The Story of the 9th King's" in France"

th Div

entirely composed of Liverpool battalions, namely, the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 9th King's. In the Brigade the officers and men had the pleasure of meeting friends they had known at home in Liverpool, comrades with whom they were destined to serve for the next two years, principally

ent picture. The houses were rickety, the billets poor, and the conditions insanitary. So backward were the peasants in agriculture that they still adhered to the use of the old-fashioned flails for thrashing corn. The Battalion moved on the 20th January to Mérél

attalion on his promotion to the rank of Brigadier-General. Before he left

ing Officer wishes to express his regret at leaving the Regiment, which he has had the honour of command

act that the excellent work done by the Regiment

motion and commanded the 58th (L

nit not much attention being paid to tactical work. A rifle range was at the disposal of the B

is time approximately two-thirds were subsequently killed during the course

t here, during which Major C.P. James took over the command of the Battalion, and afterwards it marched via Doullens to Amplier, and after a night's rest in some huts there it reached Berles-au-Bois the next day. En route it passed through Pas, where there was a ste

that on the 15th the Battalion was to take over a sector on the Wailly front, where it was to relieve a battalion of the 81ième Régiment Territoriale. Accordingly very early in the morning of that day the Battalion marched to Monchiet in sleet and

il

o Wailly. The day had been one of blizzards and the night of the relief was black and wet. Added to these circumstances was the difficulty of understanding the directions of the Frenchmen, the Battalion's knowledge of

h alternating in position between the front line and the village. For some days while in the front line the Battalion was in touch with the 27ième Régiment d'Infanterie, which had a sentry post in its area composed of men from one of the companies who readily fraternised with the fantassins. This regiment belonged to a division of the French Active Army,

over all he could look forward to was the cold damp floor of a dugout on which to rest his weary body. For the ration parties the conditions were almost worse. The meals were cooked in the field kitchens in the village, and fatigue parties to carry up the meals were found by the support company which was in a trench called by the French the Parallèle des Territoriaux. Many of the men will never forget the innumerable times they trudged heavily laden with a dixie of tea or stew through the mud in the tortu

ly that Major C.G. Bradley, D.S.O.,

., after a four mile march, a working party had to be found at 8-30 a.m. for work on a Divisional show ground, which was a place where model trenches were dug to show the u

ntinued to do three tours of duty at Wailly, two in the front line and one in th

iet, though the British did what they could to liven things up in the way of artille

k while in the trenches. For example the non-commissioned officer in command of a squad would be told that the enemy had entered a particular sector of the trench. He would then block the trench or deliver an imaginary counter attack along the trench with the object of dislodging the fictitious enemy, as the case might require. The companies were trained to take shelter in the dugouts in the event of a heav

in which the bugler was to sound the alarm. As the lines were near there was some danger of a flammenwerfer attack, so the whole Battalion was taken on the 17th March to a demonstration, and shown what to do should such an attack take place. One Lewis gun was given to each company in place of the machine guns which were taken away from the Battalion, and the Stokes mortar made its appearance in the trenches. This was an over-rated we

the tunic became the Battalion distinguishing mark. The steel helmets were the means of saving many li

ot had broken the silence. The patrol must have made some noise, and so aroused the attention of the enemy sentry in the sap head who fired an illuminating flare. The light betrayed the presence of the patrol to the enemy, who opened fire and wounded both of the men. Afterwards the enemy kept firing illuminating flares and maintained a lively rifle and machine gun fire, so that any attempt at rescue was impossible. At dawn the enemy put up a flag of truce and a party of them came out and gently lifted the wounded into their own trench. It was noticed that the en

ntion as well. The French had covered the front with a chain of chevaux de frise, but this was not considered a sufficient obstacle, so that concertina wire and "gooseberries" had to be put out in front of the chevaux de frise. The wiring parties had a very difficult task, as they had to work about forty yards away from the enemy, who were often engaged on similar work. Also the men had to work in front of the chevaux de frise, and

