Memoir of John Shakespear Bartley, 1916-1919 - Part 1

Conflict:
First World War, 1914–18
Subject:
  • Documents and letters
Status:
Open to contributions
Accession number:
RCDIG0001126
Difficulty:

Page 1 / 10

FAREWELL DINNER 88 8 MARCINELLE (HAIES) CHARLEROFBELGIUM iT" AFFIL 1919 FLEURSAIK ARMENTIERES FLERS BAPAUME Poon Woop BROODSINDE MESSINES Jierscharg CORBIE MORLANCOURT HARBONNIERES VAUVLLERS ETERPIGNY BELLICOURT NAUROY 8" BUE BATTALION A.L.F. LT. COL F. STREET DSO. COMMANDING DIARY KEPT BY 2880 Lance/Cpl. J.S. BARTLEY 30th Battalion. A.I.F R.T.A. 10/8/19. i1/1/10 111 1ORPo100 a She Putrate. War 6. sa A. BBartleg Marenek Ro. Maurelano Ra 15.7..
Cot hst
Jamnn 1916 ST AUSTRALIAN INFANTRY BRICADE. Farm; the transfer of the 5th Division While giving a wide view over the to the Somme in the autumn; the con¬ whole of the war so far as the A.IF. ditions of the Somme winter; raids, and other Australian Forces were con- and other activities. cerned in it, the Australian Oftcial Volume IV. wil deal, amongst other Hitory of the War will give, inerdent- matters, with the retrement of the ally, an intimate account of the fght Germans from the Sommein February, ing of the 8th Brigade, as may be 1917; the fghting at Sunray Trench; judged from the following list of some the occupaton of Bapaume; the two of the subjects of volumes I. to VI.:- German counter-attacks upon Beau- 'Volume I contains the story—as metz; the battles of Bullecourt; the interesting as a novel -the only full German counter-attack upon the dank and accurate story ever written of the of the 5th Division on 25th September, landing at Anzac. Of whole phases of and the capture of Polygon Wood, in this important battle (actions unvolving spite of thus, on 26th September, 1917, casualtes running into thousands on in the third battle of Ypres. our own side and thousands on the Volume V. will deal mainly with the Turkieh side), not a word has ever part played by the Australians in stop- before been written. The full and ping the German advance upon Amiens authentic details of the Turkish side in March and April, 1918; a detailed are now given. The same sources can account will be given of the fghting in many cases never again be reached, before Mforlancourt, and of the launch and this volume and the second will, of the great allied counter-ofensive therefore, stand always as the one upon 8th August; and the advance to authoritative account of the great land- the old "outer lne" of the Amiens ing, and of the Australian fghting in defences. Gallipoli. Volume VI. will include a full and Volume II. will deal with the details accurate account of the heavy fght of of Lone Pine, giving the complete 9th August, in which Vauvillers was Turkish story, as well as the Austra- taken; the fghting before Foucaucourt; lan, from hour to hour. It will give the advance to the Somme at Peronne similar details of the great night attack and towards the Hindenburg line It and the fghting on "Sari Bair"; and will end with a very detailed narrative of the evacuation. of the fnal battle of the Hindenburg Volume III will tell of the forma- lne, which was launched upon 29th tion of the new divisions; the transfen September; the fghting on the canal, of the Australian infantry to France, near Nauroy, the sugar factory, the and its entry into the Hne near Armen- penetration to near Magny la Fosse, tières and the frst raids there. It will and other incidents of great interest. give a detailed account of the battle Volume XII will contain over 600 of Fromelles; the nght of the 8th photographs, covering almost every Brigade upon the left; the intentions umportant battlefeld on which the of the Higher Command in this action; ALF. fought; with many famous its place un the scheme of the offensive photographs taken actually during the and its actual effect; the lst, 2nd, and fghting. 3rd Divisions at Pozières and Mouquet By Amthoriy: Anssar J. Miotierr, Govermment Printer, Nielbourne. G3010. and thene onl hefolloed
