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Файл:The Great War. Part III
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THE GREAT WAR
On April 17 there was yet another day of heavy fi ghting upon
this line, both fl anks and the Meule Hook being strongly attacked,
but the position was successfully held, and one more limit seemed
to have been reached in the advance. The same six brigades under
General Nicholson, reduced now to the strength of battalions, were
still throwing an iron, bar across the German path. From the right
the 147th, 74th, 101st, 102nd, 103rd, and 88th, all of them with set
teeth, held on to the appointed line which receded under pressure
and was yet again re-established. The 88th, under that remarkable
young soldier, General Freyberg, had some especially hard work to
do. Late on April 20 this goodly fellowship in arms was dissolved,
the three separate brigades returned to heir divisions, and the Thirty-fourth was relieved by the French. The artillery of the Thirtyeighth Area. Welsh Division fought throughout these awful days
onwards, at the back of the infantry, who could not say too much
for these guns or for General Topping who commanded them. Save
two howitzers hit on April 9, no gun of this division was lost during
all this close and severe fi ghting. South of the Lys many of the Royal
Army Medical Corps remained with their wounded, and were taken
prisoners, sharing with their charges the wretched treatment which
was still meted out to British captives, especially behind the lines
and before reaching the camps in Germany.
It should be added that the sappers of the 207th, 208th, 209th
Field Companies and the 18th Northumberland Fusiliers Pioneers
fought like ordinary infantry, and did splendid and essential service
in holding the line.
We shall now turn to Jeffreys’ Nineteenth Division which we left
on the 12th of April, holding on to the Wulverghem – Wytschaete
front, with formidable enemies in front of them, but an even more
formidable menace upon their right fl ank, whence came constant
rumours that the enemy had at last penetrated the hard-pressed
251
ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
Twenty-fi fth Division, had occupied Neuve Église, and was pushing
up along the lines of the northward roads which would turn the
whole of the position. Late at night on April 12 it had been ascertained that these reports were premature.
The units of the 108th Ulster Brigade on the right of the line and
connecting with the Twenty-fi fth Division had been penetrated and
driven back, but were strengthened and stayed by the advent of the
8th Gloucesters. The situation was obscure on the right, and there
was a dangerous gap which was fi lled early in the morning of April
13 by the energy and initiative of Captain Macintosh of the 94th
Field Company Royal Engineers, who with a handful of the 10th
Worcesters pushed his way in, and showed a bold front to the enemy.
The 2/5th Sherwood Foresters from the 178th Brigade (Stansfeld) of the Fifty-ninth North Midland Division had also been ordered to face south and with the help of some machine-guns to hold
off the turning movement from that quarter. All these movements
were carried out in pitch darkness and amid a situation so confused
that it was impossible to defi ne which was the attacking line and
which the line of defence. The general scheme of the battle in this
area on the morning of April 13 was that the Twenty-fi fth Division, with the help of the 148th Brigade of Yorkshire Territorials,
was fi ghting desperately in and around Neuve Église to the north
of those units of the 100th Brigade, whose defence of the town has
already been described. Next to them on the north lay the remains
of the 108th Brigade, then the battalion of Sherwood Foresters, and
then the 57th Brigade with the 8th Gloucesters on the southern
fl ank. All the morning the roar of battle rose from Neuve Église
where the German stormers fought hand to hand with the British
infantry, who had been strengthened by the addition of that fi ne
battalion, the 4th Shropshires from the Nineteenth Division. The
contest swung and swayed as fresh German troops were thrown into
252
THE GREAT WAR
the struggle, but at last about half-past ten in the morning the attack was defeated, the German infantry fell back in sullen groups
under the constant fi re of the defenders, and the British line was
pushed forward to the south of the village.
