Those Blasted Woods Again

Tuesday 27th March 1918

Today has seen a number of attacks along the front. In the south 18th (Eastern) Division of Fourth Army has been renewing its acquaintance with Trones Wood, where it fought so long in 1916. and Bernafay Wood between Montauban and Ginchy. The enemy still held the village of Longueval at the start of the attack and 8th Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment suffered many casualties as they struggled to get forward and were eventually pushed from Trones Wood to Bernafay Wood to the west. A few moments ago, however, a counter-attack has once more pushed the enemy from the wood, hopefully for good. The 38th (Welsh) Division has obtained a firm lodging now in the western remains of Longueval. 

Further north 63rd (Royal Naval) Division has once more been attacking Thilloy and Ligny-Thilloy to help the New Zealand complete its encirclement of Bapaume to the south. The 4th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment has been to the fore in today's unsuccessful efforts at Thilloy and Ligny-Thilloy. Your correspondent has just heard from the adjutant with details of the attack, which began about eleven o'clock. The Bedfords were then in a sunken road variously called Chalk Cut or Red Cut as shown on the map above. Preceded by a rolling barrage then men went over the top but not before shells fell into the assembly positions which were thought to come from our own guns firing short. On leaving the sunken road heavy machine gun fire was encountered from the front and the left and especially from the right flank. It had been arranged that 21st Division would attack on the Bedfords' right, but their attack was cancelled at the last moment and so the right flank was exposed to extremely heavy machine gun fire from the high ground.

The line was held up and the positions occupied were then roughly as shown on the map above. No further advance was possible as machine gun fire from Thilloy and the ridges on the right was so heavy. Snipers were very active and claimed many victims.
An hour ago, at six o'clock after an hour's bombardment by heavy artillery and preceded by an 18 pounder barrage the advance was continued again. Just previous to zero a heavy shell fell in the midst of the centre company and did much damage. Despite this, some of C Company on the left entered Thilloy and went right through, with their right on the cross roads shown on the map by an X. The left of the centre company was met again by very heavy machine gun fire from the right and was unable to make much progress and the right company was unable to advance at all owing to the same reason. The enemy had a perfect defensive position which commanded the approach from in front and on the right flank.  

As regards those elements of the left company which passed through Thilloy, the situation is difficult to ascertain. No Officer by this time appears to have been left with the company. The enemy appear to have been surrounding them on the right flank and eventually they withdrew through the village, and back to the sunken road from which the attack had started, which they reached a few moments ago.  

Owing to the formation of the ground the only possible defensive line was then indeed the sunken road from which the battalion had started this morning, with posts pushed out to the edge of la Barque. The line joins up with the 7th Royal Fusiliers on the left. The Battalion hopes to be relieved tonight.  

The commanding officer then came on the blower to make his views known, saying: "I attribute the failure of the attack to the fact that the right flank was exposed as the Division on our right did not advance. It is possible that the first attack would have been held up in any case from machine gun fire from Thilloy, but I feel certain that if other troops had been pressing on our right and so engaging the machine guns on the ridges and neighbourhood, my right company would have been able to get forward at the second attempt. If the request for tanks to co-operate had been granted the task would have been easy and could have been accomplished by one Battalion instead of two".

Source: X550/5/3

More on Casualties During the Battle of the Somme

Friday 24th November 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

Following the analysis of the numbers of men who have sacrifices of war in the Battle of the Somme, readers may be interested in the relative costliness of different operations during the course of the battle. The figures below give the number of men killed in action in the most significant attacks made between 1st July and 18th November. The figures are restricted to those killed in action because it is usually impossible to know the actions resulting in deaths due to wounds which can take place several weeks later.

