Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/215/1 - August - September 1918 - Part 2

Conflict:
First World War, 1914–18
Subject:
  • Documents and letters
Status:
Awaiting approval
Accession number:
RCDIG1066673
Difficulty:

Page 1 / 10

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3y t Caty 46 A a5So Chil WB of the Briticl onty ti) on The Mey follo Ret Red wood S.S. bired a 3 bett were & 17 py t then way through While going tho tere the toach W 1 English on 1rye8. Sot The Tamalus on the right & guide. There be ne fighting at the T

left front & silencing them.

As the infantry went

forwd by section rushes

to / Gully's edge there ws

fire not only from E of

the Gully but from / banks

& the thick scrub on our

side o / Gully.  There were

abt 100 Germs here, very

hard to see; & they were

firing over the dugo the roofs

of their shelters.  Capt Hall

ws killed just on / edge

o / Gully w / leading Coy.

Capt Norths Coy ws just

behind.  He saw / trouble

& moved straight up & took

charge of Halls Coy.  Hall

had bn working his Coy

9

 

splendidly w whistle &

hand & was probly sniped

on tt acct.  (Hall is a

Melbourne man - he is the

4th officer in Commd of tt Coy who

has been killed).

North is a Brisbane Solicitor

- he was in the fight at

Bullecourt & lay out in

/ snow w a broken leg

till rescued by the adjt

Capt xxxxxxx Vanstan

abt mid night by daylight

next day.  He went to

Aust. & got his M.C. at

Sailly le Sec in / attack

towds Sailly Laurette ^July 7/8; he

ws hit later by a shell at

Lihons during one of the
10

 

sudden German strafs.

When we had worked

into / wood on / gully

side to within abt 100 to

50 yds o / Germans they

surrendered.  The 46 Bn

moved across / valley

- got no interference

from the Germs further

N who were busy w /

45th Bn.  The Germs

had left the hospital by

this time & run back.

There were Germans in Richmond

Wood.  As these Germs

cleared the 46 Bn moving

up there cd see Germans

in another trench on the back

top o / bank 100 yds W

of Hope Wood, firing on the
11

 

45th.  They worked behind these

& settled that opposition

allowing 45 to get ahead.

As the Bn worked out

into / open past Hope &

Richmond Woods the guns

in 30D cleared out.  Bn

moved to its objve just

E of the house by the hut

hospital.  45 Bn reached

its objve abt / same time.

The 5th Division on / rt were

not yet up, & 46 ws

able to get into the hospital

huts where they found some

very good lager. and a

German officer.

It was as the Bn ws

abt moving up on the E side
12

 

o / gully by the red brick

hospital tt the armoured

cars went thro.

On the advance our 

heavies lifted from gully to

gully at abt ½ hr intervals.

The advance ws so

rapid that it used to 

reach the gully before the

heavies had lifted, & had

to wait there.

One other tank of 46 Bn

ws hit near the X Roads in

30 A. otherwise the tanks

got thro'.  They eventually

worked down into Richmond

Gully with difficulty &

the 12 Reserve Tanks

seem to have lain up here too.

13

 

K.  Capt Lieut Hall (as above)

Capt Symons of left Coy - he ws

hit in front of Susan Wood.

46 Bn. Sept 18

46 Bn ws just E of

Soyecourt abt a good mile

W of the Rly wh ws ¾ mile

W. of the start.

They formed at 6.30, an

hour after Zero.  It ws

raining & miserable.  Everyone

was soaked while they were

forming up.  The men had had

a hot breakfast at 3. a.m.

It ws very misty.  The

46 Bn had 1500 yds of front

to cover.  It went over on a

14

 

2 Coy front

________      ↑       _________

   D                            C

________             _________

    B                            A

They moved from assembly

position in artillery formation

on this front.

After crossing the rly

there ws a heavy belt of

wire wh ws hardly cut at

all, & the German barrage line

ws on the wire.  The

barrage opened just as

Bn got there.  The 2 leading

Coys were pushed thro /

gaps in / wire very

quickly without serious

casualties.  The following Coys had
15

 

a few casualties but Bn

H.Q. following seemed to get

/ heaviest. The RSM ws hit,

runner killed, 2 L. Gunners

wd.

From there it ws a good

steady plod.  The maps had

become a pulp & were

difficult to read - they picked

up objects wh they were

looking for - Wood Cambresies

& so one.  They had to

get touch with 1st British

Divn on / rt, but from 

the start cd not get touch

with anyone there.

They got into 48 Bn

objve & first caught up our

own troops here.  45 were
16

 

just going on; 48 digging in;

46 arrived a bit before time

& / men o / three were

hard to distinguish.  While

46 Bn ws organising, the

fight ws going on ahead

w some posts over / crest.

45 moved out & 46

ws to follow 600 yds in rear.

A lot o / offrs went out right

on their tail & waved their

arms to / men.  When /

men saw their own offrs

ahead they joined them up &

/ Bn ws easily reorganised

ahead of 48 Bn objective -

men recognising their own
offrs - what looked like a difficult
job turned out easy.
17

 

By the foot o / slope o /

next gully 46 Bn ws close up

on 45 Bn.  They had to wait

while 45 Bn ws getting / Germans

out of the posts o / old

British outpost line, xx & (most of

them) out of Red Wood.

They followed, ^45Bn round S of

Red Wood.  The slope from

Red Wood S.S.E. is very heavily

wired w 3 belts of German

wire & they had to pick

their way through it.

While going thro there they

got touch w / English on / right.

The Tumulus on the right ws

a good guide.  There had

bn no fighting at the Tumulus.
18

 

 

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