Delville Wood

by Ian Uys

  *

  Major Hunt’s diary dwelt on his major problem — casualties.

  “July 17. C Company in sunken road and B in trench nearby. Heavy casualties. Marshall shell-shocked, he got the shock of a shell that dropped just above Smith and me. Getting weak in men — L/Cpl Horn killed in trench as I was giving him an order. Standing with Dawson and Stuckey in quarry when shell landed and knocked out 26 men of 1st Regiment.”

  *

  The “Marshall” referred to was Capt George Edmund Wood Marshall from Middelburg. He had served as a sergeant with the 2nd Transvaal Scottish in SWA and was commissioned in July 1915. His promotion to captain following in April 1916.

  *

  Boustead was rudely woken in the early morning by a South African Scottish sergeant who stood on him.

  “He was an enormous man called Maclean, weighing about fifteen stone, and this apparently brought me to. My head was throbbing considerably and my hair was covered in blood from a cut in my skull. My steel helmet which was lying beside me was caved in on top, evidently by shrapnel. Maclean picked me up and I had the head treated at the dressing-station, and after some aspirin was OK.

  “I rejoined my platoon which was back beyond the orchard trench again, only to come out that evening for a rest in the Longueval Road, lying in holes cut in the bank and hoping for the best. By now the shelling was almost incessant, but the snipers had done the main work and the toll of death among the South African Brigade was very heavy.

  “By the third night we were practically worn out through lack of sleep. We had been living on biscuits, cold bully beef and petrol-water under continuous fire by day from snipers and by night from attacking Germans. Reliefs came in and we moved to the edge of Longueval to sleep in some trenches outside the wood.”

  *

  Betteridge was impressed by the bravery shown by the Germans in their counter-attacks.

  “By 17 July there were only three (sic) officers remaining in the wood. Lewis gunners in the front line lost 80 per cent of their men, but the remainder still inflicted serious damage on the numerous German troops who made repeated attacks, some of them in close formation when their ranks were decimated. It was evident that a handful of men holding higher ground had a great advantage over far greater numbers attacking over open ground.

  “This day every available man was pressed into service. Batmen, headquarters sanitarymen, even some of the cooks were given rifles and hand grenades to replace the large number of casualties. The few inexperienced new arrivals from Borden had already been rushed up as replacements; many of them became casualties within hours of their first taste of war.

  “The previous night our boys had been able to erect a few strands of wire in front of the trenches. This proved helpful when a regiment of Prussian Guards attacked in daylight in massed formation from German trenches half a mile away.

  “Gunners took a heavy toll of these massed troops. Our chaps fired incessantly into the bunched infantry. A handful managed to reach those few strands of wire before being killed. This was one of the most stupid attacks made by brave, determined soldiers. The valley was strewn with dead and dying men who had been repulsed by a handful of tired but resolute South African troops.

  “It was a clear illustration that the High Commands of both sides were willing to send their best troops to certain death in order to secure negligible results. In spite of their ferocity we had to admire those brave men who carried out orders without breaking line in their abortive attack.

  “On the 17th I saw Capt Marshall of C Company blown into the air by the explosion of a large shell which killed four men in the advance dressing-station. The captain was unconscious and badly shell-shocked but by some miracle unwounded. He never recovered completely from that experience.

  “Whenever possible, troops frantically dug their shallow trenches deeper to avoid the deadly shrapnel shells. Cries for stretcher-bearers were heard from every quarter, but these Red Cross men had also sustained serious casualties. Most of the seriously wounded lay unattended for several hours.

  “Quite a number of slightly wounded men stayed in the wood helping the dwindling number of their pals still firing at those persistent Germans, or assisting machine-gunners reload their hot guns. Some of the less seriously wounded men did a good job of work trying to assist those unable to move. Lots of the latter simply lay where they were hit and fell asleep from exhaustion.