ave. Shaving in the trenches was made compulsory in March, as it was thought that it kept the men from deteriorating and would prevent any tendency to slovenliness. There was little water for such a purpose, and consequently it was particularly arduous in a muddy trench, and it is doubtful whether the benefits derived were worth it. Breakfast would take place between six and seven. Afterwards the men got what sleep they could during the day, but they were constantly interrupted by sentry duty, meals, shell fire, and occasionally a fatigue. The activity o

and larks in numbers hovered in the clear blue skies above the trenches and sang sweetly in the early mornings. The sunsets viewed from the front line were particular

iberal supply of ammunition, expended it more lavishly than had been formerly the case. In July the Battalion left th

rs was unfortunately killed, being shot through the head. In retaliation for the raids the enemy brought up, on the 2nd July, what was called a "Circus" consisting of several 150 m.m. and 210 m.m. howitzers on railway mountings, with which he utterly destroyed the front line trenches for a dist

e, the Battalion went into Divisional Reserve at Gouy-en-Artois, wher

the front it already held or as reinforcements. In consequence the Battalion, which had had very little training for

titution of moppers up. The rear waves were also to act as carrying parties. One man had to carry a coil of wire, another a spade, another a screw picket, and so on. The reason for this was, that when the enemy trenches had been captured, the enemy might cut off all supplies by means of an intense barrage on no man's land, and it was necessary for the attacking troops to have sufficient material at hand to enab

large barn which formed part of the Divisional Canteen. The doctor compos

stinguished itself. "C" Company cooker again took first prize in the Division,

ork was arduous casualties were few, and leave was regular. In the light of later experience the time s

le of th

oads, the Regiment marched into Autheux. After a few days here the Battalion entrained late one evening for the front, and next morning it detrained at Méricourt. The first sight that the men beheld on quitting the train was a prisoners' camp, in which were many Germans, living evidence of the activity a few miles in front. The Battalion was billeted in Mérico

. The mystery of the column of smoke was never clearly elucidated. The Happy Valley was scarcely correctly named. The weather was exceedingly hot, there were no billets, and consequently the men had to bivouac. The Valley had one great drawback; there were no wells in the vicinity from which water could be drawn. Owing to this shortage, the water-men

ent forward on reconnaissance. They saw for the first time Bernafay and Trones Woods, which then had achieved great notoriety. To the neighbourhood of these woods the Battalion sent f

and dreaded spot, for it was periodically swept with shell fire. At last the companies got to their allotted stations in the reserve trenches. Many had not yet experienced the terrors of heavy shell fire, which by its very nature was intended to produce an unnerving effect. The next day started fairly quietly. On the right the m

Death Valley the Battalion got caught in heavy shell fire, and sixty casualties took place almost immediately. It required a stout heart to ma

ad, many of whom belonged to the Liverpool Pals Brigade, were visible lying stark and numerous on the battlefield. The weary desolation, and the unmitigated waste of equipment, clothing, an

s moaned, and others roared like express trains. Light shells passed with an unearthly shriek. It was useless taking any notice of the lighter shells. They had come and burst before one realised what had happened. The heavier shells, particularly those that were timed to burst in the air, were very trying, and when they burst over Trones Wood the noise reverberated

fernal che ma

they reached the aid post alive. Many got shell shock which affected men in different ways. One would be struck dumb,

osition. The next night the two remaining companies moved up. The devastation in the neighbourhood of Cockrane Alley was worse than at Guillemont. Here the men witnessed the full terrors of the stricken field. Living men dwelt among the unburied dead. Booted feet of killed soldiers protruded from the side of t

renchmen in the trenches with the men. On the 12th August the Fren

attalion met with strong resistance. None came back and it is thought that almost every man perished. Meanwhile the two companies of the Battalion attacked in waves on the left of Cockrane Alley. They got eighty or ninety yards without difficulty, when the enemy opened a heavy machine gun fire, and the ground being convex the attackers formed a good target. The Commander of the right company who led his company from the right so as to be in touch with the bombers in Cockrane Alley, though twice wounded, still continued the advance until he was shot dead. His example was emulated

