Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/209/1 - July - October 1918 - Part 8

26 Bn (Stapleton)
At Lagnicourt. Posts were placed around / front o /
village as shown opposite ⨂. The Germans were 1000
yds or so away when they began to congregate. The m.g.
post on / right (where 5^th Divn ought to have - by plan -
been supporting) had to be withdrawn from positn (1)
to positn (2) as / German by working up behind / trees
on / road cd have made it impossible to hold it -
one sniper in / trees wd  have settled it.
The German attacked as shown - but
ws stopped on / left front where marked. He
then got up round on the right & attacked
thro /  manure heaps (some crept up very close
there) & worked up to / trees & around / rt
flank across  / road. Lt Jerry of 28 Bn brought
78

Diagram - see original document
[*(Jerry ws k w Cherry,

in Sunken rd, later)*]
up his pln on /
rt flank &
made 4 posts
there.  But /
German simply
wiped them out &
only Jerry & his batman
got away.  Then /
German got in closer;
and the left post & / post
fourth from / left were
scuppered; & / German line
was all round / remaining posts as shown
by / dotted line ---- . The rest of our people
(Cherry ws w them) met to decide whether to stay on & be
scuppered or whether to retreat now - & decided to
stay (Stapleton's post ws xxxx the amongst those there) when
/ Boche gave in first - & retired.

[*Germs were actually within

xxx 15 yds

posts at ⨂ were

xxxxx knocked mgs.(2 mg.). Of the Germs,
some were to within

2 yds at (2).
xxx Just as the Germans got in behind abt M
One L.G. stopped .^Cannon flayed [beside?] in
sunken rd w a lot of Germ ammn. wh saved them when one mans rifle got [checked?]

126

28 Bn ws reld tt night
by a Bn of Manchester Regt.
They had been marching for a
long while and had packs up.
The German teams were seen
taking their arty away at /
beginning of this attack & taking bringing
them back later.  They were
bringing motor lorries close
down to / front - & their
troops were streaming down
all / aftn into the Sunken
Rd N W from Beaurevoir.
28 Bn came out tt
night to Cabaret & from
there were attd to 6 Bde in
front of Estrees.  They were

reld on night of 5/6 by 30^th
American Divn.
79

Somme (Aug 29) &
Mt St Q.
26 Bn.
Started w 3 Coys in lead &
one in Support.
Bn left Chuignolles at
3.30 a.m. organised on rd South of
Sugar factory Dompierre.
Left there abt 6 to cross a
line running NW from Assevillers
to N7 Central by 7.30.
This ws done exactly in
time - working in Arty formatn
from Sugar mill.
There ws a little
fighting seen away on left by
Flaucourt. But N of Barleux
in / old trench system they came
under m.g. fire near Meudon
Wood.  They had to get down here

125

shell & lay up at Bn H.Q.
bleeding from nose & mouth.
He took his successor out
to his post.  He shot 2 German
offrs & his information ws
very reliable.  A reinforcemt
offr (permanent staff man)
Scott ws in this show - his
first.  He got 2 fingers shot
away & carried on till the
line ws settled - he got an
M.C. out of this fight.
Lt Spencer ws wd
Lt Smiley also wd.
T Casualties 6 offrs &
91 o.r. out of abt 330 taken in.
MacIntyre stayed on his
post & ws not evacuated.
Lt Tozer ws wd & Lt Britt
took over.
80
a bit - & from there broke into
extended order & attacked in
rushes.
Bn finished on Somme at
from Eterpigny Lamire Fm Nwds to grid
betw 9 Central. & 3.
On the trenches on / heights
N W of Eterpigny a rear guard
of Germans put up a fight.
Their shooting ws erratic.
On reaching / Somme the
Bn found / bridge over /
Somme intact but they were
mined & were blown up tt
night.  We had a patrol down
trying to stop them but they cdnt.
On Aug 30. abt 6 a.m.
Capt Coopers Coy tried to cross
by / track thro / marshes
(duckboarded) S. of 9 Central.

