Sir John French Addresses the 2nd Bedfords

Sir John French

Monday 12th April 1915: Today Field Marshal Sir John French GCB, OM, GCVO, KCMG, Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force addressed the 21st Infantry Brigade at 3.30 pm just outside the French town of Estaires. He spoke to each of the four battalions comprising the brigade in turn and spoke to the 24 officers and 779 men of 2nd Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment as below.

“Men of Bedfordshire – I have come here today to tell you how much indebted I am to you for your recent work. I know what you have done. I know the losses you have suffered. I need not go into the detail of the part you played in the three days’ battle at Neuve Chapelle. But I know no other battalion pushed forward with more gallantry than you did”.

“In the first place you have won ground which will be invaluable in our future operations. You will realize – being intelligent men – that we are fighting the Germans on two fronts. In these attacks it is not so much the ground we gain but the fact that we tie the enemy to the ground in front of us and prevent him sending troops against the Russians on the East and also enable the French to make successful attacks further South(1). In fact we all help each other. Besides being a gain in ground, it was a great moral gain. For you have shown the enemy that you can beat him whenever you chose and I know when the time comes you will do it again. I want every officer, non-commissioned officer and man of this Regiment to feel that I give them my personal thanks for the splendid work that they have done”.

Source: X550/3/wd

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(1) The Germans had just halted a hitherto successful Russian offensive against the Austrians in the Carpathians. French Marshal Joffre was planning an attack in Champagne