Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/152/1 - April - May 1917 - Part 1

AWM38
Official History,
1914-18 War: Records of C E W Bean,
Official Historian.
Diaries and Notebooks
Item number: 3DRL606/152/1
Title: Notebook, April - May 1917
Includes references to the 1st, 10th and 12th
Battalions, Bullecourt, Boursies and Lagnicourt.
AWM38-3DRL606/152/1 

BULLECOURT
1st Bn.
Bullecourt.
12 Bn.  "  " &
(Bours. & Lagnicourt)
10 Bn.  9 Bn.
Original   DIARY NO. 152.
AWM38    3DRL 606 - ITEM 152 [1]
DIARIES AND NOTES OF C. E. W. BEAN
CONCERNING THE WAR OF 1914 - 1918
THE use of these diaries and notes is subject to conditions laid down in the terms
of gift to the Australian War Memorial. But, apart from those terms, I wish the
following circumstances and considerations to be brought to the notice of every
reader and writer who may use them.
These writings represent only what at the moment of making them I believed to be
true. The diaries were jotted down almost daily with the object of recording what
was then in the writer's mind. Often he wrote them when very tired and half-asleep;
also, not infrequently, what he believed to be true was not so - but it does not
follow that he always discovered this, or remembered to correct the mistakes when
discovered. Indeed, he could not always remember that he had written them.
These records should, therefore, be used with great caution, as relating only what
their author, at the time of writing, believed. Further, he cannot, of course, vouch
for the accuracy of statements made to him by others and here recorded. But he
did try to ensure such accuracy by consulting, as far as possible, those who had
seen or otherwise taken part in the events. The constant falsity of second-hand
evidence (on which a large proportion of war stories are founded) was impressed
upon him by the second or third day of the Gallipoli campaign, notwithstanding that
those who passed on such stories usually themselves believed them to be true. All
second-hand evidence herein should be read with this in mind.
16 Sep., 1946.                   C. E. W. BEAN
AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL
ACCESS STATUS
OPEN 

3
BULLECOURT
1st Bn.  152
Bullecourt
12 Bn.   "    "   &
(Bours. & Lagnicourt)
10 Bn. 9 Bn. 

3                 1
1st Bn.
Moved into trenches of
front line at 9 pm - midnight
May 3 arriving early mg 3.30 am. of
4^th. Was under 6 Bde.
Took over O.G.1 from
Rd in 29 to U 28 B05.95
(?U29a 05 95)
A C D
B in suppt. round
corner where C.T. began.
Almost imd. Germs
attd. right flank with
Flammenwerfer - Att. lasted
5 mins. Somerset ws
there.
1 p.m. bombs att. by
Richards & 16 o.r. (with 3 Bn. in
O.G.2) to extend line to U 22 D 90.

3                        2
Party placed a block at
U 28 B 59 (to our left of C.T.
to 3 Bn) Captd 12 prisoners
& got touch with 3 Bn. (k 25
Germans - our loss 3 k. 3 wd).
They also bombed up C.T.
at U 22 D 90 & took 4 more
prisoners, k. 2.
Richards got an M.C. for
this.
(It ws this afternoon tt
2 Bn undertook their att on 
right. This ws later taken
over by 3 Bde).
Att. on 3rd Bn by Germs.
at 9 p.m. driving them back
in O.G.2. Block ws then
made _^ by 1st. Bn in C.T. at extreme
left. Shortly aftwds 3rd Bn
sent party down same trench
again (28 B 55 96) 

3                        3
D relieved A Coy that next
night. mg May 5^th
May 5th May 6th.
10.30, 40 enemy
bombed O.G.1 from left.
Our strong post in trench
with block held them up.
After 2 attempts they retired
to Sunken Rd. down E side
of Bullecourt. They used
to use rifle grenades from 
there. No T.M. noticeable.
At 11.30 Maj _^ P.S.S. Woodforde
who had his HQrs in O.G.1
was inspecting in / trench
when a shell burst close
& hit him in 3 places. He
died soon after.
The trench ws getting it
mostly from 5.9s which 

May 5 (cont)
3      4
flattened it pretty well.
The shell fire was continuous
Capt. A K. Mackenzie C. Coy. took over.
At 1 p.m. 40 enemy agn
tried to bomb down O.G. 1
but ws driven off after
10 mins.
At 4 p.m. more determined
attempt. We opened at
once w rifle grenades from
stop & further back - (range
abt 70 to 80 yds). Germs got
close enough to throw
bombs into trench. All these
attacks came straight
up O.G.1.
The attack lasted 45
minutes. Germs did not
reach our bombing block.
The Stokes guns in O.G.1 

5
Diagram - see original document
^X Howell during the c. attack got up
on the bank & threw bombs until they
ran out & then used his bayonet.
3          6
fired on a pt. at U 28
a 67 - which ws his
reassembling point for
each attack.
B Coy ws brought up
to reinf. at 6 pm. & mixed 
left of with D Coy.
6 May.  5 a.m. Another att. (as per
diary). Down trench at
28B 22 D 55. 30 & O.G.1.
using new stick bomb
to frighten.
At 0600 (diary 16.00)
Enemy's attack on 11 Bn.
Cpt Howell ^X (since
V.C.) had last post on rt of
1st Bn at X. HQrs ws a 

7
A c. attack ws organised immediately
- the enemy having to be
fought to keep him out. The 
Germs. bombed for abt 45 mins
from shell holes, until he ws
driven out. German barrage
had bn lifted to the tank in
his wire.
3        8
little to the left of it, not
far from Bridge.
Mackenzie told him
to let him know direct
if enemy coming down.
(H.Q. ws in German
dugout between Rd junction
& 1^st C.T. to left of it.)
Howell sent message tt
the Bn on rt were
retiring. Mackenzie
("G.O.C." in diary) gave
orders to signalling officer
to go forward w all
batmen & signallers & 
drive enemy out at 
all costs. Germans
had reached abt Z.
Their bombs were falling
all around HQrs
- throwing eggs, stick bombs 

3                                9
They never actually
reached road. Our
people threw bombs
from the bank of the rd.
The Germs. seemed 80
to 100 strong. 2 Officers
were seen, leading, &
both k. I
The 1st Bn went
abt 50 yds along trench O.G.1
with 11 Bn. They were
not alld by C.O. to 
go further. Mack. ws
standing in O.G.1 inside
11 Bn boundary organising
c. attack. From there
he cd see the Germans
near rd junctn in 22.
Diagram - see original document
apparently waiting
to hop over. We
acct^d for 2 offrs 26 o.r.