During the day, which was spent under heavy fi re of artillery and
the imminent menace of attack from the grey clouds seen gathering upon the Messines Ridge, the remaining battalions of the 178th
Brigade, the 2/6th and the 7th Sherwood Foresters, were pushed
into the line to relieve the exhausted 108th Brigade. It was clear that
great German concentrations were being made upon Neuve Église,
and that the village was in danger, so every arrangement was made
to accommodate the line to the situation which would arise if that
important point were taken, and the Wulverghem position became
in consequence untenable. This new line would run from Meteren
through Kemmel and Spy Farm to Spanbrockmolen. The night of
April 13 would have been quiet upon the front of the Nineteenth
Division had it not been for the constant pre-occupation and alarm
caused by the varying fortunes of the fi ghting at Neuve Église, in
which they were well aware that their own fate was concerned. The
attack had been renewed with fresh forces, and the Twenty-fi fth Division was extremely exhausted and could only be helped by other
units which were in no better case. Again and again the Germans
were deep in the village. Again and again they were evicted. It seemed
to be the beginning of the end, however, when it was announced
towards morning that the Twenty-fi fth Division was out of touch
with the British troops upon its south fl ank, and that the Germans
fi ltering through this gap had got to Nordhoek, west of Neuve Èglise,
and were pushing to the north in the rear of the British position. By
morning of April 14 Neuve Église had been abandoned, though it
does not appear to have been solidly occupied by the enemy until
mid-day, and snipers of both armies infested the ruins.
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ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
The loss of the village and of the low ridge which adjoined it
had a most sinister effect upon the general strategic position to the
north, and it was indeed fortunate that measures had been taken in
advance to deal with the new situation. The Nineteenth Division on
April 14 found itself shelled heavily all day, while it was machinegunned and trench-mortared from the right where its fl ank was now
in the air. The position of the right-hand unit, the 4th Shropshires,
south of the Neuve Église-Wulverghem road, became impossible, as
the Germans were in the rear, and indeed upon three sides of them.
Major Wingrove stuck to his position till mid-day, and no battalion could have given a more cogent example of steadiness and
fortitude in adversity. About 2 P.M. the Germans began to emerge in
force from the villages, beating up against the gallant Shropshires,
who retired slowly and steadily, taking toll of their assailants, while
the Sherwood Foresters of the 178th Brigade helped them to hold
the enemy at arm’s length.
As the day wore on the pressure became more insistent, until
about seven in the evening Major Wingrove, of whom it has been
stated by his General that “his tenacity, gallantry, and determination had held the much-tried and isolated line up to this time,” was
severely wounded. When his inspiring presence was removed there
was a break to the north of Neuve Église and the Twenty-fi fth Division, now reduced to a handful, were retreating westwards, while
the Nineteenth was being rolled up from the south.
General Jeffreys’ force was now in so dangerous a position that
it had actually to form a front to the west as well as to the east, a diffi cult manoeuvre which was carried out with great coolness and
skill by Colonel Sole of the 10th Worcesters, who was in charge
of the new line, aided by Major Parkes of the 8th Gloucesters. The
men were rallied, led into their new positions, and a dangerous
penetration was narrowly averted. Later a new line was built up
254
THE GREAT WAR
with the Forty-ninth Yorkshire Territorial Division in the place
of the Twenty-fi fth Division on the right, reinforced by the 71st
Brigade from the Sixth Division. Next to them on the left was the
178th Sherwood Foresters Brigade, then the 108th Brigade, and fi nally the 58th Brigade, standing, just in their old positions. The
changes in the British line were such that whereas it used to face
east, it now faced almost south from near Meteren to Kemmel and
Spanbrockmolen. The latter marked the point of junction upon the
left with the right of the Ninth Division. This line was not fully occupied till April 16.
On April 15 the intermediate positions were attacked, the 9th
Welsh Fusiliers, on the extreme left of the line, and the remains of
the 6th Wiltshires being heavily engaged. No impression was made.
At a different point the Germans had better results to show with the
108th Brigade, and made some progress, but the Sherwood Foresters once more mended the line. In the evening it was reported that
the enemy had taken Crucifi x Corner and were moving westwards.
The strength of all battalions had now fallen to such a point, owing
to constant shelling and incessant attacks, that it was very diffi cult
to form more than a line of outposts. By evening of April 15 all the
troops concerned, the remains of the Twenty-fi fth, the Forty-ninth,
and the Nineteenth Divisions were on the general line Meteren –
Kemmel, facing south to the German advance, but also threatening the German right fl ank if they should press too far to the west.
The remnant of the 108th Ulsters was relieved that night.