• 1st Day of the Battle and immediate aftermath – 1st to 3rd July: 106 (2nd and 7th Battalions)
• Actions at Contalmaison and Pozières  – 9th to 15th July: 92 (6th Battalion)
• Actions in Trônes Wood  - 11th to 14th July: 61 (2nd and 7th Battalions)
• Actions at Longueval and Delville Wood – 22nd to 31st July: 105 (1st Battalion)
• Actions south of Guillemont – 30th July to 24th September: 138 (1st and 2nd Battalions)
• Actions near Morval – 13th to 25th September: 158 (8th Battalion)
• Actions at Thiepval – 26th to 29th September: 93 (7th Battalion)
• Actions east of Le Sars – 11th to 12th October: 83 (2nd Battalion)
• Actions on the River Ancre – 31st October to 16th November: 110 (4th and 6th Battalions)

Day Twenty Two in the Somme

Saturday 22nd July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

We understand that 18th (Eastern) Division, of which the 7th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment forms a part, is leaving Fourth Army and this Battle of the Somme, now in its twenty second day. Rumour has it that the move north will be to the area near Béthune and Loos, scene of so much of the fighting last year but comparatively “quiet” this year.

Colonel Price shared the following telegram sent by Fourth Army commander General Rawlinson to the whole of 18th Division: “The part which the 18th Division has taken in the Battle of the Somme reflects the highest credit on every Officer, Non Commissioned Officer and Man, and I desire to tender to one and all my gratitude and congratulations”.

“The gallantry and determination displayed in the assault of the enemy's first system of defence, together with the night attack on, and final capture, of Trônes Wood, were feats of arms which will rank amongst the best attainments of the British Army. Nothing could have been finer than the behaviour of those men of the West Kent Regiment who held their position throughout the night when surrounded by the enemy at the northern end of the wood”.

“The heavy fighting in the village of Longueval and Delville Wood in which portions of the Division were engaged was an example of discipline, valour, and endurance which was wholly admirable”.

“It is with great regret that I hear the Division is to be transferred to another Army and I trust at some future time I may be honoured by again having it under my command”.

Source: X550/8/1

Day Eighteen on the Somme

Tuesday 18th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

I have heard from the adjutant of 1st Bedfords that they have been reconnoitring the ground in the area of High Wood, which is still firmly in German hands. Meanwhile the adjutant of 7th Bedfords tells me of a rumour in the division (18th) that it will not be called on to attack Guillemont due to the heavy casualties it incurred on the first day of the Battle and subsequently in the taking of Trônes Wood.

This afternoon the Germans have launched an attack on the village and wood at Longueval. The South Africans have been engaged in bitter hand-to-hand fighting in the shattered remains of that dreadful wood but, as I write, they are still hanging on. Australians to whom I have talked seem to see the failed invasion of Gallipoli last year as a badge of honour for their country blaming, of course, its failure on the British. One wonders if, in years to come, Delville Wood will not be seen by South Africans as similarly definitive for their nation.

Sources: X550/2/5; X550/8/1

Day Fourteen on the Somme

Friday 14th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

The last twenty-four hours have seen a major series of British attacks making it the most intense period since the first day of the battle, 1st July. I will begin this despatch with the continued fighting in and around Trônes Wood, which is now being carried on by 18th Division. The 7th Bedfords, part of 54th Brigade of this division, received orders just after midnight to proceed to Maricourt from their rest area where they are in reserve for the major attack by 12th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment and 6th Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment in the wood. This was because the attacks launched by 55th Brigade last night all failed and resulted in the wood being lost. Brigadier Shoubridge of 54th Brigade decided on a simple attack south to north through the wood by the Middlesex and Northamptons under the commanding officer of the 12th Middlesex, Lieutenant-Colonel F A Maxwell. At 4.30 am, an hour after the great push on the nearby Bazentin Ridge began (which I will outline below) the Northamptons began the attack. 

Colonel Maxwell

In the darkness and undergrowth the troops reaching the eastern edge of the wood believed it to be the northern edge and thought they had taken the whole wood. So, when the Middlesex Regiment entered the wood at 8 am they found many men in the south-east of the wood but no one further north. So Colonel Maxwell led his battalion north slowly, using a compass to ensure they were on the right track. In this way he cleared the middle of the wood and finally cleared all Germans from the wood by 9.30. So it fell to the men from Northamptonshire and, more importantly, from Middlesex to finally take and hold this blood-clotted tangle of splintered trees. And they hold it still, as I write this, no counter-attack having been made. The Germans must be as sick of the place as I know our own men are(1).

