by Peter Hart
As with their northern neighbours, the III Corps had been asked to carry out one of the most difficult offensive actions of this or any other war. The 8th Division was centred on the Ovillers Spur while the 34th Division faced the La Boisselle Spur and the valleys on either side. The artillery conformed to the generally prevailing arrangements, although some effort was made to allow the field artillery to rake back gradually in short lifts designed to cope with the numerous interlinked defence works between the main lines. It was not a proper creeping barrage as the lifts were ‘jerky’, in jumps of between 50 and 100 yards. Together the 8th and 34th Divisions were intended to advance to occupy positions just in front of the German second line between Contalmaison and Mouquet Farm.
On the left of the III Corps front, due to the configuration of the ground, the three assaulting brigades of 8th Division commanded by Major General H. Hudson were almost entirely dependent on a successful attack by the divisions on either side of them. Baldly stated, if the 32nd Division of the X Corps did not take the Leipzig Redoubt to the north then a blistering enfilading fire would rake their left flank as they advanced in the exposed Nab Valley. Similarly, if the 34th Division to their right failed in attacking the La Boisselle Salient then their right flank would be savaged from the south as it pushed into the Mash Valley. In view of this total dependence on the success of others, Major General Hudson tried to slightly postpone the 8th Division zero hour to try and reduce their exposure, but had been brusquely overruled by Rawlinson, who realised that a failure to attack at the same time would have allowed the Germans to concentrate their defensive fire on the flanks of the 32nd and 34th Divisions. It was indeed a difficult conundrum.
In the event it happened as Hudson had feared, for the men of his 70th Brigade on the left found the open ground of Nab Valley an utter death-trap. The first wave made some progress breaching the German lines, but as the German defences reorganised and the machine guns began to intervene from the flanks, the supporting battalions found it almost impossible to get across No Man’s Land. Amongst them was Corporal Tansley of the 9th Yorks and Lancs.
Zero Hour, the whistles were blown, ladders were put to mount out of the trench and lanes had been cut through the 30-foot British wire. We had been told, ‘There’s no need for this short rushes and getting down on your stomach, go straight over as if you were on parade. That’s the orders, there’s no fear of enemy attack, that’s been silenced by the British guns’. Up we went through the lanes cut in the wire, spread out and tried to follow this instruction. Myself, I was a bit sceptical about it. Anyway we tried to adhere to it as far as possible. We spread out, I and my section made for this slight ridge marked by an old farm implement. Looked around for where the line was, they seemed to disappear. Lying about on the ground. There was a severe machine-gun fire coming from the region of Pozières, half-left.73
Corporal James Tansley, 9th Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment, 70th Brigade, 8th Division
At this point Corporal Tansley was wounded and soon found himself facing an awful predicament, badly wounded and trapped between the front lines.
Down we went and my mate who was with me, he went down shot through the legs. I attended to my mate and he had some qualms of conscience in him, because he wasn’t facing the enemy when he went down. I didn’t realise anything like that myself, but he was an old regular soldier and it troubled him so much. Side by side we were there and he was hit again, hit through the mouth. It killed him. I didn’t know when my moment might come—I expected it at any moment. The best thing I could do was to lie low, keep quiet. Another wave came over. As that was passing the enemy fire hotted up of course. They went farther on to meet the same fate. When it died down somewhat, I looked around for a shell hole and found one. It was chock-a-block full—dead, wounded, unwounded—I couldn’t get in it! So I had to remain on the surface. I was there until 3 p.m. Just before 3 p.m. I managed to crawl into the trench. I’d stayed the flow of the blood with my own digital pressure in the groin because I’d had some instruction in ambulance work I knew that by applying pressure on the pressure points it would stay the blood, which it did. There was casualties everywhere, more than the RAMC could cope with. I must have lost consciousness some part of the time. I revived a bit and asked them when they would get me away, ‘Oh yes, we’ll come to you ...’ It was really a godsend they did pick the up and bring me out because there was so many there who never got picked up at all.74
Corporal James Tansley, 9th Battalion, York and Lancaster Regiment, 70th Brigade, 8th Division
As the support battalions tried through sheer guts to get across No Man’s Land the German counter-attacks steadily eradicated the survivors of the first wave who had made the initial lodgement in the German lines. This same sad story of failure was repeated immediately to the south where the 25th and 23rd Brigades had their attacking battalions shot to bits by a combination of powerful direct fire from Ovillers and the eviscerating flank fire from La Boisselle. One young staff officer acting as divisional forward observation officer reported back on the results of the attack.
