance inside the wood was a section of trench then occupied by a few men of the Cameron Highlanders, and there our headquarters established themselves. Some time before, a certain number of men had been told off as water-carriers, and it was their duty to take supplies as far as headquarters, where parties from the firing line called for same at a certain hour every day. In the same way rations were to be brought up and called for.

  “A first-aid station had been set up in a house on the near edge of the village, and a secure, sandbagged dressing-station farther back at Bernafay Wood.

  “The enemy was believed not to have entirely vacated the wood, and our orders were to clear a certain section and then to hold it until further orders.

  “Bearing off to the right, we formed into what were known as fighting sections, and in that formation, the extreme righthand section almost on the edge of the wood, the others, abreast at intervals, extending towards the interior, each section in touch with its neighbour, others in support, all in single file, we continued to advance.

  “It was impossible to see clearly any distance ahead, the enemy might easily have been concealed close by, so it was slowly and deliberately, peering behind possible cover, screening our movements to the utmost, rifles with bayonets fixed ready for emergencies, that we made our way forward. Trees devoid of lower branches, but runged for scaling purposes with transfixed horse-shoes, were encountered and recognised as snipers’ posts. They were unoccupied, but we realised that danger might also lurk in tree tops.

  “We had proceeded in that way for some distance without encountering the enemy, when from outside the wood a rocket was sent up. It was distinctly heard and recognised, though not visible to all. One man took it for a rifle grenade, but he was promptly snubbed.

  “It was a signal to the enemy artillery, for immediately shells began to fall in our vicinity. To the accompaniment of those opening bars of the bombardment which was destined to last, with varying intensity, until 4 pm on the 18th, we continued on our way. The enemy’s shell fire rendered improbable the existence of his infantry in that quarter, but our forward movements were nevertheless carried out with caution.

  “Then it was that the presence of the enemy outside was reported, and A Company swinging round to the right took up positions on the fringe of the wood, inside the last row of trees, while B and D Companies ranged themselves similarly on its left and C Company on its right, thus covering the section originally allotted to the battalion.

  “Some cover was afforded by the tree trunks, but not sufficient for a large body of men. Through the spaces between and under the overhanging branches we had a clear view before us. About 50 yards in front was a trench leading to others behind, to our right front stood what looked like a decayed reed fence through the gaps of which we could see the gradual slope of a low rise with another trench, visibly peopled, running along its crest. In the near front of the right flank of our company was a large haystack.

  “Lewis guns were allotted positions along our line, one covering the mouth of what appeared to have been a German trench communicating with the wood.

  “We opened rifle fire immediately on the then visible enemy, and to our overtures drew rapid response, as our movements also were visible to him. There were no trenches where we were, and the enemy’s rifle-and shell fire rendered our positions somewhat unsafe despite the fact that we had prostrated ourselves on arrival. We therefore commenced to dig ourselves in without relaxing our efforts too much. We had only entrenching tools, and hacking away at the earth with them while lying on our stomachs was a slow process.

  “Instead of constructing a continuous trench, each man dug a hole for himself sufficiently deep to afford him, when sitting, some protection from flying shrapnel and sufficiently long to enable him to stretch himself at full length. Those holes when eventually completed after many hours of labour, resembling shallow open graves with the loose earth thrown up and compressed in front and rear for additional protection.

  “We could not help exposing ourselves from time to time; the physical strain of digging and scraping in a prostrate position was so great that moments of relaxation had to be taken, also later when, as the holes increased in depth, we worked in crouched positions. Meanwhile we had to devote a certain amount of attention to our front as the enemy showed signs of being very much alive.

  “The rain of shells and bullets was bound to bear fruit, and the first casualty in my neighbourhood came early.

  “A young fellow three or four yards away uttered a queer little cry and lay still on his face.

  “‘Stretcher-bearer,’ someone called, ‘here’s a case for you.’

  “A stretcher-bearer came up and bent over the man. ‘I can’t do anything for him,’ he said, and removed the body to the rear.

  “More casualties occurred.

  “Then a curious thing happened.

  “The word went round to cease fire. It appeared there was some doubt as to whether the men in front were Germans or Frenchmen. A sergeant-major ran along in front of our line shouting out the order. With mixed feelings we obeyed.