companies were themselves incapacitated through wounds the rapid evacuation of the wounded even in the trenches was impossible, and moreover the aid post a

ttalion it was a total failure. However, the work done earned for the Battalion the praise

engaged last night his admiration, and that of the French w

he French, there is no doubt our

ugust,

of their health and strength did not return. The next day a short move was made to Ville-sur-Ancre, one of the few villages which contained a shop. Shortly afterwards the Battalion moved by train to Ramburelles, not far from the coast. Of all the villages the Batta

was rest. They were exhausted after their late experience, and they were overworked by the excessive training. Many were fur

for some unknown reason, always received very late in the day and sometimes after ten o'clock at night. As

cheme worked well only in theory. A lot had to be done out of parade hours, which meant that the officers and men were very much overworked. Sunday brought no re

or some time, postponed their trip, and on the very day that they arrived at Delville Wood they remembered that that was the day they should have been basking in the sun at Le Treport. Such is the folly of procrastination. On the 28th August the command devolved on Major P.

the officers were introduced to him during the dinner halt. Montauban was not a very pleasant place, particularly as the

Battalion had to send working parties into the neutral ground between the lines to dig what were somewhat incorrectly known as strong points. When these were finished they were garrisoned by a platoon in each case. The small garrisons of these strong points were quite cut off during the day as

emy should come into view. The members of these small garrisons knew there would be no hope for them, as they would soon have been surrounded and annihilated, and most probably all of them bayoneted. Fortunately the attack was by the British and these eventualities did not arise. The Battalion was relieved during the next two days and went into reserve at Buire-sur-Ancre. After a few days here it moved to a bivouac area at E. 15 a., outside Dernancourt. Though this was some considerable distance behind the front line the enemy forced the Battalion to evacuate this area by firing at it with a long-ranged gun. In

waves being 100 yards. The first wave had to keep close to the creeping barrage of shrapnel. Of the last wave scarcely a man survived, as it came in for the enemy barrage which the leading waves had escaped. The bombers took an enemy strong point and fought their way along Grove Alley and got to work with the bayonet, inflicting many casualties on the enemy and taking several prisoners. This was the first experience the men had of advancing under cover of a creeping barrage of shrapnel and the first occasion that they saw tanks in action.

, and it presented a very changed aspect to its first arrival on this battlefield. Companies were reduced to the size of platoons, and platoons to sections or less. During the battle

ary soldier. There was to be no rest or period for recuperation. The Regiment was ordered to Ypres immediately. Tired and exhausted, the men were taken out of the

t day. The men then bivouacked until reveille at 6-30 a.m. At 8-30 a.m. the Regiment was again on the march to Pont Remy, where it entrained for Esquelbecq, where it arrived at 9-30 p.m., and marched to billets

re

ghe Station for Ypres. It was a new experience for the men to be in a train and yet within range of the enemy's artillery. The personnel detrained just by the railway station at

do of shells, for there was not a single house untouched and very few had roofs. A few shells fell in the Square during the morning, but tha

Afterwards it took over the sector from the Roulers Railway to Duke Street with Headquarters in Potijze Wood. Four days only had elapsed since it had left the Somme railhead. This area was to be the Battalion's battle station for several months to come, and many times were th

the then out-of-date P.H. helmet. These helmets were changed in the course of a week or two for the more efficacious box respirators, which remained with slight modifications until the end of the war as the soldiers' protection against enemy gas. The enemy artillery was very quiet, and obviously the British had the artillery ascendancy, and it was surmised that this was attributable to the fact that he had removed his artillery to t

ed for preventing narrow ways from staving in, and the latter were to face sand-bag walls. They were not easy to use and the men had to learn how to fix them, and their employment entailed many long and tedious carrying parties. The breast-works were divided into fire bays by traverses which were situated every few yards. These fire bays, which were all numbered, had firing platforms made of wood or well-revetted sandbags. The parapet was sufficiently high to give good command over the ground in front. During th

re many who had given up assured positions-skilled mechanics, master printers, clerks, university men, solicitors, and others of several professions and callings who had sacrificed their various situations and appointments, and whose wives struggled on a very meagre separation allowance.

