Friday 31st March 1916

Front line trenches west of Angres

On a beautiful day conditions in the line remained quiet, other than for some limited artillery activity. There was however, “a scheme to intimidate the enemy” which would involve the firing of aerial torpedoes, trench mortars and rifle grenades in considerable quantity “at a time they (the Germans) usually fire numerous grenades in and around Bully Craters”. The Trench Mortar Battery recorded the role they played in the exercise as: “Fired 9 rounds (3 per no.1, 2 and 3 guns) at 5.10am in accordance with infantry scheme to intimidate Fritz and quell early morning frightfulness”. However it was also noted that the Germans had sent some heavy shells (twelve in the morning and two more in mid-afternoon) into the pit-head area around Coron Fosse 10, where the Battalion had previously been billeted. Whilst staying there the Battalion had been warned about possible exposure to German artillery fire, but their stays had, in fact, proved uneventful (see 18^th March).

L.Cpl. Richard Cleasby Chorley (see 22^nd March) was released from hospital having been treated for ten days for scabies and granted ten days’ leave to England.

Pte. Thomas McDonald (see 21^st March), who had been at 3^rd General Hospital at Le Treport since having been wounded ten days previously, was evacuated to England travelling onboard the Hospital Ship Dieppe; the details of his treatment are unknown.

69^th Brigade War Diary recorded casualties for the Brigade for the month of March:

Killed                                     13 (including 2 officers; one of whom was Lt. Wilson, MO of 10DWR)

Accidentally killed              0
Died of wounds                   3 (including 1 officer of 11^th West Yorks)
Wounded                            79 (including 3 officers; 2 of whom were from 10DWR)
Accidentally wounded       4
Missing                                 0

10DWR’s casualties were recorded as:

Killed                                     7 (including Lt. Wilson)
Accidentally killed               0
Died of wounds                   1
Wounded                            36 (including Lt. Bolland and Lt. Phillips)
Accidentally wounded        2
Missing                                  0

It should be noted that these casualty figures take no account of the deaths of Ptes . Ambler and Halliday (see 25^th and 28^th March), both of whom died of wounds some time after having been wounded and evacuated for treatment.

The official cumulative casualty figures for the Battalion since arriving in France were now:

Killed                                     25

Accidentally killed                4
Died of wounds                     3
Wounded                           133
Accidentally wounded       39
Missing                                    3

 

The weekly edition of the Craven Herald published the letter written recently by Pte. Irvine Clark (see 16^th March), and also carried news of two other of Tunstill’s original recruits, L.Cpl. Wilson Pritchard (see 2^nd January) and Pte. John Beckwith (see 21^st March).

AUSTWICK

On Leave

Lance Corporal W. Pritchard, of the 41^st Division Cycle Corps, stationed at Aldershot, has been on a week’s leave before leaving for France.

MARTON

Wounded Soldiers

Privates J. Beckwith and W. Goode, who have both been wounded in action in France, are now in hospital in England and are progressing favourably. Private Beckwith speaks highly of his treatment in a Staffordshire hospital, while Private Goode was entertained to tea at Buckingham Palace along with a large number of wounded soldiers.

BOLTON-BY-BOWLAND

AT THE FRONT

Private Irvine Clark, son of Mr. and Mrs. Geo. Clark, of the Post Office, Bolton-by-Bowland, who joined the Army under Captain Tunstill and is attached to the 10^th Battalion Duke of Wellington’s, writes an interesting letter home from the trenches under date of March 16^th. He says:

“I received the parcel and letter safely; it came in very handy as we were just behind the firing line in some French huts, and were having short rations. I did fairly enjoy the pastry. We have been having a pretty rough time just lately; we are on a different part of the line and hardly any British Tommies have been here before. We have just had two days in the trenches – one in reserve and the other in the firing line. Twenty four hours is quite long enough in the front line at once, here. In the day time we dare not stir nor show the least sign of ourselves, or the Germans would shell us out of it. One Company of ours gave themselves away and suffered for it; one platoon alone had one killed and 17 wounded; our doctor was also killed after he attended to some of the latter. It is shelling all day long. The trenches are only thirty yards apart; although I am calling them trenches they are only shell holes and ditches. There were six of us in one shell hole during the night time; we dug holes to get into in the day time and some of the chaps had to sit on a dead German all day, and to make matters worse for us it started snowing early in the night.

While we were going, we had to cross over about 250 yards of open ground covered with shell holes; not one yard had been missed by the shells. Talk about mud! Well, a lot of the lads got stuck and had to leave their jack boots behind them and walk in stocking feet; some lost their rifles and equipment, and it was a proper mix-up; they were crawling into the trenches at all times of night. Setting out we had a rougher time than going in; men were sinking up to their waist in mud; the Germans were throwing lights up; we thought they would spot us, and send a few whizz-bangs, but we came through all right.

Six of us had to go back some distance and pull a man out who was nearly overhead in mud, and we had a job I can tell you. When we arrives at our billets at six o’clock next morning we were all about dead beat. Our clothes were covered with mud from head to foot, and we have done nothing but scrape and clean them since we came out. We were all glad when we marched away from that part of the line last Monday. We are now billeted in a pretty little town, but I think we move back to the line again in a few days’ time.

It is the mining district about here, and we have been to one of the mines to a bath house this morning, and a fine place it was too. We are doing a lot of shifting about, and we never know what minute we shall be told to pack up and be off. We may be going to the place where the heavy fighting was last September. The ‘Zeps’ seem to have their own way with you, but their airmen get scared here. A Fokker was brought down here yesterday. I was talking this morning to a lad from Bradley who played cricket against us at Bolton”.