  “From the near trench in front arose a German officer
, he was unmistakably a German and clearly an officer, and beckoned us over. Some thought he wanted to surrender, so they rose and went forward suspiciously. One, his excitement getting the better of his discretion, rushed right up to the German, who snatched the rifle from his hand and pushed him into the trench, a prisoner.

  “Seeing this, the others started back to their lines, one, an officer having quite an altercation with the German, who approached and invited him to enter his trench. Neither displayed arms.

  “From somewhere in the opposite trench a shot rang out and one of the returning men fell with a bullet in his leg and had to be assisted back, while immediately after a rifle spoke from our line and the German officer crumpled up like a concertina. His body lay where it fell in full view for the next four days. The man responsible for the shot said he had kept his rifle trained on him from the moment he appeared.

  “It appeared afterwards that the Germans had misconstrued the shouts and subsequent cessation of our fire as a desire to surrender. A voice was heard bawling to us from the opposite trench, and one of our men who had lived in South West Africa and could speak German, was told to ask what he wanted.

  “‘They want us to surrender,’ he said, after some shouted remarks had been exchanged.

  “‘Tell them to go to h--l, and call for their surrender.’

  “The incident closed, but no further doubts existed as to their nationality.

  “That day we had many casualties. Captain Vivian was wounded and taken back; the officer who had declined the German’s invitation later received a bullet in the upper part of his leg, and numerous other officers and men were killed and wounded. One man who had joined us at Celestine Wood with a draft was cut clean in half by a shell, and one disappeared and was not heard of again. Whether he was buried or blown to pieces was never found out. He just disappeared.

  “A report came from C Company: ‘Capt McLachlan has been killed and Capt Elliot (actually Lieut) is now in command of C.’

  “As the bombardment increased the ground behind and before us became littered with shell-holes. Bushes and small trees were torn up, large trees uprooted. Many a grand monarch of the wood, lifted from its roots and projected forward, was seen to crash through the branches of other trees and settle down full length to earth. Others borne up by neighbourly branches rested in that position like so many tired giants.

  “Rations and water were brought up and distributed, and the days gradually drew to a close. At night there was little rest. Men off duty stretched themselves in their open shelters for a little sleep, but repeated bursts of rifle fire brought them up alert and watchful for an attack.

  “Then it rained and the shelter holes receiving and retaining the water and consequent mud, rendered sleep in the orthodox position out of the question. Steel helmets of dead men were collected and placed upturned in the mud, and seated on them, backs rested against shelter walls, knees drawn up, waterproof sheets over heads and bodies for protection from the rain, men tried to snatch a few moments’ sleep.

  “In those circumstances however, it was impossible to sink into a restful unconsciousness of what was going on around us. Much as we were accustomed to the tumult of guns and shells, brief intervals of dozing brought no rest. To say we slept would be mere travesty.”

  *

  Private A Davis worked as a stretcher-bearer under heavy shell fire and fearlessly exposed himself to great danger. He worked continually through the day and night.

  *

  The company commander, Capt Richard Frederick Cavendish Medlicott MC, originally came from Ireland. He served as a lieutenant in SWA in the Witwatersrand Rifles, was promoted to temporary captain and acted as adjutant to the UDF Left Wing. Capt Medlicott was awarded the MC for his distinguished services in the field.

  He joined the brigade as a captain and was wounded at the Battle of Agagia in Egypt.

  After reaching their position on the eastern side of the wood, Captains Medlicott and Tomlinson led raids on German trenches nearby. Medlicott’s raiding party in the south-east captured one officer and 100 men. Medlicott ordered L/Cpl Dick Unwin to take six men and carry a wounded German sergeant-major to the rear. The men used their haversacks like a blanket while Unwin carried their rifles.

  Shortly afterwards Lieut-Col Thackeray saw the procession and shouted out, ‘What have you got there?’ When told, he ordered them to take him back. ‘What do you want to bring him here for?’ Unwin was in a quandary so he compromised by leaving the sergeant-major with the first group of wounded German POWs he came across.

  *

  Before entering Delville Wood Tom Heunis stopped beside a man who had been killed by a sniper. Nearby a British soldier had dug himself a place against a bank to shelter in. A shell had burst before him and split his head in half. There would be no place to hide in the days ahead.