of the Battalion's sector, was a minehead and in consequence the scene of much activity. At one time there had been a wood, but so intense had been the artillery fire that not a single tree or trunk higher than three or four feet was left standing. Almost every afternoon, about 4-30 p.m., the usual trench mortar "strafe" would commence, and would last for an hour or so. A few months later Railway Wood became a scene of much mining activi

eadquarters were housed in dugouts in the wood adjoining the White Chateau at Potijze, in front of which was a large cemetery. While in Ypres itself three companies were billeted in the cellars of the gutted houses in the neighbourhood of the Boulevard Mal

structing Cambridge Trench. The work was inadequately supervised by the Royal Engineers, who left the task to a second corporal and a few sappers, and consequently little progress was made and most probably the trench was never properly completed. The men had their last meal at 4-30 p.m., and as a consequence they could not work with proper efficiency right up

in the Infantry Barracks. There was a recreation room in the Prison, where Church parades were he

They used to go through the city at a great pace for fear of being caught by the enemy shell fire, and it is interesting to record that on one occasion a complaint wa

rigorous sanitary measures which obtained in this Corps, chiefly due to the insistence of the Corps Commander. Great progress had been made in this direction since the beginning of the war. Latrines and ablution places were kept scrupulously clean. All rubbish was cast into the incinera

in which the men partook of a good Christmas dinner which was thoroughly enjoyed. After the meal the Commanding Officer ascended into the pu

retaliation the front line was cleared, except for the officer on watch, and Lewis gun teams. The l

at this time was intensely cold, and as the men in "Z" Camp had only Nissen huts they suffered greatly in consequence. These huts were made of unse

ses in open warfare were ordered by the Higher Command, and the Battalion carried out several tactical schemes, and also some night operations. These latter struck the men as rather unnecessary, as they had all b

itchen in the dark, and often in the rain. The men paraded at seven, and went out on a working party for the rest of the day. Their tasks were to load earth on railway trucks and then off-load it after a short train journey, to serve as ballast for another portion of line that was in course o

rs were on duty for twelve hours continuously. During the day time there was also a Lewis gun class for the officers who were not on the working party, and they studied the weapon assiduously. While at Proven the Battalion was visited, while working

was a much better gaol than he had been used to, and observed that it was built on the panopticon principle. The next day the Battalion moved to its old haunts at Potijze, and resumed duties as before. During this tour Lieutenant-Colonel F.W.M. Drew took over the command in succession to Lieutenant-

en exceptionally quiet, when suddenly about half an hour before dawn the enemy opened with a barrage of all calibres on the sector immediately on the left of the Battalion, with the intention of diverting the attention of the British artillery to that sector. The enemy raiding party meanwhile was lying in no man's land. The enemy suddenly opened with a devastating fire on the Battalion's trenches for a few minutes, lengthened the range, and under cover of this barrage the raiding party entered and surprised the men in the front line. Orders had lately been received that the officer on watch was not to fire the S.O.S.

e of no man's land, in such a position that they would escape the enemy barrage and intercept the raiding party and take them by surprise. This was a sound s

ergeants invited the Commanding Officer and the remaining original officers who had landed at Le Havre with the Battalion to a

o consist of a Lewis gun section, a section of bombers, another of rifle grenadiers, and a fourth of rifle-men, and the men were taught

called the Place d'Amour. In the gardens of the houses a battery of field guns was installed, and there was another just close by. The headquarters of these two batteries were also in the Place d'Amour-one on each side of the infantry company headquarters. One morning the enemy decided to annihilate one o

sful night raid was carried out by two officers and forty other ranks on Oskar Farm. Under cover of a barrage two parties entered the enemy positions. Some Germans were found in a dugout, which was then bombed and six Germans surrendered. A small bombing party was counter-attacked by six Germans, and the sergeant in command shot three and bayo

