If you are anything like me when typing speeding up is not an option. If you don't want to increase the error ratio by a factor of ten that is.Originally Posted by Hedeby
I still have to look at the keys while typing and still make mistakes. Thank the lucky stars for the good old spellchecker!
Hi Chris, I could never resist a good yarn!
Thanks for supplying same.
Reg
29th April 1916
The Easter Rising continued:
06.36hrs - Complete carnage on North King Street. Shortly after dawn this morning roughly 50 South Staffordshires made a charge at Reilly’s Fort. The Langan’s position had been abandoned by rebels a couple of hours earlier. Many were mown down as they ran at the building. Fire erupted from several directions. The road is littered with bodies. Reilly’s is still holding out but the position is under increasing pressure. Snipers dominate every piece of open ground in the area.
06.40hrs - Moore Street is quiet but movement on the street means certain death. Earlier on, Commandant McLoughlin’s plan was outlined to the Headquarters staff. They are now preparing a diversionary attack against the enemy barricade sealing the exit to Great Britain Street. As this attack progresses, their main body is set to make a break for the Four Courts. The rebels are securely placed along the eastern terrace of houses as far as Sackville Lane, and their expanded front line will render any British counter-attack costly. Should they move into Moore Street against the Republicans they will have to deal with fire from their front and side. Time is running out for the insurgents, however. Just minutes ago McLoughlin asked for volunteers for a do or die assault on the barricade. His request highlighted just how polarised his men’s morale has become. Some are barely able to stand, such is their exhaustion, and are in no condition to mount such an attack. Others, however, still seem to want to take the fight to the enemy. Their dusty and worn faces show few illusions about surviving the morning.
06.52hrs - Plans are being prepared by 3rd Battalion in Boland’s Bakery for a breakout - the destination unknown as yet.
06.53hrs - In The South Dublin Union the Volunteers are re-supplied, rested and regrouped. News from the city is scarce. The position waits.
06.55hrs - As does the nearby distillery. Morale here is at its zenith. A ceilidh is being planned for tomorrow night to celebrate the garrison’s success.
06.57hrs - The Four Courts is holding firm.
06.58hrs - As is the College of Surgeons, but its garrison is starving.
06.58hrs - Sniper fire has just cracked out inside Stephen’s Green.
07.00hrs - Boland’s Mills is under sniper fire. There is no love lost here between both sides. Yesterday the Volunteers buried Patrick Whelan. The 23-year-old from Ringsend was shot in the eye on Wednesday. Unable to get a direct shot at the burial party British snipers tried to kill them instead with ricochets, aiming their guns at the surrounding walls.
08.00hrs - Horrific scenes in Moore Street. A family has been machine gunned. Just moments after they fled from the burning building that threatened to engulf them, they fell victim to the rapacious gunner. They had moved out into the street slowly and apprehensively. Their heads were crouched as the father’s arm stretched out in front, waving a home-made white flag. Their petrified eyes darted frantically between the rubble in their way, the source of the shooting, and the buildings facing them which offered sanctuary. As they reached half way across a burst caught them. It is a dreadful scene. Anyone who witnessed it turned away in utter disgust. It happened close to the building being used by the rebels as their Headquarters. Increasing reports are coming in of numerous civilian casualties in the area, one of whom was a teenage girl shot accidentally by a rebel kicking in the door of a nearby cottage.
09.06hrs - A short time ago a broadside of rifle fire flew from Reilly’s Fort into North King Street, and cut into another infantry attack on the junction to its front. The attack was driven back. Father Matthew Hall is thronged with wounded. The building stinks and echoes to their many groans. Medics are struggling to cope. They move among the wounded, their feet slipping on the festering blood on its floors.
09.36hrs - North King Street is a death zone. It has been impossible to tend to the wounded men on these streets. Even the shadows are being fired at. The air is thick with smoke, and desolation.
09.40hrs - Scenes of extraordinary bravery are being witnessed in Dublin’s shattered streets. The fire brigade have been out all week, often working under fire from both sides. Scores, if not hundreds, of civilians have been saved by these unsung heroes. As Sackville Street smoulders they have their work cut out. Many of the men who form its ranks have brothers, sisters, friends and cousins fighting in both British and Republican uniforms. Unexploded shells present a terrible threat, as do clusters of the rebels’ home-made canister bombs.
09.50hrs - Terrible tragedy in Dublin’s Docks. A woman has been shot on Ringsend Drawbridge in front of her three children. It is unclear where the shot came from but Beggars Bush Barracks is the most likely source at present. The nearby rebels in the mills building are helpless to render aid. Any movement will draw fire from the same source. Her children are crying and pulling at her, clearly unable to take this in.
10.00hrs - ‘Reilly’s Fort’ fell under constant attack since the South Staffordshires gained ground on North King Street. The decision was made to evacuate the position. The front door was opened and the British soldiers trained the sights of their guns in its direction expecting an outpouring of Volunteers. An order to charge was heard. Unexpectedly then, Volunteers started jumping from the side windows and racing towards Church Street. The enemy had been duped. A machine gun quickly traversed and let rip, but it was too late - the Volunteers had made it. The soldiers then gave chase, but when they reached the top of Church Street; the Volunteers on the roof of the Bridewell fired with everything they had, forcing the pursuers to rush for shelter. A section of the South Staffordshires raced to occupy the vacant Reilly’s Fort, but once inside they found themselves trapped. The Bridewell and Monk’s Bakery positions had them in their gun-sights - any attempt to leave was met with a heavy barrage of rifle fire.
12.00hrs - In Jacob’s factory word has come down from the towers that British soldiers are moving into Saint Patrick’s park in force; and that civilians are being evacuated from the homes in the surrounding neighbourhood. Rumours have spread that the area is to be flattened so that the artillery can get a direct shot at the 2nd Battalion headquarters.
12.00hrs - White flag in Moore Street. A short time ago a nurse was seen leaving the rebel HQ of 16 Moore Street. She was fired at initially until it became visible to the gunners that she was carrying a white flag. She has since approached the British barricade.
13.00hrs - Rebels preparing their last stand. The South Staffordshires have launched another attack against the barricade at the junction of North Brunswick Street and Upper Church Street, but were forced back yet again. The wounded and dead are strewn across the junction. In nearby Church Street the battle has ebbed and flowed with ever increasing ferocity. At least two Volunteers have just been killed in Church Street as they counter-attacked with their comrades. The machine gun and rifle fire seems never ending. The Volunteers are now turning Moore’s Coachworks into a fortress. It may be the last line of the defence.
14.10hrs - The Shelbourne Hotel, where carnage was unleashed from the fourth floor as dawn broke last Tuesday, now looks over a deathly quiet Stephen’s Green. Foraging parties have been sent out again from the College of Surgeons into the nearby streets to search for food. They are returning with meagre supplies and with rumours of capitulation. The entire city seems strangely silent, after the week-long cacophony of violence.
14.30hrs - Surrender negotiations in Moore Street. Just moments ago Nurse Elizabeth Farrell (it is believed at present that she hails from City Quay in Dublin) approached the barricade with Commandant Pearse. Pearse appears to be involved in an acrimonious discussion with Brigadier General Lowe, who is accompanied by a young officer, possibly his son John. They’ve just moved in the direction of Sackville Street, presumably for better cover, and appear to be negotiating terms of surrender.
15.30hrs - It’s officially a Republican surrender. Commandant Pearse has been driven away to an unknown location. Meanwhile Nurse Farrell has returned to Moore Street with instructions. Commandant James Connolly, as per instructions, has been carried on a stretcher by four of his men. As he is handed over the barricade there is silence. His leg is strapped up but he appears to be in agony. Everywhere there is silence. Infantrymen sit about, their bayonets still fixed to their weapons, smoking and resting. At the barricade both sets of enemies eye one another up, but say nothing. Connolly has been manhandled over the barrier with great respect from his new captors. Courage is a thing respected by fighting men regardless of uniform, and the steadfast bravery displayed by this man is undeniable. On Moore Street things are deathly still.
19.00hrs - 1st Battalion surrenders at Four Courts. Nurse O’Farrell has delivered the surrender document to Commandant Daly at the Four Courts. Daly ordered all men manning positions and barricades to return to the Four Courts, but appears unable to contact his men on North Brunswick Street. Addressing those in the courts he informed them of the order to surrender. They were stunned - surrender has never crossed their minds. They argued that they could hold out for a month. Daly, however, was adamant that they obey their orders. Word was then sent to the men on the Bridewell roof to return to the Four Courts and prepare to surrender, but the men refused and continued to fire at the British soldiers in the North King Street area. Another order was then dispatched to them. They reluctantly complied. The men of 1st Battalion then marched out of the Four Courts building and began handing their weapons through the railings to the waiting Dublin Fusiliers, who looked exhausted but tremendously relieved.
19.10hrs - Ceasefire in North Brunswick Street. A short time ago a pair of priests managed to arrange a ceasefire. Apparently the Volunteers there wish for official confirmation of surrender from their headquarters. Lines of demarcation have been set up. Recently, two British officers wandered across the line, and were met with several dozen gun-barrels. Who knows what tomorrow may bring?
19.45 - Rebels form up to surrender in Sackville Street. A report from the area a short time ago. “The filthy, exhausted, but intensely proud Irish Volunteers and Citizen Army men finally formed into two lines on the eastern side of the tramlines between Findlater Place and Cathedral Street. Behind them was the block of buildings that housed the Gresham Hotel. To both their front and rear stood a cordon of British infantrymen. Another command rang out from Commandant McLoughlin: ‘Front line five paces forward, rear line two paces back, and deposit arms!’ The subsequent clatter of the last rifle hitting the ground signalled to the hundreds now gathering in the area that the battle for Dublin City was all but over. The rear rank then stepped back. Many among them still attempted to goad their adversaries at this point, by pushing their backs up until they were touching the bayonets of the troops standing behind them. As they approached closer and closer with every step the pointing bayonets of the men now eyeing them with malevolence, they advanced until their chests began to place pressure on the sharp steel. The tension mounted while in the distance, rifle fire continued to echo sporadically. General Lowe suddenly ran angrily towards McLoughlin as he bellowed, ‘Who the hell gave you the authority to give orders here? I told you to leave your bloody arms in Moore Street. I’ll have you damn well shot!’ McLoughlin looked back with contempt. He then drew his sword from his scabbard, before thrusting it to the ground next to the general’s immaculately polished boots. Lowe glared back at him.”
20.00hrs - In Jacob’s its garrison has been on high alert all day. Due to the noticeable lull in firing from further in to the city the men were called to man their defensive positions. An imminent attack was expected. Many inside feel their time is at hand.
20.40hrs - The surrendered GPO/Moore Street garrison is now being detained in the grounds of the Rotunda Hospital. They are exhausted, hungry and cold. Their treatment at the hands of their captors varies from rough to indifferent, with occasional kindness. The odd crack of gunshot still reports from the city as it waits on the next moves of these momentous events to be played out. Tomorrow will tell.
Airmen Losses
There were seven airmen lost on this day...
30 Squadron bore the brunt of the losses losing 4 airmen
Formed officially at Ismailia, Egypt on 24 March 1915 from an RFC detachment in the region, No. 30 Squadron spent several months in a state of flux before achieving full squadron status by the end of the year. With its predecessor having defended the Suez Canal against Turkish attacks during 1914, No. 30 Squadron then formed several detachments to protect key installations in Mesopotamia, including the oil pipeline at Basra. In April 1916, the Squadron carried out the world's first air supply operation, when food and ammunition was dropped to the besieged British forces attempting to defend Kut-el-Amara against the Turks. Despite the two-week operation, in which 13 tons of supplies were dropped using BE2s, Longhorns and Shorthorns, the garrison had surrendered by the end of the month. Reconnaissance and bombing then occupied the Squadron until the end of the war, when it was reduced to a cadre in April 1919.
Air Mechanic 1st Class William Thomas Vincent 30 Squadron RFC - Captured when British Garrison at Kut el Amara surrendered 29 April 1916. Died as a Prisoner of War in Turkish Hands 29 April 1916
Air Mechanic Roger Edgar George 30 Squadron RFC - Captured when British Garrison at Kut el Amara surrendered 29 April 1916. Died as a Prisoner of War in Turkish Hands 29 April 1916 aged 20
Air Mechanic Victor Dagger 30 Squadron RFC - Captured when British Garrison at Kut el Amara surrendered 29 April 1916. Died as a Prisoner of War in Turkish Hands 29 April 1916
Air Mechanic 1st Class Lionel Victor Claridge 30 Squadron RFC - Captured when British Garrison at Kut-el-Amara surrendered 29 April 1916. Died between 1-31 May 1916 at Mosul, while a Prisoner of War in Turkish Hands, aged 23
Air Mechanic 2nd Class Samuel Cotton 20 Squadron RFC - Killed in Action 29 April 1916
Captain Carlo Bruno 26 (South African) Squadron attached 7 (N) Sqdn, Royal Naval Air Service - Killed in Action 29 April 1916 by German Askari Troops after Flight Sub-Lieut C R Terreneau, 7 (N) Sqdn, R.N.A.S. made a forced landing in Voisin LA.S 8706
Lieutenant Alfred Boag RFC Killed while flying 29 April 1916 aged 31. RFC School of Instruction, Reading. Lt. Boag Crashed, near Eton Wick, Bucks and was killed.
There were three aerial victories claimed on this day, two for the first time...
Oberleutnant Benno Fiala Ritter von Fernbrugg of the Austro-Hungarian Empire who shot down an EA over San Danielle.
Fiala volunteered for service in 1910. After serving with an artillery regiment, he joined Fliegerkompanie 1 on 28 July 1914. On 30 March 1918, Fiala scored his 14th confirmed victory near Gorgo del Molino, forcing down a Sopwith Camel flown by English ace Alan Jerrard. Hauptmann (Captain) Benno Fiala von Fernbrugg (16 June 1890 – 29 October 1964), Order of the Iron Crown, Order of Leopold, Military Merit Cross, Military Merit Medal, Gold Medal for Bravery, Iron Cross was an Austro-Hungarian fighter ace with 28 victories to his credit during World War I. He was the third ranking ace of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He was also a technical innovator who pioneered the use of machine guns, radios, and cameras in airplanes. His forty-year aviation career also included aircraft manufacture, airport management, and the establishment of commercial airlines. Being assigned to the artillery didn't quash his interest in aviation; his brother was a naval aviator, and Fiala visited airports. While at one, he met Emil Uzelac, Commander of the fledgling air force of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Uzelac arranged Fiala's transfer to Fliegerkompagnie 1 of the Luftfahrtruppen as a technical officer. Fiala completed training as a flying observer on 28 July 1914, the very day Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. In November 1914, Fiala took charge of the locomotive of a supply train and drove it to safety even though it was under attack by Russian troops and he was wounded in the action. He was awarded the Silver Military Merit Medal for this. On 10 November, he was also received a most unusual promotion to leutnant (Second Lieutenant) ahead of his sequence in seniority. Although trained as an observer, Fiala's duties in this beginning of the war consisted mainly of arming planes with machine guns, and experimenting with aerial cameras. He also rigged a 30 kilogram (66 pound) radio transmitter in an unarmed plane. It was used in May 1915 at the Battle of Gorlice-Tarnow on the Russian Front; by sending corrections to a receiver on the ground, it successfully adjusted mortar fire. Fiala was briefly attached to the testing section of the air arsenal before being reassigned to a flying unit. Fiala had had a couple of unconfirmed victories on the Russian Front. Now he was transferred to Fliegerkompany 19 on the Italian Front in January 1916. There he flew a Hansa-Brandenburg C.I two seated reconnaissance plane, scoring his first confirmed triumph on 29 April 1916.
On 4 May 1916, he was flying as an observer in a Hansa-Brandenburg C.I flown by Adolf Heyrowsky when they teamed with a second C.I to shoot down the Italian airship M-4. The semi-rigid dirigible had been returning from a bombing raid when Fiala shot it down above Gorizia, Italy, killing the entire crew of six. Fiala was wounded by anti-aircraft fire in the beginning of 1917. It was during this recuperation that he decided to apply for pilot's training. After he recovered, he moved into Fliegerkorps 41J, then into a Hansa-Brandenburg D.I fighter in Fliegerkorps 12D. Beginning 9 August 1917, he ran off a string of five confirmed and two confirmed wins for the month. He scored once more, in October, before changing squadrons once again in November, to move into an Albatros D.III with Fliegerkorps 56J. He notched win number nine with 56J, but didn't spend long with them; he transferred into command of Fliegerkorps 51J in January, 1918. His steady accretion of victories helped shape Flik 51J into the premier squadron of the Austro-Hungarians. Especially notable was his 14th win; on 30 May 1918, he downed British ace Alan Jerrard in an action that was so fierce, it won the loser the Victoria Cross. Fiala racked up number 28 on 20 August 1918. He continued to fly until October, but then was posted to nonflying staff duties until war's end. The engineer turned fighter pilot had flown on two fronts which had more hazardous flying conditions and less opportunity for air combat than the Western Front in France. His victory roll included a dirigible, three observation balloons, and a predominance of enemy fighters among the planes he had felled. He claimed at least five unconfirmed victories. He had won the Order of the Iron Crown, Order of Leopold, Military Merit Cross, Military Merit Medal, Gold Medal for Bravery, and the Iron Cross
Hauptmann Johann Frint Austro-Hungarian Empire - Shot down a Farman West of Monte Tomba
Frint was an Oberleutnant in Infantry Regiment No. 65 when the war began. While stationed on the Russian front, he was very badly wounded on 14 November 1914. Despite injuries that prevented him from returning to service with the infantry, he succeeded in transferring to the air service and was posted to Flik 23 after completing his training as an observer. Having scored six victories with this unit, Frint was killed during a test flight when the Albatros D.III (53.46) in which he was flying crashed in an orchard.
Oberleutnant Ludwig Hautzmayer Austro-Hungarian Empire claimed his second kill shooting down 'a bomber' near St.
Middle East
Mesopotamia – FALL OF KUT: 13,309 surrender including 3,248 non-combatants after 146-day siege (with 3,776 casualties). 1,136 badly wounded and 1,450 sick exchanged as agreed with Arab Bureau negotiators. Tigris Corps relief attempt losses total 23,000 men. British leaders attempted to buy their troops out. Aubrey Herbert and T. E. Lawrence were part of a team of officers sent to negotiate a secret deal with the Ottomans. The British offered £2 million (UK£ 122,300,000 in 2016) and promised they would not fight the Ottomans again, in exchange for Townshend's troops. Enver Pasha ordered that this offer be rejected.
The British also asked for help from the Russians. General Baratov, with his largely Cossack force of 20,000 was in Persia at the time. Following the request he advanced towards Baghdad in April 1916, but he turned back when news reached him of the surrender.General Townshend arranged a ceasefire on the 26th and, after failed negotiations, he simply surrendered on 29 April 1916 after a siege of 147 days. Around 13,000 Allied soldiers survived to be made prisoners. Historian İlber Ortaylı states that ″Halil Pasha acted like a gentleman to the surrendering British officers″ and offered ″to take the PoWs up towards the north in river boats in case fuel could be provided from British bases nearby.″ The offer was rejected by the British. 70% of the British and 50% of the Indian troops died of disease or at the hands of their Ottoman guards during captivity.[citation needed] Townshend himself was taken to the island of Heybeliada on the Sea of Marmara, to sit out the war in relative luxury. The author Norman Dixon, in his book On the Psychology of Military Incompetence, described Townshend as being 'amused' by the plight of the men he had deserted, as if he had pulled off some clever trick. Dixon says Townshend was unable to understand why his friends and comrades were ultimately censorious over his behaviour.
In British Army battle honours, the siege of Kut is named as "Defence of Kut Al Amara".
Persia: Baratov with 5,000 men expels Sevket Bey from Karind after 9-day march (since April 20) to aid Kut.
Home Fronts
Ireland, Easter Rising: IRB leader Pearse surrenders to Brigade-General Lowe and tells others to do likewise. Martial law in Ireland is lifted and the rebellion is officially over with the surrender of Irish nationalists to British authorities in Dublin. Second Lieutenant Algernon Lucas (King Edward’s Horse) is found at the Guinness brewery by Sergeant Robert Flood (Dublin Fusiliers). After a brief interrogation he is discovered to be wearing civilian clothing under his British officers tunic and his ‘strong American accent aroused further suspicions. He and a civilian employee of Guinness discovered with Lucas are executed by Sergeant Flood who is convinced his position is about to be attacked. Flood is court-martialed and cleared murder charges. Sergeant Flood will be killed on active service in Salonika in May 1917.