  “The earth still shook and heaved under the roar of uncountable explosions of heavy shells and crump of shrapnel missiles. Then an unusual roar was heard from the rear, followed by the most terrifying explosion ever heard. It was an 18 inch shell fired from almost 15 miles behind our salient. The Germans had a special train for this huge naval gun.

  “One of these incredible explosions fell a few hundred yards from us, among other Scotties of the 9th Division, every hour for more than ten hours. Most of them thought our guns were firing short of the German positions. Such havoc was caused by this outsized missile that some of a Scottish regiment, dazed and bewildered, ran to the rear of their front trench.

  “This happened just as General Tim Lukin was inspecting that particular sector. He stopped the terrified men and turned them back. An officer, one of the few Cameronians still alive, came running up and apologised to the general.

  “He explained his men were so shocked and exhausted, they repeated an order to retire when some unknown person started a rumour that our gunners were doing the firing of that huge missile. That junior officer was most grateful that the general had stopped what could have been a bad incident.

  “It must be mentioned that our popular General ‘Tim’ was right among the shells near the front line on numerous occasions seeing for himself what his men had to contend with and giving much encouragement to those of us who saw him.”

  *

  During a partial withdrawal L/Cpl R H Morgan was in charge of the covering party. He remained facing the advancing Germans until the movement was complete then brought away his party under heavy fire.

  Morgan was later to constructively criticise aspects of the defence. “Trenches should have been hidden with branches of trees and leaves on both sides. In most cases a bank of brown earth was left as an excellent mark for snipers — as opposed to our hopeless view of stumps of trees, broken branches, dead men and wounded moving about, etc.

  “Trenches should have been improved as soon as possible. In most cases they were not deep enough and too narrow. In one case trenches occupied by a company for two nights were little better than the ordinary body cover about two feet in depth.

  “Digging should have been continued as long as possible and at every opportunity they should have been deepened but not made too wide. Small recesses were necessary for men to get into while officers or wounded were passing, preventing them from being exposed on the parapet to sniping and other fire as well as exposing the position to the enemy.”

  He added that trenches should have been connected up and screened with canvas or fallen branches. Each individual should also have been told of the objectives in the wood and the position of other trenches and their machine-gun strong points.

  The presence of officers invariably established confidence, especially after heavy bombardment, and they should therefore not unnecessarily expose themselves in dangerous zones. Passing of orders verbally was difficult during heavy fire or deafening bombardment. Written messages were quicker and more accurate, especially messages as regards wounded or fallen officers, want of immediate reinforcements and other messages calculated to dishearten the troops.

  There was a tendency for cartridges to jam in the chamber after firing 15 to 30 rounds. He suggested that this was due to bad powder. On one occasion four men out of six near him had their rifles jammed at the same time. The remedy was to clean the chamber with a rag and stick when the bolt showed stiffness. Spare rifles from the dead and wounded should also have been available in case of counter-attack.

  *

 
; Lieutenant Sandy Young VC was wounded in the arm. During his evacuation they came under heavy rifle and shell fire. He saw a French officer, whose leg had been shattered by a shell, lying in the open. Despite his own wound Young crawled from shelter and dragged the officer to safety. The Frenchman tore off his decoration of the Legion d’Honneur and insisted on pinning it on the breast of the gallant Connaught man.

  Chapter 8 — The bombardment

  Tuesday 18th

  At 3.45 am the 76th Brigade of the 3rd Division managed to secure portion of the orchard between North Street and Flers Road. The see-saw backward and forward fighting had finally resulted in the Springboks joining up with the Scots in the north-west corner of the wood.

  General Lukin had instructed Major Burges to lead his company to the north-west corner, which he succeeded in doing. Their victory was to be short-lived.

  The Germans appeared to be resigned to the loss of the Bazentin ridges to the west, however concentrated all their guns and troops on the reconquest of Longueval and Delville Wood. The 7th and 8th Divisions of the Magdeburg Corps moved up to the assault.

  At 8 am an intensive bombardment began, worse than anything which had come before and which was to last for seven-and-a-half hours. The shelling obliterated the defences on the perimeters and blasted the wood to pieces. It was the heaviest cannonade the division had ever experienced.

