Monthly Archives: November 2013

On this day 28th November

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242600 George Henry Johnson was killed in action and buried in Philosophe British Cemetery at Mazingarbe. This was most likely an original trench burial by the 46th Division.

George was born at Fandon in 1884 as was a malster in the local brewery. He married Harriet in 1910 and they lived at  20 Sheppards Row,  Northgate, Newark in Nottinghamshire.

Johnson

Very little is know about George. He joined the 1/6th Battalion with the 28th Reinforcement from the 14th Infantry Base Depot in January 1917. His Regimental number at the time (#20007), which indicates that he was a Territorial Soldier from one of the other Notts & Derby Battalions (most likely 2/8th or 3/8th).

Note: The 2**** numbering system was used to move Notts & Derby Territorials around the different Battalions prior to the 1917 6-digit renumbering.

On these days 23rd to 26th November 1915

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On the 23rd November the Battalion relieved the 8/Sherwood Foresters in the right sub-sector trenches.

The water level in the front line trench had almost risen to ground level and therefore it could not be adequately garrisoned. The majority of the men were placed as support in ruined houses along the Rue-de-Bois and further back near Windy Corner. Windy Corner was constantly swept by machine gun fire and periodically shelled, particularly when trench relief was being undertaken.

It was only possible to visit the detached outposts during the hours of darkness, to do so by day would attract the unwanted attention of German snipers. This fate befell Lt Charles Houfton of the 8/Sherwood Foresters who was making his way along a flooded trench to the Boars Head when he was killed by a single shot to the head[i].

Richebourg

Visiting these outposts at night still required a careful journey across the Rue-de-Bois and the open ground immediately behind the front line being careful not to fall into the flooded support trenches. On many occasions sporadic machine gun fire required the party to lie prone on the ground until it had finished. The garrisons of the three outposts were relieved every 24 hours because of the strain in occupying these posts when completely isolated and subject to the constantly cold and wet conditions

[i] Lt Charles Morley Houghton was killed on 12th November 1915 and is now buried in CABARET-ROUGE BRITISH CEMETERY, SOUCHEZ. He was 28 years old and the Son of John Plowright Houfton and Frances Houfton of Park Hall, Mansfield Woodhouse, Notts.

11th November

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On the 25th November men from the Battalion undertook a trench raid on the BOARS HEAD.

The following men were killed during this trench duty and are buried next to each other in ST. VAAST POST MILITARY CEMETERY at RICHEBOURG-L’AVOUE:-

3105 Pte. James Edgar Brocklehurst; aged 34 and a miller from Darley Dale near Matlock. Formerly served in the Volunteers

1598 Sergeant George Henry Morley; aged 22 and a coal miner from Barrow Hill in Chesterfield. A pre-War Territorial (enlisted March 1912).

2343 Pte. Arthur Simpson; aged 24 and a cashier from Chapel-en-le-Frith.

Brocklehurst

MorleySimpson

St Vasst

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In addition 3065 Pte. Joseph Brown; aged 20 and a miner from Grassmoor was reported missing and is now Commemorated on the LOOS MEMORIAL. He had participated in the trench raid.

Brown2

On this day 23rd November 1915

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The 6th Battalion relieved the 8th Battalion in the RIGHT SUB SECTOR at Richebourg.

The 8th Battalion had held the front line for 4 days since the 19th November. It had been a particularly nasty time with lots of German shelling and snipers.

During that time the 8th Battalion had one man killed; 752 Arthur Sheppard, a 26 year old lace hand from Southwell.

752 sheppard

Arthur had earlier won the Distinguished Conduct Medal.

dcm

Sheppard

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BUT, it would be much worse for the 6th Battalion over the next 4 days.

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On this day 19th November 1915

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On the 17th November the Battalion relieved the 7/Sherwood Foresters in the left subsection trenches, about 300 yards south of the Estaires-La Bassee Road. During this time the Battalion machine guns were positioned in houses on the Rue-de-Bois reserve trench and were able to fire over the front line trench towards the German positions. The Battalion HQ was placed in a small dug-out behind a ruined farmhouse. Although the dug-out was equipped with beds it was infested with rats and for most of the time it was twelve inches deep in water.

The weather in November was very wet and bitterly cold, which meant that the front line trenches were nearly 3 feet deep in water in many places and the men often found themselves with water up to their knees. The sandbags on the parapets were in a dreadful state, most of them were rotten allowing the earth to fall out. In many places the parapet collapsed and needed constant repairing. As conditions worsened during November the front line trenches were abandoned in many places and the Companies retired to the reserve trenches leaving listening points behind to maintain contact with the Germans. Although the men were issued with thigh-length wellingtons, on many occasions these proved quite inadequate and the water often came over the top. Three days later the Battalion were relieved by the 7/Sherwood Foresters and moved back to billets in La Couture; two men were wounded during the three days the battalion spent in the front line trenches.

During the same trench duty the 5th (Derby) Battalion had two men killed; William Allwood aged 28 and George March aged 21, both from Belper. The are buried next to each other at ST. VAAST POST MILITARY CEMETERY, RICHEBOURG-L’AVOUE.

allwood

A very poignant letter from Mrs Allwood to the War Office thanking them for returning her son’s possessions (WO363).

The sun shining down on these green fields of France
The warm wind blows gently and the red poppies dance
The trenches have vanished long under the plow
No gas, no barbed wire, no guns firing now
But here in this graveyard that’s still no man’s land
The countless white crosses in mute witness stand
To man’s blind indifference to his fellow man
And a whole generation were butchered and damned.

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On this day 5th November 1917

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On the night of the 4th-5th of November 1917 there was raid on emeny trench with 4 Officers and 124 other ranks in 3 parties (A-C).

Capt GKK Maughan, Lt C Radford (A), Lt WL Cooper (B), 2/Lt HS Pink (C) .

1 Officer wounded, 2 OR killed, 14 OR wounded and 5 OR missing.

Lt. C Radford was wounded in the abdomen and returned to England.

METCALFE CHARLES LOUIS 20 Missing 04/11/1917 Private 2106 240416 LOOS MEMORIAL Panel 87 to 89. Missing
MURRAY ROYAL 36 Body carried back to lines 04/11/1917 Private 2238 242626 PHILOSOPHE BRITISH CEMETERY, MAZINGARBE III. A. 19. Trench burial 46 NMD
SALT MOSES 20 Missing 04/11/1917 Serjeant 1832 240291 LOOS MEMORIAL Panel 87 to 89. Missing
STEVENSON JOHN EDWARD 31 Body carried back to lines 04/11/1917 Lance Serjeant 2496 240604 PHILOSOPHE BRITISH CEMETERY, MAZINGARBE III. A. 18. Trench burial 46 NMD
BRAILSFORD WILLIAM HENRY 26 Missing 05/11/1917 Lance Corporal 3074 240880 LOOS MEMORIAL Panel 87 to 89. Missing
ORMEROD CHARLES A Missing 05/11/1917 Private 4499 241542 CABARET-ROUGE BRITISH CEMETERY, SOUCHEZ VI. H. 1. Reburial?
SIMPSON GEORGE HENRY BARBER 26 Died in German field Hospital 05/11/1917 Private 3797 241224 ST. MARY’S A.D.S. CEMETERY, HAISNES XIV. F. 10. Reburial?
RADFORD C Wounded in abdomen by a bullet 05/11/1917 Lieutenant To England “W”