124

Lt Keillor ^(I.O.) was killed
in / advance near Lormisett
Farm - He was a very brilliant
I.O. - succeeded Meysey Hammond.
(His body & Cotterills were brought
back & buried at Hargicourt.
Birt was a Tambellup
lad.  He got an M.C. on Aug 11.
He had a brother who joined
/ British Army at / beginning
of the War, being in England
on a visit - Charlie Birt - as
a Pte & is now Lt Col. C.O.
of a Bn of Border Regt, D.S.O.
with 2 Bars.  He had a sister
in the WAACs & another running
a hospital in England).
MacIntyre this day had
½ dozen German revolvers on
him.  He got very close to a
81
The Engrs brought a pontoon
down during / night &
put it in, & Coy crossed
at dawn. The track petered
out at the water 150 - 200 yds
E.  The O.C. put out in an old
punt looking for crossings
but cd find no way across
owing to natural difficulties.
Even on / other side it ws no
better - Cooper found the marshes
w high reeds & quite impossible
for infy.  No m.g. oppositn.
Aug 30.  That night they were
reld & came into trench W. of
S. of Herbecourt.

123

The Tommies came up on
/ left onto Prospect Hill -
wh made it unnecessary
for Tozers pty to go out.  Also
the Beaurevoir line ws not
continuous.  The positn
ws very hot indeed N. of
2 Central & Tozers post Coy ws
eventually established there
(post under Lt Britt).
Capt MacIntyre had
posts in the drain wh runs
across / S. side of Prospect
Hill - he had some o /
British troops also under him
there, when they came back.
Pughs Coy ws with 26 Bn.
Hqrs ws finally estabd
in / Sunken Rd N of Lormisset
in a Pillbox in / trench.
82
26 Btn  Mt St Q.
On Aug 31 they were in Square
I.B S.W. of Herbecourt.  Abt
1.15 p.m. they got orders to go
via Feuilleres via Clery sur Somme
to Lost Ravine.  Camped there
night of 31st & during aftn of 1st Sept
came up rd N of Park Wood into
Florina & Prague trenches.  Not much
Fairly continuous shelling.
They turned in without
any thought of an attack. Abt
1 a.m. Col Robinson rang up to
say he wanted to see OCs Coys
& they went down to Hqrs ^(in Prague trench) when
a scheme ws laid out, with
no Operatn Order
The Coys sent out one offr
each to reconnoitre / rds S of

122

line of posts over / top o / Hill
so as to Command the W
slope of Prospect Hill -
it ws not known tt / Tommies
were attacking & a flank ws
required towds Gouy.
It ws decided by Major
Brown to do this by pushing
up the Beaurevoir line
The Tank didnt appear at
/ destination tho' one went to
Bellevue.
Cotterill ws k by a shell
going up abt 8cd. 7.2.
Burt ws shot ^dead abt 8.d. 1.5.
trying to help 26 Bn, away from
his own pty.  His batman got s/bs
to go up under / white flag
but his batman ws wd in doing so
xx under white flag.
83
Mt St Q & approaches.
At 4 a.m. they left Prague
& Florina, A Coy leading.
They came up Florina onto
rd, up Agram Alley & then
cut E into the road from
Mt St Q into Anvil Wood.
(The Germ. they later found, ws
holding Gott mit uns).
A Coy got into positn alright
but cdnt find any trace o /
other Coys there.  They shd have
bn on / rd further rt.
Zero ws 5.30 am. Barrage
opened to time.  Cooper ws
There ws no trace of any one -
A Coy went, 40 strong, w / idea
of making a flank for / other 25 Bn.
They went straight out into a tremendous
German barrage of all sorts into

121

of Estrees.  There were 3 Coys
only as / Bn ws
weak.
Hqrs Coy under
Lt Burt worked
with C Coy.
(abt 1 pln strong).
Diagram - see original document
28 job ws to push up Beaurevoir
line ^thro 27 Bn & behind left flank of 26 Bn
Then swing left & form a left
flank in the Beaurevoir line
as far S. as near L'Ormisset.
The 28 Bn wd then push down
the trench on N side of Prospect
Hill (with one tank) - this
ws Tozers job; & Pugh ws to
detail a pln to go similarly
along / S. Side of Prospect Hill
& join up w Tozer by a
84
Koros Alley - they disappeared
in smoke & shells & split into
2 pties - 1 up Koros & one up
Karool Kurilo Alley. They chased
Germans, overran them, ran him
down, got ahead o / barrage
losing abt 15 out of 40 going thro -
The 2 pties went on X firing at
/ Germans from one trench to /
other up / alley - the Germs once made
to xxx shiftx their m.gs. never
got them going again.  They got as
far as a cross trench in
I 9 11 c & I 17 a.  There they
split & sent a pty down /
trench to / rd in I 17 A &
another along Ruprecht trench to
/ rd in I 11 D.