James Morris, a British historian, described the loss of Kut as "the most abject capitulation in Britain’s military history." After this humiliating loss, General Lake and General Gorringe were removed from command. The new commander was General Maude, who trained and organized his army and then launched a successful campaign which captured Baghdad on 11 March 1917. With Baghdad captured, the British administration undertook vital reconstruction of the war-torn country and Kut was slowly rebuilt. Some of the Indian prisoners of war from Kut later came to join the Ottoman Indian Volunteer Corps under the influence of Deobandis of Tehrek e Reshmi Rumal and with the encouragement of the German High Command. These soldiers, along with those recruited from the prisoners from the European Battlefields fought alongside Ottoman forces on a number of fronts. The Indians were led by Amba Prasad Sufi, who during the war was joined by Kedar Nath Sondhi, Rishikesh Letha and Amin Chaudhry. These Indian troops were involved in the capture of the frontier city of Karman and the detention of the British consul there, and they also successfully harassed Sir Percy Sykes' Persian campaign against the Baluchi and Persian tribal chiefs who were aided by the Germans
Western Front
Verdun, West bank: French gains north of Mort Homme and Cumieres.
On the last day of the Battle of Hulluch the Germans attack with gas again, but this time the wind blows the gas back upon their own troops, crippling a great number. Hulluch is one of the most heavily-concentrated gas attacks of the war. In the three days of the battle British losses are 538 dead and 1,590 wounded.
At Hulloch Private John Naylor (Dublin Fusiliers) is killed in action at age 36. His wife Margaret Naylor will be shot today during the Easter Rebellion while crossing the Ringsend Drawbridge in Dublin with her three children. She will die of her wounds on 1 May.
Sea War
North Sea: Royal Navy 3rd Battle Squadron (7 ships) transferred from Grand Fleet to Thames (Sheerness) as stronger coast guard.
Politics
Allied Havre Declaration guarantees Belgian Congo’s integrity.
Neutrals
Mexico: *US and Mexican generals agree withdrawal conditions (until May 3).
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
More on the surrender at Kut -al - Amara
In the single largest surrender of troops in British history to that time, some 13,000 soldiers under the command of Sir Charles Townshend give in on April 29, 1916, after withstanding nearly five months under siege by Turkish and German forces at the town of Kut-al-Amara, on the Tigris River in the Basra province of Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq).
Under the command of Sir John Nixon, British troops had enjoyed early success in their invasion of Mesopotamia. Forces led by Nixon’s forward divisional commander, Sir Charles Townshend, reached and occupied the Mesopotamian province of Basra, including the town of Kut al-Amara, by late September 1915. From there, they attempted to move up the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers toward Baghdad, but were rebuffed by Turkish troops at Ctesiphon (or Selman Pak) in late November. Despite outnumbering the Turks two-to-one, Townshend’s troops, made up partially of soldiers dispatched from India, were forced to retreat to Kut, where on December 5 Turkish and German troops began to lay siege to the city.
Problems with illness plagued Townshend’s forces, as morale sank precipitously along with dwindling supplies and a lack of relief due to the heavy winter rains, which had swollen the Tigris River and made it difficult to maneuver troops along its banks. The British attempted four times over the course of the winter to confront and surround their Turkish opponents only to suffer 23,000 casualties, almost twice the strength of the entire remaining Kut regiment, without success. Kut finally fell on April 29, 1916, and Townshend and his 13,000 men were taken prisoner.
Here is an interesting news article from Weds. November 20th 2002...
Military headstones have started arriving in Iraq from Britain. Not in preparation for an invasion but to commemorate allied soldiers who died in a previous attempt at 'regime change'.
The 500 military headstones that have just arrived in Baghdad from England already bear the names of soldiers killed in action in Iraq. But these troops died in an ill-fated, little-remembered attempt at "regime change" nearly a century ago. In the winter of 1915, towards the end of the first full year of the first world war, an Anglo-Indian force was sent to capture Baghdad. To the historian and veteran CRMF Cruttwell the attack was "a capital sin": the advance on Baghdad was "perhaps the most remarkable example of an enormous military risk being taken, after full deliberation, for no definite or concrete military purpose."
Officials from the Commonwealth war graves commission have just arrived in Iraq to assess the damage done by 20 years of upheaval - and many more years of decay - to the 13 war cemeteries the commission tends there. The new headstones are the first phase of a major programme: a total of 51,830 British and Commonwealth servicemen died during the war in what was then Mesopotamia, and there are 22,400 graves (more than two-thirds of the troops who fought in Mesopotamia were Indians whose faith requires cremation rather than burial). Many of these deaths were the result of the decision to attack Baghdad, and in particular of what happened in a loop of the Tigris river at Kut-al-Amara.
On November 22 1915, General Charles Vere Ferrers Townshend and his force of about 9,000 men of the 6th Indian division were advancing on Baghdad by boat along the Tigris, the land being roadless - an "arid billiard table". At Ctesiphon, about 20 miles short of the capital, the Indian and British troops came up against a larger, better armed and better supplied Turkish force which had had months to dig in on both sides of the river. Townshend's force drove out the defenders, but at the cost of 40% casualties. Unable to withstand a counter-attack, let alone continue the advance, Townshend retreated back down the Tigris, with 1,600 Turkish prisoners and more than 4,500 wounded from both sides. The long, slow journey was nightmarish for the wounded, for Townshend had been kept short of boats and medical supplies by a stingy government in India. An over-optimistic superior, Sir John Nixon, had ordained that the men would find all they needed - in Baghdad. Collecting other troops as he inched along, Townshend made his stand at Kut, a strategic river junction he had captured a month previously. It had been one of a number of cheap and brilliant victories by a clever and resourceful soldier who knew the value of morale, and until the end kept the respect of his men. He had argued all along against going on to Baghdad; he lacked sufficient men, food and artillery as well as river transport and medical back-up. But the general and his men were to be the victims of their own success.
The invasion of Mesopotamia itself was about oil, but that required only a landing on the Gulf coast to secure the southern part of the country around Basra. This would keep the Turks away from the nearby Persian port of Abadan, terminus of the Anglo-Persian pipe-line which was the source of the Royal Navy's oil supply. Basra was taken and held with little cost at the end of 1914 by a small invasion force launched from India. By late 1915, however, the war cabinet needed a success story to round off a year of military disaster, most recently at Gallipoli, where the British were preparing to pull out, having failed to break out and take Constantinople. Why not push beyond Basra province and take Baghdad?
The Gallipoli campaign ended on January 8 1916 with a re-embarkation of Dunkirk proportions. By then, Kut, a collection of flyblown hovels, with Townshend and his men inside, had been surrounded for more than a month: included in the 13,500 penned inside were some 3,500 Indian non-combatants and 2,000 sick and wounded. There were also 6,000 Arabs to be fed. They held out in freezing cold and then torrential rain against infantry assault, sniper fire, shelling, and bombing, until a relief force could get near enough for the defenders to risk breaking out. It never happened. Three attempts were made to relieve Kut. Each failed, at a total cost of 23,000 casualties. Food began to run out, and many of the Indian troops could or would not eat what meat there was. The defenders' draught animals, the oxen, were the first to go, followed by their horses, camels, and finally, starlings, cats, dogs and even hedgehogs.
Kut was the first siege in which aircraft dropped supplies: these ranged from money to millstones to keep the garrison's flour mill going (and thus the Indians' supply of chapatis). But the Turks and their German officers were able to send up more and better aircraft, and too few friendly planes could get through to avert starvation. Repeated attempts to supply Kut by river were also repulsed. Desperate to keep his men alive, Townshend suggested - and the government endorsed - a ransom of £2m (about £67m today) for the defenders to go free. The Turks, elated by Gallipoli and able to switch troops from there to Kut, refused.
Finally, on April 29, when vegetarian Indians were down to seven ounces of grain a day, Kut capitulated. Townshend was given permission to surrender, and obtained promises of humane treatment for his men from the Turks. It was then, after five months of siege, that the troubles of the defenders of Kut really began. The Turks had a different notion of what constitutes "humane treatment" and, as they treated their own soldiers with extreme brutality, saw no reason to pamper their captives. About 1,750 men had died from wounds or disease during the siege. Some 2,600 British and 9,300 Indian other ranks were rounded up and marched away. Two-thirds of the British and about a seventh of the Indians never saw their homes again. Relative to the numbers of men involved, the British losses at Kut dwarfs those of the far bigger battles on the Western Front.
The historian and war poet Geoffrey Elton was a junior officer at Kut and saw the rank-and-file being marched away, officerless, "none of them fit to march five miles ... full of dysentery, beri-beri, scurvy, malaria and enteritis; they had no doctors, no medical stores and no transport; the hot weather, just beginning, would have meant much sickness and many deaths, even among troops who were fit, well-cared for and well supplied." Some were marched to captivity elsewhere in Mesopotamia, others all the way to Turkey. Elton spoke of the Arab guards stealing the mens' boots, helmets and water bottles, and of dead and dying stragglers left where they fell. Cruttwell said: "The men were herded like animals across the desert, flogged, kicked, raped, tortured, and murdered."
The Turks abandoned Kut in February 1917, and Baghdad fell in March. That June a royal commission reported on who was to blame for ordering Townshend to advance so far forward. The answer was everybody but Townshend. His commanding officer, Sir John Nixon, was censured. So too was the viceroy of India, Lord Hardinge, the commander-in-chief in India, Sir Beauchamp Duff, the secretary of state for India, Austen Chamberlain, and the war cabinet in London, which had disregarded the advice of its own secretary of state for war, Earl Kitchener. As the horrors of the death marches and prison camps became known after the war, so the sufferings of the men were contrasted with more favourable treatment given to their officers - Townshend, in comfortable captivity near Constantinople, was knighted in 1917. From being the hero of his country's longest siege, "Townshend of Kut" became its villain. In the end, however, people forgot the deadbeats and chancers who paved the way to Kut. The CWGC now hopes to see that other names from Kut are remembered in its Iraqi war cemeteries. "We have always found the Iraqis willing to take us for what we are," says director-general Richard Kellaway, "a non-governmental organisation, whose duty is to commemorate, by name, the people who died in the two world wars."
Sometimes you just never learn from past mistakes....
Last edited by Hedeby; 04-29-2016 at 14:58.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
April 30th 1916
The last day of the fighting in the Easter Rising
07.30hrs - Needs must. Local youngsters help themselves to firewood in the rubble.
07.31hrs - Captain Michael O’Rahilly’s burnt-out De Dion Bouton touring car in North Prince’s Street.
07.32hrs - Are these British officers’ celebrations premature? The cracks of small arms in the city’s background suggest the fighting isn’t yet done. At least four Republican garrisons are holding out on the south side of the city.
07.36hrs - A solitary rebel prisoner is taken across O’Connell Bridge under guard.
07.38hrs - Irish Volunteers 3rd Battalion still control southeast Dublin. To venture beyond the barricade in Great Brunswick Street is still to invite a bullet.
07.40hrs - Civilians have been flocking in their droves to view the devastation since first light this morning.
09.00hrs - At Dublin Castle two Capuchin priests have requested permission from General Lowe to see Padraig Pearse, so that they can convey a signed surrender order to the Volunteers still fighting on North Brunswick Street. General Lowe granted permission before requesting that the priests proceed to Jacob’s to inform its garrison of the surrender. The general has been unable to make any contact with the garrison.
09.45hrs - Rebels in North Brunswick Street surrender. It has transpired that another priest has managed to convey a genuine surrender order to the Volunteers there. One Volunteer named Patrick Holohan has taken command of the units there. Their commanding officer had been shot in the head during the fighting. Holohan has ordered the Volunteers to fall in. He has just addressed his exhausted men with the words: “I know you would, like myself, prefer to be with our comrades who have already fallen in the fight – we, too, should rather die in this glorious struggle than submit to the enemy. The treatment you may expect in the future you may judge from the past.”Roughly 50 of them march eastward along North King Street the road is lined with the battalion they kept at bay. Soldiers are craning their necks from doors and windows to see who caused them such horrific carnage. Several taunts are being exchanged.
10.15hrs - Nurse O’Farrell approached Boland’s Bakery about 15 minutes ago with Pearse’s surrender order. She was met just outside its dispensary by Commandant de Valera. He emerged outside with a towel around his neck, appearing to have been washing. After studying the order he has dispatched her with instructions that the order carries no weight. With Pearse a prisoner he is now under the command of Commandant MacDonagh, who is still in the field and holding firm.
11.00hrs - The two Capuchin priests have approached Jacob’s factory with news of the surrender. The news has been dismissed by Commandant MacDonagh, stating that he cannot take orders from prisoners. He has conceded, however, that he is prepared to meet with General Lowe to parley.
11.10hrs - Nurse O’Farrell has been greeted by Countess Markievicz at the College of Surgeons. Commandant Mallin, its garrison commander, is resting in one of its back rooms, and is being summoned. There is an overwhelming aura of subdued shock among the Citizen Army garrison as the news spreads.
12.11hrs - Irish Citizen Army surrenders. The surrender of the Stephen’s Green garrison of the Irish Citizen Army has been agreed upon. Minutes ago Commandant Mallin and Countess Markievicz held talks at the College of Surgeons’ York Street entrance with Major De Courcey Wheeler of the Dublin Fusiliers. He was accompanied by Nurse O’Farrell. This came after many heated deliberations from those inside the fortress, who seemed adamant on fighting on, or breaking out to the mountains. They are defiant.
12.45hrs - Surrender of Irish Volunteers 2nd Battalion agreed upon. Commandant-General MacDonagh and General Lowe have met in Saint Patrick’s Park. The parley began on the footpath before both retired to General Lowe’s staff car to continue negotiations. After a while MacDonagh stepped out of the car and informed the two priests of his intention to surrender, adding that there will be a truce until 3 p.m.
13.00hrs - Commandant MacDonagh has now informed the Officers of 2nd Battalion of the surrender. It was followed by a stunned silence. The men have called to the ground floor to be told of the news. Shouts and screams followed of: “Fight it out - we will fight it out!” Order was restored and MacDonagh has since told the garrison that anyone without uniform has his permission to escape. Some are availing of the opportunity. MacDonagh will soon leave Jacob’s and go to the South Dublin Union to convey the news.
14.08hrs - An utterly exhausted and emotionally drained Elizabeth O’Farrell has just returned to Boland’s Bakery with Commandant MacDonagh’s verification of the surrender. For the 3rd Battalion, the fighting is finished. De Valera has just dispatched recently promoted Vice Commandant Joe O’Connor to their nearby outposts with the news. It has been met with aghast faces. Anger is building quickly. Some of the men have begun smashing their weapons off the ground. Ironically, snipers are still at work in the area. Occasionally shots ring out. The rooftops of Lower Mount Street are infested with sharpshooters.
14.15hrs - Word has been received at the nearby mills Building. Lieutenant O’Byrne has orders to rally his men at the bakery.
15.00hrs - Commandant-General MacDonagh has returned to Saint Patrick’s Park where General Lowe was waiting for him. The two soldiers stood face to face; MacDonagh then unbuckled his belt and holster and handed them to General Lowe along with his revolver. General Lowe accepted them and asked MacDonagh to return to his men and arrange for the surrender of Jacob’s. MacDonagh accepted the General’s request.
14.50hrs - Commandant Mallin’s garrison is marching into captivity along York St. A short time ago roughly 120 Citizen Army members put down their arms and began their march. As they set off, however, shots rang out from the Green. Some refuse to give in. Their captors are displaying differing attitudes as they march. Some of the rebels have been threatened with bayonets, others have been told to cheer up and have been offered cigarettes. Commandant Mallin appeared to take some comfort from the words of the British Army officer, when he expressed his disbelief that the garrison had held them off with so few men. Now however, he marches to an uncertain fate, albeit proudly.
15.30hrs - Jacob’s Garrison is marching into the custody of the enemy.
15.40hrs - Intense deliberations are under way at South Dublin Union. The garrison has received the surrender order. It looks like Ceannt’s men will comply. They are disconsolate and are unable to believe the news.
16.30hrs - The battle-weary GPO and Four Courts garrisons are exiting the Rotunda grounds en route to Richmond Barracks in Inchicore. The city is in shock. Thousands of Dubliners are in the streets. Reaction to events is one of disbelief mixed with anger. Abuse is being heaped on the exhausted and starving marching men. But there are whisperings also of subdued admiration.
17.27hrs - The 4th Battalion has formed up to exit South Dublin Union. Their arms are shouldered. Commandant Ceannt has delivered them a rousing speech. Their heads are held high as they prepare to march to Marrowbone Lane to link up with Captain Colbert and the remainder of the Battalion.
17.40hrs - Commandant McLoughlin is marching with his men into captivity in Richmond Barracks in Inchicore under a cordon whose bayonets stand at the ready. They are filthy, dishevelled, exhausted, starving – yet many are singing.
17.56hrs - Roughly 150 Irish Volunteers from 4th Battalion have just entered the gates into St Patrick’s Park. They have been spat at, jeered and praised, while many onlookers on their route stared blankly, no doubt tremendously relieved, but shocked at what has come to pass on their streets.
18.03hrs - Incredible scenes as 3rd Battalion marches towards surrender. As Vice-Commandant O’Connor led the 3rd Battalion from Boland’s Bakery, they were met by a cordon of infantrymen who looked like they were baying for blood. But as soon as the 80 or so men turned on to Grand Canal Street a crowd of locals began cheering and applauding the rebels. Their heads lifted as weeping onlookers offered to hide their weapons. They are now turning left on to Grattan Street where they have been ordered to muster.
18.20hrs - All is changed, changed utterly. It has been a week since the clock struck in Dublin but the 3rd Battalion has laid down its arms in Grattan Street. It is done, the fighting men from both sides are done, but count themselves lucky. Hundreds have fallen this week, never to rise again. The city is shattered. Time will tell how it recovers. It inevitably will. Dubliners are a stoic lot. But now it is time to count the cost, in lives, in homes, in businesses, and in hearts. At the top of the street stands Commandant De Valera – the battalion commander. He has just been saluted by his Vice-Commandant. The men are lined up. As the last of their unloaded weapons clatters off the pavement, O’Connor has just placed a sword at the top. The sword was given to him as a mark of his men’s respect on Good Friday. He has placed it here no doubt as a mark of respect for them.
There was one non RFC airman lost on this day... Count Carl Friedrich Erich Graf von Holck He was a friend of Manfred Von Richthofen and indeed flew with him in the early part of the war.
“In late April 1916, he was flying an Albatros two-seater in which he had a gun fitted to the upper wing. He came across a French Nieuport 11, but the French plane turned tail and fled from the conflict. Manfred overhauled the aircraft and got close before opening fire and the Nieuport fell near Fort de Douaumont on the allied side of the lines. Like his previous "victory", this was not accredited to von Richthofen, but the communiqué for April 26th acknowledged the aircraft had been shot down by a German aircraft. The 1st of May saw him witness the death of his friend Count von Holck.”
We have Von Richthofen's own account of the fateful last flight of the Count...
“I love my new occupation as a pilot. I don't think anything else can attract me in this war. I fly a Fokker monoplane, a plane which Boelcke and Immelmann have had great success. I was very much grieved about Holck's death. Three days before he was killed, he visited me and we had much fun together. He told me of his imprisonment in Montenegro. One cannot imagine that this fine fellow doesn't exist anymore. I witnessed his last air fight. First he shot down a Frenchman in the midst of a hostile squadron. Then he evidently had a jam in his machine gun and wanted to return to the air above our lines. A whole swarm of Frenchmen were on him. With a bullet through the head, he fell from an altitude of 9000 ft - a beautiful death. Today I am going to fly at his funeral.”
There were two RFC/RNAS airmen lost on this day:
Lieutenant Thomas Robson Liddle RNAS He was killed in an air accident flying Curtiss JN-4 3431 (RNAS Chingford) and crashed whilst attempting a loop near Edmonton, He was just 20
Captain Erik Harrison Mitchell 24 SQuadron RFC - Killed in Action 30 April 1916 Crashed. Capt E H Mitchell MC of No 24 Sqn RFC (formerly Royal Field Artillery) was killed in an accident on 30 April 1916 while flying DH 2 No 5988. No 24 Sqn was then based at Bertangles.
There were seven aerial victory claims on this day... and another good day for the French with 4 of their pilots chalking up victories...
Lieutenant Jean Chaput - (France) flying a Caudron shot down an Eindecker over Combles-Herbueville - This may well have been Von Rochthofen's friend Count Holck. This would be his third kill.
Sous Lieutenant Noel Hugues Anne Louis de Rochefort (France) claims his second victory by shooting down an EA over Middlekerke whilst flying a Nieuport.
Capitaine Albert Louis Deullin (France)claims his 4th victory flying a Nieuport by shooting down an EA over Douaumont.
Sous Lieutenant Georges Charles Marie François Flachaire flying a Nieuport for N67 Squadron claims his first victory by shooting down a two seater over Viennes-le-Chateau.
Having served with an artillery unit, Georges Flachaire transferred to aviation in 1915. He scored eight victories flying Nieuport scouts with Escadrille 67. In 1918, he was posted to the United States to assist with the development of aviation plans by the Allies.
Flachaire joined the artillery in 1914. He soon volunteered for aviation. He was posted to Escadrille 67 on 1 September 1915. He piloted two-seater Nieuports until the new single-seated fighters showed up. He then scored his first triumph on 30 April 1916, earning the Médaille militaire by his actions. His next victory, on 28 July 1916, was shared with Georges Lachmann and Jean Matton. He scored once in September, three times in October, and notched his seventh on 23 November 1916.He was awarded the British Military Cross in early 1917. He scored one last win on 17 August 1917.
