Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/204/1 - August 1918 - Part 3

41 & 42 stopped on these lines
Aug 8^th & 9^th & 10^th till evg.
Then they 41st had to relieve
13^th Bn. from Q 7 c. 9. 0
to Q 13 D 5.0. (i.e. from opp in
/ old Amiens defence line
from ST Germain Wood to
W. of Proyart.
Aug 10/.11  That night N. of river
the 13^th Bde took Etinhem.
10 Bde made a similar
attempt.  S. of Proyart wh
failed - thro Germ. aeroplanes
& tanks being discovered.
Next mg. 11^th Bde 41 Bn ws
told tt it ws to take the
old Amiens trench system from
their left flank Northward
to / river, cutting off
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Mericourt & Cateau Wood.
Mericourt contained Germ.
m.gs. & T.Ms.
Cateau Wood also contained
Germans & m.gs.
Germaine Wood had
many Germs & m.gs.
The C.O. went down
with I.O. to Bde & I.O.
arranged an arty programme
as under (1)&(2) standing
barrages &
(3) creeping
barrage.
This ws
agreed - but
arty turned
out to be
short of
ammunition
Diagram. See original document.
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Diagram. See original document.

& the Bn ws not informed
of this at all.
They were to be gn
30 mins covering fire after
reaching / objve in wh
to consolidate.
At 8.30p.m. it ws broad
daylight - this ws / zero
hour - the assembly ws
difficult & had to be done by
2s & 3s to prevent / Germs
knowing what ws happening.
It ws done in / old trench system.
The arty fire ws v. feeble.
There ws a smoke barrage
on 12 B.  As soon as /
barrage started there broke
out heavy m.g. fire from
Mericourt, Cateau Wd, /
trenches, & St. Germain.
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The men kept dropping into
/ trenches & cleaning them,
& / trenches saved a lot of men.
The Vickers guns helped v
greatly & kept up a good
barrage all / time.
The trench mortars were
there under Lt D Brown.
He ws standing up on / trenches
as Bn went on, directing
his guns onto m.g. positions
- he ws hit as he stood
there - later d. of wds.  The
T.Ms put fear into / German
gunners & our men were
able to rush them.
Lt J.E. Woodford ws
w a pln wh ws held up
by a m.g. He got it out in 2
parties in some old trench on
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both flanks of this m.g.
They then all rushed it
together - he going at it
from / front. He stopped
the whole stream & ws k
at once; but / men got to
/ gun & got it.
There ws fighting / whole
way.  Where they reached /
road just below / hilltop /
barrage ceased. The last
500 yds had to be taken
simply by infy fighting - throwing
bombs into every dugout on
chance.
When they got to / ^high bank
above / marsh they got
they sent up / success signal - green Verey light.
The 3 Coys wh had gone in
had taken abt 130 prisoners.
It ws dark long before this.
23 

There were / pln of each
Coy facing Cateaux Woods, &
Mericourt & 3 plns of each
facing St Germain Woods.
Soon after reaching /
Somme, a party went into
Cateau wd & got abt 70 prisoners
& 2 offs. These were near /
edge o / wood.
Next mg. 43 Bn got /
rest o / prisoners without
fighting.  The Germans were
walking into our line all
tt night.
Abt 120 Germs were k.
there.  The Tommies of 17th Divn
(Sherwood Foresters) who
relieved had to bury them.
The T.Ms mopped up fired over Mericourt
during this fight to keep it occupied -
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the H.T.Ms
41st Bn lost 75 men in
this.
Lt Woodford  k.
Lt Brown T.Ms  k (old 41 Bn man).
Severely wd:  Lt Rogers. m.g. in shoulder
- staggered up - shell got him in /
other shoulder. (He had bn hit thro'
both arms broken.
/ stomach at Ypres - in the C.C.S
he struck / same nurse this 
time - & it probly saved him).
Lt W. Perroux - wound in
head from m.g.
Capt x P. Calow - wd in arm
by m.g. wh broke arm.
(All these returned to Australia).
41 Bn stayed in these trenches
on Aug 12. & were reld on
night 12/13
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42 Bn. When 41 began their
attack of 11/12, 42 moved
from Bde Suppt & reld part
of 9 & 10 Bdes in Amiens
line from C7 rt of 41st
(C 7.D5.0) to X Road
R 19 B.8. 6.
9th Bde went to
Div reserve; 10 Bde
occup in line from rt
of 11th to W 800 yds E of La
Flaque.
42 had 3 Coys in line
/ in Suppt 500 yds behind
front line.  BHQ at O 24 Centl
This ws night of 11/12.
German shelling pretty
heavy & bombing intense -
Aug 12. Word being received tt
10 Bde had penetrated
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successfully S & E of
Proyart & the S half
of Proyart village, 42 Bn
were ordered to push out
patrols & keep touch w / enemy
Supposed to be retreating,
& press him closely.
Before 10 am Lt J.H.N.
Price M.C. took a patrol
into (N.End of Proyart,
& reported moderate oppositn.
^Int. Offrs of 42 Bn Observers on hill at
R 13 centl. reported / Germs
withdrawing in large numbers
from Proyart Hill (9 Centl)
& ridge, SEwds.
At 11 am x One Coy platoon of
(A.) under one pln of A Coy
(rt Coy to wh Price belonged)
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followed (at noon) by a
Second pln o same Coy
made towds / N. part
of Proyart in open order -
occasionally getting down
under m.g. fire.
The other Coys were all each to
send a pln in / same
way (but orders reached
them later) - The right
Coy (A) had to get from
left of 10 Bde (suppd to be
at R 21 Centl) to abt /
rly Xing (R 15 A Central)
C Coy, (Centre), from
there to / X Rds at 9 Centl
(Proyart Hill).  D Coy on / left
from X Rds to. rly Xing
R 8 B 7.7. to left of 41st at
R2 C 0.4.
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