nich ofllih jandars,. 19le. fonmd He, 2e6 st ihe Fera Ofiee, Harhour Trust, Gireuler Qusy, syener, where he sJted for setive servie abrosd. Fere he mede his first ee- Queintance with the Army doctor, who promgtly started on Ho. Freinatinge hin. fortnight, he returned homenne De abod ihe systerious fat die sund res Ir fürr Faaus Deter. ge. He slept little ihe turned home age ie owever, he had an ezperiene whi ea g i ned fpur years before. hose ide n fertuignt gen passed, and on the merning of ! Hirche was found en the seuere at Vietoris Barrach 3 and auite reådy and eager io ge inte eame. AMMNER There, on the Square, he made his first mate, Tom a fes weeks They were destined to jart. Tom to ihe min No. 2880 jo dhe Infentry. Ther met sgein however. .he leat dine, s' a vilege in Franee, nase Draneute, and we. sirearalz hepe ithat his firet mate eame throuch the Sig stun I. amar ach ne e Fassss V there linsd the emmo ronte, Dren ihe shouse of "rowell miss and en gour Mother er bed", "You 11 be sorry", er. Zelr wee a eireue, Fer! ene vould hea etiei 43. Rersver. N. and sov! ens hed oniz be w l04 in a simiar e eaen hefll e eis ner. and
Reydtilt 'BAI JOVEI THEY MAKE A MAN THINK!" Un qui préfère rester chez jui" M.MA.T. 'NESVos.- it al oldi dde To ins Or the
he joke. It " om the tragie siereoe were duite hr of eourse, npon fir ean neme) into eamp, all hands eeees ine te realis joke, but in the near future t estanding and hard truth, when brought face to face wit ditions of war, and it is a faet that Fo. 2880 did miss hi espeeiellg while on the somme düring that long eruel wint 316-17. But in spite of the lads joking, there was the spirit o ustralian spirit of cheerfulness, which carried it all, that true ordeal, end it was meinte; diers ührüugh mang a Dee fiehe Jarouch the whole war. SAUTH The next precedure wi sei e t e eas O reeognised as an old e he Weld, Old sterr fr- "Camp Routine", and all Orders", wrüht This was follored by an issue of blankets, a waten din mug. After ihat tents were allotted, and ühe firset ds ihe military eereer of Ro. 2660 had begun, and he was plaeed " Company of the Depot. I7e Rert morning eiter Shveieal jerks. her were all paraded for keieel Inspestion. One man was rejested as undit for setive servige, though ne was aecepted in Syinev. In order to enlist he old his business, ihat was the hard part abon: it. ( Then the drill eommeneed. Averr morning at eir, ihe b ued through the lines to wake the sleepers. Then Physie jetks till breskfast time, and after that the awful, monotonone nd Drill, and Saluting by nunbers. It was fünnr io see ihem ending in the ranks with their "aniforms, for so far the Weirri ueed pich, Sams wore strem bete, aud sone elethes had not keen d. blue suits, some brown. Boots A. others wor aniforofts; and ihes hapes and jay, but after a few mon did nat 190. ea t eg Pproved tnemsely. hen dhey were knockee
avms. TA MILITARY SERVICE ACT ompuls ARR.eD.. CROUS O CTN3LIEN Degsltret, "We dont want to tght but by Jingo. it we do!! Nous ne tenons pas à nous battre, mals gare aux Soches sinous nous décidons! Nesros.
ste troops in the world Eifles, they never saw. Those doing guard dutr were ar ich a baton. The company offieers were Captain ---, and Lieutenant --- icher of them were at all popular, and No. 2880 never ever ard of them going to Franee. The chanees are that they kept home fires burning. In his own estimation the Lieut. was a dash ing young gallant, and was generally to be found of an evening. ound in the 7.M.C.A. tent helping the ladies to drink tea. No. 80 well remembers him threatening to drill him after parade, m evening, under the glare of the lamp in the Church of Englan ut, for making a trifling mistake in drill, one morning. Abent one of the first warninge ther got was in referene he Ligh: Horse. At that time ihere was not much love lost b The Infantry and, as they were ealled, "The Gentlemen of the Light Norse". The term applied to the Infantry was "Men of the Infantry. During No. 2880's stay in camp however, no trouble ever oecurred ween those two rival units. The Pombing Instructor was Lieut. Pobe good sort. He was too young to go abroad as an offieer, sohe ned his commission and left as a sergeant. Our "trenches were bush avenues; and the hombs were 2 lb. jam tins filled with ouss. The food was good, being plain and plenty. But eoming from a Pbetter table, they growled at it, yet in later days during the herdships in the trenches, they often looked back and wished for the food they used to ignore when they were "marmalades". spee- jally for a loef of dodger, of which No. 2880 had seen so uch sste in eamp. ANURAOT The ehaps were a jolly fine crowd and Serg.-Maje xtremely popular. The N.C.O's were good, and amongst them Sorporal finple aud er..CAAANS st also be mentione für the interest he took in the "marmalades", and it was from ithat No. 2880 had his first lesson in the waya ther have in ust. Tunneling Comgeny. irnug. Jim was transferred