120

absolutely dark - Maj. Mitchellx
& his mare found / road for them
& left them only at Bellicourt.
The cookers got up to / rly
Cutting ^N of Bellicourt.  This ws / night of
Oct 1/2.
On mg evg aftn of Oct 2/x the C.O.
Maj. Brown ws called to Bde Hqrs.
He had a confce with Coy Commdrs
so tt they cd go up & reconnoitre
/ ground.
They jumped off from the open
behind 26 Bn near Mint
Copse.  The troops made took a lot
of advantage of a cable cutting
wh ran parallel to / Torrens
Canal & abt 600 yds short of
it.  They got into barrage there.
The German ws v. slow w his barrage.
A m.g. ws troubling them from in front
85
As 25 Bn were going under
/ barrage (26 were thro it)
they drove Germs down behind
the 26^th into all these alleys
- in rear of them.  Only 25
were left.  The Pty at / head of
Rupprecht trench came back &
fought these Germs in Rupprecht
trench & took many prisoners.
A pty of Germs (30) came down Brunn
trench. Got to within a few yds
of Coopers small Hqrs & found
who thought they were prisoners.
Abt 7.30 Capt Fletcher, 25 Bn
came down Brunn Alley &
sent a Coy down to help / flank.
28 Bn later sent a pln up
Koros Alley.  25 perished along
Rupprecht to / rd again.

119

28 Bn came out to the
Omiecourt Canal - Thence
to Cappy (under Col Currie who
had bn ill).
Suddenly orders were
recd on Sept 27 (after
American transport had gone
thro by night - miles & miles
of it) - to xxxx to go Doingt. Thence to Templeux
la Fosse;  the troops were cheered
here by Bulgaria throwing it
up.  Then by night to
Doingt.  All this by night.
Thence to Hargicourt at 9.30
one morning; arrving in aftn.
At Dark 28 Bn moved up
the "black" Rd thro Villeret.
It ws raining.  They moved
½ mile forward of Nun
Bellicourt to Cabaret Fm.  It ws
86
Lt Lawson of A Coy ws badly shot in /
head while leading the left attacking pty up Kurilo
Alley.
The other Coys hopped off
from W of Gott mit uns trench
The plan ws
as opposite.
Diagram - see original document
C Coy with under
Maj. Woods with
½ B Coy in support
came up Agram Alley, then rt
across the aviation ground.
They had to lie in the huts waiting
for the start.  The whole C Coy
hopped off at 6 a.m. with 5^th Div. They
with the ½ B Coy we ^wh had bn lying in Suppt - &
the barrage came ^under very heavily barrage
on them during the wait - (This barrage ws
brought down by the 5.30 attack
on their left.)

118

On night of 4th 28 26 Bn with
^the part of 28) ws reld by 32 Bn.
Lt Stephenson ws wd on
mg of Sept 2 cross the road break
in Koros Alley (by fire from
the Copse (trees round quarry) on / main road
[Aug 29 - & 30
Lt Boyle 26 Bn, who joined from
Northern Territory, ws w 26 Bn
in the Aug 29. attack.  He had
4 brothers N. Zealanders all
previously k. or died]
The men were never better than
this day - pushing off under a heavy
German barrage.  They were in good
spirits aftn Aug 8 & 9^th ]
The 28 Bn lent a pln s/b.ing to
6 Bde on Sept 1st - 6 Bde spoke highly
of their work.  They were under Lt Stephenson.
87
D Coy ^(centre) started off at 5.30 am.
making due E; as A Coy
went along they caught a
glimpse of men moving down in

tt direction.  They D were cut to
pieces in the open.  They seem to have met
xxx Germs first from the Sugar Factory but the deadliest fire was in the triangle betw. the 2 roads
Lt Montieth commdg them
ws k. Lt Major ws taken prisoner.
(Capt Paul had bn evacuated wd
/ day before - & these were all their
offrs). Major seems to have got away
on his own to the far ^treelined road
& reached some small trench beyond abt
the road.  There were several
strong posts w m.gs. along tt rd.
Maj. Woods was killed in /
same triangle.  (The half of B Coy
wh ws shd have followed A lost both its
offrs - Capt Lieut Taylor ws killed following
D Coy - shot thro / thigh & bled to death