  The 76th Brigade was then driven back and Germans began infiltrating on Burges’ flank. He was wounded shortly after reaching his objective. At 9 am an officer was sent with 50 men to reinforce Burges. Three hours later three of this party returned, saying that they had been ordered to retire as there only 12 of the original 50 left.

  An SOS signal was seen in the wood and village after 2 pm. Men were then noticed dribbling back. Whole sections of the perimeter trenches with their occupants had been annihilated. The few stupefied survivors fell back on Thackeray’s HQ in Buchanan Street. In some cases their ammunition had run out and they returned to HQ looking for more. Thackeray sent an urgent message to Lukin outlining the position and saying that he would endeavour to hold the line.

  At 2.30 pm Sec-Lieut Edward Phillips and 79 men of the Trench Mortar Battery were sent to Dawson as infantry reinforcements. At the same time Dawson was ordered to advance into the wood with all the men at his command. They numbered 150 and had been in action for four days, yet were eager to attack once more. Dawson found many wounded officers and men lying in the trenches near Thackeray’s HQ, so detailed some of his men to act as stretcher-bearers. Lieut Phillips and 100 men reinforced Thackeray.

  Shortly after 3 pm Lieut Errol Tatham, the acting adjutant of the 2nd SAI, left the Buchanan Street dug-out to assist at the northern perimeter. Major Burges asked him to fetch reinforcements, but by the time he returned with a few men Burges had been killed.

  Captain Wallace Hoptroff, who had taken Major Gee’s command, was killed on the northern perimeter. On the southern flank Capt John Jackson of the 3rd was killed, whereas Major MacLeod of the 4th was badly wounded.

  At 3.30 pm the bombardment suddenly ceased. Three German regiments (1/104th Reserve followed by the 3/197th and 2/107th Reserve Regiments) were seen advancing in the east, north of the Ginchy Road. The attack dissolved before intense mortar, machine-gun and rifle fire.

  In the north, eight companies of the 153rd Regiment emerged from the sunken Flers Road and attacked the 2nd SAI. One of their officers recorded in his diary: “The wood was a wasteland — corpses everywhere.”

  The German massed infantry attack came from the north and east, driving through the wood and sweeping the scattered bodies of survivors before its irresistible momentum. The Springboks fought in desperation. Each man fought as he judged best, taking advantage of the cover from shattered trees, and fought until he was knocked out or overwhelmed.

  Remnants of the companies which had held the northern perimeter and Strand Street fell back on the Princes/Buchanan Street HQ, where a semblance of defences had survived. Under Thackeray’s orders they dug in, in a last-ditch effort to stop the Germans from retaking the whole wood.

  If Delville Wood fell, Longueval would follow and the whole flank of the British offensive would be exposed. A wedge would be driven between the British and French Armies and the massed British artillery in Caterpillar Valley would be vulnerable to capture by the enemy.

  The German troops forced their way to Princes Street, then moved around Buchanan Street to the southern edge of Delville Wood, where they were stopped by concentrated artillery and machine-gun fire from Montauban and Longueval. The 2/153rd and 3/153rd Regiments were held up at Princes Street.

  Some of the 2nd SAI broke through to fight with the 3rd SAI in the east where artillery fire was causing heavy losses. When they realised that the Germans had cut them off from Thackeray’s headquarters some broke through to Buchanan Street.

  The eastern edge was now defended only by Capt Medlicott’s B Company of the 3rd SAI. That night 18 men who were prisoners of the Germans escaped in the dark and joined up with B Company.

  A fresh German unit, the 52nd Infantry Regiment, arrived in the afternoon. On the 18th the regiment was deployed in the Longueval/Delville Wood area. In the evening their II Battalion advanced through the lines of the 153rd towards Delville Wood; the 5th Company in the first line, the 6th and 7th in the second and the 8th in the third. Heavy losses were experienced and “Rainbow”, the veteran of the 1870-71 War, was wounded by shrapnel in the knee.

