Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/204/1 - August 1918 - Part 4

As soon as / attacking
troops left their shallow trenches
German shelling increased.
considerably.  The two left Coys
sent their plns slightly later
than the rt Coys.  During /
aftn m.g. fire became intense.
The German arty ws violent.
Our own arty, owing to /
vagueness o / situation ws
unable to operate v. greatly.
Tho' many Germs had withdrawn
several hundred had bn left
strongly posted on the Proyart
ridge, & for / two kilometres
over wh attack had to go to
reach / main Germ. positn
(the objective) / troops were
in full view under direct fire.
29

The Germ. ws also strong in
St Germain wd.  M.gs. forming
a strong solid rearguard
defence.  The Ridge in
R 8A & B ws also strongly
held.  Before ½ hr had
elapsed from J.O. heavy
Casualties were inflicted on
us by m.g. & shellfire -
Abt 20 men being put out of
action before leaving / vicinity
o / trench line.  The shelling
ws of all sizes from 12 in to 77.
several guns fired over open
sights from rear slopes of Proyart
Ridge.  (There were no tanks -
& no barrage - some area
shooting ws arranged but few
batteries were in positn as
they were shifting).
30

In St G. wd, & huts in
/ Quarry behind it abt
100 - 200 Germs were strongly
posted.  On being shelled
by Germ guns these continually
put up white Verey lights but
Germ. guns still kept dropping
shells.
42 Bn had to result
to open warfare tactics,
working round mgs from
flank etc.  Abt 2 p.m. as /
attack ws getting to this
positn several hundred Germs
tried to retire to / general
line of Proyart Ridge.
Riflemen & L.Gs. of 42 Bn
killed many of these at
ranges of from 100 - 700 yds.
31

many of these Germs surrenderd
(abt 100 including several offrs
had so far surrendered). The
Our men were beginning to
feel v. distressed owing to /
intense heat - diffy impossibility of sending
water forward - lack of sleep
/ night before, & / heavy
calibre shelling.  Also /
midday meal had to be held
over till night time.  Still, they
pressed forward, losing pretty
heavily (310 men jumped
off - (100 in reserve) - at this stage
/ casualties were abt 50).
The advance had bn down a
broad slope bare as your
hand, exc for St G.  They
pressed to / objve & went onto
/ crest o / ridge, past the main
32

Proy art Cappy Rd - so as
to command Chuignolles
vally.  EI 1 pln of D Coy
pushed on into / trenches by /
ruined windmill, beyond
/ X rds.  Their left flank
extended along / ridge Westwards.
At this stage 10 Bde were
(probly) abt 15 central, or
bend of Rly South of it.
At this stage / Germs began
to pour reinfts Swds down /
main Rd & trench system from Long
Woods & up / Chuignolles
Valley to a strength of several
hundreds in close formatns.
A large No. of them carried m.gs.
In / trench in 9 B were abt 60 or 80
Germans & they showed
willingness to surrender tho' 2 or
3 of their offrs cd be seen trying
33

to prevent them.  Our
only troops within 300 yds of
here were 2/Lt Boorman
w 3 N.C.Os & 4 men & a L.G.
Not being able to spare a
man to take /c of the prisoners
or to show their weakness to /
Germs & not being able to kill
them owing to shortage of ammn,
(The L.G. Corpl ws lying at / X rds
firing down it wh. ever way /
enemy came ∧along / hedge rd side they had to
withdraw after inflicting
heavy casualties
The Coy on their rt (C),
having had the Coy. Commdr
Tempy Capt Jack M.C. gravely
wd (? d. of wds prisoner)
& another off. Lt O'Connor (MC for
this) & most of NCOs k or w,
34

& being out numbered by Germs
& under point blank 77 & 42
from Chuignolles Valley,
were also forced to retire
abt 100 yds w. of main Rd.
The Rt Coy, for same reasons
were also forced to withdraw.
Lt Jack Maclean M.C. who
had taken m.gs. posts & abt
30 prisoners besides being
in / thick of everything
all day ws wd in /
thigh by an explosive
bullet. (He ws gn D.S.O
for this). This Coy (A) withdrew
to A Con Conxxxx to in
line with the Centre Coys
flank, their line passing
somewhere near Cemetery & rly.
They cd see the 10th Bde.
35

Abt 4p.m. one coy of
43 Bn reported to left
Coy of 41 Bn - wh got
up late, felt their
way forward under
Capt French & Lt MacGibbon
between the Chuignolles
Rd & / river bank.  They
were heavily shelled & lost
abt 24 men in the Coy-
Imed. after getting there
these offrs had to ride
back & bring up a ∧full strength Bn
of Lincolnshire Regt (17 Divn)
along / Chuignolles
Mericourt - East valley
past St Gs Wood.  Near
Fallettes Wood / Germs
put down a v. heavy
arty fire - the whole area taken
36 

consisted of dumps.  A
full Bn relieved this
one Coy of 50 men under
shellfire all night. [*42 Bn took
on this as / hardest fight they ever had - exc. for B Coy agst /
Guards at Bouchavesnes
It ws without
barrage,
by open
day, down
a plain
slope.
It ws
thought
because several
hundred were
seen retiring
tt / Germs
had 
practically
withdrawn.
It ws
found tt
any
amnt of
Germs
were left.
The men
reckoned / Germs
were in strength
& thought it
ws absolute
certain destructn
abt 310 started &
100 casualties*] 
That night / whole
Bde moved back to ∧near Kate
wood & Cerisy valley.
(It ws then day light on 13th).
Thence to Hamel. Aug 13.
There ws an attack
exp^ected near Chaulnes, &
the offrs  & NCOs went down to Li hons
to reconnoitre.
Aug 19. Next move ws on evg of Aug 19
to gulley E of Sailly le Sec.  Everyone
made a reconnaiss ance
to Gressaire Wood where
J.O.T ws to be.
On morng of 22 Aug,
37 

at 5 am Some time after Zero xx 11 Bde
Bn marched to the fore
End of Gressaire Wood on a tape
line ∧in K 24.  The British batteries in the
wood came were heavily shelled
& there were a number of
casualties.
At 9pm 24 Aug.
Coys moved up to / bump
of high higher ground imdly N. of
Bray
Diagram - see original document
They stayed here while
assaulting troops passed thro
on night of Aug 24/25 to
attack at 2.30 a.m.
25 Aug.- 42 on left got to their
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