-- ga long time afterward No. 2880 met him at Sandhill, near War- ter, England. A. FiSN Then there was Priva who was dubbed as the "fleunder". as amite an interesting ehap, and No. 2880 and he had some ed times iogether. They beeame known as the "Pitt Street jocker seeonnt of the fun they used to have on the Herry go-round. Fo. so and ihe flonnder sepsrated in Eeypt. Dut met sgein in Sydne, ihe war was finishee. In those days, in order to get on, plenty of "hides and "chek needed io get on. It was a dase of the survival of ihe fittes:: ring was rife in the eemp, and gradaslly the reeruit began to s a litele edneated in erar life. They grew ennning. 70 be able dedge parades wes the first rule that some learnt, and it wes Aweys a good stunt to manage to get on a cock's fatigue, rather an de a guard. So after a week or two in eamp hey beeame "fly Sche wey they do things in the ammy. 11 men hed to have their hair eut very short. Some of the ts had a gertein amonnt of pride in their heir, and were it tle long. Ih was an amusing sight, on a seleeted day to se- ed before a "eourt" and eondemned to the harber, Whe usmally one half of the head verg short and left his vietim to go abon- lines in chat state. The eamp was situated abont two miles from Liverpool and ley green hill which gave it a splendid position. In spite of he regalations many of the oeeupants of tents insisted in letti gople know the name of their erstwhile residenee. Most of the s have ben forgeten. Nut hose remenbered are.- The Kelly gang. an's Ar Abode of Love. iden's Petreat, and 5. Noah's Ark. 4. nine "pipremma" tatoo was en. This wae rathe Duee 6i nichtly event, and at ihat hour they were compelled to maste- gfront of the ient in pyjemss in order io ansser ihe roll eall. mely, ene eould alway Er e from ihe inside,
-5 mt fellows used to answer for ene enother, and at times they would ig up a dummy men who slept in the plaee where the absent man ally oeempied. "That's Bromn', they would tell ihe sergeent. on't wake him up, as he has just come off guard". But the jcke Ment always eome off, and the absent one sometimes found himself ned for Orderly Reom nert dey. On eeeonnt of no uniforms being available for some weeks, wa qmite a trade done with any man who had any artiele of ferm to sel, and No. 2880 anrions io get inte khaki, heame woatient and for the exehange of-a few bob, was soon a possess (a uniform and eap, and felt like a soldier, though at ihe time he had only known it, to use a Digger's expression The wes not soldiers bootlaee. Te be in kheki in those times was to be well in the limelisht, he while they were George Street soldiers Fo. 2880 and his mates ad happy times. The mud of the Somme later on however, soon e Jhe swank and took all hat gar kiwi polish off the and leggings, and mede men think. Instead of Kiwi, dubbin 14. and at times No. 2860 used hie morning issue of bsson fat e a little colour on his boots when ihe oecasion demanded. after a While there was an issue of dungarees and slonch hats. ter Wbloke" was such a eonsiderate men, for as each marmal- ged Before him he was handed a suit generally about five es to0 big, and if A eompleint was made the man was told iehange amongst his mates. Later on, however, we found that ih the Guarter Kaster's heart was through the pocket, and one rone io believe üha remark of Larl Kitehener's wher he wes paosed to say that he knes the wages of every man in the army. t the Guarter äaster, for nobed, knows that. Thanks io ihe er bloke", ihey spent much of their time wendering round the es looking for a "swaps of elothes. The kit bags were anything but uniform. Some had portmanteaus, arbe appeared to be moat in, use. In ine Chure T.R.C.A. Theg had mang a Wioyable evenin Leinsente wert en br pe. dies amd genilenen frem ühe Git. e a le e