Médaille militaire
"On 30 April 1916, he attacked an enemy plane that was bombing our positions. After a serious combat during which he ran out of ammunition and fuel, he manoeuvred so adroitly that he forced his adversary to land in our lines where the pilot and observer were made prisoners. Already cited in Orders."
Légion d'honneur
"Remarkable pilot of skill, courage and audacity, which he displayed during recent operations, during the course of which he provided the most highly conspicuous services. On 20 and 21 October 1916, he downed, in the most brilliant fashion, his fourth and fifth enemy planes. The first in our lines and the second in the German Lines. Médaille militaire and cited in orders three times.
Oberleutnant der Reserve Ernst Freiherr von Althaus (Germany) claimed his 5th victory by shooting down a Farman over Caillette Wood.
Leutnant Friedrich Mallinckrodt (German) had an unconfirmed kill when shooting down an EA over Verdun, this would have been his first.
Lieutenant David Mary Tidmarsh (no I have not got that wrong) 24 Squadron RFC. Flying D.H.2 (5965) he shot down and destroyed an Eindecker over Bapaume. This was his second victory.
The Easter Rising continues to take the lives of members of the British Military.
Second Lieutenant Montague Bernard Browne (Sherwood Foresters) dies of wounds received two days earlier at age 39. He is the son of the late Reverend S B Browne Rector of Plumtree Notts. His brother was killed on Gallipoli last August.
Corporal Henry Meyrick Hewett (King Edward’s Horse) dies of wounds received in the Easter Rising in Ireland at age 42. He is the son of Lieutenant General E O Hewett CMG.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Second Lieutenant Bernard Pitt (Border Regiment attached Trench Mortar Battery) is killed in action at age 34. He is a Great War poet whose poems include February in the Firing Line which ends with line “Oh! How can I be out of England when Spring is Here?”
Second Lieutenant Bernard Pitt attended Borough Road College for two years. His college record is described as ‘not very satisfactory…there are handwritten criticisms of his attitude to his studies”, despite this he graduated with a Class 1 Teachers Certificate. Despite this he excelled in chemistry, physiology, and agriculture, and graduated the college with a BA Hons in Languages and later an MA Literature in 1911, both from the University of London. He started teaching as a master as the Kew Schools, later becoming a master at Sir. J. Williamson’s Mathematical School in Rochester, before finally holding a post at Coopers’ Company School, Bow. From 1912 he also conducted an English Literature class at the Working Men’s College at St. Pancras, where there is a room named after him. He joined a volunteer corps before gaining commission into the B order Regiment in April 1915. In February 1916 he was given command of a battery. He was 34 when he was killed on 30th April 1916 by a mine whilst observing and correcting mortar fire at Arras, leaving behind his wife Florence and four children. In a letter to his wife about his death from his Brigadier-General he is described as being the “embodiment of dash and pluck” and that “whenever the Germans appeared to be getting particularly annoyed, the men would say “oh, it’s that little trench mortar officer at them with his guns”. The Brigadier-General goes on to say Pitt was about to be made Starr Officer before his death. He is remembered for the prolific letter writer and poet he became during the war. His letters and poems were collated after the war, and whilst Pitt may not have the fame of other war poets his poetry (often reflecting on life back in London) offers another perspective of trench life.
“Do you wonder that, reading Wordsworth this afternoon in a clearing of the unpolluted woodlands, and marking the lovely faded colours on the wings of hibernating butterflies, and their soft motions,I felt a disgust, even to sickness, of the appalling wickedness of war.”
Brothers Cyril, 19, and Horace Hill, 22, are killed with the 24th Canadian Infantry when they take shelter from a German artillery barrage in the garden of a local estaminet in the village of ****ebusch. A shell lands outside the entrance of the dugout and twelve soldiers die, while only one gets away unscathed. The brothers are among the dead. They are now buried side by side in ****ebusch New Military Cemetery.
Lieutenant Robert Lepper Valentine (Dublin Fusiliers) dies of wounds at age 26. He is the inventory of a quick-firing improvement to the Lewis Machine Gun and assistant surveyor to the Geological Survey of Ireland.
Western Front
Flanders: British artillery defeat German gas attack from Messines Ridge.
The Gas attacks at Wulverghem in the municipality of Heuvelland were two German cloud gas attacks during World War I on British troops near Ypres in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The first gas discharge took place on 30 April 1916 and was followed by another attack on 17 June. The gas attacks at Wulverghem were part of the sporadic fighting, which took place between battles in the Ypres Salient on the Western Front. The British Second Army held the ground from Messines Ridge north to Steenstraat. British divisions opposite the German XXIII Reserve Corps, had received warnings of a gas attack in the ten days beforehand. From 21–23 April, British artillery-fire exploded several gas cylinders in the German lines around Spanbroekmolen, which released greenish-yellow clouds of gas. A gas alert was given on 25 April, when the wind began to blow from the north-east and routine work was suspended; on 29 April, two German soldiers deserted and warned that an attack was imminent. Just after midnight on 30 April, the German attack began and a gas cloud moved on the wind through no man's land, into the British defences and then south-west towards Bailleul.
The gas used by the German troops at Wulverghem was a mixture of chlorine and phosgene, which had been used against British troops on 19 December 1915 in the First German phosgene attack on British troops at Wieltje, north-east of Ypres. This and earlier gas attacks, beginning at the Second Battle of Ypres (21 April – 25 May 1915), had given the British time to replace improvised gas masks, with effective mass-produced masks and other anti-gas equipment and to establish anti-gas procedures. Helmets impregnated with chemicals to neutralise chlorine had been issued in several variants, each more effective than the last. By April 1916, British troops had PH helmets and some specialist troops like machine-gunners, were equipped with box respirators. The first German gas attack at Wulverghem on 30 April, caused the defenders 562 gas casualties and 89 gas fatalities but German raiding parties intended to find and destroy mine entrances, were repulsed with small-arms and artillery fire. A second attempt by the Germans on 17 June, caused about the same number of gas casualties and the British easily repulsed German patrols.
Just after midnight, German small-arms fire began along the fronts of the 73rd and 72nd brigades, in the centre and left of the 24th Division and the 76th Brigade on the right flank of the 3rd Division. Soon after, a gas discharge began on a 2-mile (3.2 km) from La Petite Douve Farm to Spanbroekmolen. (In German reports of the operation, the gas rose above head-height and was illuminated by British flares. British return-fire began and after five minutes, artillery-fire commenced.) Along most of the line, German rifle and machine-gun fire blanketed the hiss of gas and smothered the sound of alarm gongs and klaxons. The first warning for many British soldiers was the smell, since with the wind speed and no man's land being only 40 yards (37 m) wide in places, the gas arrived without warning. The British donned their helmets and a volley of Very lights revealed the gas cloud. German artillery began a bombardment behind the British front, on artillery positions, observation posts, support trenches and strong points. The gas signal reached the divisional HQs at 12:47 a.m. and three minutes later, the artillery of the 24th and 50th divisions, behind Hill 63 and the Vierstraat spur and the corps heavy artillery, began to bombard their night lines.[11]
The gas discharge lasted from 15–40 minutes and varied in density, being of shortest duration in areas where German raiding parties operated, most of whom did not wear gas masks. When the British saw that the Germans were unmasked, they removed theirs too. The gas cloud travelled quickly and reached Bailleul 6 miles (9.7 km) away, at 1:12 a.m., a speed of 300 yards (270 m) per minute. After about five minutes, German parties advanced to the British wire but were then repulsed by the British in their advanced listening posts. No more attempts were made during the discharge and raiding groups of 30–40 men each, advanced after the discharge against the 72nd and 76th brigade fronts. One party got into an empty trench at the brigade boundary and was then bombed out; the rest were forced back by small-arms fire and by 1:30 a.m., quiet returned and the British artillery ceased fire.
Soon afterwards, two larger raiding parties attacked against the centre of the 72nd Brigade and the other to the north beyond the area of the gas attack, against the junction of the 9th and 8th brigades, where the British were defending mine shafts. (The German records relate the advance of officer patrols, which returned with news that the British were alert and unaffected by the gas, making the mine sabotage operation impossible.) A barrage fell 50 yards (46 m) back from the attack fronts and fire was opened by heavy trench mortars. Covered by snipers in no man's land, hiding in long grass the raiders tried to cut through the British wire. On the 3rd Division front, the attackers were repulsed by flanking fire from Lewis-guns and hand grenades, as four heavy howitzers quickly silenced the German heavy trench mortars. On the 24th Division front the riding party, armed with bombs, daggers and pistols got into three bays of the front line trench and was then forced out twenty minutes later by a counter-attack. A 40 pounds (18 kg) explosive charge was later found in a defunct mine shaft. Other raiding parties were prevented from leaving the German front line by small-arms fire. By 4:30 a.m. quiet had returned, with the British having had no need for the support and reserve battalions in the area.
Verdun: *German April losses 39,000; French 44,000.
From April to June French tank pioneer Colonel Estienne in command of French artillery in key Vaux*-Douaumont sector.
Southern Fronts
Trentino, west of Lake Garda: Alpini cadets capture Crozzon di Fargorida. Crozzon and Passo del Diavolo taken later and Austrians forced to evacuate Fargorida and Topete Passes. This sector secure for Italy for duration.
Middle East
Mesopotamia: Kut garrison begins march into captivity (4,818 do not return). Turks kill 250 Kut civilians. Chief of British Imperial general staff cable orders defensive strategy.
African Fronts
East Africa: Belgian Northern Brigade occupies Kasibu. 3rd South African Infantry Brigade (less 1,000 of them sick) arrives at Kondoa Irangi (until May 1). 2nd Rhodesian Regiment has only left 50 men out of 600 fit.
Sea War
Aegean: 2 Royal Navy mInesweep*ers tow 14 caiques to land opposite Samos (150 irregulars involved, 2 killed), capture 1,870 cattle (night April 30 to May 1).
In April British merchant shipping losses: 43 ships with 141,193t plus 131 lives (total Allied and neutral shipping loss 187,307t incl 56,000t or 20 ships in Mediterranean).
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
Well that's it for April - in May we have The Battle of Vimy Ridge, some more from Capt. Tunstill's men (who have been sitting around in and behind their trenches being mostly bored these past few days) more Zeppelin raids and at the end of May we have The Battle of Jutland.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
I have been especially paying attention to the details on the Irish Easter Uprising. Thank you for those posts, especially.
Another epic piece of reportage Chris.
Well done sir.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Its been really interesting to do these past few days, I knew nothing about the EAster Rising before this past week and it has proved to be a real education. Happy to share the experience.
Thanks for the feedback Sam
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
Thank you sir.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 1st 1916
Dublin counts the cost of the Easter Rising
The Easter Rising has shocked Dublin, with the city and its people scarred by the fighting. The area around Sackville Street in ruins. Compared to the fighting on the Western Front the loss in life has been relatively slight, with less than 500 people dying in the week of fighting. But Dublin is not the Western Front; people thought they were safe here from the war and are shocked by the blood-letting that descended onto the city’s streets. The fighting cost the rebels some 64 men killed. With 132 of its soldiers killed, the British army has had a worse time of it, but civilian deaths outnumber the combined deaths of the combatants. More than 250 civilians died in the fighting. Larger numbers of people in all categories have been injured by the fighting.
Civilian casualties are inevitable when fighting takes place in a densely populated urban centre. Most of the civilians killed or wounded were the unlucky recipients of stray bullets. But there are some more unsavoury incidents. In house-to-house fighting in the North King Street area it appears that British troops were shooting men without distinguishing between rebels and bystanders. The perpetrators of the North King Street killings can at least claim to have been acting in the heat of battle. The actions of Captain Bowen-Colthurst in the Portobello area are harder to fathom. During the week he arrested a small number of men, held them overnight, before ordering them executed by firing squad without any semblance of trial. Bowen-Colthurst himself also shot some people he met on the street and suspected of involvement in the Rising or of having disloyal thoughts, including a city councillor who is now fighting for his life in hospital. The dead include two barmen, two journalists from pro-British newspapers and the pacifist socialist Francis Sheehy-Skeffington (arrested as he returned from a quixotic attempt to stop looting in the city centre). In the barracks the five bodies of Bowen-Colthurst’s victims are buried in quicklime to obscure his crimes.
Dubliners may think that with the rebellion over things can begin to return to normal. General Maxwell, Britain’s military governor, has other ideas. He still has his extraordinary martial law powers. He is determined to use them to pacify the country and prevent any future rebellion. The leaders of the Rising will be tried by military courts empowered to hand out death sentences. Maxwell also intends a general crackdown on disloyal elements, with mass arrests of suspicious characters planned.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Captain Christopher Wilkinson Brown (Royal Scots Fusiliers) is killed in action at age 23. He is the son of the Reverend C V Brown and he had been wounded twice in 1915.
Captain Neville Wallach MC (Australian Infantry) is killed in action at age 21 when a shell burst sends a splinter through his head as his officers are sitting down to eat. He is a member of the Eastern Suburbs Rugby Union Football club and his brother will be killed in April 1918.
Lieutenant Harry Morton Ellis Adie (Central Ontario Regiment attached Royal Flying Corps) dies of wounds at age 29. His three cousins will be killed in the Great War.
Private Patrick Pender (Munster Fusiliers) dies at home in Dover. His brother was killed in July 1915.
Private Victor Herbert Nicholas (Machine Gun Corps) dies of wounds at age 23. His brother was killed in March 1915.
Private James Potts (Lancaster Regiment) dies on service in Mesopotamia at age 17. He is the first of three brothers who will lose their lives in the war.
Private W Bussell (Quebec Regiment) is killed at age 30. His brother was killed in April 1915.
There was just the one aerial victory claim today - Hauptmann Oswald Boelcke claims his 15th kill by shooting down a French Biplane somewhere over the French lines...
There was one airman lost today Lieutenant Harry Morton Ellis Adie No. 8 Squadron RFC - Accidentally Killed while flying 1 May 1916 aged 29.
Western Front
German reverses east of Ypres and north of Albert (Somme). British trench newspaper parodies ‘How to Win the War’ ideas.
Verdun: Nivelle succeeds Petain in command, boasts ‘We have the formula’. Latter to head French Centre Army Group. French take trenches southeast of Fort Douaumont. 40 French divisions have fought since start of battle against 26 German divisions (no relief of formations, only replacements of men). At the side of the French a crisis situation occurred in the army Command. Joffre blamed Pétain a too careful and too defensive attitude. Furthermore, when Pétain demanded a longer period of rest for his divisions, Joffre concluded that the planned offensive of the Somme would be in danger. Pétain was kicked upstairs and received the function of Commander-in-chief of the Central Army Group, to which division Verdun belonged as well. His replacement from Monday 1 May was General Robert Nivelle, who was known for being a ruthless fighter that favoured the frontal attack [l’ attaque à outrance]. One of his subordinates, his right hand man, is General Charles Mangin. This is a rock-hard front General, who had already been in command at Verdun, of the Vth Division, and who was nicknamed the 'slaughterer' because of his ruthless attacks. Mangin made it his aim to recapture Fort Douaumont.
Verdun
The attack of Fort Vaux is begun. The army command wants to clear the French lines in the Bois de la Caillette first before the fort is actually attacked. The position of these French lines is a severe obstacle for the attacker when storming the fort. However, German Headquarters decides differently: fort Vaux has to be attacked first. On Sunday 7 May it becomes clear that the German attack has failed again. The French artillery fire, lead by observation balloons and aircraft is too severe. The Germans are forced back. The attack of the Thiaumont- fortification, which was started on the same day, fails as well, due to the severe French artillery fire. There is no German air-raid protection that day. The German planes had not taken off, in order to throw of the French, and not give away the surprise attack.
In the meantime Fort Douaumont has become the basis for all German activities in the frontline, against the Bois de la Caillette, the Thiaumont-line and later against Fleury. The munitions depots are situated here, wounded can receive medical attention and the provisioning of all front troops are initiated from Fort Douaumont. The fort is attacked by the French, night and day. All German activities take place at night in order for the movement of troops not to be visible from barrage balloons and aircraft. The French artillery keeps firing at the supply routes and the Germans move in between attacks. On Monday - 8 May 4:00 a.m. there is an huge explosion in the fort. There is a large number of deaths. (see later posts) Because of the severe French resistance at Fort Vaux, Bois de la Caillette and the Thiaumont-fortification, combined with the catastrophe in Fort Douaumont, the German operation "May bowl" is a failure right from the start.
During May French Captain Andre Laffargue publishes pamphlet on revolutionary infiltration tactics for infantry (Germans apparently capture a copy).
Southern Fronts
Italian Front: During May French begin sending 250 MGs per month to Italy.
African Fronts
Rhodesia: 1st Native Regiment formed, leaves for East Africa on July 18.
Sea War
Channel: Vice-Admiral Ronarc’h becomes French C*-in-C for duration of War.
Adriatic: During May first Italian MAS motor launches (299 built) enter service (ordered April 1915). 47 Japanese fishing boats bought in 1916 for escort role. 4 Italian battleships now based at Valona, Albania.
Mediterranean: In May Admiral Haus promoted Austria’s first and only Grand Admiral (c. May 28). U-boats sink 37 ships or 72,072t in Mediterranean out of grand total of 119,381t.
Germany*: First of 24 All-type coastal torpedo-boat/minesweepers commissioned for Flanders operations (6 finished at Antwerp).
The American Submarine - USS L-5 (SS-44) is launched on this day
L-5's keel was laid down on 14 May 1914 by Lake Torpedo Boat Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut, launched on 1 May 1916, sponsored by Mrs. Rosalind Robinson, and commissioned on 17 February 1918 with Lieutenant J. M. Deem in command. After exercises along the Atlantic coast, L-5 departed Charleston, South Carolina, on 15 October 1918 with Submarine Division 6 and reached the Azores on 7 November. Following the Armistice with Germany on 11 November, L-5 headed west, arriving Bermuda on 1 December. She participated in exercises in the Caribbean Sea before steaming on to San Pedro, California, where she arrived 13 February 1919. From 1919 to 1922, she remained on the West Coast experimenting with new torpedoes and underseas detection equipment. L-5 departed San Pedro on 25 July 1922, and, after visits in Mexico, Nicaragua, and the Panama Canal Zone, she arrived Hampton Roads, Virginia, on 28 September. The submarine remained there until she decommissioned on 5 December 1922. She was sold on 21 December 1925 to Passaic Salvage and Reclamation Company in Newark, New Jersey, and scrapped.
Air War
France: First flight of French Spad S7 fighter (140-hp Hispano-Suiza V8 engine).
The SPAD S.VII was the first of a series of highly successful biplane fighter aircraft produced by Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés (SPAD) during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and rugged aircraft with good climbing and diving characteristics. It was also a stable gun platform, although pilots used to the more manoeuvrable Nieuport fighters found it heavy on the controls. It was flown by a number of the famous aces, such as France's Georges Guynemer, Italy's Francesco Baracca and Australia's Alexander Pentland.
Performance in early aircraft designs was largely dependent on engines. In February 1915, Swiss designer Marc Birkigt had created an overhead cam aviation powerplant based on his Hispano-Suiza V8 automobile engine, resulting in a 330 lb engine capable of producing 140 hp at 1,400 rpm. Further refinement of the engine brought the power to 150 hp by July 1915. Given the engine's potential, French officials ordered that production be set up as soon as possible and called upon aircraft designers to create a new high-performance fighter around the engine, called the Hispano-Suiza 8A. Louis Béchereau, chief designer of the SPAD company, quickly produced drawings for a prototype fighter equipped with the new engine. The SPAD V was basically a smaller version of the SPAD S.A two-seat "pulpit fighter", although as a single seater it dispensed with the so-called "pulpit" which carried the observer in front of the propeller. One of many common design feature between the new SPAD V and the S.A-2 was the use of a single-bay biplane wing with additional light struts mounted mid bay at the point of junction of the flying and landing wires. This design simplified rigging and reduced flying wire vibration, reducing drag. The fuselage was of the standard construction for the time, consisting of a wooden frame covered with fabric, while the forward part was covered with metal sheeting. A .303 Vickers machine gun was installed above the engine, synchronized to fire through the propeller arc. The prototype was also fitted with a large spinner, to be abandoned later.
SPAD test pilot Bequet flew the SPAD V for the first time in April 1916. Flight testing revealed excellent maximum speed (192 km/h, 119 mph) and climb rate (4.5 min to 2,000 m or 6,500 ft). The air frame's sound construction also enabled remarkable diving performance. In comparison, the Nieuport sesquiplane fighters that equipped a large part of the fighter units could occasionally shed its lower wings in a steep power-on dive, a result of the single-spar lower wing design. The combination of high speed and good diving ability promised to give Allied pilots the initiative to engage or leave combat. If the new fighter was a rugged and stable shooting platform, some pilots regretted its lack of maneuverability, especially when compared to lighter types such as the Nieuport 17.