A heavy attack was made at 6 A.M. on the morning of April 16
upon the front of the Ninth Division, which had withdrawn in conformity with the new northern line. The 62nd Brigade of the Twenty-fi rst Division had, as already stated, been put under the orders of
General Tudor of the Ninth Division, for his unit had been greatly
weakened by the terrible losses of the South Africans. The North
255
ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
Countrymen of the 62nd fought desperately against great odds,
but they were pushed out of Spanbrockmolen, and later out of
Wytschaete.
They found a new line to the north, however, and the Germans
tried in vain to bend it. The 58th Brigade had thrown back its own
line to correspond, and joined up with the 62nd at Lacache Farm.
Late that evening the worn and weary troops were deeply comforted
by the sight of a small group of blue-clad men with classical helmets
surveying the German lines through their glasses. It was the vanguard and the observers of the Twenty-eighth and One hundred
and thirty-third French Divisions which were coming up to the aid
of the Ninth. It was clear that the commanding position of Kemmel,
a hill which overlooks a wide range of country, was the immediate
objective of the enemy in this quarter. About 10 A.M. on April 17
they put down a heavy barrage, and then pushed on in force with
the intention of breaking in the British line and capturing the hill.
The battalions attacked were the three Sherwood Foresters units,
with the 8th North Staffords and 10th Warwicks of the 57th Brigade. This attack was a complete failure. Weary as they were the
sturdy Englishmen stood fast to their lines, and beat their assailants
back in blood and ruin. Machine-gun fi re from the crest of the hill
contributed to the result, and the guns also did their share. The only
German gain was a post called Donegal Farm between the Nineteenth and the Forty-ninth Divisions. A fresh attack was made upon
the 10th Warwicks in the evening, but this also was thrown back
with heavy loss.
Meanwhile, on the northern sector, the Ninth Division endeavoured to regain the ground which they had lost the day before,
but their efforts had no great success, save that the 7th Seaforths of
the 26th Brigade in a very brilliant advance fought their way into
Wytschaete once more, and took possession of the village which they
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THE GREAT WAR
held until the following day, when the general position forced them
to abandon it. On April 18 the fi ghting died down upon this front,
and in the evening the gallant Nineteenth Division, after most glorious service, was relieved by the French Twenty-eighth Division,
which took over the defence of Kemmel Hill. The total losses of this
division had been nearly 4000 men, which, coming on the top of the
heavy losses on the Somme in the previous fortnight, formed such
a record as had seldom been equalled. Nor was their ordeal yet at
an end, and many a stout battle was still to be fought before a rest
should come.
All these stirring episodes, including the glorious destruction
of the 4th Brigade of Guards, the formation of a permanent line by
the Australians, the defence of Meteren and Bailleul by the Thirtythird and other divisions, the fi ghting at Neuve Église, and the defence of the Wytschaete and Messines fronts by the Nineteenth and
Ninth Divisions with odd brigades to help them, all came within
the area of Plumer’s Second Army, which still consisted of the Ninth
and Fifteenth Corps in the line. It should be mentioned that of fourteen divisions contained in this army on March 21 no less than
twelve had been sent down to the Somme, while the remaining two,
the Forty-ninth and Twenty-ninth, were under orders to go at the
moment when the great battle in Flanders broke out.
We shall now for a moment turn to the left fl ank of the First
Army in the south which had so far, in spite of heavy attacks, lost
very little ground. It has already been described how the Fifty-fi fth
Lancashire Division stood like a rock at Givenchy and Festubert,
while the Fifty-fi rst and afterwards the Fourth Division struggled
desperately to hold back the attack on their left. The former had
been relieved on April 16 by Strickland’s First Division, while the
Highlanders and April le. Fourth Division also had been drawn
out, and gave place to Deverell’s Third Division, which had done
257
ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
so splendidly and lost so heavily upon the Somme. After the repulse
from the Fifty-fi fth Division, the Germans had contented themselves with shelling but they had pushed on, as already narrated, to
the north of the position, and had got as far as Locon. The result was
that the First Southern Division had a long frontage which faced
due north and a shorter frontage to the east.
The Fourth Division held the front at this period to the east of
Robecq, being on the right of the Sixty-fi rst, with the 184th Brigade
between them. It was used on April 14 for a counter-attack which
was carried out at night, and which achieved a local success by the
recapture of the village of Riez, with 150 prisoners. This operation
was carried out by the 11th Brigade, with the 1st Hants and 1st Somersets in the lead, and was a very workmanlike little action which
was the more valuable when coming at a period of general recoil.
