Monday 25th
September 1916: From our Correspondent in
the Field
Today has
seen another large attack across a broad front extending in an arc from
Martinpuich through Eaucourt-l’Abbaye, Gueudecourt, Lesboeufs and Morval to
Combles in the south. Our own 1st and 8th Battalions have been caught up in
these attacks.
Moving from
left to right: 50th (Northumbrian) Division and 1st Division have advanced a
small way north towards the hamlet of Eaucourt-l’Abbaye. The New Zealanders
formed the defensive left flank for this whole operation. They moved forward
against unexpectedly weak opposition and now face north-west towards Eaucourt-l’Abbaye.
55th (West Lancashire) Division took a short stretch of a main German defensive
line called Gird Trench just to the north of its original position
21st Division
attacked towards the village of Gueudecourt. We had heard rumours that
Gueudecourt had fallen, but it has become clear this evening that it has not.
The attack could get no further than Gird Trench, part of which was taken but
most of which remains in German hands.
The Guards
Division attacked an area south of Gueudecourt as far as a road through the
middle of Lesboeufs. The Guards met with little in the way of opposition,
stormed through the ruins and have now occupied ground just to the east.
6th Division
attacked towards Lesboeufs. The adjutant of 8th Bedfords tells me that they
were in reserve for the 16th Infantry Brigade attack on the German lines
between Lesboeufs and Morval to the south: “The attack commenced at 12.35 pm
and the Battalion moved up to the original front line when the second objective
had been taken about 2.35. Casualties from the enemy barrage were very slight.
The attack proved successful and many prisoners were taken. Tonight the
Battalion will furnish carrying parties to the front line battalions with
ammunition and water”.
The division
attacked an area north of Morval as far as the road through the centre of Lesboeufs.
The division succeeded splendidly in taking all its objectives and is now
dug-in east of Lesboeufs with the Guards on its right and 5th Division on its
left.
The
aforementioned 5th Division includes, of course, 1st Bedfords. They were in
their assembly trenches by 9.30 last night. The adjutant takes up the story: "At
1.35 pm the Battalion advanced in four waves at 150 yards distance one from
another, passing over the trench taken by the 1st Norfolks. The first line
reached their objective, the sunken road, by 1.40. Lewis guns were immediately
placed in position on the top of the bank and several drums fired at the
retiring enemy. The Battalion dug-in along the line of the road and also on the
top of the bank. Touch was gained with the 16th Brigade at 1.50 and with the
95th Brigade about 2 pm”.
So far so
good, but there have, it seems, been familiar problems: “Considerable
casualties were sustained from our own field guns, both during the advance and
while holding the sunken road”. This issue, it will be remembered, hampered the
8th Battalion attack on 15th. However, Morval, along with Lesboeufs, has fallen today.
1st Cheshires succeeded in occupying it by 3 pm. The farthest point reached has
been the old windmill east of the village.
The right
flank of the British armies in France is currently held by 56th (London)
Division. This formation attacked Combles in co-operation wih French 2nd
Division around midnight. They advanced round the north end of Bouleaux Wood,
which still contains German defenders, and the two nations’ troops succeeded in
taking Combles and are now dug-in well to the east of it, the British facing
east and the French facing north.
So today,
whilst not uniformly successful, has seen another series of hammer blows to the
German lines. The capture of three villages is a huge success and in places the
German defenses have been much weaker than normal. One wonders if there is some
sort of crisis in the German army on the Somme which our forces may be able to
exploit in the days ahead(1)
Sources: X550/2/5; X550/9/1
(1) The
Germans, worried about a breakthrough on the Somme, had just begun a fortified
line some miles behind their own front line. This was the Siegfriedstellung,
known the British as the Hindenburg Line. During the Spring of 1917 the Germans
withdrew
No comments:
Post a Comment