In the face of such performance, an initial production contract was made on 10 May 1916, calling for 268 machines, to be designated SPAD VII C.1 (C.1, from avion de chasse in French, indicating the aircraft was a fighter, while the 1 indicated it was a single seater).
Early production aircraft suffered from a number of defects which took some time to solve and limited the delivery rate to units. While a few SPADs arrived to frontline units as early as August 1916, large numbers would only begin to appear in the first months of 1917. Among the problems encountered were problems with the Hispano-Suiza engine. In hot weather, the engine was prone to overheating. In cold weather, the engine would not warm up. Various field modifications were used to counter the problem, including cutting extra holes in the metal sheeting to provide more air flow over the engine. On the production lines, the cowling opening was first enlarged and eventually redesigned with vertical shutters to solve both problems. The engine mount also proved too weak and reinforcements were designed to counter that. Early production aircraft also had two ammunition drums: one for normal rounds and the other for empty ones. This system was prone to jamming and was only solved when Prideaux disintegrating ammo links were introduced. With the initial teething problems solved, several subcontractors began producing the SPAD VII under license in order to supply frontline units with the fighter. The subcontractors were the firms Grémont, Janoir, Kellner et Fils, de Marçay, Société d'Etudes Aéronautiques, Régy and Sommer. It was not, however, until February 1917 that the initial batch of 268 aircraft was delivered.[4] In early 1917, an improved version of the engine developing 180 hp, the Hispano-Suiza 8Ab, was made available. This new powerplant provided the SPAD VII with even better performance, the top speed increasing from 192 km/h (119 mph) to 208 km/h (129 mph). The new engine gradually became the standard powerplant for the SPAD VII and by April 1917, all newly produced aircraft were equipped with it.
The French Aviation Militaire had been sufficiently impressed by the performance of the SPAD V prototype to order a batch of 268 aircraft on 10 May 1916. However, teething problems soon appeared and it would be several months before the SPAD VII would serve in significant numbers on the front, the last aircraft of the initial batch only being delivered in February 1917.
In spite of these delays, some aircraft were delivered to frontline units as early as August 1916, complementing the Nieuport fighters. By this date, the Nieuport 11 that had ended the infamous "Fokker scourge" episode had been largely replaced by later types such as the Nieuport 17 but these were now being bested by a new generation of German fighters by the second half of 1916 that threatened to give Germany mastery of the skies again. At the same time, the rotary engines that had powered most Allied fighters until then were proving difficult to scale further, while the heavier inline engines were steadily getting more powerful. In this context, it was hoped the new Hispano-Suiza 8-powered SPAD VII would be able to fight the latest German fighters on better terms. The first aircraft delivered to a frontline unit was S.112 flown by Lt Sauvage of N.65, followed by S.113, assigned to Georges Guynemer of N.3. Guynemer was already credited with 15 victories at the time, but it was Armand Pinsard of N.26 who was the first to score an aerial victory on 26 August.The introduction of the SPAD VII was not enough to change the balance of the air war but it allowed both pilots and mechanics to familiarize themselves with the new fighter. Many pilots found the SPAD lacked maneuverability and some even returned to the nimbler Nieuports. New tactics based on speed were developed to take advantage of the SPAD's power, and to compensate for its lack of maneuverability. The aircraft's capacity to dive safely up to 400 km/h (249 mph) permitted the pilot to break from combat when the situation demanded it. With early problems solved and production shared between several manufacturers, the SPAD VII was finally available in large numbers at the front in early 1917. By mid 1917, some 500 were in front-line service, having largely replaced the Nieuport. It gained a reputation for being stronger than its predecessors. Its principal shortcoming was its one machine gun armament at a time when the opposing Albatros D.III fighters were equipped with two. The SPAD VII was gradually replaced by the improved SPAD XIII in front line units but remained in use as a trainer aircraft with Aviation Militaire throughout the war and it remained as the standard pilot certification test aircraft until 1928.
Anyone who knows me knows how much I like this plane and one version in particular...
Caquot (French) introduces the classic kite (observation) barrage balloon.
Britain: A MG synchronized to fire through the propeller arc is introduced into Royal Flying Corps squadron service for the first time (1 1/2-Strutters’ of No 70 Squadron). The Vickers-Challenger synchronisation gear was put into production for the Royal Flying Corps in December 1915, and in a few weeks, a similar order for the Scarff-Dibovski gear was placed for the RNAS. Early production 1½ Strutters were fitted with one or the other of these gears for the pilot's fixed .303-in Vickers machine gun; due to a shortage of the new gears some early aircraft were built with only the observer's gun. Later aircraft were either fitted with the Ross or the Sopwith-Kauper gears. None of these early mechanical synchronisation gears were very reliable and it was not uncommon for propellers to be damaged, or even entirely shot away.
Politics
Britain: During May British Grave Registration units formed in Egypt, Salonika, Mesopotamia and East Africa.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 2nd 1916
I wonder if 100 years from now someone will be sitting there typing - this was the year Leicester City won the Premier League, as a Chelsea fan I'm glad we could help Leicester over the line and ruins Spurs season at the same time.....
100 years ago we would have been wishing a very happy birthday to the one and only Manfred Von Richthofen
After many losses over the past week or so NO DEATHS ARE RECORDED FOR TUESDAY MAY 2ND 1916
As far as aerial victories are concerned there were just the two on this day (blimey if this was 1917 there were 34 - think I need to be on holiday in 12 months time....)
Claiming his second victory by downing a Morane over Lysskowcy we have Hauptmann Godwin Brumowski
Also claiming his second victory, and also by shooting down a Morane over Lyssowcy we have Offizierstellvertreter Kurt Gruber
Its been a while but we have reports of yet more Zeppelin raids...
Planned as a big Navy Zeppelin raid on the Rosyth docks near Edinburgh, the weather disrupted the attack. In addition the Army sent out one Zeppelin intending to bomb Manchester. Neither target was reached.
It seems the Army’s LZ.98 (Hauptman Erich Linnarz) appeared off the Lincolnshire coast around 7.00pm. In worsening weather and keeping out to sea she flew southwards from Spurn Head as far Mablethorpe, then turned back. Returning to a position off Spurn Head, but never coming inland, Linnarz set course for home at about 8.15pm.
Two of the Navy’s Zeppelins did actually reach Scotland but without any serious effect. L.14 (Kapitänleutnant Böcker) had reached Edinburgh in April but did not manage to repeat the feat. She struck the coast north of Berwick at about 8.25pm and hoped to follow it up the Firth of Forth, but strong winds carried her north. She struck the coast again at Lunan Bay, north of Arbroath. Turning south she reached Arbroath at about 10.50pm where she circled for some time in low rain clouds. Then, just to the west of the village of Arbirlot, Böcker dropped three high-explosive (HE) bombs at about 11.40pm, which fell in a grass field on Bonhard Farm. A horse took fright and injured itself jumping a fence. Three miles further south, L.14 dropped two more HE bombs. These fell in a potato field at Penlathy Farm near Muirdrum, breaking a single pane of glass. L.14 went back out to sea over Carnoustie and headed back to Germany.
The other Zeppelin to reach Scotland, L.20 (Kapitänleutnant Franz Stabbert), made an unexpected tour of the Highlands. She came inland over Lunan Bay at about 9.55pm and followed a north-west course, but bad weather and blanket mist made it impossible to determine where she was, until the skies cleared at about 12.30am - over Loch Ness! With the general lack of visible landmarks over the Highlands, Stabbert decided to turn back. From a position about 30 miles west of Aberdeen, Stabbert saw a light below. Believing this might be a coalmine pithead he released six HE bombs at about 1.45am (one failed to explode). The bombs, in fact, fell in the grounds of Craig Castle, between Rhynie and Lumsden. One fell within 40 feet of the castle; no injuries occurred but the roof and windows were damaged. L.20 then followed a north-east course for about 10 miles towards Insch, where it released four HE bombs that landed in a field at Knockenbaird, and an incendiary which came down in a field at Scotston. No significant damage occurred. Stabbert then dropped three final HE bombs just north of Old Rayne where they landed harmlessly in a field at Freefield House. He then continued to the coast, which he crossed south of Peterhead at about 2.40am. But now L.20 had a problem. Having flown further north than any other Zeppelin before or after, and facing strong winds across his course, Stabbert realised he did not have enough fuel to get back to Germany. He eventually made a crash landing in Norway on the morning of 3 May. Some of the crew jumped overboard before they crossed the coastline and, rescued by fishing boats, were men returned to Germany as shipwrecked mariners. Stabbert and the rest, who came down with L.20 in a fjord, were interned. The Norwegian authorities destroyed the wreckage of L.20. Perhaps the most unspectacular raid carried out by the six Navy Zeppelins that appeared over England was carried out by L.11 (Korvettenkapitän Victor Schütze). While still about ten miles east of St. Abb’s Head, a headland north of Berwick, the armed trawler Semiramis and armed yacht Portia engaged her at about 8.40pm firing 13 rounds. They failed to damage L.11 but she turned away and only reappeared at about 10.20pm, coming inland just north of Holy Island. She dropped two incendiary bombs, one fell near Goswick and the other on the sands between Holy Island and the coast. The weather in the area was bad with low rain clouds and mist and L.11 may have been unsure of her position after the encounter with the two ships. She followed the coast on a southerly course until she reached Amble then went back out to sea. (more tomorrow...)
Upper Prince St. York
George and Sarah Avison of York are killed instantly in a Zeppelin raid by a direct hit on their home in Upper Price Street. Seven other people die and 28 were injured but due to wartime censorship full details will not be released until 2nd May 1945 – exactly 40 years after the raid.
While a German 21-cm shell in which several holes have been bored is being steamed in a laboratory for study purposes the box of shaving in which it is packed catches fire. The officer in charge of the laboratory at once sends for help to the nearest Army Service Corps fire station, orders all persons to leave the building and warns the inhabitants of the neighboring houses that a serious explosion is imminent. On receipt of the request for help Lieutenant Sidney Albert Rowlandson, Mechanic Staff Sergeant Thomas Michael Walton and Privates Alexander Anderson and Joseph Thomas Lawrence at once collect fire extinguishers and proceed by motor to the laboratory. They enter the building, and after about two minutes are able to reach the burning shell which they drag into the yard and extinguish. For their actions all four men will be awarded the Albert Medal.
An update from Capt. Tunstill's men who aren't having that bad a time of it...
The weather has remained fine and settled; it was hot during the day, and pleasant during the evening. The Battalion was primarily engaged in training exercises and also in providing large working parties (the Brigade as a whole provided up to 1,100 men per day) . The evening saw an increase in artillery activity from both sides, lasting between two and three hours.
The war at sea
There was plenty of U-Boat activity with eight ships being reported lost on this day...
Fridland Sweden The cargo ship struck a mine and was damaged in the North Sea off the Longsand Lightship ( United Kingdom) (51°51′N 1°56′E) and was beached at Blyth, Northumberland without loss of life. She was later refloated, repaired and returned to service.
Le Pilier France The barque was torpedoed and sunk in the Bay of Biscay (47°50′N 5°50′W) by SM U-45 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Maud United Kingdom The schooner was shelled and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean 50 nautical miles (93 km) south west of Ouessant, Finistère, France (47°50′N 7°30′W) by SM U-45 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Mars Norway The barge was scuttled in the North Sea by SM UB-27 ( Kaiserliche Marine).
Memento Norway The sailing vessel was sunk in the North Sea (56°15′N 2°46′E) by SM UB-27 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
Rochester City United Kingdom The cargo ship struck a mine and sank in the North Sea 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) off Southwold, Suffolk (52°10′N 1°47′E) with the loss of a crew member.
Ruabon United Kingdom The cargo ship was captured, torpedoed and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean 160 nautical miles (300 km) west by south of Ouessant by SM U-20 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived. Her crew were rescued by Misurata ( Italy).
Superb Norway The lighter, a converted barque, was scuttled in the North Sea (56°16′N 3°55′E) by SM UB-27 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survive
Western Front
Somme: French in planned offensive to be led by Micheler, Petain obvious choice but jealous Joffre will not consider him.
Southern Fronts
Macedonia: French troops occupy Florina 23 miles south of Monastir.
Middle East
Mesopotamia: King’s mes*sage to Tigris Corps (new 14th Division formed on May 12), cholera out*break (shade temperature 115° F).
Secret War
Stotzingen leaves Jerusalem for Arabia, heads for Wejh but only reaches Yanbo (late May) due to Royal Navy blockade.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 3rd 1916
There was one airman lost on this day - Lance Corporal George Walter Palgrave RFC attached from the 2nd Battalion, Norfolk Regiment. Lance Corporal GEORGE WALTER PALGRAVE 8444, Royal Flying Corps and 2nd Bn, Norfolk Regiment who died on 3 May 1916 Born Wilby, Norfolk Enlisted: East Dereham. KUT WAR CEMETERY From this I assume he was one of the chaps taken when Kut was surrendered to the Turkish forces.
The only aerial victory claim today was Oberleutnant der Reserve Ernst Freiherr von Althaus who claimed his sixth victory by shooting down a French two seater.
More Zeppelin raids (continued from yesterday)
The remaining five Zeppelins raided over Yorkshire where the weather conditions appear to have been slightly more favourable. By far the most deadly attack was that made by L.21 (Kapitänleutnant Max Dietrich). L.21 came inland near Scarborough at about 9.40pm and followed a south-east course to the south of York where she changed course to follow the railway leading into the city. Between Copmanthorpe and Dringhouses on the south-west edge she released five HE and 13 incendiary bombs. Damage was limited to broken windows but two soldiers received minor injuries. At least 16 bombs dropped on York city. An incendiary on Knavesmire caused no damage, but three HE and two incendiaries landing at Nunthorpe Hall - serving as a VAD Hospital - destroyed the roof, but none of the nursing staff or patients were injured. The next HE bomb fell in Nunthorpe Avenue, killing 28-year-old Emily Chapman and seriously injuring her sister and mother. In Upper Price Street another HE bomb made a direct hit on number 13, destroying it and seriously damaged other houses. It also killed an elderly married couple in their bed: George and Sarah Avison. Further HE bombs fell in Nunthorpe Road, Victoria Street and Price’s Lane, smashing doors and windows and damaging roofs. In Newton Terrace an HE bomb injured three people and wrecked four houses. A woman was injured in Kyme Street where an HE bomb blasted doors and windows. The last HE bomb landed in St. Saviourgate where it seems a number of people were in the street watching the raid. The explosion ripped out the fronts of a number of houses. Two soldiers, Sergeant Edward Beckett and Private Leslie Hinson, were helping an elderly lady, Susannah Waudby, to reach her house in St. Saviourgate when the bomb exploded; all three died. Others killed were William Chappelow, Ernest Coultish and Benjamin Sharpe. On her way back to the coast L.21 dropped one more bomb, an incendiary, which fell harmlessly at Kirkby Grindalythe.
The raids by the remaining four Zeppelins did not quite live up to expectations. L.23 (Kapitänleutnant Otto von Schubert) came inland over Robin Hood’s Bay at about 9.15pm and headed west over the North Yorkshire Moors. Over Denby High Moor von Schubert released an incendiary bomb, presumably to check his ground speed and drift; it was to have enormous consequences. He then followed a course to the north, to the ever-popular target of the Skinningrove Iron Works. Von Schubert released seven HE bombs and four incendiaries at about 10.05pm, but the only damage was a partly wrecked and burnt storehouse. A 6-in gun at Brotton opened fire on L.23, getting off three rounds. Von Schubert turned away to the east and five minutes later released six incendiary bombs over Easington, which caused injury to a child and damaged a house. L.23 then began her homeward journey.
Following on behind L.23, Oberleutnant-zur-See Werner Peterson brought L.16 inland at some time prior to 10.00pm, but her movements do not become clear until she appears over Rosedale Abbey on the North York Moors at 10.30pm. Peterson saw a large fire to the north and steered towards it. The incendiary bomb dropped earlier by L.23 had caused a heather fire on the moor. Peterson believed the blaze was the town of Stockton-on-Tees and commenced to drop an undisclosed number of his own bombs on to the fire. From Danby High Moor L.16 followed the Esk valley eastwards and at around 10.50pm dropped five HE bombs on the village of Lealholm. The bombs caused slight damage to a farm building and smashed some windows but no one was injured. At about 11.15pm Peterson dropped five incendiaries harmlessly over the village of Moorsholm before commencing his homeward journey.
Kapitänleutnant Herbert Ehrlich brought L.17 inland at about 10.50pm near Saltburn, between Middlesbrough and Skinningrove. She made straight for the latter place and dropped 13 HE and four incendiary bombs, which all fell on the neighbouring village of Carlin How. The bombs wrecked six houses and blasted roof tiles off and smashed windows in many others but there were no casualties. The glow of a huge fire to the south-west then attracted Ehrlich’s attention and he set a course towards it. He reported it as ‘a coastal city…apparently Saltburn’ but it was Danby High Moor, and at about 11.30pm, L.17 added a number of her bombs to the immense fire below. Ehrlich then headed for the coast and went back out to sea just to the north of Whitby.
The last Zeppelin involved in the raid this night, L.13 (Kapitänleutnant Eduard Prölss), came in near Whitby at about 10.30pm. After taking a south-west course she was seen at the North Yorkshire Moor’s village of Goathland, and then the trace of her is lost until she reappears about 35 miles to the south near Market Weighton at about 11.40pm. It seems highly likely, however, that L.13 contributed a significant number of her bombs to the raging conflagration now engulfing Danby High Moor before reaching Market Weighton, as she only dropped two other bombs during the raid. Presumably unsure of his whereabouts, Prölss released two parachute flares over Pocklington before heading north. He dropped a single incendiary at Fridaythorpe a little before midnight, falling harmlessly in a grass field. At Rillington she turned east and at about 12.40am dropped a second incendiary at Seamer, south of Scarborough, again without damage. Then about 10 minutes later, Prölss took L.13 out to sea just to the north of Scarborough.
It is impossible to determine exactly how many bombs fell on Danby High Moor. The local police recorded 39 large craters made by explosive bombs and 7 smaller ones from incendiaries. They also reported that any which failed to explode were likely to have sunk below the boggy ground and were untraceable.
Seaplane attack
The details of this air raid appear a little confused as regards to the number of bombs - some official sources say seven and others nine high-explosive bombs. Also the exact locations of some bombs are missing in official and newspaper accounts written at the time.
At about 3.30pm on Wednesday 3rd May a single Hansa-Brandenburg NW floatplane of SFA 1, based at Zeebrugge, appeared over Deal, approaching the town from the direction of Ramsgate. Although it was bright day there were banks of cloud, making observation and identification difficult. As it circled over the town for a couple of minutes it did not raise any undue concern, those who saw it presuming it was a British aircraft.
Reports state that six bombs fell in the locality of the railway station, but none actually on it. One of these bombs exploded on what some reports describe as an outhouse and others as a lodge, by a tarred path leading to the station. The bomb destroyed the roof and smashed windows in about 20 houses. Considering where those bombs we do know fell, this may be Church Path. A railway ticket inspector, Mr Potnell, walking along the path to the station received severe injuries to his arms and legs and later had a leg amputated. Not far away near Sutherland Road, a milkman, Charles Hutchins, also suffered a leg injury from a flying bomb fragment. Another bomb fell in a road nearby making a crater and smashing numerous windows in the area. A third bomb destroyed the roof and the upper storey of a house, severely injuring an invalid woman who lived there. A large part of the roof landed in the road and stopped the traffic. Details of the other three bombs near the station are not recorded, it is unlikely therefore that they caused any significant damage.
The last identifiable bomb landed on the roof of Admiral Keppel pub in Manor Road, near the western end of Church Path, and directly opposite St. Leonard’s Church. It appears not to have detonated. Damage amounted to ‘dislodging the tiles, and damaging the top part of the structure’. Flying debris appears to have caused minor damage to the church.
St. Leonards church & the Admiral Kepple pub
The official report then adds that ‘Two further bombs dropped did no damage’. The surprise appearance of the raider meant defence aircraft only got airborne after it had started its return journey. With a head start and low cloud they had no chance to engage the raider.
On a day we lost 284 men:
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Captain Gilbert Meade Gerard (Highland Light Infantry) is killed in action at age 27 in Mesopotamia. He is the son of the late General ‘Sir’ Montague Gerard Gilbert.
Private Frederick Thomas Bolland (Staffordshire Yeomanry) is killed in action at age 24 in Egypt. His brother will be killed in June 1918.
Private Mervyn Boyson (Northamptonshire Regiment) dies of wounds at age 22. He is the first of three brothers who will be killed in the Great War.
Private William Gregson Blackledge (Gloucestershire Regiment) dies at Bristol of enteric fever at age 19. He is the son of the Reverend Robert Thomas Blackledge Christ Church Rectory, Denton.
Western Front
Verdun: French storm positions northwest of Mort Homme, but 500 German guns on a mile front shell Hill 304 (until May 5); one French battalion reduced to 3 men.
Middle East
Persia: Russian general Baratov occupies Kasr-i-Shirin on border (110 miles from Baghdad) and learns Kut’s surrender by radio, takes Khanikin (on May 15).
