Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/225/1 - 1915 - 1918 - Part 7

pick up guides at /

last house on / Bellicourt

Nauroy Rd, in Bellict.

Bn left 4a.m. for J.O.T

but guides werent there.

It ws raining & v. cold.  They

then went to 29 Bn Hqrs

who produced 2 runners &
an I.O. who took Bn along

Bellict-Nauroy Rd to where

the C.T. crosses it.  There

pack mules were & a picks

& shovels were issued to / men.

Each man Bn started

to Nauroy

      Vine Hall               Benson

  ____     _____           _____    _____     →

     D          B                  C           A

A & C were to lead.  Half way 

to Nauroy, over / top,
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commn ws broken half

way down C Coy, wh

put / two last Coys off -

the Bn ws hastening to get

to zero & / weather ws

v. bad.

The I.O. lined them up

on a rd in Nauroy.

This Rd faced / wrong way.

The whole of A & ½ C got

lined up there when

/ barrage dropped -

rest out of touch, no

sign of 56.  There ws

a big gap on / left

to 15 Bde.

60 A Coy )

17  C Coy  ) 77 men ws

all tt were there when
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X  This barrage ws v. good Exc.

for a whole bty falling short /

whole way.  This hit at least

15 men before they saw what

ws happening, when they side

stepped it.

They were to tell / barra objve by the

barrage halting / & they did this; but

this bty ws short to / end

& objve ran like this →

Diagram - see original document

barrage dropped.  They took

over 56 Bns sector as

well as their own & barrage

dropped short into Nauroy. ^X

When it lifted they followed

it into & met no m.g.

no opposition.

They had gone abt 250

yds when 56 Bn came up

in column of Route onto

/ field.  They marched

past 54, shook out, &

squeezed 54 in.  54's other

coys came on w them.  Benson asked Vine Hall to come

in on the left in the front line -

Bn ws disorganised by ^all this

but reorganised on final

objve.  There they got onto

their pr open sectors.

56 Bn went on to Estrees

where Capt Benson had a
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consultation with L^t Watt

& it ws decided to push on

& see what cd be gained.

Watt pushed on.  A Coy

54 went along to occupy /

Sunken Rd on Watts left. to

Folemprise Fm.  All A Coy

went there, & ^2 plns of C Coy just

forwd o / crest.

D & B & 2 plns of C

were on / reverse slope

consolidating.

15 Bde didnt come

up on left for some reason.

54 had these Coys in support

as a defensive flank.  There

they joined on reverse slope w

15^th Bde on main objve
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When 56 withdrew Benson

withdrew his 1½ coys also to

main objve.

56 went forwd agn later.

This time Benson didnt send his

Coy down agn as his Coy wd

have to go straight down to N

end of village in view o / Germans

who by now had pulled

themselves together & were

playing w m.gs. &

putting in counter preparatn.

A defensive flank ws put

in from left of 56 back to

15 Bde which ws still on 

/ main objve.

A divisional order came 

up then to push on.  Capt

Benson ws in a quandary
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what to do when Col Marshall

came up & went to see 56 Bn

& about came back &

confirmed Bensons arrangements

& told him to stay.

The 54^th ws in a much

shelled area, but had few

casualties.  They dug in where

they were.  After 1½ hrs German

shoot ended, exc. where he saw

movement.

Abt dusk, after Sunset,

54 Bn shifted to / Sunken Rd

in A 24 D at / head of Sault

Valley - & a bit ahead of it -

making / front line.  They were

in touch on both flanks w

/ front line (Vine Hall's 2 Coys

in front & Bensons in suppt).
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They dug special trenches there &

stayed till mg of Sep Oct 2

when 2 Div passed thro.

54 came out along

red route to positns of

night of Sept 29 & follg days.
J
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 54 Bn. Peronne. V/B.

(Col Holland)

The left of B

There ws a Rd wh abt

bisected the sector of 54 Bn.

German attack seemed to be

bounded by this rd (The Warfusee

Fouilloy Rd.  54 Bn had

2 posts in 19B & 2 in

13D.  These were pln posts.

The Germ barrage in / morning

seemed to be on / area S.

of this Rd.

24 A 6.4 ws Bn H.Q. near the

2 trees.

The posts were echeloned

abt 19B 8.8 & 8.4

C.O. had bn round / posts

tt night & had come back &
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& ws just reporting all quiet

when down came / Germ.

barrage.

The Germs came on abt

1½ (?) hrs later but were

heavily fired on from our posts

wh held.  The Germs seemed to

come on w their rt on /

road - pretty thick.  They

seemed, when stopped, to

swerve to / rt into /

gap wh ws made by /

Br Kings Royal Rifles swinging back on 

/ rt.

Col. Holland moved his

supports up & reserves up

on rt to cover / flank thus

formed.  The British had a

line of old parts bent straight
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back & round to / rt. -

but / Germs never actually

got hill 104 itself.

56 Bn came and formed

a continuatn from 54 Bns

rt flank. to the Cachy Rd wh

went under / rly.

Lt. Harvey ws / pln

Commder in/c of rt post.

55 Bn wh ws dug in to /

banks in front of Hamelet

had 2 coys to move if

needed.
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