Sunday 21st November 1915

Front line trenches east of Bois Grenier.

Orders were received from 69^th Brigade for the Battalion to be prepared to be relieved, next day, by 8^th Yorkshires.

However, before the relief, there was to be a major readjustment of the defensive line in the sector, with the front line now to be held with two divisions rather than three. Troops of 8^th Division were withdrawn from the front line and in their place, 23^rd Division’s front was extended 1,200 yards to the right and 20^th Division extended a similar distance to their left to cover the gap. For 10DWR this meant the Battalion extending to its right to take over trenches formerly held by 11^th West Yorkshires, with this battalion in turn extending to its right to take over trenches formerly held by 1^st Sherwood Foresters. Tunstill’s Company now held the section of the line south from trench I.15.1 as far as Rue du Bois (trench I.21.4). Battalion HQ was relocated from Farm du Biez, a little further south, to Orchard Post. The readjustment was to be carried out overnight and to be completed by 10.30am on the morning of 22^nd.  

The bodies of Pte. John Cardwell (see 19^th November) and L.Cpl. Noel Bennett (see 20^th November), having been recovered from no-man’s land, were buried at X Farm Cemetery, La Chapelle d-Armentieres. News of the service was reported to Bennett’s family by the Battalion Chaplain, Rev. Wilfred Leveson Henderson (see 18^th October) “Your son was buried in a little cemetery immediately behind the trenches. A small cross will be put up to the memory of him and the soldier who lies beside him, and the ground for ever kept sacred. The cemetery is in Northern France near the town of Chapelle d'Armentières. Both officers and men join with me in expressing their deep sympathy. Your son will be greatly missed by all, but that in you sorrow it may be some comfort to you to know that he died so nobly and that your sorrow is shared by others”. They also received letters from another of Bennett’s comrades, Cpl. Harry Lyddington Mason (see below) who told them, “He was a good soldier and a good pal, always bright and cheerful even under the most trying conditions. I shall miss him greatly because we have been pals ever since I joined A Company”. Another man (unnamed) who was with Mason at the funeral added that the name Noel had been crafted in red brick and placed on the grave; the family also received a letter of sympathy from Pte. James Tuddenham (see 19^th November) who had attempted to rescue their son from No Man’s Land.

Harry Lyddington Mason was the only son of John and Fanny Mason. He had been born and brought up in Sedbergh, where his father worked as a school caretaker, while Harry had been working as a watchmaker when he enlisted, aged 25, on the outbreak of war. He had not been among Tunstill’s Original recruits, but had been posted to ‘A’ Company whilst the Battalion was in training.

L.Cpl. Noel Bennett

Pte. John Cardwell (standing), with Pte. Thomas Robinson (16490), seated.

Image by kind permission of Gary Robinson

Pte. William Knox (see 17^th November) also referred to the deaths of Bennet and Cardwell, amongst other things, in his latest letter home to his wife, Ethel. (I am most grateful to Rachael Broadhead and family for allowing me access to William’s letters).

“I hope these few lines will find you quite well as I am very pleased to say that it leaves me very well at present. We are in the firing line once again but it is a lot better than where we were last time and not quite so cold, although plenty cold enough. You ought to see me now. You would not half laugh at me as I have got a skin coat and it has long black wool. I wish I could have my photograph taken so as I could send you one. We had another lively time of it last Thursday when we were in billets. I should think the Germans sent over 500 shells in about two hours but they did not do so very much damage. We never heard of anyone getting killed.

We came into the firing line last Thursday and I have heard that we go into the reserve trenches tomorrow, Monday, for a couple of days. We have lost one of the chaps that came from Lichfield with us (Pte. Ernest Holland, see 20^th November). He got killed on Saturday and was buried the same day with two more of our men (L.Cpl. Noel Bennett and Pte. John Cardwell, see above). It is an awful sight to see them carrying the dead away on the stretchers. One of our men had a bit of bad luck. He went out in between the two lines of trenches to dress one of our snipers that had been wounded but he got hit as well and killed (L.Cpl. Noel Bennett).

Our Battalion has started coming home on leave this week but of course it will take a decent long time to go right through the whole lot of us. I came across some Sheffield men who I knew. They are in the same town as we were. Two of them were in the Gower Street shop. They have been out here about sixteen weeks now. I received a letter from Sergeant Major Abslom this morning and it was a very nice one too. They are at Brockley, two miles from Stafford. He said that they are having a good time of it. They have not got a Sergeants’ Mess so of course they go to Stafford every night as you may guess what a time they are having.”

The recommendation of Lt. Col. Bartholomew, endorsed by Brig. Gen. Derham, that CSM Harry Dewhirst (see 17^th November) should be sent home from France to serve in England, was further endorsed by at Division level by Maj. Genl. Babington.

Pte. Joseph Fitzgerald (see 25^th September), who had been in England since having been wounded in September, was posted to 11DWR at Brocton Camp.