African Fronts
East Africa: Belgian troops occupy Shanzugu (Lake Kivu) and Kigali on May 6.
Sea War
North Sea: Weather thwarts British carrier raid with Vindex and Engadine on Tondern Zeppelin sheds (until May 4), but cruisers Galatea and Phaeton force Zeppelin L7 down.
Submarine E31 finishes it off and rescues 7 survivors, also survives 5.9-inch shell hit and ramming attempt by cruiser Rostock.
Main rival fleets briefly sortie in support (May 4-5).
The story from a man in Eccles.....
The remarkably successful exploit of the British Submarine E31 in recently bringing down the German Zeppelin L7 on the Schleswig coast acquires an added interest in Eccles from the fact that an Eccles man had a share in it, and has written an interesting description. Stoker William McKnight, whose sisters live at 89 Trafford Rd, writes: “ Last week was the most exciting week I have ever had in my life. We had the luck of the devil with us. Our boat, a submarine, brought down and destroyed a Zeppelin and brought seven of the crew back with us. The map will show how far exactly we were from Germany when it happened. When you look at it, it does seem rather a hot-headed thing to do, but you know the old saying that there is nothing impossible to the British Navy. After we had polished off the Zeppelin we made for our base so that we could get rid of the prisoners, and were sailing merrily along in the middle of the night when we espied a fast German cruiser, not a hundred yards away, making to cut us in halves. Owing to our officers giving the correct order at the correct second they were spoiled in their attempt to ram us. Our boat altered course, our bows swung round and the two boats stopped side by side with not twenty yards between us. The next thing we had to do was to jump down the conning tower, close the hatch and dive the boat. During the couple of minutes it took to do that, the cruiser was blazing shells at us, but owing to their rotten gunnery we managed to get down, and only one of the shells hit us, and that wasn’t in a vital place. The people who understand the thing properly cannot make out how we managed to get clear away. But there it is. The job’s a good one. Britain still rules the waves, so its not a bit of use worrying is it?....
The Zeppelin men may be brave men when they are sailing over dear old England on a dark night dropping bombs on women and children, but after we had blown them out of their old sausage machine they were glad to beg and plead with us to save their lives. We killed 11 during the ‘argument’ and brought seven back for ‘curios’.”
Stoker McKnight, who will be 25 at the end of the month, is married. He joined the Navy seven years ago, and has experienced some of the perils and excitements encountered by our senior service. He has been on the E31, one of the newest of the submarines, since November, but in the early days of the war he took part in the battle of the Chilian coast whilst on H.M.S. Suffolk, whose sister ship, the Good Hope, was sunk with the Monmouth. He has also seen service in various submarines. One of his exploits, and he has escaped very narrowly from several, was in action on the Suffolk against the famous German cruiser Karlsruhe.
Air War
Eastern Front: Zeppelin ZX11 raids Luninetz and LZ86 Minsk railways.
Home Fronts
Russia: Ex-War Minister General Sukhomlinov arrested on treason charges.
Britain: *10% lighting reduction requested to save coal.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 4th 1916
May the fourth be with you !
There were 4 airmen lost on this day...
Lieutenant John Romeyn Dennistoun 7 Squadron RFC attached from the 1st Canadian Division Cyclist Corps - Killed in Action 4 May 1916 aged 21, during an aerial combat over Warneton. Son of Mr. Justice R. M. Dennistoun (Court of Appeal), of 216, Cockburn St., Winnipeg, Canada. John Romeyn Dennistoun, from Winnipeg, was an observer in No 7 Sqn RFC (formerly Fort Garry Horse and the Canadian Corps Cyclist Battalion). He was killed in action on 4 May 1916 when flying in BE 2c 4109, piloted by 2Lt Edward Gurney Ryckman from Toronto. They were carrying out an Artillery registration mission east of Ploegsteert Wood when shot down by Vizefeldwebel Wilhelm Frankl of Kampfeinsitzerkommando Vaux who was flying a Fokker monoplane; it was the 4th of [eventual] Ltn Frankl's 20 victories before his death in action on 8 April 1917.
Both crew members from 4109 are buried at Hailluin, France. From the data available , it appears that Lt J R Dennistoun was temporarily attached to the RFC from the CCCB, probably as a probationary observer. This was a common arrangement for those wishing to transfer to the RFC; they were attached while they had 'on the job' observer training and it was determined that they and aerial activities were compatible.
2nd Lieutenant Edward Gurney Ryckman 7 Squadron RFC Killed in Action 4 May 1916 aged 21, during an aerial combat over Warneton (see above)
Lieutenant Kenneth Marsden Van Allen 5th Wing RNAS - Killed in bombing attack on Marchiakirke Airfield 4 May 1916 aged 27 - some reports say he was missing in action only to have his death confirmed later in July 1916 he was most likely brought down by Flugmeister Benno Schulter (see below)
Flight Lieutenant Oswald Noel Walmesley RNAS - Drowned in wreck of seaplane 4 May 1916 aged 21
In addition we have the record of a German pilot lost on this day...
Flugmeister Benno Schluter: On the 4th of may 1916, a number of enemy planes were sighted above Oostende and they reacted at the unit with a number of planes to attack them. Schlüter was the first one in the air, and at 1500 meters he saw an enemy biplane, flying seawards at high speed. Schlüter dived upon him with his Fokker and opened fire. The Caudron IV - 9118 was not able to loose him and firing continued until he was only 30 meters away from the enemy plane, both planes still flying at only 150 meters ! All of a sudden the plane dived and crashed near the beach of Middelkerke. Schlüter landed in the immediate surroundings and ran towards the plane and pilot. Just before he reached him he collapsed and fell dead to the ground. The 22 year old Schlüter had in his hurry, touched a high tension cable, resulting to his death. His adversary, the British Flight Sub Lieutenant Kenneth Marsden van Allen of 5th Wing RNAS was also dead. They were buried side by side with full military honours on the cemetery of Westende. A black ribboned biplane flew over also during the ceremony. The grave of Benno Schlüter can now also be found at Vladslo German Military Cemetery. van Allen was from Chatham, Ontario and is buried at Ingoyghem Military Cemetery at Anzegem.
There were four aerial victory claims on this day:
Oberleutnant Benno Fiala Ritter von Fernbrugg(Austro Hungarian Air Service) flying his Hansa-Brandenburg C.I (61.55) who claimed his second kill by shooting down the Italian Airship M4 over Merna. The plane was actually flown by Oberst Adolf Heyrowsky, another Austro Hungarian Ace
Claiming his first kill today was Lieutenant Louis Fernand Coudouret of the French Air Service: I cannot find any translated information about this pilot
Finally we have Leutnant Wilhelm Frankl who claimed his 5th kill by shooting down the BE2c of Dennistoun and Ryckman
On a day we lost 275 men...
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Captain Thomas Henderson Campbell (Cameronians) is killed in action at age 26. His brother will be killed in January 1917.
Lieutenant John Romeyn Dennistoun (Canadian Divisional Cyclist Company attached Royal Flying Corps) is killed when his plane is shot down in flames and he and his pilot both jump to their deaths. The son of Mr. Justice R M Dennistoun of the Court of Appeal dies at age 21. (See above)
Lance Sergeant William Ashton (Cheshire Regiment) is killed by a sniper at age 27. His brother will be killed next month.
Western Front
Lieutenant Walter Howden Lyell (Gordon Highlanders) is in command of a party under instruction in throwing hand grenades when one of the men throws a grenade on to the parapet directly in front of the party placing the entire group in danger. Lieutenant Lyell at once runs up and picks up the bomb and throws it over the parapet. For his actions Lyell will be awarded the Albert Medal.
Still quiet for Tunstill's men: Condition were again quiet and more training continued, alongside the provision of working parties. In the evening orders were received that the Battalion would move next day, by train, back to Pernes. The orders stated that the Battalion would march either to the station at Hersin or Barlin “according to whether the former is being shelled or otherwise
Air War
Eastern Front: IM heavy bomber Ilya Murmometz II (Pankratiev) flies first of 5 successful armed reconnaissance missions during May over Yazlovetch-Bugatch and Yazlovetch-Rusilov sectors and helps capture of Yazlovetch.
Middle East
Mesopotamia: Kut garrison’s 420 officers taken away by paddle steamer to Baghdad.
Sea War
Germany: Rules of cruiser warfare to be observed by U-boat commanders if ships do not try and escape or resist.
Adriatic: French submarine Bernouilli blows stern off Austrian destroyer Csepel at Cattaro entrance.
This week saw the commissioning of a ship whose name would long become associated with the events of December 7th 1941... USS Oklahoma
USS Oklahoma (BB-37) was a Nevada-class battleship built by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation for the United States Navy in the 1910s. The Nevada class were the first super-dreadnoughts and oil-burning ships in the United States Navy. Oklahoma was the only US warship ever named for the 46th state.
Oklahoma, commissioned in 1916, served in World War I as a member of Battleship Division 6, protecting Allied convoys on their way across the Atlantic. After the war, she served in both the United States Battle Fleet and Scouting Fleet. Oklahoma was modernized between 1927 and 1929. In 1936, she rescued American citizens and refugees from the Spanish Civil War. On returning to the West coast in August of the same year, Oklahoma spent the rest of her service in the Pacific. On December 7, 1941, Oklahoma was sunk by several torpedoes during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. A total of 429 crew died when she capsized in Battleship Row. In 1943 Oklahoma was righted and salvaged. However, unlike most of the other battleships that were recovered following Pearl Harbor, Oklahoma was too damaged to return to duty. She was eventually stripped of her remaining armaments and superstructure before being sold for scrap in 1946. She sank in a storm while being towed from Oahu in Hawaii to a breakers yard in San Francisco Bay in 1947.
Following commissioning, the ship remained along the East Coast of the United States primarily visiting various Navy yards. She was initially not able to join the Battleship Division Nine task force sent to support the Grand Fleet in the North Sea during World War I due to a lack of oil available there. In 1917, she underwent a refit and two 3-inch/50 caliber guns were installed forward of the mainmast for anti aircraft defense, and nine of the 5"/51 caliber guns were removed or repositioned. While conditions on the ship were cramped, the sailors on the ship had many advantages for education available to them. They also spend their time on athletic competitions, including boxing, wrestling and rowing competitions with the crews of the battleship Texas and the tug Ontario. The camaraderie built from these small competitions led to fleet-wide establishment of many athletic teams pitting crews against one another for morale by the 1930s.
On 13 August 1918, Oklahoma was assigned to Battleship Division Six under the command of Rear Admiral Thomas S. Rodgers, and departed for Europe alongside Nevada. On 23 August they rendezvoused with destroyers Balch, Conyngham, Downes, Kimberly, Allen, and Sampson, 275 miles (443 km) west of Ireland, before steaming for Berehaven Harbor, where they waited for 18 days before battleship Utah arrived. The division remained at anchor, tasked to protect American convoys coming into the area, but was only called out of the harbor once in 80 days. On 14 October 1918, while under command of Charles B. McVay, Jr., she escorted troop ships into port at the United Kingdom, returning on 16 October. For the rest of the time, the ship conducted drills at anchor or in nearby Bantry Bay. To pass the time, the crews played football, and competitive sailing. Oklahoma suffered six casualties between 21 October and 2 November to the 1918 flu pandemic. Oklahoma remained off Berehaven until the end of the war on 11 November 1918. Shortly thereafter, several Oklahoma crewmembers were involved in a series of fights with members of the Sinn Féin group, forcing the ship's commander to apologize and financially compensate two town mayors.
Politics
Germany: Government Sussex ‘pledge’ reply to US note, will not sink vessels without warning, US accepts on May 8.
Neutrals
USA: *Congress doubles West Point cadets. US Marines land in Santo Domingo to restore order.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
The auto save beat me by a matter of seconds...
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 5th 1916
Just spotted four more posts after this and I hit 2000 - better look for something worthwhile and not have the moment wasted by a duplicate posting....
anyway...
There were 4 airmen who lost their lives on this day:
Corporal Thomas Newsome Giddings 28 Squadron RFC - Killed while flying 5 May 1916 aged 28, with Lt Browning, who was injured. His plane stalled in a turn and crashed near to Gosport.
Sub Lieutenant Cyril John Ashley Mullins RNAS Drowned in loss of seaplane 5 May 1916 aged 18. He is shot down and killed in air combat at sea at age 18. He is the only son of ‘Sir’ John A Mullins and was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge.
Corporal Alfred Reid RFC 1 Reserve Aircraft Squadron. died 5 May 1916 aged 23 in Basra Iraq. Son of Edward and Elizabeth Reid, of 38, Canal St., Castleton, Manchester.
Flight Sub Lieutenant Herbert Rutter Simms RNAS Killed in aerial combat 5 May 1916 aged 25
Herbert Rutter Simms was born in Chipping Norton in August 1891 and was the eldest son of Daniel Rutter and Ellen Simms of 13 High Street Chipping Norton. He is father was a watchmaker and jeweller and also an Alderman of the town as was his Grandfather Charles Rice Simms, whose portrait hangs in the town hall. He was expected to join the family business but was caught up in the new flying craze being a keen modeller and reader of "Flight" magazine.
In 1908-1909 Herbert Simms constructed a high wing monoplane described as a 'Bedstead type', presumably for being mounted on four wheels. The rear wheels were arranged to drive a tractor propeller, the intention being to roll down a slope and to gain assistance from the rotating propeller. The machine was made of bamboo and the heavily cambered wing and tail were covered with linen. In 1910 Simms made a biplane cycleplane, with staggered wings and triangular front elevator flaps and a high mounted tail. Outriggers, fitted with wheels, were fitted to stabilize the machine, but it was wrecked on the first trial, on the Over Norton Road, when apparently it was just beginning to lift. Herbert Simms left home in 1909 to become an apprentice with A. V. Roe at Manchester, helping build some of the early Avro aircraft. In June 1912 he began a flying course at Roe's Flying school at Brooklands, taking lessons in lieu of wages. He was awarded his certificate aged 21 after only 3 hours 10 minutes initial flying time. Soon after he was sent to assist at military trials on Salisbury Plain of the worlds first cabin biplane, the Avro G type. In the autumn of that year the Avro flying school moved to Shoreham. Simms was appointed Chief Flying Instructor and he also test flew new models as they arrived from Avro. On one occasion he flew one to Worthing landing on the beach opposite Warne's Hotel where he lunched with friends. He left Shoreham after an accident with a plane that he claimed was unairworthy due to age and joined Sopwith at Kingston-upon-Thames. He became engaged to Violet, the sister of one of his pupils at Shoreham. In 1913 Herbert Simms joined the Royal Hellenic Navy under the command of Rear Admiral Mark Kerr and was responsible for servicing 2 seat trainers, seaplanes and flying boats of the Greek Navy Flying Corps. After the outbreak of war in 1914 Simms felt he should be doing more for war effort and in July 1915 applied and was accepted for a commission in the Royal Naval Air Service. In the "London Gazette" dated 28th July 1915 the following appeared:
The undermentioned Gentleman has been entered as flight Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, for temporary service:
In August 1915 he was posted to Chingford Naval Station which was a training ground for aviators and in November 1915 sent to Dunkirk on active service, flying two patrols a day. His first effort at flying a twin engined bomber ended disastrously, however, crashing on take-off. Herbert Simms had at least two kills. In Nieuport Type 11 Serial no. 3981 he shot down a LVG C11 at Dixmude on 29th February 1916, witnessed by Belgian troops in the trenches. In the Nieuport in which he was later killed, he shot down a FF33E seaplane attacking British ships near Zeebrugge on 24th April 1916, the record showing: " ...dived into water, pilot slumped forward, passenger jumped out from 3,000 feet rolling horizontally, its bombs blew up on hitting water." He also bombed a submarine off Ostend which he narrowly missed and flew fighting patrols to Ostend and Ypres. On 15th May 1916 whilst flying Nieuport Type 12 serial no. 8904 his aircraft was shot down by a German torpedo boat whilst engaging a German seaplane off Ostend. The pilot of the seaplane went down to 150 feet to try and rescue Herbert Simms but was driven off by an approaching Royal Navy vessel. His body was recovered from the sea by a British ship and buried with full military honours in the cemetery at Chipping Norton. He was aged 24.
There were three aerial victory claims on this day - all first timers...
Oberleutnant Otto Jager (Austro Hungarian Air Service) who shot down an unidentified plane whilst flying his Albatross B.I over Koryto
Jäger served on the Russian front with Infantry Regiment No. 67. Wounded for the first time on 30 August 1914, he recovered and returned to duty only to be wounded in the chest on 21 March 1915. Again he returned to duty and again he was wounded. This time he was shot through the lung on 17 May 1915. When he recovered he served as a training officer in Hungary and by the following year he applied for and was accepted into the air service. In the spring of 1916, Jäger was posted to the Russian front with Flik 10 as an observer. Having scored five victories, he trained to become a pilot during the last three months of 1916 and was posted to Flik 17 in March 1917. On 2 May 1917, Jäger was injured when a revolving propeller struck his legs. He recovered and served briefly with Flik 3 on the Russian front before being reassigned to Flik 27 in July 1917. During the Kerensky Offensive that month, he scored his sixth victory and was reassigned to Flik 42J in August 1917. Shortly after scoring his last victory on the morning of 19 August 1917, Jäger was killed in action when his Albatros D.III (153.14) was shot down by an Italian Nieport. He was buried with full military honors and posthumously awarded the Order of the Iron Crown, 3rd class, with swords.
Offizierstellvertreter Karl Urban Austro Hungarian Air Service - who shot down a Sikorsky whilst again flying an Albatross B.I
Karl Urban was born in Graz, Austria on 29 December 1894, when it was still part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. When World War I began, he was one of many who rushed into military service. He completed basic training, then volunteered for aviation duty. He was sent to pilot's training with Fliegerersatzkompanie 6 in Fischamend. In mid-July 1915, the newly trained pilot received his first flying assignment. He reported to Fliegerkompanie 10 on the Russian Front; it was commanded by Hauptmann (Captain) Erich Kahlen. Flik 10 was not a specialized unit; it operated predominantly two-seater aircraft, such as Hansa-Brandenburg C.Is and Knoller-Albatros B.Is. Their flights were for reconnaissance, artillery direction, and aerial photography. Urban's development of his natural abilities as a pilot soon had him acknowledged as the squadron's most skillful flier.
On 1 September 1915, was dubbed a "Field Pilot". On 28 September, he and his observer had gathered military intelligence of great value while a flying reconnaissance mission. When the machine's engine quit north of Klevan, Urban managed to glide back to a deadstick landing with friendly forces near Torczyn. On 22 December, while flying over Rowno, he suffered another engine stoppage. While still in flight, he climbed forward, unstuck the engine's valve train, and restarted the motor for the trip home. A week later, he received Austrian Pilot Certificate number 306. Urban was awarded his Field Pilot's Badge on 22 February 1916. During March 1916, he was also awarded the Silver Medal for Bravery First Class. On the 26th, he once again pulled off a daring raid on Klewan's railroad depot. He and his aerial observer, Oberleutnant Grunne, bombed the depot after penetrating heavy cloud cover and extensive anti-aircraft fire; on the way home, they spotted a previously unknown Russian airfield. On the morning of 5 May 1916, Urban and Otto Jäger, his aerial observer, engaged a Russian aircraft with a crew of three. During a prolonged battle of more than 25 minutes, Jäger fired 300 shots at the Russians before his machine gun jammed. Urban then fired with a carbine while his gunner cleared the jam. Jäger then reopened fire, and drove the Russian plane down just within its own lines. When friendly infantry verified the downing, Urban had his first aerial victory. On 7 June 1916, Urban and Jäger scored a second victory together. The two of them cooperated with another Austro-Hungarian aircrew in driving down a pair of Russian Farman biplanes; each Austro-Hungarian crew was credited with a victory. On 2 August, Jäger and Urban scored again, when the gunner used 100 rounds of ammunition to shoot down a Farman two-seater behind Russian lines; the fatal victory was later confirmed through interrogation of Russian prisoners of war. On 28 August 1916, flying with a new observer, Urban engaged four Russian planes–three Farman two-seaters and a single-seater Nieuport fighter. The efforts to fight them off took the Austro-Hungarians down into range of enemy antiaircraft fire. As the Austro-Hungarians bucked a headwind from the north, their craft was rocked by a near-miss. Shrapnel slashed into Urban's back, knocking him out. Observer Bastyr restarted the engine, then roused Urban. The latter managed to struggle back to base and was sent to hospital. His heroism was rewarded with a personal written commendation. In September, he was awarded his empire's highest honor, the Gold Medal for Bravery.
