Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/213/1 - 1915 - 1918 - Part 2

B Coy.  Capt Ronald (shell, in front of
wire early)
Lt Phelps in front of the
wire - also early.
Lt Adam - abt same time
as Ronald - by a shell.
Capt H.T. H.T. Allan
on liaison with British 46th
Divn, gassed.
D Coy.  Capt Mackenzie gassed
Lt Pettit - gassed
Lt Booth  gassed
Lt Moore  gassed.
Capt McLean - gassed.
A good many of these offrs
(e.g. Capt Mackenzie, Bath &
Moore were right up with
the front at the extreme point
before the gas disabled them
At Hqrs. the CO ws / last to
go at 4 pm - none went before
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midday.
At Joncourt the Bn was
in the front line & could not
be withdrawn. They had to
be fed twice (they had no meal
since / night before). They were
very wretchedly sick. Had /
Bn been concentrated just
behind / line there wd have
bn less difficulty in escaping /
gas. But w front line troops
it ws impossible in any
way to avoid it - it
just had to be stuck.
The offrs who remained on duty, were all gassed also
The British on / right
were heavily gassed right
back to Divn.
On Oct 3. The 8^th Notts
& Derbys made a magnificent
attack on rt of 5 Bde - The two C.Os
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of the Bn next to us were killed
The 17 Bn started w a
frontage of abt 1700 or 1600 yds
lengthening out at / final objve
to abt 3000 yds.
The tanks wh had bn told it
ws a 3 hour trip up to / start
took 13 hours – they had
trouble in / Hindenburg line -
The barrage hours only arrived
at Bn H.Q. 20 mins before Zero.
The barrage ws to go 6 mins
on the 1st objve - then lifts
to the high ground - then shoots
on chosen points.
The British Bns on / rt were
very full in strength & their objves
much smaller than ours.
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19 Bn. Estrees - Beaurevoir.
(Col. Bateman)
Had 1 Coy on rt of
rd, 3 on left - went in w 4
Coys.

Diagram - see original document
19 Bn Hqrs ws with w Bn Hqrs
(Col Bateman & Col Forbes) under the
Roman Rd in / trench just W. of
Estrees.
4 tanks were allotted - 2
got ditched at Bellicourt. The
other 2 were late (prob. ¼ hr late).
One o / tanks ditched had bn
allotted to / White House. On /
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previous day Lt Belcher had
reported a lot of movement near
/ white cottage on / rd betw.
the 2 lines o / Beaurevoir line.
He objve of 19 Bn ws /
Beaurevoir System for 1500 yds N
o / rd.  20 Bn ws to pass thro
there & 19 Bn to follow thro 500 yds
in rear as support.
There were abt 15 - 20 gas
casualties - it was not so
bad as on the right.
Col. Bateman sent Lt Vickers
forward in rear o / 2nd wave
w a phone to keep up informatn
as to how / fight ws going. He
got in rear of C Coy. & got
touch w / C.O. abt 7.30 a.m.
He reported tt / attack had
gone well - Beaurevoir Line
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clear, & 20 Bn ^were passing thro 19.
C & D Coys had gone thro, but
A & B were held up. They
got up to / wire in 27 A 1 C
but it ws very thick &
not cleared. There they got
very heavy m.g. fire from /
white house - the left didn't
know tt the right ws held
up, & so it went straight
on. The 18 Bn also reported
tt they had trouble from on /
rt o / road.
Of the 12 offrs who went over
8 were wd. Almost all of these
were wd in the first ½ hr.
D. Coy on / left lost all its
officers & Sergts; in getting thro
Capt Sells & Lt Hampson were hit by
m.g. Both later died of wounds - (Sell ws gassed also
& died of pneumonia.  And when they came back tt night
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there ws a Corpl in/c o / Coy -
the CSM & all / Sergts had
been k or w.
When / source o / trouble
ws located Gen Martin asked if
it wd be possible to get all /
men away from tt area around
the German nest, & straf the
cottage. This ^shoot ws fixed for 11 pm. ^? a.m.
The arty ws fixed f arranged for
300 yds on either side o /
rd, front & suppt Line.
The two Coys of 19 were to be
ready to bomb up from either
flank when the bombt ceased.
The Cottage ws heavily shot up -
bec. when the parties worked
round in / front trench pracly
no oppositn ws put up. 18 m.gs
were got there.
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The white Cottage surrendered -
6 offrs & 200 prisoners were estimated
from this area.
The x Abt 8 or 9 am the
Whippet tanks came up on
being sent for – but as they
came out thro / village they
got were very heavily met & all
knocked.
20 Bn got away up past
Lamotte Fm making towards the
Wind mill & Beaurevoir. Col.
Forbes then issued instrns tt
they were not to go beyond
the Canal until the situatn
ws cleared up. They The
line finally reached abt
Lamotte Fm.
The 2 Coys of 19 Bn wh
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had cleared (w some of 18) the
first objve, pushed on to
fill up / gap between the
left of 20 Bn & rt of 17 Bn.
Abt 4 pm. 24 & 22
moved up past the NE outskirts
of Estrees to the Beaurevoir line
N o / rd, awaiting orders.
Eventually abt 5.45 pm.
Col. Wilshire & Col. James came
down to 5 19 Bn Hqrs & arranged
the further advance there.
Their Zero hour ws 6.30.
They The two C.Os left ^HQ. 19 Bn at 6.5 - They got
thro w few casualties to /
windmill & were in touch w
7 Bde on left.
19 Bn went in w abt 230
rifles & had abt 120 casualties
incl. 8 out of 12 offrs.
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19 Bn ws reld tt night &
came back W. of Estrees -
They were standing by for the
taking of Montbrehain but
were not used.
It ws expected tt / Beaurevoir
Line wd be fully dug from / way
in wh it ws wired & the distinctness
o / trenches on air photos.
Not a man ws lost in
the second attempt - the mopping
up of the trenches. All /
casualties were in / first hour.
The 2 Coys of 19 Bn wh pushed
thro the 1st objve went on
aftwds to the 20 Bns left
& made a flank along the
Torrens Canal. The frontage
ws very big & this ws why /
19