17 Jan 18: Battalion relieved by 5th Sherwood Foresters and moved into Brigade Support (HQ and 2 Companies in PHILOSOPHE, 2 Companies in close support).
1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
17/1/18: Exceptionally quite day. Little movement seen owing to poor visibility.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
No record in the 1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
15 Jan 18: Hostile artillery more active than usual. Right subsection heavily shelled during afternoon. Our relief by 34th Infantry Brigade was indefinitely postponed owing to thaw restriction.
16 Jan 18: Little artillery activity except for shelling of PHILOSOPHE during the afternoon. There was more movement than usual seen behind the enemy’s line.
14 Jan 18: Lt NHG LAWLESS (ASC). 2/Lt RA FRITH & 2/Lt FA MYCOCK joined the Battalion.
1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
14/1/18: Artillery quiet. TM’s active on right Battalion front. Our snipers killed a German who appeared to be a reconnoitring Officer. Advanced parties of 34th Infantry Brigade were attached to Bde and Battalion HQ’s pending relief.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
4390/203569 Pte John Edward Clancy from Chesterfield died of wounds aged 25
No record in the 1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
10/1/18: Hostile artillery quiet except for slight shelling of VERMELLES. Otherwise very quiet.
11/1/18: Artillery quiet. TM’s quiet except for some shelling of RAT CREEK.
12/1/18: Light TM’s active against posts on our right subsection during the morning. Nothing else to report.
13/1/18: TM activity chiefly confined to wing bombs. During the morning a blue flag was observed in No Mans Land. A day light patrol went out to investigate and found it to be a booby trap, having a bomb attached to it, which exploded harmlessly when the flag was reached.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
9 Jan 18: Battalion relieved 5th Sherwood Foresters in ST ELIE SECTOR (H.32.a.6.4. – H.32.d.4.4.).
1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
9/1/1918: No special activity. A small party of men were seen in H7a and fired on my Lewis Guns which caused casualties.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
Son of Thomas and Gertrude Emily Flewitt of 77 Mustors Rd., West Bridgford in Nottingham
A Party: 2/Lt EL Flewitt and 10 other ranks
B Party: Captain ALM Dickins, Lieut JN Wightman and 5 other ranks
C Party: Cpl Mycroft and 4 other ranks
A and C parties crossed the HAIRPIN CRATERS at G.11.b.80.50. C Party was posted at G.11.b.80.50 and A Party advanced along the parados of the enemy trench in single file towards enemy post at G.11.b.90.80.
On reaching point G.11.9.90.75 A Party was spotted and fired upon by the enemy post at G.11.b.90.80 who also threw a shower of bombs at them which chiefly passed over their heads although a few dropped short. At the same moment an enemy MG from G12.a.10.75 opened fired on A Party hitting 2/Lieut EL FLEWITT in the head and Pte Hall in the back of the knee.
When the enemy post at G.11.b.90.80 opened fire on A Party, B Party was approx at G.11.b.85.80. Lieut WIGHTMAN and myself at once crawled forward and threw bombs at the enemy post at G.11.b.90.80 hoping to distract the attention of the post from A Party. We managed to draw the fire of the post on to ourselves and judging by the rifle flashes the post could not have been manned by less that 10 men. But we were unable to entirely draw the fire of the MG from A Party as the gun simply traversed the ground between A Party and ourselves, firing very low and hitting the enemy wire.
We waited for 8 minutes and then crawled 10 yards to the left flank and threw more bombs still hoping to drive the enemy post towards A Party. The enemy post again opened rifle fire on us and there several bombs, putting up white lights in rapid succession.
It was obvious that the enemy was very much on the alert and that there was no chance of getting around the flank of the post, so at 3am B Party returned to our lines and discovered that A and C Parties were all in with the exception of 2/Lieut EL FLEWITT, Pte’s Bridgestock and Andrews who were reported missing.
[267117 Pte Tom Bridgestock]
As soon as possible a small party of volunteers was formed to go in search of the missing. Groans were heard coming from the HAIRPIN CRATERS and proceeding into the Craters we discovered 2/Lieut FLEWITT who had been badly hit in the head and in the stomach. Pte’s Bridgestock and Andrews had carried him under very heavy rifle and MG fire from within 20 yards of the enemy post back to the HAIRPIN CRATERS. Pte’s Bridgestock and Andrews showed utter contempt of danger and devotion to duty under the most trying circumstances.
2/Lieut FLEWITT died after being carried along our front line.
Albert Light Moody Dickins
No record in the 1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
6/1/18: CHAPEL ALLEY was shelled during afternoon and HV [high velocity] guns again shelved VERMELLES.
7/1/18: Little activity on part of enemy. During the night a large patrol of 7th Sherwood Foresters attempted to capture an enemy post in G11b but met with strong opposition and was compelled to withdraw after entering the enemy trench and sustained a few casualties. Considerable movement heard in enemy trenches at 6.15pm.
8/1/18: Quite day. During the evening Horse transport was heard in rear of enemy lines and engaged by our artillery and heard to move off in disorder.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
No record in the 1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
5/1/18: A H.V guns shelled VERMELLES Water Tower during the morning. Otherwise no special activity.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
No record in the 1/6th Battalion War Diary [WO/95/2694]
4/1/18: Hostile artillery and TMs very quite. Bad visibility throughout day.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
Derbyshire Territorials in the Great War 