  Heunis found himself caught in the open with a friend when a German machine-gun opened up. “We dug our way into the ground with our bodies while the bullets went over our backs.” His action was reminiscent of the day he had slithered on his back beneath a boomslang years before.

  *

  Dudley Meredith remembered the day’s events vividly.

  “As we marched up to the road to Longueval which lay at the end of Delville Wood facing us, the dawn began to break, and we could distinguish objects about us. From the number of corpses we could see we soon gained an idea as to the severity of the fighting during the previous day.

  “Just as the sun rose we halted outside Longueval close to a trench occupied by Scotties. They were very cheerful and bade us be of good cheer, telling us the enemy was fairly on the run. Here we dumped our shovels and rockets, and a case of bullybeef having been found on the roadside, we proceeded to snatch a quick meal.

  “From this spot it was but a few hundred yards into Longueval, but the road was torn up and as we picked our way along we noted many of our mates of the 1st SAI dead at the side of the road. There was a bank along the German side of the road, and evidently they had been sheltering there when the road had been shelled by the Germans. Those who were still alive were very tired, owing to the strenuous fighting of the previous day.

  “Longueval as we entered, was a mere collection of smoking heaps of bricks and shell-holes filled with water, but we could see what had been the main street, which was more than could be seen in Montauban. Numbers of dead Scotties and Germans were lying about, but a little way down the street was a large number of dead Germans, most of them horribly mutilated.

  “The Germans now started to bombard Longueval and every minute or so a large shell would land in the village, however, without doing much harm. They only seemed to stir the heaps of bricks and make huge smoke clouds. We now turned out of the main street through a garden where, owing to shell-holes, we could make our way only with difficulty. After this we passed through some more ruined houses, across a railway track on which stood a truck of wood badly smashed by shell fire, through an orchard, and we were in Delville Wood itself.

  “Our first glimpse of Delville Wood was one of great beauty — the wood had not been shelled much and the stately trees and leafy undergrowth in the hazy dawn of a midsummer morning had such a peaceful look. Except for the quiet tramp of man and the periodical bursting of the German shells in Longueval all was still.

  “A short distance into the wood we came to a shallow trench, barely waist deep, manned by Cameron Highlanders. This trench, known as Buchanan Street, marked the spearhead of the advance of the previous day. Crossing this trench we deployed in front of it, and silently awaited the order to advance.

  “Delville Wood was just a little less than a square mile in extent according to the official history, and this large area had to be taken and held by three regiments. In all, about twelve companies were concerned — a small number to take and hold a strategic position of this size jutting into the German lines. However, our orders were to take the wood and dig ourselves in along the outer edge.

  “Soon
after we moved off our company wheeled to the right and before long we found ourselves at the edge of the wood. Just here there was a low bank with a row of hedge trees along the top — lying on the bank and peering through at the base of the trees we saw a road with a field of beet on the other side. Three or four hundred yards across the fields was a ruined factory. We learned afterwards that this was Waterlot Farm.

  “On the skyline we could see figures moving about, and for half an hour there was much confusion and argument as to whether they were French or Germans. We were on the right of the British line so there was some justification for the fellows who stoutly maintained they were Frenchmen. Word was sent down-the line after a while that they were Germans and we were to fire. The hot fire we were subjected to about an hour after we reached our position was convincing proof if it were needed, that this was indeed the enemy.

  “A few bullets had come whizzing through the leaves and occasional shells had landed in the wood since we had first entered it, but about two hours after we occupied our positions the fire increased in intensity, while we learnt that we were in a salient as the bullets came from three directions. We had been digging ourselves in with our entrenching tools and the whizzing of bullets made us set to with redoubled vigour.

  “It was very slow work though, trying to dig in the hard clay and matted tree roots, but having dumped our shovels we had to do as best we could. Most of us, after several hours’ work, had only a shallow shelter not more than eighteen inches deep. The result was that our casualties were very heavy, as may be gauged from the fact that five out of six of C Company’s officers were wounded by the time we had been in the wood two hours.

  “One of the first to go was Dudley Fynn who had been my strongest competitor in school and who had been instrumental in our joining C Company. We hastily dug a shallow grave and buried him during a lull in the shelling.”

  *

  The confusion over whether to open fire was also experienced by Pte Douglas Grylls Davey who was a week short of his 19th birthday. He was born in England, immigrated to South Africa with his family and became a gold mine reduction worker at Germiston.