I was given a place with my signallers about 400 yards behind our front line on a bank where you could see very clearly on a fine day. The troops advanced out of the trenches, but by this time although the sky was clear the shells had thrown up so much smoke, rubble and a reddish dust was over everything. There was a mist to and hardly anything was visible. One saw these figures disappear into the mist and as they did so, so did the first shots ring out from the other side. I thought our men had got into the German trench—and so did the men that were with me. I reported as such to the division. I said, ‘I’m going forward, I can’t really see what’s happened!’ I got a message to stay where I was, so I stayed where I was! Presently as the barrage went forward so did the air clear and I could see what was happening. In the distance I saw the barrage bounding on towards Pozières, the Third German Line. In No Man’s Land were heaps of dead, with Germans almost standing up in their trenches, well over the top firing and sniping at those who had taken refuge in the shell holes. On the right there was signs of fighting, I saw Very and signal lights go up in the trenches. Then I waited and another brigade was ordered to resume the attack. Providentially for that brigade the order was cancelled with greater realisation came in as to what had really happened. It was the most enormous disaster that had befallen the 8th Division, the whole division was ruined.75
Captain Alan Hanbury-Sparrow, 2nd Battalion, Royal Berkshire Regiment, 25th Brigade, 8th Division
The German artillery added to their misery as a severe barrage poured down on the British front line and No Man’s Land. In these circumstances it was a tragedy that such secrecy had attended the construction of two substantial communication tunnels some 13 feet below No Man’s Land, for it meant that they were not brought into use until it was effectively too late in the day to change the outcome.
MEANWHILE, on their right the 34th Division had the awesome task of capturing the La Boisselle Salient. They were to attack in four ‘columns’ each marching three battalions deep on a front of about 400 yards. As the assault battalions left the assembly trenches the following battalions would simultaneously set off from the support lines on the low Usna and Tara hills lying behind the British front line. Because of the enormous strength of the La Boisselle village salient it had been decided not to attack this frontally but use pincer attacks to ‘pinch’ it out. The men were assured that the village had been utterly destroyed but once again the deep dugouts and cellars contained the seeds of disaster for the advancing British troops. In the flanking attacks they had the assistance of two huge mines. On the northern flank was Y Sap, a 1,030-feet-long tunnel which contained 40,600 lbs of ammonal, while on the southern flank the Lochnagar mine had put the phenomenal amount of 60,000 lbs of ammonal under the Germans manning the Schwaben Höhe Redoubt. These were intended to not only cause devastation in themselves, but also throw up high crater ‘lips’ of fallen debris, which it w
as hoped would provide substantial cover from enfilade fire as the infantry advanced across the open expanses of No Man’s Land. The mines were to be exploded just two minutes before Zero Hour at 0730.
The Y Sap mine was intended to assist the advance of the 102nd (Tyneside Scottish) Brigade as they assaulted the German line immediately to the north of La Boisselle, into the maw of the Mash Valley. The mine caused tremendous damage, but the Tynesiders still had to cross some 800 yards of open ground before they got to the German trenches under concentrated criss-cross machine-gun fire originating from in front and the fortified villages of Ovillers and La Boisselle on either flank. The casualties were horrific. Very few reached the German front line and those that did were soon hunted down.
Just to the right of La Boisselle, the rest of the 102nd and the 101st Brigades were attacking on either side of the Lochnagar mine due to detonate under the powerful Schwaben Höhe Redoubt.
The mine went up and the trenches simply rocked like a boat, we seemed to be very close to it and looked in awe as great pieces of earth as big as coal wagons were blasted skywards to hurtle and roll and then start to scream back all around us. A great geyser of mud, chalk and flame had risen and subsided before our gaze and man had created it. I vividly recall as the barrage lifted temporarily and there was just the slightest pause in this torment, several skylarks were singing—incredible!76
Private Harry Baumber, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, 101st Brigade, 34th Division
Experiments had shown that any debris that might cause physical harm to the advancing soldiers would have crashed back to earth within 60 seconds of the explosion, although naturally the dust and smaller fragments would take longer to settle. But, not unnaturally, many of the men found this difficult to believe and perhaps waited a little longer than was strictly necessary before setting off across No Man’s Land.
It went up, the ground suddenly jolting and then rocking below our feet. Muck was thrown some two or three hundred feet into the air to land later like a load of coal dropping for what seemed an age. The instant it stopped we went over the top with ‘the lads’ to claim the new crater. Amid heavy supporting fire, I and a handful of men brought up the field telephones and the cables essential for the communications between the front-line troops and our artillery.77
Corporal John Maw, Royal Artillery, 34th Division
The mine had wreaked terrible devastation blasting out a volcano-like crater, which measured an incredible 270 feet across and 70 feet deep. One of the contact patrol pilots of 3 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps had an amazing view of the explosion as he flew over the battlefield.
Then came the blast when we were looking at the La Boisselle Salient—suddenly the whole earth heaved and up from the ground came great cone shaped lifts of earth up to 3,000, 4,000, 5,000 feet. A moment later we struck the repercussion wave of the blast which flung us over right away backwards over on one side away from the blast.78
Second Lieutenant Cecil Lewis, 3 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps
The sheer power of the explosion collapsed many of the German deep dugouts to smother their cowering garrisons, but even so, for all the drama and spectacle, the Lochnagar mine only eradicated the German defences in the immediate area of the crater. The rest were relatively untouched and still functioning. The machine guns from what little remained of the Schwaben Höhe Redoubt were joined by others flanking the assault from the village of La Boisselle and the Sausage Redoubt.