entre, and marched to the training ground where the companies were placed at the disposal of their commanders for drill and instruction. A meal was taken at noon and when the afternoon's work was done the Battalion reformed and marched back to billets. The weather at this time was very fine. Nev

went to the usual sector at Potijze. As the shell fire in this area had become much more severe of late, to

for the officers to be with their men during training while out of line. Difficulties of transport brought about the closing of leave from Jan

day and night were punctuated by cannonades of varying intensity. Ypres itself was shelled by the celebrated 420 m.m. Skoda howitzer. The enemy drenched the area with the old lachrymatory gas shells, as w

machine guns at the men in the trenches. His squadron could be easily distinguished, as the bodies of the aeroplanes were painted red. Also they fle

cause of several casualties. Fortunately there was a very good mined dugout at Wieltje containing many rooms which were lighted by electricity. The shel

nt. From a point on the road called Shrapnel Crossing to the city it was within convenient range of the enemy artillery, and being well aware that the road was much used at night, the enemy subjected it to considerable fire, and caused casualties nightly. Once arrived in Ypres the Battalion transport had to pas

s. The training was mainly devoted to the attack. The British and the enemy trenches were taped out on some cornfields, in propinquity to the hamlet, and the forthcoming attack was rehearsed time and time again by all the battalions in the Brigade. Great attention was paid to synchronisation of watches, and the immediate reporting of all information. Maps and aeroplane photo

St. Omer on one or two occasions, and there dine at the restaur

d Battle

m what it had been during the winter, and being full of troops, the Battalion had only one-third of its former area in which to accommo

y, which turned out to be "X" day, the fighting personnel left Brandhoek, and moved to Durham Redoubt, an area just west of Ypres, where th

was to happen if all objectives were captured. It was believed that if the attack succeeded, there were other divisions in rear ready to exploit the success. Wild rumo

ord Trench, where they took up a position and waited. This waiting was very unpleasant, as the enemy was obviously expecting an attack and shelled

doubt (called "Gartenhof" by the Germans) to Bank Farm, known to the enemy as "Blucher." The distance of the objective from the Battalion's

at at zero the enemy would not be able to work their guns. The drone of the gas shells passing overhead, and

over the top to the front line, where according to plan they waited twenty-five minutes. The advance then continued. They should have advanced in waves, but that was impossible over the shell-cratered ground, as the going over the churned-up earth was very difficult, particularly in view of the heavy loads the men carried. All cohesion was soon lost, and the men sauntered forward in little groups endeavouring as best they could to keep the proper direction. No one knew wha

ourage the support of their artillery. They were dealt with by the bombers, and one sensible private, who soon used up all his available bombs found a store of German bombs, which he employed to advantage. About the same time another party of the Battalion captured Pommern Redoubt, while the 7th King's on the ri

n the Dispatch of Sir Douglas Haig dealing with this battle,

o on. In one was a store of bottles of aerated water. In another there was a store of rations which were ul

at first they had in consequence of their exposed flanks to retire at nightfall, and the Battalion was then holding the line without anyone in front. Rain commenced to fall, and the ground having been churned up by countless shells, the whole area soon became dissolved into a morass of spongy

advanced positions. Added to this was the fact that the enemy artillery was exceedingly active, and the shells killed many i

ably from shell fire on the way up, but their advent inspired and cheered the weary men who had been through the whole fight, and whose rifles were in many cases so choked with mud as to be unserviceable. Towards midday the enemy developed a heavy barrage. He was about to attack, and everyo

arm, where they lay for a long time after having received some slight attention. Two wounded Germans whom the stretcher bearers had been unable to clear were handed over to