As I have mentioned a major offensive begun in the early hours of this morning has been against the Bazentin Ridge. The villages of Bazentin-le-Petit and Bazentin-le-Grand and their attendant woods, are around a mile or so north-west of Trônes Wood. A mile or so due west of these is the village of Ovillers a target for the attack on 1st July. This place was attacked by 25th Division but the attacks failed to make much headway, so great is the strength of the defences. During the day today Ovillers has been attacked from three sides, south, east and west but these, too, have come to nothing. Attacks were also made against the high ground south of the village of Thiepval known as the Leipzig Salient, north-west of Ovillers and these managed to take a small amount of ground.

Elsewhere much, it seems, has been achieved. 9th (Scottish) Division began their attack on Longueval, directly north of Trônes Wood in the early hours of this morning and, after heavy fighting, have taken the southern part of the village, though Delville Wood still holds out. An attack on Waterlot Farm, south-east of the village and half-way to the village of Guillemont was not successful.

3rd Division, on the left of 9th Division succeeded in capturing the village of Bazentin-le-Grand. 7th  Division, to the left of 3rd Division, have captured Bazentin-le-Grand Wood and the village of Bazentin-le-Petit, which lies north-west of Bazentin-le-Grand. 21st Division have taken by far the greatest part of Bazentin-le-Petit Wood (which is bigger than Bazentin-le-Grand Wood). We understand that these attacks have taken somewhere in the order of 1,500 prisoners.

There is a wood north of Longueval and north-east of the Bazentins which the army has christened High Wood as it stands on ground commanding a view over great parts of the battlefield. It is believed that this wood was empty in the wake of the successful attacks made early this morning(2). It is hoped that the army can seize it this evening. If so it is likely that the army has finally achieved a significant breakthrough at the end of the second week of this battle. There are rumours that the cavalry are being called up to pour through this gap and tear into the German rear areas. If this happens the breakthrough may turn into a rout and the end of the war may be in sight. I need not tell you that the prospect of this has put huge energy into all around. Everywhere I see smiles and thumbs up.

P. S. the Indian horseman of the Deccan Horse have just charged into High Wood and are reported to be slaughtering the few defenders, now the hunt is up!

(1) Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Aylmer Maxwell VC, DSO (1871-1917). He won the Victoria Cross in 1900 in the Second Boer War whilst serving with Roberts’ Horse having received the Distinguished Service Order with the Bengal Lancers in 1898. He was regarded as one of the finest commanders serving in the Great War – an aggressive, original thinker and popular with his men. He was later promoted to Brigadier and led 27th Brigade, 9th (Scottish Division) He was killed by a sniper on the Menin Road near Ypres on 21st September 1917. He is buried at Ypres Reservoir Cemetery.

(2) At the time the French name was Bois des Foureaux, now it is Bois des Fourcaux.

Day Twelve on the Somme

Wednesday 12th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

The 2nd Battalion’s ordeal in Trônes Wood has continued today. About 10 pm last night the enemy surrounded the force formerly led by Captain Tyler, bombing it from three sides. In the circumstances Lieutenant L H Walker ordered the men to fall back to the old brickworks on the other side of Bernafay Wood where they joined the Battalion’s headquarters. C and D Companies, entrenched in the south-west of the wood managed to retain their toe-hold all night despite frequent attacks.

Lieutenant Walker

This morning Lieutenant W White and Second Lieutenant L A L Fink were sent from the reserve of officers at the Battalion’s transport lines to replace those officers who were lost yesterday. Lieutenant White took over command of A Company from the unfortunate Captain Tyler who is either dead or a prisoner.