On April 18 the new German attack upon the First Division
at Givenchy began, with a bombardment of great violence. Their
plan upon this day was to carry Givenchy and Festubert by storm,
and to win the line of the canal as far west as Gorre. They would
then capture the high ground at Hinges, and so command the canal right up to Robecq. No doubt they calculated, and with justice,
that if they could overcome the men on the spot they would fi nd
that the reserves had all been drawn away to the north. Their plan
was wrecked, however, by the fact that the men on the spot were
not to be overcome. Eighteen German battalions moved forward
to the attack, and all of them suffered, heavily without gaining any
appreciable advantage. So heavy was the slaughter that many German companies were reduced before evening to twenty or thirty effectives, while the three battalions of one regiment were left under
the respective command of one lieutenant and two sub-lieutenants.
There have been few more costly failures, considering the scale of
the operations, in the whole campaign.
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THE GREAT WAR
The infantry attack was on the two fl anks of the British line
which looked northwards, the one attack being in front of Hinges
and the other covering the space from Loisne to the south of Givenchy, including Festubert. Three German regiments, the 98th, 361st,
and 202nd Reserve, advanced in this quarter. They had constructed
two bridges during the night to cross a broad ditch in front of the
British line, but machine-guns were trained upon them, and the
troops which tried to cross were exposed to heavy losses, which left
both the bridges and the banks heaped with bodies. The mist, the
smoke, and the dust from the shells were so thick, however, that
a hundred yards was the limit of visibility. The German shell-storm
continued to be very heavy, but the British were snugly ensconced
in trenches with a parapet and parados, both of which were several
feet thick, so that no very great harm was done. The worst losses
were at the advanced keep at Festubert, which was blown to bits,
only eight men of the garrison surviving.
The First Division had two brigades in the line, the 1st on the
right holding from Givenchy to Le Plantin, and the 3rd to the left
from Le Plantin to Festubert. The fi ghting was particularly severe in
the latter sector of the line. As the garrison looked north they saw
through the rising mist about 8:15 in the morning the enemy advancing in small groups of light machine-guns, coming over a slight
rise some 900 yards east of Festubert. These troops pushed bravely
on, though they had no cover but shell-holes and they suffered very
severely. The 1st Gloucesters, under Colonel Tweedie, on the right
and the 1st South Wales Borderers on the left, battalions with the
halo of the fi rst Ypres battle round their heads, held the line and littered the open ground with their steady rifl e-fi re. There was a gap in
the defences at a point called Willow Road, and into this the enemy
poured more quickly than they could be shot down.
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ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
Their rush carried them through, and into the houses and gardens of Le Plantin. A company of the Gloucesters under Captain
Handford was cut in two, but both sections stood fast, Lieutenant
Hall on one side, end the company commander on the other, closing
in on the centre and preventing reinforcement, while Lieutenant
Gosling attacked with the reserve company. The Germans ran fi eldguns right up, but the crews were shot down. So matters remained
until the afternoon, the stormers being in the British position, but
so pinned down by rifl e-fi re that they could not raise their heads.
On the other hand, German snipers in the houses and trees were
very deadly to any runners or other exposed defenders. Whilst matters were in this stage in the Le Plantin area, they were even more
critical at Festubert. The enemy, moving up behind a good barrage,
overran a part of the South Wales Borderers and forced their way
into an orchard just south of the keep known as Route A. Thence
they tried to get into the rear of the defence. About eleven SergeantMajor Biddle of D Company ran the gauntlet to Brigade Headquarters to explain the situation and ask for help. Captain Smith got together a party of odds and ends, under twenty in number, who made
their way up the west side of Festubert and prevented the extension
of this dangerous German movement.
By two o’clock the attack was defi nitely defeated, and by three
the Germans were retiring along the whole line. They found it,
however, very diffi cult to disengage themselves from their advance
positions. They tried to crawl back from shell-hole to shell-hole,
while the British stood up all along the parapets and shot them in
scores. Absolutely demoralised, many of the Germans threw away
their arms. Their retirement probably cost as much as their advance.
Those who had got into Le Plantin had to run the gauntlet between
two halves of the Gloucesters in getting out, and few of them escaped. The performance of the 1st Gloucesters was remarkable, for
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