Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/217/1 - August 1918 - Part 3

(The 2nd shell wh fell in Gottlieb

where / men were 4 deep

certainly got 25 men)  Gow had

gone up to Save trench to get 23 Bn

to five them more room - The

18 Bn only had one offr in the

part of Gottlieb wh 24 got into

& he had gone up into Save

trench.  In ^left of Gottlieb ws Maj.

MacDonald 20 Bn who warned

them tt a no of his men had

bn left in Feuillacourt.

Abt  midnight came by

runner a warning order tt

24 bn wd have to attach in 

/ morning.  Detailed orders

came abt 3 or 3.30. Zero

ws to be 6am.  Nothing ws 

known at tt time abt /

positn ahead.  There ws a

rumour tt some 5 Bde elements

19

 

were ahead.  A patrol of

Baldocks abt 11.30 went

out & along Save trench where

they found a handful of 17 Bn.

No Germans were ahead there.

On / left Maj. McD. decic ws uncertain

if he were not in Oder trench -

but it ws ascertained by Lt

Stuart & others tt / trench ws

really Gottlieb. (Oder trench

ws smashed to bits & almost

unrecognisable.

The 5 Bde ∧men knew tt there

ws a Coy of theirs out ahead

of them somewhere - they pointed

over / top & sd " there is a Coy

of ours over / top out there", but they didn't

know where.

On the left they knew there
20

 

ws no one ahead exc. 5 Bde

wd in / village of Feuillacourt,

At Hqrs it ws thought a few

5 Bde men in Elsa, but it

ws not known for certain.

The men in Elsa trench had

no commn during / night -

no party moved up or down

Galatz trench. ( There were some

7th L.T.M. men in Agram alley)

[Capt Ingram had shown

Lt. Baldock in / aftn the

direction of the head of Uberalles

& Gottmitt uns trench & sd he thought

a Coy of 17 Bn ws in there].

The start was at 6 - D Coy

started at 6.5. a.m.    Abt 5.30

(a little before 5.30) the Germans

had opened with barrage &

m.g. fire.
21

 

[Under the original orders

the 24th Bn ws to take

/ village, & the 23 Bn to

 attack towds Perrone.

Col. James & Col. Brazenor

sent urgent appeals to Gen.

Robertson & he came up

himself - Division got down

on him for leaving his Bde.

Robertson from the Quarry

cd see tt the 23Bn was involved

& tt it ws far more than a

one Bn show to take Mt St Q.

& the village of Feuillacourt -

the objve ws Hante Allaines.

When Robertson came up the

Bn ws very anxious indeed at

/ prospect - & his arrival ws

most welcome.  A message came

for him there tt he ws needed at
22

 

 

a conference (wh ws held at

his Bde Hqrs) & he had to hurry

back there.  At 11p.m. they

were still waiting to know if

/ orders wd be modified or if

they wd have to carry out /

original attack. Abt 1am.

the alteration came.  The four

Bn COs. were all together in

a joint Hqrs.  This ws by direct

order from 6 Bde wh ws not

relaxed next day.

A 6a.m. the barrage

ws a concentration on

certain distant areas.  The

right linked with 23 Bn at  of the 24 Bn at the jump off

ws where the rly line crossed /

trench.  They had gone 200 or 300

yds before they cd see where

23Bn ws - it ws a heavy
23

 

 

drizzling rain & it ws

hard to see them.  The

23rd Bn came in touch

abt 450 yds ahead, just

as they reached the barbed

wire short of the N end of

Galatz-Agram alley.  There

ws practically no oppositn

till they got thro Elsa

trench.

In Elsa trench were some of 

 5 Bde.  They went right thro'

Elsa trench on the left half of it

(with 23 Bn on right) & began

to get oppositn then from

VARNA [trench, from the cemetery,

& from the village.  This oppositn

ws heavy m.g. & rifle fire.

On this part they saw no Germans

till they crossed the road.  As they
24

 

 

crossed / road they saw the

first Germans - they were

manning Varna trench - There

were snipers behind / trees in 

/ village & there were m.g.

positns thro / village.  They

cleared Varna trench & k. or captd

all / Germans in tt part of it.

They got 50 yds ahead o /

cemetery.  There Lt. McCarthy

sent word up to Lt. Sedgewick,

to say tt 23 Bn ws held up

by / copse on / rt o / village.

The left flank ws held up

also.  Sedgwick ws then working

up / trench beyond / cemetery.

They withdrew &

came down into Varna trench.

The German worked

down into / village & got a m.g.
25

 

 

into positn above above Varna trench

wh enfiladed the trench - This

made it necy for Sedgwick

to withdraw into the Sunken

Rd wh runs N from Varna

trench & E of Feuillacourt.

Sedgwick's left ws then abt

as far down as the Light

Rly (towards 9 central).

[There ws a very big quarry

on the NW corner o / cemetery.

Abt 30 Germans were had bn got

out of this in / attack.)

Sedgwick stayed there till he

got further orders for / attack

at .  1.30.  Lt. Jenkins (23 Bn)

came round abt 9am &

Capt Bowden, Gow, Jenkins & Sedgwick

had a talk over / position &

S. went down to ring Col James up
26

 

 

& let him know / positn.

A heavy barrage ws put 

on / village.

The left in / meantine

started from Gottlieb abt 6.5.

The barrage ws on Feuillacourt &

ws to be there for 20 mins.

No oppositn ws  met on /

left - (the later waves struck

some there a little later & from /

right) till they got into the village.

Here a m.g. ws firing from /

bridge across / canal where

there must have been a pOst.  [32d

Divn ws supposed to be ahead

on this flank - otherwise 24 Bn C.O.

wd have worked Bn thro the

canal & left / village behind

-but it ws expected there wd be no

oppositn in / village or from / left]
27

 

 

Cpl Cook ws told to keep

this post quiet w L.G. so tt

the Coy cd get on.  They pushed

thro' to the Tortille River, & 

got held up again there by a

m.g. positn on a bridge across

/ river ( a wooden trestle bridge)

Cpl Cook engaged this also &

put it out of action - he ws

with Lt Whitear all / time.

From then on it ws impossible

to advance in formation owing 

to m.g. fire & snipers.  So they

advanced by ones & twos

from shell hole to shellhole till

they reached the N. position of

the same bank along wh

Sedgwicks positn finally was.

Enfilade fire ws coming from

/ left all / time.  The m.g. fire