FAREWELL DINNER
MARCINELLE (HAIES)
CHARLEROI-BELGIUM
14TH APRIL 1919
FLEURBAIX
ARMENTIERES
FLERS
BAPAUME
POLYGON WOOD
BROODSINDE
MESSINES
WYTSCHAETE
CORBIE
MORLANCOURT
HARBONNIERES
Y AUVILLERS
ETERPIGNY
BELLICOURT
NAUROY
8TH BDE BATTALION
A.I.F.
9
LT. COL F. STREET D.S.O. COMMANDING
DIARY KEPT BY
2880 Lance/Cpl. J.S. BARTLEY
30th Battalion. A.I.F
R.T.A. 10/6/19.
11/1/16 - 6/8/19.
[*This Article was [[?]] to
the Australian War Memorial
by J.S. Bartley
Warwick Rd
Merrylands
N.S.W.
R.T.A.*]

 

 

Drawing - see original
 

 

January 1916
8TH AUSTRALIAN INFANTRY BRIGADE.

                    ______________________________

While giving a wide view over the

whole of the war so far as the A.I.F

and other Australian Forces were
concerned in it, the Australian Official 

History of the War will give, incidentally,
an intimate account of the fighting
of the 8th Brigade, as may be 

judged from the following list of some
of the subjects of volumes I. to VI.:— 

Volume I. contains the story—as

interesting as a novel—the only full

and accurate story ever written of the
landing at Anzac. Of whole phases of

this important battle (actions involving
casualties running into thousands on 

our own side and thousands on the 

Turkish side), not a word has ever
before been written. The full and
authentic details of the Turkish side
are now given. The same sources can
in many cases never again be reached,
and this volume and the second will,
therefore, stand always as the one
authoritative account of the great landing,
and of the Australian fighting in
Gallipoli.
Volume II. will deal with the details
of Lone Pine, giving the complete
Turkish story, as well as the Australian,
from hour to hour. It will give
similar details of the great night attack
and the fighting on "Sari Bair"; and
of the evacuation.
Volume III will tell of the formation
of the new divisions; the transfer
of the Australian infantry to France,
and its entry into the line near Armentières
and the first raids there. It will
give a detailed account of the battle
of Fromelles; the fight of the 8th
Brigade upon the left; the intentions
of the Higher Command in this action;
its place in the scheme of the offensive
and its actual effect; the lst, 2nd, and
3rd Divisions at Pozières and Mouquet
 

 