Lieutenant White

Just after midnight two companies of 17th Battalion King’s (Liverpool) Regiment occupied the southern edge of the wood and linked up with C and D Companies of the Bedfords. Through the day this line has been held despite many determined attacks with bombs by the enemy. Second Lieutenant H J Bricknell was wounded during the day.

Second Lieutenant Bricknell

We understand that 55th Brigade of 18th Division (7th Bedfords are in 54th Brigade of that division) has been temporarily attached to 30th Division because, although the division now holds the southern part of the wood, it has suffered many casualties over the last four days and is exhausted. I can vouch that the lined faces of the officers and men I have seen today attest to their expenditure of strength and courage over the last day or more.

Source: X550/3/wd

Day Eleven on the Somme

Tuesday 11th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

The 2nd Bedfords have taken their first truly active part in the Battle of the Somme today – its eleventh day. As I write this despatch the battalion is still in Trônes Wood where it has been since early this morning. The men were drawn up at 1.30 am and began their advance on the south-west portion of the wood at 3.10 when the first pre-dawn light was beginning to suffuse the sky. They advanced in columns of half-companies, A Company leading the way, and spread out, five yards between each man and his neighbour. They were about a quarter of a mile from the wood when the German machine-guns opened up. This was soon followed by artillery and the battalion suffered many casualties before it entered the wood.

By 3.45 every surviving man was inside the wood, at its southern end. Wounded men returning from the fight told me that the undergrowth is luxuriant, unaffected by shellfire, and makes it difficult to see more than about four yards ahead. They also say the wood is full of enemy trenches and dug-outs which one does not see until one is right upon them. As soon as they entered the wood Lieutenant R B Gibson was killed and Second Lieutenant F E Plummer was wounded.

Second Lieutenant Plummer

After a lot of fighting, A and B Companies dug themselves in on the south-east side of the wood with C and D Companies digging in on the south-west edge. By 4.20 am Captain L F Beal, commander of C Company had led 27 men of D Company and 13 men of B Company under their commander Lieutenant H A Chamen up to the north-east edge of the wood where they dug-in. Sadly no other reinforcements came up and a large number of Germans were seen advancing south from the village of Longueval, causing these 42 men to abandon their position and withdraw south in order to avoid being surrounded. They eventually reached C Company’s position in the south-east corner the wood about 5 pm.

Lieutenant Fox

Around 8 am Lieutenant L H Fox led a patrol into the interior which has not returned. I understand they are believed to have been captured(1). At 11.30 a third patrol followed those of Captain Beal and Lieutenant Fox. This was led by Captain C G Tyler along with Second Lieutenant L H Walker and Second Lieutenant D P Cross with about forty men. They worked north up the eastern edge of the wood but encountered a strong-point where a track from the village of Guillemont enters the wood. Captain Tyler was badly wounded and ordered the party back to their starting position. Distressingly the captain had to be left where he was(2). The men, now back in their trench fought off several German counter-attacks. From the above it is clear that the fighting in the stifling conditions of this wood was even more confused than normal for this war.

Captain Tyler

As I write this A, B, C and half of D Company are believed to be dug-in at the southern part of the wood. Every company is reported as having suffered many casualties. Patrols have been sent into the middle of the wood to find stragglers and to bomb and the enemy out of their trenches there. Thus the 2nd Battalion’s first day, whilst not as clear-cut as that of the 7th Battalion has been satisfactory and ground has been gained.

Fighting continues in Mametz Wood. The Welshmen of 38th Division have captured more of it today.

Sources: X550/3/wd

(1) In fact Lieutenant Leslie Herbert Fox had been killed and he is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial.

(2) Captain Cornelius George Tyler either died of his wounds that day or was subsequently killed by the enemy. Again he is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial.

Day Ten on the Somme

Monday 10th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

The Battle for Trônes Wood began in earnest yesterday, with the wood being taken and then lost by 30th Division. Last night a trench was dug by 30th Division on the south-west edge of the wood and early this morning troops from 90th Brigade used this to move into the wood, which seemed empty. However, the enemy then moved back in and fighting has been confused throughout the day, dead British and German bodies are intermingled and, added to the fallen and splintered trees and shell-holes have made a once pleasant wood into something from Hell. It is a thoroughly confusing place where it is easy to lose one’s bearings according to men who have been in and come out again alive.