In December 1916, Urban switched to Fliegerkompanie 27. On 22 February 1917, he was granted the rare distinction of being permanently awarded the Field Pilot's Badge. Halfway through October 1917, he was reassigned again, this time to an artillery direction unit that later developed into Fliegerkompanie 66D. He would serve with them until the following Spring. Then he would be posted to a fighter unit, Fliegerkompanie 14. His Phönix D.I fighter was marked with his initial 'U' in white on a red background band wrapped around the fuselage aft of the cockpit. He used this plane for his final victory; during a general engagement on 19 May 1918, he downed an Italian fighter, probably a Hanriot HD.1.Relieved from combat duty during July 1918, Urban became a test pilot. A session for evaluating new aircraft was scheduled for 9–13 July at Aspern Airfield near Vienna. On 12 July 1918, while looping a new model Phönix D.I at 1500 meters, it lost its wings. Karl Urban died in the crash. A week later, he was posthumously promoted to Austria-Hungary's highest noncommissioned officer rank, Offiziersstellvertreter (Deputy Officer).
Leutnant zur See Erich Bonisch 1 Seaplane Station (German Imperial Air Service) who shot down a Nieuport 12 over the sea.
Alas I can find not English language site with any more details
Tunstill's Men: The Battalion’s move to Pernes began in the morning with the transport, under the supervision of Lt. Leonard Hammond (see 26th April), assisted by Lt. **** Bolton (see 4th April), departing by road, via Barlin, Houdain and Divion to Pernes. Meanwhile, 2Lt. Hugh Lester (see 26th March) was despatched to Hersin station to supervise arrangements there. At 3.50pm the Battalion formed up and marched to Hersin station and from there travelled by train, via Bruay and Bryas, back to Pernes, arriving at 7pm. They then marched to billets which were found to be, “not in a good condition. A complaint has been lodged at Brigade HQ”.
Western Front
Verdun: German gain at Hill 304. French 135th Infantry Regiment sergeant writes ‘… how could anyone cross the zone of extermination around us ?’
Southern Fronts
Salonika: Milne told he will succeed General Mahon (to Egypt) as British C-in-C.
Air War
Occupied Belgium: 19 Royal Navy Air Service aircraft (1 FTR) bomb Mariakerke airfield (night May 5-6, repeated on May 21); Ghistelles airfield bombed on May 19.
Politics
Russia: Tsar receives Serb Prime Minister Pasic.
Neutrals
USA: Mexican Villalistas loot two Texas settlements.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
Well its my 1997th post, my gold coin is in the post and I eagerly await the opportunity for number 2000
Its also very late in the day and its been a very long week and the beer is nice - also most of my usual links have come back blank so might be a shorter edition tonight...
6th May 1916
According to RFC/RAF records there were NO DEATHS ARE RECORDED FOR SATURDAY MAY 6TH 1916
There was one claim of an aerial victory today - and its one of our Wings of War series one pilots - Vizefeldwebel Karl Friedrich Kurt Jentsch who shot down a Voisin over lake Artzan. His second confirmed kill (4th overall)
Western Front
As a working party under Lieutenant William Leslie Coutts Rathbone (London Regiment) is proceeding down a communications trench, they are fired upon from close quarters. Upon asking Lieutenant Rathbone determines that the shots have come from a soldier who has run amok and has posted himself with a loaded rifle and fixed bayonet further down the trench. Lieutenant Rathbone borrows a rifle and accompanied by Corporal Arthur Fenwick advances along the trench until in view of the mentally deranged man. They then advance with rifles ready the officer calling for the man to surrender. Receiving no reply they then drop their rifles and rush him and after disarming him take him to the nearest dressing station. Both men will be awarded the Albert Medal for their efforts.
1167 Sdt.2.Cl. Elie Léon Bonnefous, 151e Régiment d’Infanterie - See more at: http://www.westernfrontassociation.c....deisAdOW.dpuf
Elie was born on 2t January 1886. He was a glove-maker and came from Millau, Aveyron. After completing his compulsory military service at Mende in 1909, he was recalled as a reservist on 1 August 1914. He saw his first action with the 151e R.I. at Pierrepont, Moselle on 22 August 1914 where his regiment suffered some 800 casualties. Following a brief respite near Reims, he was once again in action during the Battle of the Marne after his regiment received a number of reinforcements (they would, however, suffer a further 600 casualties at Les Culots on 6th – 8th September). The final months of the year saw Elie taking part in the 1st Battle of Ypres and actions on the Yser front. During 1915, he fought in the Argonne until the autumn, when a move was made to the Champagne front in time for the 2nd Battle of Champagne. Remaining in this sector until the February 1916, Elie’s regiment was moved to the Verdun battle in March 1916 where he initially fought near the Haudromont Quarries and the Bois Nawé before moving to the Mort-Homme sector. Elie was killed in action on the Mort-Homme on 6th May 1916. He is buried in the nécropole nationale of 'Glorieux' in Verdun, Meuse.
On a day we lose 286 men here are today's highlighted casualties...
Private Harry George Biswell (Essex Regiment) dies of wounds after being hit by a sniper when returning to his trench at Ypres at age 20. His brother will be killed in six weeks.
Private Herbert Brocklehurst Sr. (Sherwood Foresters) is killed in action. His son will be killed in July 1917.
Tunstill's men - looks like someone has been landing themselves in trouble...
John Henry Hitchin (see 27th April) appeared at Tower Bridge Magistrate’s Court, having surrendered himself to the authorities at some point in the previous few days, charged with presenting forged cheques at the Waterloo Hotel, York Road, Lambeth, and obtaining board and lodging by false pretences. Evidence was given that Hitchin, who had been reported absent without leave from the Army on 29th December 1915, had stayed at the hotel from January 27th until February 7th. He had worn the uniform of a lieutenant and had told hotel staff that he had been promoted captain. He was alleged to have cashed a cheque for £10, and borrowed £5 on an I.O.U., which he repaid by giving a cheque for £12 12s. 10d. when he left, the balance of £7 12s. 10d. being the amount of his bill. The cheques were subsequently dishonoured; Hitchin had signed them in the surname of a fellow officer, but the signature was found to be quite different. Hitchin’s own account at Cox's Bank was overdrawn.
Hitchin was defended by Mr. Percy Robinson, who suggested that in view of the sad and peculiar circumstances of the case, the Magistrate might see his way to allow it to be withdrawn. Hitchin’s family, he said, were highly respectable. He told the Court that prior to the war Hitchin had been employed at a bank in Settle, and bore the highest character. At the outbreak of hostilities he had joined the Army, and his conduct was so satisfactory that he had been granted a commission. The obtaining of that commission, however, had been his downfall. He had mixed with people “of a higher class and extravagant habits, and for some time he undoubtedly led a fast life”. He further told the Court that a few days after leaving his hotel Hitchin had been suddenly taken ill in the Strand, had collapsed, and had been to Charing Cross Hospital, and afterwards to the military hospital at Millbank, where he had been operated on for appendicitis. Mr. Robinson then assured the Magistrate that, whatever happened, full restitution would be made to the proprietor of the hotel. The Magistrate, Mr. Cecil Chapman, having read a letter from Hitchin’s mother, said he felt very sympathetic and touched by the circumstances of the case. However, he reminded everyone that “the matter was a grave one”, and he remanded Hitchin in custody for another week.
Middle East
Mesopotamia – Death march from Kut begins: 2,592 British soldier PoWs (Kurd cavalry regiment escort) start 1,200-mile forced march to Anatolia; reach Ctesiphon on May 14.
Syria*: Djemal Pasha hangs 21 ‘Autonomous Syria’ Arab leaders without trial including a Ottoman senator.
Air War
Western Front: Unfavourable weather reduces flying until May 10 and on May 25.
The Allied blockade makes itself noticeable in Germany: on this poster, the population is asked for delivering of all kinds of metal objects for war production.
The war at sea
There were 4 ships reported as lost on this day...
Galgate United Kingdom The four-masted full-rigged ship was shelled and sunk in the Atlantic Ocean 190 nautical miles (350 km) south west by west of The Lizard, Cornwall by SM U-20 ( Kaiserliche Marine). Her crew survived.
James W. Fischer United Kingdom The schooner was driven ashore at Bull Bay, Anglesey and was wrecked with the loss of all but one of her crew.
Rosa Sweden The barquentine was driven ashore at North Sunderland, County Durham, United Kingdom and was wrecked. Her eight crew were rescued by the Seahouses Lifeboat.
St. Catherine United Kingdom The cargo ship was driven ashore at Genoa, Italy. Her crew were rescued
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
Gold Coin? What's this about a Gold Coin? I've been a Gold member for several years now and nobody's said word one to me about a Gold Coin... Where's mine? *WeNeedA"Pissed"EmoticonHere*
Do keep up the good work though.
May 7th 1916.
Well after a month off and missing the whole Easter rebellion, it is my turn to take up the baton nobly wielded by our Editor in Chief Chris.
Let us see what new events crowd our horizon as we rapidly move towards the second anniversary of this war to end all wars. Starting with a bit of a dull day action wise.
2 airmen have fallen on Sunday May 7th 1916.
A Mech 1 Joseph Richard Eaves 30 Squadron Royal Flying Corps Kut garrison.
Captured when British Garrison at Kut el Amara surrendered 29 April 1916. Died of Enteritis whilst a Prisoner of War in Turkish Hands 7 May 1916 aged 19.
Also A Mech 2 William Keefe of the same Squadron. Died of enteritis 7 May 1916 aged 26
Claims.
Two claims was made today. Hauptmann Hans Schüz claimed both his fifth and sixth victim. a Be 2c 4558 FTL over the Euphrates river and later that day a second BE in the same area.
He eventually made ten claims in Palestine, and was killed in a flying accident in 1941.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Deputy Surgeon General Cyril James Mansfield MVO (Royal Navy) dies of blood poisoning. He is the son of the Reverend Edward Mansfield.
Captain Herbert Charles Bruce Cummins (Seaforth Highlanders) dies of wounds received in action at age 39. He is the son of the Reverend William Henry Bruce Cummins.
Lieutenant Edmund Oswald Griffith Williams-Meyrick (Welsh Fusiliers) dies at age 39 at Gibraltar. He is the son of the Reverend John Meyrick Williams Rector of Beaumaris.
Edmund Williams-Meyrick was born in 1878, the son of Reverend John and Clara Meyrick, of Beaumaris, Anglesey. They later moved to 2 Menai View Terrace, Bangor. Edmund was taught at Ysgol Friars before moving to St. David's College, Lampeter in January 1899, and became a member of the Inner Temple. After becoming ordained as a Clerk in Holy Orders, he married Gwendoline Kate Dew, of Rhyl, in 1902, and the couple resided prior to the war at Withy Cott, Abbotsbrook, Bourne. Edmund was commissioned into the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. He was posted to Gibraltar, with the 1st Garrison Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers. Whilst on active duty, he succumbed to sun-stroke and died suddenly in Gibraltar on 7 May 1916, aged 39. Edmund’s grave at Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery is pictured below. Servicemen buried here died either on passing ships or at the nearby Military Hospital.
Private William Henry Heaphy (Irish Guards) dies of wounds received at Ypres at age 33. He is one of three brothers who made the supreme sacrifice.
Private Walter Jeffs (Bedfordshire Regiment) dies of wounds at age 22. His brother was killed in action last May.
Private Richard F Arthur Westphal (Royal Fusiliers) is killed at age 19. His brother will be killed in April 1917 and they are sons of Bishop Westphal.
Private Roderick Morgan Smith (Durham Light Infantry) is killed at age 20. His brother will be killed in December.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: Germans make progress on Hill 304 and between Haudromont Wood and Douaumont Fort.
French Defences.
Extract for 7th May taken from the wartime diaries of Thomas Fredrick Littler.
The battalion marched away from Grand-Rullecourt, joined the 56th Division, marching towards the line on the Somme, we passed through Sombrin, Bavincourt, Saulty, Gaudiempre, Humbercamps, St Amand, and arrived at Souastre 9-45 after a tedious march of 18 kilos, on the way we passed old disused trenches, also the roads and countryside showed wear and tear of the 1914 offensive.
May 7th 1916
I had a look round the village which had cement telegraph poles, which had been erected by the Germans previous to the war, many young girls here are mothers through the Huns, I had a look at some battered trenches in front of the village, also barbed wire entanglements and old dugouts, also a noticeable fact was that the Germans had used bottle necks in tree trunks for improvised telegraphy.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Pernes.
The weather remained good and the day was generally quiet. At Pernes, “there was a football ground and a platoon competition was held which was won by No.14, captained by 2Lt. G.S. Hulburd”.
2Lt. George Stuart Hulburd (see 27th August 1915) was born 3rd July 1896, the eldest of the four children of George Richard Hulburd and his wife Lucy; his father owned a grocer and draper’s business in Sittingbourne, Kent. George was educated at Faversham Grammar School and on the outbreak of war he was already a member of the Territorial Forces, having enlisted in the Kent Cyclist’ Battalion on 15th May 1914. He joined his unit on 5th August and remained with them until 5th December 1914, when he was discharged to a commission with 10DWR.
Pte. Harry Hartley was admitted to 70th Field Ambulance, having been taken ill (details unknown). He had been one of the contingent raised in Keighley who had been added to Tunstill’s original volunteers in September 1914. He was nineteen when he enlisted, originally from Earby and was one of twelve children (two of whom died in infancy) of John and Ellen Hartley. His father had died in 1908 and three years later all ten children were still living at home, in Langroyd Road, Earby, and all those of working age, including Harry, employed in the local cotton mills.
Messopotamia.
Qasr-i-Shirin (Western Persia) occupied by Russian forces (see December 15th, 1915, June 20th, 1916 and March 25th, 1917).
Political.
Serbian Government set up at Salonika.
Easter Rising Aftermath.
On the night of May 7th, just hours before his execution, Michael Mallin, who had commanded the Citizen Army at Stephen's Green, wrote to his wife of how he had passed their house, a few hundred yards from Kilmainham gaol, as he was being led from Richmond Barracks to his final destination. He hoped to catch sight of his "darling Wife Pulse of my heart" or their four young children. "The only one of my household that I could cast my longing Eyes on was poor Prinnie the dog she looked so faithfull (sic) there at the door . . . I am so cold this has been a such a cruel week." Mallin tried to keep up a brave front, but the reality of impending death, and of his departure from his wife and children shattered him: "My heartstrings are torn to pieces when I think of you and them of our manly James happy go lucky John shy warm Una dadys (sic) Girl and oh little Joseph my little man my little man Wife dear Wife I cannot keep the tears back when I think of him he will rest in my arms no more . . . my little man my little man my little man, his name unnerves me again all your dear faces arise before me God bless you God bless you my darlings . . ."
The last written letter of Cornelius ('Con') Colbert (1888 - 1916).
This letter was sent to Colbert's sister Elizabeth, 'Lila' (1888 - 1974). After the Rising Elizabeth served on the committee of the Irish Volunteers Dependents’ Fund. In this letter, Colbert explains that he did not want his sister to visit him before his execution as 'it would grieve us both too much'. Colbert asks his sister to pray for him and hopes that he can 'die well'.
Cornelius ('Con') Colbert (1888 - 1916) was a member of the Irish Volunteers. On 24 April 1916 Colbert fought for the duration of the Rising until his open surrender on 30 April. He was designated for severe treatment owing to his pre-rising activities and for his connection with Pearse. He was shot by firing squad in Kilmainham jail on 8 May and buried in the common grave in Arbour Hill jail.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Welcome back to the Editor's chair Rob, we have some pretty awesome events heading our way in the rest of May - in particular I am looking forward to Vimy Ridge and of course the Battle of Jutland.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 8th 1916.
1 airman has fallen on Monday May 8th 1916.
A Mech 1 Victor George Draper 30 Squadron, Reserve Aeroplane Park Royal Flying Corps. Captured 29 April 1916 when British Garrison at Kut el Amara surrendered. Died 8 May 1916 aged 30, as a Prisoner of War in Turkish Hands.
Claims.
There was only one claim made today.
Vizefeldwebel Karl Friedrich Kurt Jentsch made his third claim. It was a Farman over Lake Artzan.
Though his Pfalz D.IIIa was destroyed, Jentsch was uninjured when he was shot down by Bréguets near Chavignon on 5 March 1918. He was wounded in action over Emerchicourt at 0835 on 4 September 1918.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant Gerald Evelyn Shuldham Sewart (Durham Light Infantry) is killed at age 22. He is the only son of the Reverend Anthony Wilkinson Sewart Rector of Brignall.
Lieutenant Ernest Edward Brown (Wiltshire Regiment) is killed in action at age 22. He is the son of the Reverend Albert Edward Brown Vicar of Alstonefield who will lose another son in July 1916.
Private John Miller (Seaforth Highlanders attached Army Service Corps) dies in an accident at home at age 21. His brother will be killed in October 1918.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: Germans repulsed at Hill 304, severe fighting at Thiaumont Farm.
The explosion in fort Douaumont.
Monday - 8 May 4:00 a.m. Suddenly there is panic in fort Douaumont. Men cry out 'the blacks are coming'. (Note: with 'the blacks', the feared French colonial troops are meant. They were notorious for the fact that they took no prisoners).
Shortly after, there are three explosions creating an enormous shock wave that rages through the fort, much stronger than there would have been in the case of a direct hit. Within the fort a smoke screen of suffocating gas is put up. The shock wave results in many dead bodies. The dead bodies are literally thrown into all corners in piles of three or four bodies at a time; hundreds of Germans die of suffocation.
In a huge effort only a hundred Germans are saved. The number of deaths is estimated between 700 and 800. Most bodies cannot be identified any more. A doctor present at the scene reconstructs the drama: a direct hit reached the flame-thrower oil depot. The oil caught fire due to some small cooking fires of the Germans troops. This started the fire and consequently a very severe cloud of soot and smoke. Everyone is covered with soot and this explains the fear of 'the blacks'. In this state of alarm hand grenades were thrown at the alleged intruders. These grenades caused the ammunition depots containing grenades and poisonous gas to explode.
The bodies cannot be buried due to firing and are therefore piled up in an empty ammunition depot: bodies – chlorinated lime – bodies. The ammunition depot is quickly sealed up and, to this day, remains within the fort. Incidentally, the French never found out about this catastrophe.
Tunstall's men.
Billets at Pernes
The fine weather of the previous two weeks finally broke and there was heavy rain through much of the day. Some training continued but the day was largely quiet.
Lt. Charles Frederick Wolfe (see 6th April) joined the Battalion as Transport Officer, taking over that role from Lt. Leonard Hammond (see 5th May), who joined ‘C’ Company.
Pte. Harry Hartley, having been admitted, ill, to 70th Field Ambulance the previous day (see 7th May), was transferred to no.18 Casualty Clearing Station for further treatment. How long he remained in hospital has not been established but he did re-join the Battalion.
George Richard Goodchild was called up from the Army Reserve and posted to 3rd (Reserve) Battalion West Ridings to begin his training; he would later join 10DWR. He had attested under the Derby Scheme in Halifax on 29th November 1915, at which time he was living in Bradford and working as a shorthand writer and journalist. He had been born in London in February 1891, the second of four children of George and Amelia Goodchild. By 1911 his father had died and his mother and all four children were living in Bradford.
George Richard Goodchild, with his wife, pictured whilst on leave in England when serving with 10DWR.
(Image by kind permission of Henry Bolton).
Sgt. David Hanton (see 21st December 1914), who had been attached to Tunstill’s Company whilst they were in training in England in the autumn of 1914, was formally discharged from the Army on account of wounds. It has not yet been possible to identify when he was wounded, or indeed to make a positive identification of this man, although he does feature in an early photograph in the album kept by **** Bolton.
Sgt. David Hanton (front right), pictured, along with other senior NCO's, during Battalion training in 1915.
(Image by kind permission of Henry Bolton)
Anzacs in line in France.
ANZAC troops enter the front line in France.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Turks claim victory over Russians at Pirnakapan (Armenia).
Air raid on Port Said.
Two Turkish aircraft dropped eight bombs which did no damage except to wound three civilians. AA fire drove off the aircraft.
Naval and Overseas Operations.
"Cymric" White Star liner, torpedoed in Atlantic.
The Cunard liner Cymric is torpedoed three times by the German submarine U-20 captained by Walther Schwieger at 16:00 one hundred forty miles from Fastnet. The ship sinks in the early hours of the following morning. Five members of the crew are killed while the rest are saved.
German attack repulsed at Nhika (Portuguese East Africa).
Political, etc.
U.S.A. Note to Germany on submarine warfare.
Four more Irish rebels shot.
Cornelius (Con) Colbert was born at Monaleena, Castlemahon, County Limerick, the son of Michael Colbert, a small farmer, and Nora MacDermott.
While he was still a child the family moved to the Athea area in west Limerick where his father farmed some old family land at Templeathea. He attended Athea National School and for a brief period the national school at Kilcolman, near Ballysteen.
In early adolescence, he went to live with a sister in Dublin where he received his secondary education at the Christian Brothers’ schools at St Mary’s Place and North Richmond Street (O’Connell’s Schools). When he had completed his secondary education he secured a clerkship at Kennedy’s bakery in Parnell Street, where he worked until his death.
Both sides of Colbert’s family had a tradition of nationalist and Fenian involvement, and he became politically aware from an early age. He developed an interest in local and national history and picked up expressions in Irish from some of the old people around west Limerick where the language had not yet entirely died out. He is also said to have become a devout Roman Catholic from early on.