Farm; the transfer of the 5th Division
to the Somme in the autumn; the conditions
of the Somme winter; raids,
and other activities.
Volume IV. will deal, amongst other
matters, with the retirement of the
Germans from the Somme in February,
1917; the fighting at Sunray Trench;
the occupation of Bapaume; the two
German counter-attacks upon Beaumetz;
the battles of Bullecourt; the
German counter-attack upon the flank
of the 5th Division on 25th September,
and the capture of Polygon Wood, in
spite of this, on 26th September, 1917,
in the third battle of Ypres.
Volume V. will deal mainly with the
part played by the Australians in stopping
the German advance upon Amiens
in March and April, 1918; a detailed
account will be given of the fighting
before Morlancourt, and of the launch
of the great allied counter-offensive
upon 8th August; and the advance to
the old "outer line" of the Amiens
defences.
Volume VI. will include a full and
accurate account of the heavy fight of
9th August, in which Vauvillers was
taken; the fighting before Foucaucourt;
the advance to the Somme at Peronne
and towards the Hindenburg line. It
will end with a very detailed narrative
of the final battle of the Hindenburg
line, which was launched upon 29th
September; the fighting on the canal,
near Nauroy, the sugar factory, the
penetration to near Magny la Fosse,
and other incidents of great interest.
Volume XII will contain over 600
photographs, covering almost every
important battlefield on which the
A.I.F. fought; with many famous
photographs taken actually during the
fighting.
 

By Authority: ALBERT J. MULLET, Government Printer, Melbourne
G3010.
 

 

P E R I O D  1.
ENLISTMENT TO GIPPO-LAND.-
=============================
The night of 11th January, 1916, found No.2880 at the Recruiting
Office, Harbour Trust, Circular Quay, Sydney, where he was
accepted for active service abroad. Here he made his first acquaintance
with the Army doctor, who promptly started on No. 2880
by vaccinating him.
Being told to report in a fortnight, he returned home not a
[[?]] excited, and his mind meandering about the mysterious future.
He slept little that night. Nearly four years later, when he
[[?]] home again however, he had an experience which fell far
[[below?]] those ideas he had imagined four years before.
A fortnight soon passed, and on the morning of the 25th of
[[January?]], he was found on the square at Victoria Barracks amongst
[[?]], and quite ready and eager to go into camp.
There, on the square, he made his first mate, Tom RIMMER, but
[[after?]] a few weeks they were destined to part, Tom to the Mining
[[?]], and No. 2880 to the Infantry. They met again however, and
[[?]] the last time, at a village in France, named Dranoute, and No.
[[2880?]] sincerely hopes that his first mate came through the Sig stunt
[[alright?]].
Well does No. 2880 remember January 25th, the day he marched
into [[?]] camp. The troops already there lined the camp route,
and the new recruits were welcomed by the shouts of "You'll miss
your Mother". "You'll miss your feather bed". "You'll be sorry", etc.
One would have thought that the whole affair was a circus. Next
day, however, he discovered that quite a crowd of those practical
jokers had only been in camp but one day themselves, and so the
next day he followed suit and greeted the new lot in a similar
manner, and thus passing off as an old soldier. At the time all
 

 


Photograph-  see original document
H.M.A.T. "NESTOR."
Printed card - see original document
"BAI JOVE! THEY MAKE A MAN THINK!"
"Un qui prefère rester chez lui."
 

 


-2-
enjoyed the joke. It was something new, and right through the war,
apart from the tragic side, No. 2880 maintains that many of the
army ways were quite a comic opera.
Of course, upon first marching (if you can call it by that
name) into camp, all hands accepted the above remarks as a fine
joke, but in the near future they were destined to realise a great
outstanding and hard truth, when brought face to face with the conditions
of war, and it is a fact that No. 2880 did miss his feather
bed, especially while on the Somme during that long cruel winter of
1916-17. But in spite of the lads joking, there was the spirit of
it all, that true Australian spirit of cheerfulness, which carried
our soldiers through many a trying ordeal, and it was maintained
right through the whole war.
The next procedure was an address by Staff CapSMITH, whom No.
2880 recognised as an old cadet officer of his. The subject was
the 











 

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