ing the operation, wrote a poem which describes the condi

EY OF TH

July,

alley the Ste

y cross with a

wn valley be

willows on

n the sunshine

is fanned by th

ith a laugh, yet p

e Vale of the

valley was r

in from a

y was Liberty

-line smoked

eat on the

pickets and

e stream was a

of water and

valley the b

water and ste

emons and b

blinds and the

e wire have ch

the knees in s

hen the crossing

of teeth for t

valley the

id horrors of

aki and sha

ered wrecks of

he end that is

at comes with a

od leaves you

g death in the

pe was a line

shells and re

ssing behin

hat crumbled i

helterless,

eary and snipe

given that

hold, and the

ass to the cr

spirit that g

stumble and t

lley of hel

nees in wa

ist if you m

your path by th

gures shall g

valley the

he brook with

in silence,

that day upo

he brook are thei

reeze they shall

rass we have la

le of the Shad

Poems" by Lieut.-Colonel E. Godfrey Hoare, D

tention to the means of getting there. That could be left to the men themselves. Everyone was ready to give them a lift, for their muddy appearance showed that they had just been in the fight, and consequently practically all arrived in motor lorries. At Vlamertinghe, rum was issued and later all embussed for the Watou area, which they reached shortly after mi

e for Passchendaele, was then perhaps the greatest achievement the Battalion had accomplished. U

cer Com

's Liver

They not only captured all their objectives, but also helped other troops to capture theirs. The magnificent way in which t

OYD

ier Ge

h Br

ugust

, and the companies soon began to resume their normal appearance. Leave opened, and it was possible for those who wished to have day trips to Calais, and one or two of the more fortunate managed to get seaside leave at Paris Plage or Wimereux. The time spent at Blanc Pignon passed without special incident, except that one night there was a bombing raid by which the Germ

g. This meant that a crater was formed, and though the enemy wire in the immediate vicinity of the crater would be destroyed, the obstacle effect of the whole entanglement remained almost in its entirety. A new fuse which was known as No. 106 was introduced in 1917, by means of which the shells would explode instantaneously on impact, and the splinters would destroy the wire over a much bigger area than had formerly been the case. The artillery could now ensu

reted and armed with several machine guns. The advantage of this scheme was that it afforded few definite targets to the British artillery, and gave every opportunity to the Germans to ambush and enfilade advancing British infantry. Tanks were of little avail against these block-houses, which in reality formed a belt of small fortresses which could only be overpowered one by one. At any rate they could easily break up the force of an attack, and inflict a large number of casualties at a small loss. The reserves could then be used to counter-attack the British before they had properly put the

and there was some very fine jumping, in which Belgian cavalry officers took part. The Battalion secured two first prizes for a water cart

f the men apparently consumed large quantities of beer. For this they could not be blamed as they were going into action, and might never survive to indulg

ceeded along No. 5 Track to the neighbourhood of Warwick Farm. The next day the Battalion headquarters and two companies moved up to Bank Farm and took over the front shell crater position. Though two big attacks had taken place since the Battalion was last in this area, the front line was approxim

18th, and it was obvious that the enemy expected an attack as he se

in their proper places were great. The night was black and there was nothing by which one could locate oneself. After several

e north. After its capture other units in the Brigade were to pass through the Battalion and continue the attack. The distance of the attack by the Battalion was from four to five hundred yards, and

e for the impending barrage. Zero was at 5-40 a.m., and at that time suddenly there opened an enormous crescendo of fire from the British guns, together with a machine gun barrage, which latter some attributed

shell fire, and that there was some mixing of units, the waves were somewhat confused. The German artillery was ready and intensifi

t as far as Gallipoli Farm. The Germans here were very stout hearted and refused to surrender. One had a machine gun on top of a concrete dugout and, for some reason or other, perhaps excitement, the men could not

fell into the hands of the Battalion. About forty prisoners were taken belonging chiefly to the 2nd Reserve Division of the Prussian Gua

until he was blown almost senseless by the violence of the concussion of a shell which burst almost on top of him. Afterwards the Germans advanced, but they were seen by the men and repulsed by machine gun fire. A party of Germans was ob

red the front positions, and that the line was lost. The barrage was still intense, and anyone who should dare to advance through it would expect to meet with almost certain death. Yet some one had to go to ascertain if all was well or ill. The Commanding Officer made arrangements to burn all papers and told everyone