In Dublin, he joined the Gaelic League and assiduously attended Irish classes, lectures and the various cultural and social activities provided for members. He enrolled in Fianna Éireann, the scouting organisation for boys first established by Bulmer Hobson in 1903 and revived by Hobson and Constance Markievicz in August 1909. He was a model member of Fianna Éireann: he applied himself to gaining proficiency in its various activities and skills which included drill, marching, scouting, signalling, map reading, first aid and the use of small arms. His diligence and level of achievement were soon acknowledged by his promotion to the captaincy of his branch and eventually to the Council.
When Pádraig Pearse required a part-time drill instructor with Irish for St Enda’s in 1910, Colbert was ideally suited for the position on both counts. He took on the task with his usual enthusiasm, indignantly refusing payment when the matter was raised. He is believed, however, to have recruited some of the older students to Fianna Éireann without Pearse’s knowledge or consent. Meanwhile, he was recruited to the Irish Republican Brotherhood, later becoming head of an IRB circle consisting of Fianna Éireann members formed in 1912 by Bulmer Hobson, who was then head of the IRB in Dublin.
Colbert was elected to the Provisional Committee of the Irish Volunteers on their formation in November 1913.
He attained the rank of captain in Éamonn Ceannt’s 4th Battalion of the Dublin Brigade, in which capacity he became heavily involved in training and developing his company. Although small in stature, being just over five feet tall, he had considerable presence and was a charismatic trainer and leader; he was highly respected by the Fianna, by the students at St Enda’s, and by the Volunteers.
In the Rising, Colbert and his company were assigned to Watkins’s brewery to the east of the South Dublin Union, which was held by Ceannt and the main body of the 4th Battalion. As Watkins’s proved to have no strategic significance, Colbert and his company joined Séamus Murphy at Jameson’s distillery in Marrowbone Lane, closer to the South Dublin Union. As this position was bypassed by the cordon of British troops that gradually encircled the city centre, the garrison did little fighting, eventually surrendering on Sunday.
Con Colbert was tried by court-martial and sentenced to death. He was executed on 8 May.
Seán Heuston: Born in 1891, he was responsible for the organisation of Fianna Éireann in Limerick. Along with Con Colbert, Heuston was involved in the education of the schoolboys at Scoil Éanna, organising drill and musketry exercises. A section of the First Battalion of the Volunteers, under the leadership of Heuston, occupied the Mendicity Institute on south of the Liffey, holding out there for two days. He was executed on 8 May 1916. Heuston Railway station in Dublin is named after him.
Michael Mallin: A silk weaver by trade, Mallin was born in Dublin in 1874. Along with Countess Markievicz, he commanded a small contingent of the Irish Citizen Army, of which he was Chief of Staff, taking possession of St. Stephen’s Green and the Royal College of Surgeons. He was executed on 8 May 1916.
Éammon Ceannt remains probably the least-known of all the signatories to the Proclamation.
Born in Galway in 1881 to a father who was a serving member of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC), the family moved to Dublin when he was 10.
Even at this young age, his passion for all things Irish was with him, a trait he was to carry into his adult life. At the age of 16 he marched in the centenary celebrations for the 1798 United Irishmen rebellion.
Ceannnt joined the Irish Volunteers in 1913 and rose quickly through the ranks, becoming Officer Commanding the 4th Battalion, Dublin Brigade, by the time of the famous Howth gun-running operation. By 1915 he had been appointed to the Supreme Council of the IRB.
During Easter Week, Ceannt was given the formidable task of holding the South Dublin Union, a massive area of some 52 acres. Due to the countermanding orders, his battalion, whose paper strength stood at over 700 Volunteers, assembled with only 120 men and women with the task of preventing British reinforcements sweeping in through the south-western suburbs of Dublin.
A tall, striking man, Ceannt’s persona inspired confidence and a sense of awe. One eyewitness describing the surrender of Ceannt’s garrison spoke in revering tones:
“On the day of the surrender I saw him lead his men to the place where they were to lay down their arms. His bearings were noble . . . I felt proud of him and the British soldiers looked on in wonder at the size of his force.”
In his final letter to his wife, Ceannt ended by telling her:
“Biodh misneach agat a stóirin mo chroídhe. Tog do cheann agus mo chroídhe.”
Éammon Ceannt was executed by British Army firing squad on 8th May 1916.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 9th 1916.
A very slow news day.
No deaths are recorded for Tuesday May 9th 1916.
Claims.
No claims were made today.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Colonel (Temporary Brigadier General) Frederick James Heyworth CB DSO (Scots Guards, commanding 3rd Guards Brigade Guards Division) is killed in action at Ypres at age 53. He is killed by a sniper in “Muddy Lane” while going up to the front at about 07:00 to inspect a new crater.
Lieutenant “Sir” Archibald Augustus Campbell (Cameron Highlanders) is killed in action at age 38.
Lieutenant Charles Selwyn Cowley (Northamptonshire Regiment) is killed at age 21. He is the son of John Selwyn Cowley JP.
Corporal William Robert Beeton (Suffolk Regiment) dies of wounds at age 24. His brother will be killed in July of this year.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: French success north-west of Thiaumont Farm.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Pernes
There was an improvement in the weather and working parties were again found for IV Corps School.
A number of men from Tunstill’s Company went home on one week’s leave. For most of them this would be their first home leave since arriving in France in August 1915; many others were still waiting for their first chance to return home. Among those known to have been back in England were Ptes. Kit Ralph (see 21st August 1915) and Sidney Hoar (see 8th September 1914).
Southern Front.
General Milne succeeds General Mahon at Salonika.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Turks defeat Russians near Bashkeui (Armenia).
The Russian Army reaches Kasr-i-Shirin, 110 miles from Baghdad.
Mahon will command the West forces in Egypt.
Naval and overseas.
German forces attack British and South Africans holding Kondoa Irangi German East Africa unsuccessfully.
Political, etc.
British and French Governments conclude "Sykes-Picot" agreement as to eventual partition of Asia Minor (see April 26th and May 23rd).
'Signed by the respective parties on the 9th and 16th of May 1916, the “Exchange of Letters between France and Great Britain respecting the Recognition and Protection of an Arab State in Syria”, also known as the Sykes-Picot Agreement, is seen as a symbol of the arrogance and short-sightedness of European colonial practices. So much so that when, on 18th June 2014 ISIS fighters straddled the border between Iraq and Syria, a border which the Agreement created, they proclaimed their military advance on twitter with the hashtag #SykesPicotOver.
Appeal of Irish Nationalists to Ireland to support the constitutional movement.
Duma members received by King George.
The last statement of James Connolly.
Given to his daughter Nora Connolly on eve of his execution.
To the Field General Court Martial, held at Dublin Castle, on May 9th, 1916:
I do not wish to make any defence except against charges of wanton cruelty to prisoners. These trifling allegations that have been made, if they record facts that really happened deal only with the almost unavoidable incidents of a hurried uprising against long established authority, and nowhere show evidence of set purpose to wantonly injure unarmed persons.
We went out to break the connection between this country and the British Empire, and to establish an Irish Republic. We believed that the call we then issued to the people of Ireland, was a nobler call, in a holier cause, than any call issued to them during this war, having any connection with the war. We succeeded in proving that Irishmen are ready to die endeavouring to win for Ireland those national rights which the British Government has been asking them to die to win for Belgium. As long as that remains the case, the cause of Irish freedom is safe.
Believing that the British Government has no right in Ireland, never had any right in Ireland, and never can have any right in Ireland, the presence, in any one generation of Irishmen, of even a respectable minority, ready to die to affirm that truth, makes that Government for ever a usurpation and a crime against human progress.
I personally thank God that I have lived to see the day when thousands of Irish men and boys, and hundreds of Irish women and girls, were ready to affirm that truth, and to attest it with their lives if need be.
JAMES CONNOLLY.
Commandant-General,DublinDivision,
Army of the Irish Republic
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
We need the occasional slower day Rob, need time to change typewriter ribbons and replenish the ink stores, mind you make the most of it you have some corking days to come.
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
May 10th 1916.
2 airmen have fallen on Wednesday May 10th 1916.
A Mech 2 Thomas Campbell Benyon Recruits' depot Royal Flying Corps.
Died of self inflicted wounds 10 May 1916 in the United Kingdom.
Lt. Charles Douglas White Royal Flying Corps. Accidentally Killed at Netheravon 10 May 1916.
Claims.
No claims today, but this day next year there will be 28 claims.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant Colonel F Rowley (commanding 1st Middlesex Regiment) is conducting Lieutenant Colonel Charles Albert Madge (Warwickshire Regiment attached 33rd Divisional Headquarters) around the trenches when a bomb drops into the trench. Colonel Madge is killed at age 41 while Colonel Rowley is not injured.
Lieutenant Alfred Nelson King (Royal Field Artillery) is killed in action at age 27. He is a Rhodes Scholar.
Lieutenant Jack Lockhart (Royal Scots) is killed at age 23. He is the son of ‘Sir’ Robert Lockhart.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: French success at Mort Homme and Hill 287.
397 Sdt. Emile Léon Morilleau, 114e Régiment d’Infanterie
Emile Morilleau was born at Luçon, Vendée, 29 September 1989.
He was a farmer.
He was enlisted into his compulsory military service at Fontenay-le-Comte on 3 October 1910 and served with the 114e R.I. at Parthenay and St. Maixent until passing into the reserve on 27 September 1912.
As a reservist in the Régiment d’Parthenay (114e R.I.) from then on, he was mobilised back into full time service just prior the declaration of war on 1 August 1914.
He saw his first combat in the Bois de la Fourrasse, Moselle on 26 August 1914. He then fought on the Marne and Lorraine in September 1914 before taking part in the 1st Battle of Ypres in October to November 1915.
In May 1915, he moved southwards to fight in the Battle of Artois and entered the line on 6 May 1915 near to Fosses 3 and 7.
Following a huge bombardment on 9 May 1915, Emile’s regiment attacked near Loos and advanced ahead of schedule and became isolated following a German counter-attack.
Throughout the night, vicious fighting took place with several failed attempts to relieve the encircled unit and, on the morning of 10 May 1915, with ammunition running low, the 114e Regiment made an attempt to break through the German lines in order to reach safety.
By 17:00hrs on the 10 May 1915, the few survivors from the 114th finally managed to fight through to the French lines and moved to Mazingarbe to reorganise.
Casualties within Emile’s regiment for the 9th/10th May 1915 amounted to 150 killed, 460 wounded and 810 missing … nearly 3 out of every 4 soldiers engaged in this particular action.
Listed amongst the missing of 10 May 1915, Emile’s remains were never found (or identified) and he, therefore, has no known grave.
10 May 1915 killed in action.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Pernes
A generally quiet day. In the evening orders were received that the Battalion would return to Hersin next day.
L.Cpl. Matthew Best (see 6th March) reported sick, suffering from severe toothache.
L.Cpl. Matthew Best
A further attempt was made to progress the case of 2Lt. William Neville Dawson (see 29th April), who had been reported as being unfit to continue as a platoon officer. Staff at 23rd Division HQ requested of 69th Brigade whether they considered Dawson as fit to be employed with a Labour Battalion, and, if not, whether he had any other relevant qualifications.
Lance Sergeant Cyril Edward Agar, (see 29th March), serving with 9th Yorkshires, was discharged from Scarborough Military Hospital where he had been for the previous six weeks, having been taken ill whilst home on leave from France; the nature of his illness is not known. He would later be commissioned and serve with 10DWR.
Cyril Edward Agar, pictured while serving with 10DWR
(Image by kind permission of Henry Bolton)
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Russians occupy Kasr-i-Shirin on road to Baghdad.
Sir J. Nixon's despatch of 17 January 1916 (October 1915 to 13 January 1916), published.
Naval and Overseas Operations.
UC 7 captained by Georg Haag sank the British Steamer Dolkoath 3.25 miles NNE of the North Foreland.
German attack repulsed near Kondoa Irangi (German East Africa).
Political, etc.
German Note to U.S. on the "Sussex".
Agreement signed at Berlin re employment of British and German prisoners of war.
Commission appointed to inquire into causes of the Irish rebellion.
Lord Wimborne resigns Lord-Lieutenancy.
On the weekend preceding the Easter Rising, following the capture of the German arms ship Aud and the arrest of Sir Roger Casement, Wimborne urged Nathan to order the arrest of a large number of rebel leaders. Nathan was unwilling to do so without the authorisation of the Chief Secretary, Augustine Birrell, who was in London. Before the authorisation was received the Rising began on 24 April 1916. Wimborne proclaimed martial law in Dublin. Thereafter the military took control. A new Commander-in Chief, General Sir John Maxwell, arrived in Ireland on 28 April and the rebels surrendered on 29 April. Wimborne initially refused to offer his resignation after the Rising. He resigned under pressure from the government but was re-appointed. The Royal Commission on the 1916 Rebellion (the Hardinge commission) exonerated Wimborne of any blame for the Rising, saying that his position as Lord Lieutenant was "anomalous in quiet times and almost unworkable in times of crisis". He continued as Lord Lieutenant for another two years. On his retirement in 1918 he was created Viscount Wimborne, of Canford Magna in the County of Dorset.
In the House of Commons on Monday Mr Redmond asked the Prime Minister to put an immediate stop to the execution of rebels in Dublin. His demand reflects the attitude of the official National Press and of some of the leading Liberal newspapers in England. They will not be satisfied with the Prime Minister’s reply. He refused in effect to interfere with the full discretion which has been left in the hands of the General Officer Commanding the Forces in Ireland. Sir John Maxwell is not in Dublin for the purpose of conducting a "Bloody Assize". He would reject so hateful a task with anger and scorn. The Government sent him to Ireland in order that he might suppress a dangerous insurrection, exact the necessary penalties and lay a solid foundation for the re-establishment of order and law. He has done, and is doing, this responsible work to the satisfaction of the Government, which nobody will accuse of indifference to Irish Nationalist opinion. Mr Asquith told Mr Redmond that Sir John Maxwell has been in direct and personal communication with the Cabinet. It has great confidence in the exercise of his discretion in particular cases. His general instructions are "to sanction the infliction of the extreme penalty as sparingly as possible, and only in cases of responsible persons who were guilty in the first degree." The government and Sir John Maxwell are equally anxious that these cases should be confined within the narrowest limits, and should cease at the earliest possible moment. In reply to Mr Ginnell, who asked that no more rebels should be executed before the House of Commons had received an opportunity of discussing the matter, Mr Asquith said: – "I cannot give any such undertaking." We suppose that Irishmen who support the Government’s attitude will be accused of promiscuous ferocity, even though, like ourselves, they have expressed an earnest desire that a generous measure of mercy should be attended to the ignorant and misguided rank and file of the rebel army. Nevertheless, we hasten to express our strong conviction that Mr Asquith is taking the right – indeed, the only possible – course. It is not a question of fair play to Sir John Maxwell or to any other individual. The safety of the whole Kingdom and the peace of Ireland are at stake.
Mr. Hughes speaks in London at a Board of Trade conference about Australian Iron smelting.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 11th 1916.
4 airmen have fallen on Thursday May 11th 1916.
A Mech 1 J H Cowle, 26 (South African) Squadron Royal Flying Corps. Accidently Killed in East Africa 11 May 1916.
A Mech 2 W E Laws, Royal Flying Corps 11 May 1916.
Capt Arnold Reed Tillie, 16 Squadron, Royal flying Corps. Attached from 8th Battalion, Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) Killed in Action near Armentieres 11 May 1916 aged 22.
When his pilot, Captain A R Tillie (Royal Flying Corps) is killed by anti-aircraft fire south of Armentieres at 4,000 feet, while performing artillery registration, Second Lieutenant John Gwynne Howell climbs into the pilot’s seat and, standing in front of him, he manages a forced landing of their B.E.2c, three hundred yards west of our lines.
Major Hugh Ferdinand Mansfield Worthington-Wilmer, Royal Flying Corps, 2nd Battalion attached to13th Battalion, Royal Scots. Killed in Action 11 May 1916 aged 27.
Claims.
No claims are recorded today.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Graham Stainforth (commanding 4th Indian Cavalry) is killed in Mesopotamia at age 50.
Lieutenant Colonel Richard Bassett Cockburn Raban (Skinner’s Horse Indian Army commanding 13th Royal Scots) is killed at age 35. He is the son of the Reverend George Ferguson Cockburn Raban Vicar of Bishop’s Hull. He is the former Aide-de-Camp to the King at the Delhi Durbar.
Major ‘Sir’ Eustace James Clarke-Jervoise (Hampshire Regiment) the 6th Baronet dies of wounds at home at age 46.
Major H F M Worthington-Wilmer (Royal Scots) is killed in action at age 27. His brother will be killed serving in the Royal Air Force in July 1940.
Captain Ian Alexander Grant Ferguson (Royal Scots) is killed in action at age 18. He is the son of the late Reverend John Grant-Ferguson who lost another son last May.
Corporal Robert Bain (Royal Scots) is killed in action at age 22. His older brother will be killed in less than three weeks at the Battle of Jutland.
Private Albert Edward Smith (Royal West Surrey Regiment) is killed in action at age 19. His brother will be killed in September of this year.
Private Leonard Austin (King’s Own Scottish Borderers) is killed at age 19. His brother will be killed in October 1917.
Home Front.
The Air Board is created, under the presidency of Lord Curzon. The roles of the Board included:
Discussion of matters of general policy in relation to the air, and in particular combined operations of the Naval and Military Air Services.
Making recommendations on the types of machine required. If either the Admiralty or the War Office declined to act on recommendations of the Board, the President was to refer questions to the War Committee Cabinet.
Organising and co-ordinating the supply of material, preventing competition between the two departments.
Organising a complete system for the interchange of ideas between the two Services, and such related bodies as the Naval Board of Invention and Research, the Advisory Committee for Aeronautics and the National Physical Laboratory.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: German attack west of Vaux Pond repulsed.
Germans take British trenches north-east of Vermelles (La Bassee).
TRENCH RAID
11th May 1916
Relieved 2nd Middlesex Regiment in the trenches during the morning.
The enemy shelled ‘C’ Company between 3.50pm and 4.50pm with about 80
trench mortar shells doing a little damage to the trenches and
wounding 2 men. One man was saved by his steel helmet.
The enemy snipers and machine guns were more active than usual about
2.00am.
Our own artillery silenced the enemy’s trench mortar batteries.
During the previous night, the 2nd Middlesex had mounted a ‘Probing Raid’, the details of which are
preserved in that battalion’s War Diary. It is repeated below because it tells the story in detail from the planning stage through to its execution, which was compromised by bad luck, confusion and the preparedness of the Germans manning their front line. It is of particular interest in that it took place in the precise location where the 2nd Devons mounted their attack on 1st July 1916. No such detailed records of raids from this period exist in the 2nd Devons War Diary but, as sister battalions in the 23rd Brigade, the story of one mirrors that of the other.
For full story see here:-
http://www.pollingerltd.com/bookshop...rench-raid.pdf
Tunstill's men.
Thursday 11th May 1916
Billets at Pernes
The Battalion transport assembled in the market square at Pernes at 9am, under the supervision of the newly-arrived Transport Officer, Lt. Charles Frederick Wolffe (see 8th May) and departed by road for Hersin, via Camblain-Chatelain, Divion, Bruay and Barlin. The Battalion then formed up in the market square ready for departure at 10.45am and completed the short march to the station. The train departed at 11.37 am and reached the vicinity of Hersin at around 2.30 pm. However, as the train pulled into the station at Hersin, German shells began to fall in the area. J.B. Priestley related what happened next, “Our train was just steaming into the station when the Germans started shelling it, because it is the railhead – the furthest point the railway reaches. Enormous 12 inch shells dropped all about us – the engine driver bolted, so we were left about twenty minutes in the train, every minute expecting a shell to hit it. But not one did, though the carriages were well battered with shrapnel, and eventually we backed out of the station and were landed a couple of miles back”. The account in the Battalion War Diary confirms the details, albeit in rather more prosaic fashion, “Just before the arrival of the train it was noticed that the enemy was shelling the Station. In spite of this however the train was stopped at the usual detraining place and all ranks were instructed to retain their seats. The train was standing in the shelled area 10 minutes during which time about 20 shells were discharged. It was decided to run the train back towards Barlin, & the troops detrained in an obscure place. Some of the shells were very near to doing damage; numbers of bits of shells penetrating portions of the carriages”. Remarkably, the Battalion suffered no casualties and the men were able to complete the short march to their billets in Hersin without further incident, arriving at 3.30pm. Many years later Lt. **** Bolton (see 5th May) somewhat laconically recalled simply, “the most unpleasant experience of being shelled in a train, when coming up to Hersin from Bruay”.
On arrival at Hersin, orders were received that the Battalion would take over front line trenches in the Angres sector next day, relieving 18th Royal Fusiliers.
(In Battalion orders dated 4th May there had been a provision noted in the event that Hersin station was shelled by the Germans).
