No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
30th: Situation normal. Very wet day.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 30th August 1916
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Category Archives: On this day
On this day 29th August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
29th: Enemy artillery fired ten rounds at our left Battalion Headquarters, but otherwise a very quite day.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 27th August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
27th: Enemy fired about 20 field gun shells into the front line of the left sector and also did slight damage to OAK STREET during the morning.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 26th August 1916
26.8.1916 BAILLEUVAL: Battn ceremonial drill and inspection by G.O.C. Division.
War Diary [WO/95/2694]
Augt 26: Went for so called rest – Genl did a review as in peacetime. Result rest meant much harder work for everyone that war does.
[Lieutenant Josiah Taylor]
26: Situation normal.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 25th August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
25th: A quite day. Rather more activity shown by the enemy during the night, 20 shells being fired behind front line of our right sector.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 24th August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
A raid by “B” Company, the 1/5th Sherwood Foresters
Official Operation Orders 77 Operations Orders 77 from WO-95-2692-6
24th 7am: A patrol of 5th Sherwood Foresters found that the wire in the bed of the river under the BLOCKHOUSE was intact.
24th 7.30pm: “A” PARTY under Lieut SANDOVER left our front line near the top of WILLOWS and reached the enemys wire under the BLOCKHOUSE forty minutes later.
At 8.30pm Lieut SMALLEY with 8 men and a Lewis Gun “B” PARTY left our trenches and took up their position in the RAVINE in support of the first party.
Lieutenant SANDOVER hearing a party working to his right front endeavoured to find a gap in the German wire between the RAVINE and the BLOCKHOUSE. After passing through two rows of wire he and Sgt LOOMES were cutting through a third row when they were challenged by the enemy’s sentry 15 yards from them who threw four hand grenades. Finding it was impossible to surprise the enemy’s post Lieut. SANDOVER ordered his party to withdraw. In the meantime Rifle and Machine Gun fire had been opened from the German trench & Cpl JOHNSON was hit in the head. Lieutenant SANDERSON dragged the Corporal through the wire with the assistance of Pte MARRIOTT who had returned to help him & the whole party gained the cover of the river bed without further casualties.
Supporting fire was soon afterwards opened by our Artillery who carried out the remained of the programme very effectively. On the guns opening fire Stokes Mortars and Rifle Grenades were fired from CAVENDISH SAP into the German Saps & Trenches in X3b, the enemy replying with 20 HE shells on left sector.
The Officers leading this raid were:-
- Alfred Eric Sandover
- Edward Arthur Victor Smalley
Edward Arthur Victor Smalley (1885-)
The NCOs and Other Ranks mentioned in the War Diary were:-
- 20636/203482 Sergeant Christoper Loomes a Pre-War Regular of the 2nd Battalion who was attached to the 1/5th Battalion on 6th July 1916.
- 3944 Corporal Robert William Edward Johnson who died of his wounds aged 19 and is buried in Bellacourt Military Cemetery. Robert was the son of Robert Eilliam and Harriett Johnson of 19 Nuttall St. in Alfreton, Derbyshire. He was a native of Huthwaite in Nottsinghamshire. He is Commemorated on the Huthwaite and Alfreton Memorials
- 2584 Pte Fred Marriott who won the Military Medal (London Gazette 11th November 1916). Fred enlisted into the 5th
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 23rd August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
23rd 2pm: A bombardment of the BLOCKHOUSE and trenches in the vicinity was carried out by VII Corps Heavy Battery, Divisional Battery and medium trench mortars. Considerable damage was down while the enemy’s reply was feeble.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 22nd August 1916
22.8.1916 TRENCHES: Relieved by 5th Battalion and moved into Divisional Reserve at BAILLEUVAL.
War Diary [WO/95/2694]
22nd: Enemy very quite. An Officer patrol with a Lewis Gun dispersed a hostile bombing party near the RANSART-BELLACOURT road during the night.
A view of a series of dugouts and bivouacs positioned in a sunken road near Ransart in northern France. The bivouacs are assembled from sandbags and corrugated iron, some piles of rusty barbed wire nearby. Two British soldiers sit relaxing on the grass in the right foreground. Trees line the upper part of the sunken road © IWM (Art.IWM ART 1617).
[Sergeant John Singer, RE at Ransart 1918]
On this day 21st August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
Aug 21: Did a kind of minstrel stunt in no-mans-land. All very quite and uneventful.
[Lieutenant Josiah Taylor]
21st: An extraordinarily quite day in which the enemy did practically no shooting at all.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
On this day 20th August 1916
No record in the War Diary [WO/95/2694]
20th: A quite day.
139 Infantry Brigade: Headquarters War Diary [WO95/2692]
2nd Lieutenant Thomas George Inglesant of the 1/5th Battalion was killed in action.
139th Brigade Horse Show
Derbyshire Territorials in the Great War 