  Parts of the 5th and 6th Companies penetrated the wood but were halted by machine-gun fire. The 7th Company also seemed to have been in the wood and later joined up with the 5th and 6th. There was heavy fighting over the “Tommies” machine-gun nests.

  The Springboks found that they had to face both front and rear. The l/52nd Regiment attacked with fixed bayonets and captured five officers, 195 other ranks and several machine-guns. At the same time they released 17 men of the 153rd Regiment.

  The crisis in Longueval occurred at about 6 pm. Lieutenant-Colonels Gordon of the Black Watch, Kennedy of the Seaforths and Duff of the Camerons held a hurried consultation in the shattered village. It was realised that if the enemy broke through they would force a gap between the British and French armies and capture all the guns in the valley before Montauban.

  A few hundred men of all regiments were collected together along the railway line in the south of the village. The thin line then advanced up the main street, stepping around craters and rubble from the ruined buildings. As they cleared the main square they came face to face with the enemy who were emerging from the south-west corner of the wood.

  For a split second both sides hesitated, then a command rang out, “Forward, boys!” The Highlanders of the 26th surged forward. The Germans wavered, fired a few shots, then turned and ran. The motley force charged across the square, routing the fresh German troops of four times their number. Some of the more impetuous Scots followed the enemy into the wood where they were surrounded and slain.

  Between them Lieut-Cols Gordon and Kennedy then rallied the men. The counter-attack would have failed had the whole force pursued the enemy into the wood. Already there was a danger of their being outflanked and a machine-gun they had missed had killed a number of men. Lieutenant-Colonel Duff of the Camerons had his arm blown off by a bomb thrown by one of the retreating Germans. The line had been held, however, in one of the most thrilling moments of the war.

  The 26th Brigade attempted to relieve the South Africans and was partially successful. At midnight Dawson with two companies of the 1st SAI and Hunt with the remnants of his two companies of the 4th SAI were relieved.

  Three massed attacks were launched on Thackeray’s HQ that night, but were repulsed with heavy losses.

  *

  General Lukin was optimistic as the day began; a day which would be the blackest in the brigade’s history.

  “In connection with the attack on the northern portion of Longueval by the 76th Brigade on the morning of the 18th, of whi
ch I had been informed, I instructed Lieut-Col Thackeray (at 8 am) to send out patrols to gain touch with the 76th Brigade in the direction of the orchard on the north-west of the wood.

  “The company occupying Strand Street and the portion of Princes Street to the west of Strand Street was accordingly ordered to move forward and hold the perimeter of the north-west portion of the wood, and to join up with the 76th Brigade.

  “This movement was carried out successfully, little or no opposition being met with as the company passed through the north-west corner of the wood. Our men gained touch with the Gordon Highlanders just west of the orchard.

  “On arrival at the outskirts of the wood they commenced to dig in, but shortly afterwards the enemy opened an intense bombardment.

  “Although all portions of the road were shelled, the shelling was intense around the perimeter and down Strand Street.

  “Major Burges, who was in command of the company which had moved onto the northern edge of the north-west portion of the wood, was wounded shortly after he reached there.

  “About this time the troops of the 76th Brigade retired (driven back) on his left, and the enemy began to enter the wood from the north-west on his exposed flank.

  “Major Burges was killed shortly afterwards.

  “About 9 o’clock a party of one officer and fifty other ranks was despatched as reinforcements to Major Burges.

  “About 2.30 pm a report was received from Lieut-Col Dawson that Lieut Burgess has returned wounded and reported that Major Burges had very few men left when he came away from the wood.

  “Lieutenant-Colonel Dawson was ordered to take forward at once all available men under his command. These numbered approximately 150.

  “He was further ordered to arrange for a systematic examination of our front, and to report without delay how it was held.

  “On arrival at Longueval he placed his men in a trench at the south-east end of the village, and himself proceeded to Lieut-Col Thackeray to ascertain the position.