r the defence back to the transport lines. They were collected at Battalion headquarters and carefully escorted to the neighbourhood o

t was spent. The next day the Battalion moved by train to a camp by Watou. Two or three days were

mp

he Battalion to Aizecourt-le-Bas, and after a night's rest it proceeded to St. Emilie, where the men were billeted amid the ruins of what had formerly been a sugar factory. During the march it was made plainly evident to all with what thoroughness the work of destruction had been carried out by the Germans. The villages were not merely in ruins. Every house and every room had been rendered useless as a billet or shelter of any kind. The cellars h

system comprising front and support trenches. The front was held by means of isolated posts occupied by a platoon or a company as the case might be, and these posts were linked up by means o

had destroyed all buildings behind the British line, the buildings behind the German lines were intact, and the men experienced the unpleasant

portion of the front line to another, especially as this company had only one subaltern. The sector held by the Battalion was roughly 2,000 yards, and consequently the three front companies each had from six to seven hun

able locomotive at the station, and consequently no progress was made. As there was no telegraph a message had to be sent on foot for another engine, which came along after a long wait, and eventually a start was made. The couplings were bad and the train soon broke into three portions. As the way was downhill the various sections glided down to the next station independently. Here there was another train and a loop line, and it also happened that one train was too long for the loop. Nothing daunt

eturned to the Birdcage sector, the portion of which immediately i

tle of

right, the Battalion was ordered to place a dummy tank and dummy men out in no man's land in front of the vicinity of the Birdcage, and shortly after zero these were put in operation by means of wires. Naturally the Battalion

valry General von der Marwitz delivered his counter-attack. He selected not the apex of the salient that had been driven into the German line, but the portion o

orth had broken. Lempire must be held at all costs, and the Battalion was ordered to dig a line running east and west on the high ground to the north of the village, so as to command the ground as far as Holt's Bank. This was then in the possession of the Germans, who were within a few hundred yards of Epéhy, and if this latter place had fallen the Battalion would have been in great danger of being surrounded. The men dug in under shell fire, and in full view of the enemy, while a large squadron of enemy aeroplanes circled overhead, and turned their machine guns on the men as they were digging. Fortunately few casualties were incurred. In the afternoon one company was sent to form a de

o see their former commanding officer once more. That day the Battalion went by motor lorry to billets in Péronne, where four days were spent. A few civilians had returned to this ruined town, and had opened shops at which fish and vegetables could be bought. These civilians were

n August, 1918. The next day Eps was reached, and on the following day the Battalion arrived at its de

apon of the infantryman was the rifle. According to the orders of the Divisional Commander each company built a thirty yards' range for itself, and a two hundred yards' range was allotted to the Battalion. Snow fell bu

ficers and men. A few days afterwards the Battalion was visited by Lieutenant-Colonel Luther Watts, O.B.E., V.D., the Town Major of St. Pol, and who had commanded the Battalion prio

ct were delivered to them, and when the scheme was fully explained, and they understood the necessity for money in order to carry on the war, they readily responded, and over ￡1,000 was subscribed by the officers and men, which

r the 1st, 4th, and 12th King's. The day of the break up was a very sad one indeed. To a soldier his regiment is his home, and to be called upon to leave it, to sever his friendships and to lose his comrades of many a tragic day is for him very bitter. It is not untrue to say that as the drafts were leaving and comrades were saying "Goodbye," several of the soldiers, who had braved nearl

Lancashir

Order of

anuary

King's Liverpool Regt., and 1-5th Loyal North Lancashire Regt., I wish to assure all officers, warrant officers, non-com

ad to say, re

e separation as permanent, and I look forward confiden

aintain the reputation which the Division has gained, a reputation which, I am sure, makes every member of i

and the 5th Loyal North Lancs. may rejoin our ranks, and tha

and myself, all good fortune and success, and can assure them that

Jeu

r Ge

ng 55th

General were not realised. He never