2nd Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment forms a part 90th Brigade but has not yet been used in any attack in this ten day-old battle. Tonight the adjutant has received orders that they are to go into action in the wood tomorrow. It is believed that it is currently only lightly held by the enemy but these things can change quickly. Certainly the defenders have put up a stiff fight today. Tonight the Battalion rests near an old French brickworks close to the south-west edge of Bernafay Wood which lies a few hundred yards west of Trônes Wood.

This afternoon the village of Contalmaison was finally captured by 23rd and 34th Divisions. This place has been in the army’s sights for over a week and great satisfaction is felt that it is finally “in the bag”. 6th Bedfords did not take part in the capture but formed a defensive flank against German counter-attacks, which cost them 6 dead, 4 missing and 40 wounded.

The 38th (Welsh) Division has been involved in heavy fighting in Mametz Wood. It is understood that they have managed to infiltrate and capture a good portion of it.

Source: X550/3/wd

Day Nine on the Somme

Sunday 9th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

Attacks on Trônes Wood and Contalmaison have continued today. Maltz Horn Farm was rushed by 2nd Battalion, Royal Scots Fusiliers (which is in the same brigade as 2nd Bedfords) whilst it was still dark this morning. The 30th Division pierced the wood and, despite the chaos of poisoned gas, splintered trees, shells holes and resistance, captured the pace in its entirety. Sadly an intense German bombardment around lunchtime caused it to be abandoned again, though some groups of men seem to have remained behind and we have to assume they were killed or captured when the Germans re-took the place a short time ago. In the last few minutes we understand that men from 30th Division have advanced again and begun to dig a trench along the south-west edge of the wood. No doubt this will be the jumping off point for further attacks tomorrow or in succeeding days.

Meanwhile 23rd Division continues to give its attention to Contalmaison. No major attack was planned today but the Germans made an attack themselves which was, we are pleased to report, quickly dispersed. This evening the enemy have made another attack but we understand that his, too, has been dealt with. One of the units fending off German counter-attacks is 6th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment of 112th Brigade. In so doing today they have lost 14 dead, 1 missing and 75 wounded.

17th Division attacked a trench called Quadrilateral Trench south of the village of Contalmaison. This has been in dispute for some days. Again, little has been achieved.

Day Eight on the Somme

Saturday 8th July 1916 From our Correspondent in the Field

Today marks one week since this Battle of the Somme began and 2nd Bedfords, having been largely observers thus far, found themselves at rest in the Bois-des-Tailles where they attended a church service. Word has spread during the day that they may be wanted to shoulder the burden of the attack in the coming few days and so the service was especially poignant.

The rest of their division (30th) has been attacking a place called Trônes Wood. This wood lies on the east-west road from Guillemont to Montauban, and is shaped like a spearhead, the tip of its spear pointing due north to the village of Longueval. The wood lies north of Hardcourt-aux-Bois and north-east of Maricourt and is the next obstacle in the drive north towards the Roman road from Albert to Bapaume.

The attack began at 8 am after a bombardment of the wood. The attack was made from Bernafay Wood towards the south edge of Trônes Wood but was met with heavy fire and failed with great loss. An attack by the French on the division’s right flank had some success but the 30th Division’s failure made an impact on their attack too. An attack on the trench called Maltz Horn Trench this afternoon by both British and French was successful. Maltz Horn Farm, or rather its ruins, remain in German hands(1).

The attack on Contalmaison continues but little was achieved today due to the glutinous nature of the ground. We had heard that the village had, in fact, been abandoned along with a nearby wood but, no such luck! And this evening an attack on the village has been repulsed.

Source: X550/3/wd

(1) The proper name was Maltzkorn Farm after its founder, an 18th century German called Paul Maltzkorn.