By now it was over the top and away up a gentle slope to the German trenches. Line behind line of steadfast men walking grimly forward and wondering what was in store. We soon found out. I noticed men falling thick and fast about me and all the time the tremulous chatter of machine guns. It was akin to striding into a hailstorm and the further you went the less and less became your comrades. Jerry had not been obliterated, his wire had not been destroyed and we had been called upon to walk 800 yards across No Man’s Land into Hell. A far cry from the walkover we had been promised.79
Private Harry Baumber, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, 101st Brigade, 34th Division
Their officers were equally horrified by the strength of the machine-gun fire. It seemed impossible that they were not hit as the bullets sprayed all around them, flicking spitefully at their uniforms and equipment.
When we got the orders to advance, we climbed over the top of the parapet. And the enfilade machine-gun fire—the air was full of bullets and the men began to fall all round us. It was tragic. When these men were hit with bullets, they just fell flat on their face and the air was full of bullets. I got one between my fingers, just clipped a bit out of each. When we came to want something to eat, when you got your haversack off your back you found that the bullets had gone through your Machonachie ration or tin of bully beef. Some very near misses.80
Lieutenant A, Dickinson, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, 101st Brigade, 34th Division
At last the men reached the smouldering depths of the Lochnagar crater, which was rimmed with lips of fallen debris that stretched up to 15 feet high. In the hurly-burly of crater fighting speed was of the essence and it was vital to consolidate the crater before the dazed Germans could regain their equilibrium.
When we arrived at the crater, our orders were to man the top, round the lip of the crater. Of course the Germans they soon played their machine guns on that lip and first one would get one through the head and roll down, then one after another would roll down into that bottom which tapered down to a point. It was still hot as an oven after just being blown up.81
Lieutenant A. Dickinson, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, 101st Brigade, 34th Division
To the left of the crater the 22nd Northumberland Fusiliers broke into the German lines under Major Acklom and managed to carve out a precarious foothold that stretched forward as far as the German support lines. All in all elements of three battalions gathered around the great crater, no doubt drawn by the cover it offered. Yet the flanking fire poured in from all around and crossing No Man’s Land was a deadly game. Major Vignoles attempted to get forward with the reserve D Company, which had been assigned to the mundane but essential role of carrying forward ammunition and trench stores that would be needed to consolidate their objectives. It was soon apparent that the task was anything but mundane for even before they left the British front line they came under heavy fire.
My company got out of the trench to carry forward our stuff and a Boche machine gun kept sweeping over us. I got the men down and while getting them all together I tried to stop a bullet with my left hand! I felt a crack and felt as if a red hot bar had been pushed through my hand. On looking down, I saw that I had been shot through four fingers and felt sure that all were broken. I hated leaving the Commanding Officer in such a hot corner, but I could see by the jet of blood that an artery had also been cut, which necessitated putting on a tourniquet, so I could not proceed. Anderson and Turnbull (the only two officers with me) were OK when I left, but I do not know how they got on afterwards.82
Major Walter Vignoles, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, 101st Brigade, 34th Division
Second Lieutenant Turnbull carried on making his way forward, but he was left completely confused by the turmoil of the battle and the sheer complexity of the situation unfolding around him. Pushing across No Man’s Land accompanied by his platoon, he found himself just to the left of the Lochnagar crater shortly after 0900.
Very puzzled with the rotten crater, which was in the wrong place. Used it to screen us from La Boisselle, got as far as the ridge, and goodness knows how many machine guns opened up on us. We all dropped, and I started to crawl to the crater to see who was there, when I got hit in the back. Corporal Turton helped me in. Unfortunately I couldn’t move about much, and felt very dazed. Corporals Barnett and Pearson came into the crater presently unhurt. Tried to sap out to one section not far off, but it wasn’t practicable. A Tyneside Irish officer gave me a drop of whisky which cheered me up. There we
re three unhurt officers there. Got a note from Second Lieutenant Hartshorn, 10th Lincolns and twenty men to say they were in a sunken road in the valley near the Boche lines, and asking for help. Tried to get runner back to headquarters, sent about four, but don’t know what happened to them. Later the Tyneside Irish officer went back and got through, but was wounded. I tried to get the other officers to reconnoitre and make an attempt to get forward, but they said it was quite impossible. There were 50-100 unwounded men. We consolidated round the lip of the crater; our parapet was of uncertain thickness and very crumbly. There was a certain amount of cover for all but very shallow. Colonel Howard was there badly wounded.83
Second Lieutenant JohnTurnbull, 10th Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, 101st Brigade, 34th Division
All hope of breaching the German lines in front of them had vanished; indeed it was apparent that they had very little chance of surviving the concentrated machine-gun fire.
With enfilading machine-gun fire from the flanks it was simply a massacre and although a few struggled into the German defences, we who were left were simply pinned down where we lay. There was no going forward and at this point no way of going back to our lines—an absolute bloody desolate shambles. If you moved an inch it brought a sweeping crackle of fire and we survivors began to realise our only hope was to wait until dark, but that was a long way off.84