Two weeks after being declared unfit for further service, Pte. Willis Ryal (see 27th April), was formally discharged from the Army. He had originally served with Tunstill’s Company but had not gone overseas with them in August 1915 and had instead been transferred to 11DWR. I know little of what happened to Willis Ryal after his discharge, other than that he married Cecilia Green in the Barnsley area in the Summer of 1918. (Did they have any children? Search again for Willis Ryal). He died in 1964, aged 73.
Asiatic Front.
Kwash (East Persia) occupied by British forces.
Political, etc.
Albert Einstein presented his theory of general relativity before the Prussian Academy of Sciences. During the presentation, he described his theory as a consequence of the curvature of space-time rather than gravity being a force as described by Newton's law of gravity. Although it was only one of his many major contributions to the development of quantum and statistical mechanics, the general theory of relativity catapulted him to fame. Einstein received the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921.
On this day in 1916, The Times reported that Sir Roger Casement was to be tried for High Treason, for his involvement in the Easter Rising.
Debate in Parliament on Irish administration.
11 May 1916 – Deputy Irish Party leader John Dillon pleads with Asquith in British parliament to stop the executions.
'This series of executions is doing more harm than any Englishman in this House can possibly fathom.'
[Dillon makes mention of the shooting of Mr Sheehy-Skeffington.] ‘Horrible rumours which are current in Dublin, and which are doing untold and indescribable mischief, maddening the population of Dublin, who were your friends and loyal allies against this insurrection last week and who are rapidly becoming embittered by the sotires afloat and these executions...'
‘It is the first rebellion that ever took place in Ireland where you had a majority on your side. It is the fruit of our life work. We have risked our lives a hundred times to bring about this result. We are held up to odium as traitors by those men who made this rebellion, and our lives have been in danger a hundred times during the last thirty years because we have endeavoured to reconcile the two things, and now you are washing out our whole life work in a sea of blood’.
If it had not been for the action of John (Eoin) MacNeill you would be fighting still ... he broke the back of the rebellion on the very eve of it, and he kept back a very large body of men from joining in’.
‘I say I am proud of their courage, and, if you were not so dense and so stupid, as some of you English people are, you would have had these men fighting for you, and they are men worth having. ... ours is a fighting race ... The fact of the matter is that what is poisoning the mind of Ireland, and rapidly poisoning it, is the secrecy of these trials and the continuance of these executions... I do not think Abraham Lincoln executed one single man, and by that one act of clemency, he did an enormous work of good for the whole country... why cannot you treat Ireland as Botha treated South Africa... victims of misdirected enthusiasm and leadership.
‘[Rebels showed] conduct beyond reproach as fighting men. I admit they were wrong; I know they were wrong; but they fought a clean fight, and they fought with superb bravery and skill, and no act of savagery or act against the usual customs of war that I know of has been brought home to any leader or any organised body of insurgents.’
‘[...] the great bulk of the population were not favourable to the insurrection, and the insurgents themselves, who had confidently calculated on a rising of the people in their support, were absolutely disappointed. They got no support whatever. What is happening is that thousands of people in Dublin, who ten days ago were bitterly opposed to the whole of the Sinn Féin movement and to the rebellion, are now becoming infuriated against the Government on account of these executions, and as I am informed by letters received this morning, the feeling is spreading throughout the country in a most dangerous degree.’ [Reads statement for Mr. Skeffington’s widow] Mrs Skeffington begs me, in conclusion, to ask the Government and the House of Commons for a public investigation.’
'I say deliberately that in the whole of modern history, taking all the circumstances into account there has been no rebellion or insurrection put down with so much blood and so much savagery as the recent insurrection in Ireland.'
‘[...] I do most earnestly appeal to the Prime Minister to stop these executions... it is not murderers who are being executed; it is insurgents who have fought a clean fight, a brave fight, however misguided, and it would be a damned good thing for you if your soldiers were able to put up as good a fight as did these men in Dublin - three thousand men against twenty thousand with machine-guns and artillery [Heckled and responds]... we have attempted to bring the masses of the Irish people into harmony with you, in this great effort at reconciliation - I say, we are entitled to every assistance from the Members of this House and this Government.’
Last letter of Seán MacDiarmada.
Kilmainham Prison
Dublin
May 11th 1916 .
My Dear Daly ,
Just a wee note to bid you Goodbye. I expect in a few hours to joinTom and the other heroes in a better world . I have been sentenced to a soldiers death – to be shot tomorrow morning .
I have nothing to say about this only that I look on it as a part of the day’s work . We die that the Irish nation may live . Our blood will rebaptise and reinvigorate the old land . Knowing this it is superfluous to say how happy I feel .
I know now what I have always felt , that the Irish nation can never die . Let present day place hunters condemn our action as they will , posterity will judge us aright from the effects of our action .
I know I will meet you soon , until then GoodBye . God guard and protect you and all in No. 15 . You have had a done trial , but I know quite well that Mrs. Daly and all the girls feel proud in spite of a little temporary and natural grief , that her son and the girls , their brothers as well as Tom are included in the list of honours .
Kindly remember me especially to Mrs. Clarke and tell her I am the same Seán that she always knew .
God Bless you all
As ever
Sincerely Yours
Seán MacDiarmada.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 12th 1916.
1 airman has fallen on Friday May 12th 1916.
2nd Lt Ernest John Amor 23 Squadron Royal Flying Corps. Killed while flying 12 May 1916 aged 19
Claims.
Two claims were made today, both by Germans.
Leutnant Joseph Jacobs made his second claim a Caudron R4 over Terny Sorny.
Leutnant Julius Schmidt made his first claim simply listed as an EA over Bailleul.
On 14 September 1917, Arthur Rhys Davids was forced to land after his S.E.5a was badly damaged in an encounter with Jasta 3. Schmidt may have been responsible for shooting him down but was never officially credited with the victory. On 24 September 1917, Schmidt's career as a fighter pilot was effectively ended by wounds received in a dogfight with the Sopwith Camels of Squadron 70.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Brigadier General Henry Buchanan Kirk (Commanding 93rd Infantry Brigade) dies at the front of meningitis at age 49.
Lieutenant Francis Bowman Cheadle (Australian Infantry) dies of wounds received when he is shot through the head at age 30. He is a New South Wales Rugby League Player who played in the inaugural series of matches between New South Wales and Baskerville’s touring “All Gold’s” in 1907. He represented both New South Wales and Australia in six test matches in 1908 and 1909.
Lieutenant Richard Houlbrock Whitfield (Royal Engineers) is killed at age 29. His brother died of wounds last January.
Second Lieutenant John MacDonald Smith (Cameronians) is killed in action at age 24. He is the son of the Reverend Kenneth Smith.
Private Harry Walter Waterfield (Northamptonshire Regiment) is killed at age 23. His brother was killed last May.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: French extend position south-east of Haucourt and repulse attacks on centre.
The 63rd (Royal Naval) Division.
By the end of the Division's part in the Gallipoli campaign, very few men with sea service remained. The Division transferred from the authority of the Admiralty to the War Office on the 29th of April 1916, and was redesignated as the 63rd (Royal Naval) Division on 19th of July 1916. The Division moved to France, arriving Marseilles between the 12th to 23rd of May 1916, after which it remained on the Western Front for the rest of the war.
Tunstill's men.
Friday 12th May 1916.
Billets at Hersin.
The relief ordered the previous day was to be carried out in broad daylight and particular precautions were put in place as a result. Lewis gun teams departed at 12.30 moving in ‘small parties’ with one hundred yards between between each; RSM, signallers and snipers followed 45 minutes later, under the command of Lt. Lavarack (see 21st April). The remainder of the Battalion departed at 2.30; they were to follow a route which would take them via the pithead at Fosse 10, then on to Bully Grenay and finally along the long Corons d’Aix communication trench. Detailed orders were issued for the movement on account of the hazards of the daylight relief: “Companies will march to Fosse 10 at 100 yards distance, after which they will proceed by sections at 100 yards distance. Leading sections of each platoon to halt when 250 yards up Corons d’Aix communication trench until the whole platoon has closed the leading section”. The relief was completed satisfactorily and without casualties, by 8pm, with conditions reported as being quiet.
The Battalion now occupied the right sub-section of the Angres sector, with Tunstill’s Company on the extreme right (southern) flank, with three platoons in the line and one in support.
Mesopotamia.
General Townshend left Baghdad for Constantinople.
Central East Africa.
Belgians reported in Kigali.
Further German attack on Njikia (P.E.Africa) repulsed.
Political, etc.
Mr. Asquith visits Dublin.
James Connolly (1868-1916): Born in Edinburgh in 1868, Connolly was first introduced to Ireland as a member of the British Army. Despite returning to Scotland, the strong Irish presence in Edinburgh stimulated Connolly’s growing interest in Irish politics in the mid 1890s, leading to his emigration to Dublin in 1896 where he founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party. He spent much of the first decade of the twentieth century in America, he returned to Ireland to campaign for worker’s rights with James Larkin. A firm believer in the perils of sectarian division, Connolly campaigned tirelessly against religious bigotry. In 1913, Connolly was one of the founders of the Irish Citizen Army. During the Easter Rising he was appointed Commandant-General of the Dublin forces, leading the group that occupied the General Post Office. Unable to stand to during his execution due to wounds received during the Rising, Connolly was executed while sitting down on 12 May 1916. He was the last of the leaders to be executed.
Rob.
.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 13th 1916.
1 airman has fallen on Saturday May 13th 1916.
Cpl Cyril Ernest Butchers 33 Squadron Royal Flying Corps. Died of accidental injuries 13 May 1916 aged 21, received in a motorcycle accident at Tadcaster
Claims.
There were no claims today.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant W K Bretherton (Indian Reserve of Officers) dies on service in India at age 44. His brother drowned in 1904 while serving as Chief Supply and Transport officer of the Tibet Expedition.
Second Lieutenant William Meek Falconer (Royal Scots) is killed in action at age 19. The younger son of Rev. R. H. Falconer, Secy. of the Nat. Bible Society of Scotland, Edin., was born at Carnbee in 1897, and educated at G.W.C. 1907-14. He was a member of the O.T.C., 1911-14. He was holidaying in Switzerland when war broke out, but, returning home in Sept., he enlisted in the 9th R.S., in the ranks of which he served for five months round Ypres, 1915. He got a commission in the 3rd R.S., July 1915, and, returning to France in Mar. 1916, was attached to the 11th R.S. He was killed by shell fire at Ploegsteert, Belgium, on May 13, 1916, during a heavy bombardment.
Second Lieutenant Edward Pitcairn Jones (Rifle Brigade) is killed at age 20. He is the son of Rear Admiral Edward Pitcairn Jones CB.
Corporal Albert Victor Butler (Middlesex Regiment) is killed. He played professional football for the Reading Football Club.
Private Cecil Patrick Riley (East Kent Regiment) is killed in Mesopotamia at age 18. He is the middle of three brothers who will be killed in the War.
Home Front.
The Government has been at last convinced of the advisability of putting a daylight saving scheme in force. This will have some effect in reducing the inconvenience and dangers of the darkened streets at night. This will also reduce the consumption of coal and labour requirements of the gas and electricity works.
FOOD ECONOMY – The sugar refiners can only produce one-half the sugar required. In addition to sugar we must take into consideration bread, bacon, butter, cheese, flour, lard, meat, and tea. A start might be made by enforcing a weekly meatless day in all hotels and restaurants. That would not only save supplies but educate people in the possibilities of an alternative dietary.
A soldiers’ paper called “Blighty” is the newest development of the war. It is to be a present to our fighting men on land and sea, produced weekly, and sent free of charge to the Fleet and Army abroad. It will have no bad news, no dull news, no news of the war, or politics, or crime, or the city, or anything stupid. It will aim to have all the best pictures and tell all the best stories.
Nothing like our News sheet then. We tell it how it is! Ed.
.
Western Front.
L'Escadrille Lafayette first patrol. Flies to Mulhouse area.
Battle of Verdun: German attack north-east of Mort Homme repulsed.
Germans attack on British at Ploegsteert (north of Armentieres) repulsed.
Ploegsteert Wood dugout Belgium.
The sector of trenches taken over today by the New Zealand Division extended from the River Lys in the north to a place known as Pear Tree Farm in the south, a very short distance from the Lille-Armentières railway; the length of the line was about four miles. The sector was divided into two subsectors—the Houplines on the north and the L'Epinette on the south. The 1st Company relieved the 51st (British) Machine Gun Company in L'Epinette subsector on the 13th May, and the 2nd Company relieved the 52nd Company on the 14th May.
The 1st Company suffered casualties on the first day in the line—Private R. J. Autey was killed, and Sergt. W. J. Bartlett wounded by rifle fire. The 3rd Company moved into Armentières with the 3rd (Rifle) Brigade, as part of the Divisional Reserve.
In France on 1st May 1916 Private Auty was transferred from the 1st Battalion, Canterbury Infantry Regiment, to the NZ Machinegun Corps. The 1st company, of which Private Auty was a member, moved into the L’Eprinette subsector on the 13 May and the official NZMG Corp history records: ‘The 1st company suffered casualties on the first day in the line – Private R J Autey was killed and Sergeant W J Bartlett wounded by rifle fire.’
Thus Private 6/2530, Robert George Auty, from the NZEF became the first man Killed in Action on the Western Front from the NZEF.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Russians defeated at Ashkale (Armenia).
Naval.
British ss Eretria mined 15 miles ssw from Ile d'Yea, Bay of Biscay.
Political.
The British government orders the call up of married men between the ages of 36 and 41.
Teachers Association strongly condemned the encouragement of child labour to replace conscripted men.
On this day in 1916, the Prime Minister Herbert Asquith visited Mountjoy prison in Dublin, where De Valera refused to shake his hand.
The 1st US observance of Indian (Native American) Day.
Agreement signed at London for transfer of British and German wounded and sick prisoners of war to Switzerland (see April 26th, 1916).
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
I confess I had never read Lord Grey's speech before. Pretty sobering stuff : ( Many thanks for that. I guess we should, none of us, forget the serious side of what we do. Mike
May 14th 1916.
3 airmen have fallen on Sunday May 14th 1916.
A Mech 1 Arthur John Dell Royal Flying Corps 'X' Aircraft Park, Abbassia, Egypt.
Accidentally Killed in fire 14 May 1916.
Lt. Ormond George Hake, Test Pilot Royal Flying Corps. Accidentally Killed while flying 14 May 1916 aged 19, when he was seen to be in difficulties and machine crashed into an old spruce tree, tearing one of the planes off and it ran into a mill wall, near Norwich and was completely wrecked.
Frederick G. Sumner Royal Flying Corps. Accidentally Killed while flying 14 May 1916 when accompanying Lt O G Hake, who was testing factory built machines.
On 14th May 1916 the pilot of this aircraft was on a training flight when it crashed in a forced landing near Marske and was wrecked.
Caudron GIII 3277 was built by Le Crotoy and was delivered to RNAS Chingford's Flying School on 25th June 1915. It was transferred to RNAS Flying School, Eastchurch on 26th November 1915 where it was damaged on 12th January 1916. It was repaired and returned to service to be transferred up to RNAS Redcar Flying School there on 23rd January 1916. It was deleted from stock on 4th June 1916 after suffering this accident at Marske a month previously.
Pilot - Flight Sub-Lt William Hargrove Chisam RNAS.
William Chisam was born in Carlisle on 15th November 1894 but emigrated to Saskatchewan, Canada in 1912. He learnt to fly at the Wright School in Dayton, Ohio and Augusta, Georgia, USA at his own expense and was awarded a Royal Aero Club aviators' certificate on 30th December 1915. He joined the Royal Naval Air Service in January 1916 and after serving with the Home Defence at Walmer he was posted to 10 Naval Squadron at Dunkirk on 2nd April 1917 but was posted to 3 Naval Squadron five days later. He was credited with a total of seven enemy aircraft as downed in total; two in September 1917 and then a big gap until March 1918 when he shot down a further five aircraft between 9th March and 24th March 1918. He was wounded in the hand on 26th March 1918. After WW1 he worked for an oil company in Mexico but returned to England in 1931, in WW2 he gave his services and served in RAF Intelligence, mainly in Fighter Command, throughout the War. Post-WW2 he worked for Shell and B.P. in Leeds, Yorkshire. He died in Winchester in 1972.
Claims.
No claims were made today.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Major James Fitzgerald Bannatyne (Hussars attached Manchester Regiment) is killed at age 32. He is the son James Fitzgerald Bannatyne JP DL.
Major George Edward Vansittart (Canadian Field Artillery) dies of wounds at age 31. He is the great grandson of Admiral Henry Vansittart.
Second Lieutenant Roger Vernon (Somerset Light Infantry) is killed in action at age 23. He is the son of the Reverend Frederick Wentworth Vernon sometime Vicar of Rangeworthy, Gloster.
Private John Newlands (King’s Own Scottish Borderers) is killed at age 22. His brother will be killed in October 1918.
Western Front.
There is heavy fighting in the Loos Salient around the Hohenzollern Redoubt and Hulluch.
The Redoubt today.
Verdun.
On 14 May 1916, the Germans set off 60,000kg of explosives, the largest mine to be detonated at the Butte. It created a massive crater that today is some 80m in diameter and approximately 20m deep. During the war, it would have been much deeper, but as the years have passed, sediment has gathered and the area has grassed over. Even so, this and the series of other craters chill the blood of the visitor. Before the First World War, this sort of conflict landscape would not have been seen anywhere on Earth, and even today it is hard to comprehend.
Tunstill's men.
Front line trenches west of Angres.
The weather remained cold, though dry. There was again little to report; however, a number of rifle grenades were fired against ‘A’ Company’s positions, with one man (identity unknown) reported slightly wounded.
L.Cpl. Matthew Best (see 12th May), having reported sick four days’ earlier, was transferred from 22nd Casualty Clearing Station to no.4 Stationery Hospital, Arques; he was, suffering from ‘dental caries’.
L.Cpl. Matthew Best.
A report of the court appearance of the previous day of John Henry Hitchin (see 13th May) was published in The Sunday Chronicle:
PROMOTION LEADS TO DOWNFALL.
Prisoner to be Given a Chance of Re-Enlisting.
At Tower Bridge Police Court yesterday, John Henry Hitchin (26), bank clerk, of Long Preston, Yorkshire, was charged on remand with forging and uttering cheques at the Waterloo Hotel, York Road, Lambeth, and further, with obtaining credit by false pretences. On the last occasion, Mr. Percy Robinson, who defended, made a strong appeal for special leniency. The prisoner, who was well connected, joined the army as a private, but was given a commission, and this promotion lead to his downfall. He mixed with persons of a higher rank in life and of extravagant habits, and eventually he was discharged from the army for being absent without leave. Mr. Robinson now said he had made enquiries and found that there would be no difficulty in the prisoner re-enlisting as a private, if the magistrate took a certain course. The magistrate dealt with the case as one of stealing by a trick, and placed the prisoner on probation for twelve months.
John Henry Hitchin, pictured while serving with Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.
Southern Front.
Austrian troops on Trentino front begins to gather for an offensive: "Battle of the Treintino".
Austro-Hungarians launch an attack against Italian troops on the Asiago front in the Italian alpine region of Trentino, advancing up to 19 km(12 miles). Continues until 10 June.
Palestine and Egypt.
Returning to its mounted role, the 12th Australian Light Light Horse joined the forces defending the Suez Canal on 14 May 1916. In ensuing months it conducted patrols and participated in several forays out into the Sinai Desert.
Naval and Overseas Operations.
The monitor HMS M30 is sunk by shore battery fire off Cape Aspro in the Gulf of Smyrna.
HMS M30 was a Royal NavyM29-classmonitor of the First World War.
The availability of ten 6 inch Mk XII guns from the Queen Elizabeth-classbattleships in 1915 prompted the Admiralty to order five scaled down versions of the M15-class monitors, which had been designed to utilise 9.2 inch guns. HMS M30 and her sisters were ordered from Harland & Wolff, Belfast in March 1915. Launched on 23 June 1915, she was completed in July 1915.
Upon completion, HMS M30 was sent to the Mediterranean. Whilst enforcing the Allied blockade in the Gulf of Smyrna, HMS M30 came under fire from the Austro-Hungarian howitzer battery 36 supporting the Turkish, and was sunk on 14 May 1916
Political, etc.
Speech by M. Poincare at Nancy.
Resignation of Herr Delbruck (Imperial Secretary of State).
M. Take Jonescu, Romanian politician and Prime Minister, begins propaganda for Romanian intervention.
U.S.A.
The Quest for Pancho Villa.
The Punitive Expedition had been an exercise in frustration for General John J. “Blackjack” Pershing. Pancho Villa, predictably, had eluded the Americans, refusing to stand and fight.
Thirty year old Second Lieutenant George S. Patton had been an aide to Pershing. Requesting a chance to command troops, he was assigned by Pershing to Troop C of the 13th Cavalry. In that capacity Patton took part in efforts to locate Captain Julio Cardenas, commander of the elite bodyguard of Villa, the Dorados, “Golden Ones”.
On May 14, 1916 Patton was on a mission to buy corn, his force consisting of a corporal, six privates and a civilian interpreter, all in three Dodge touring cars. Learning from locals that Cardenas might be present at a ranch, which Patton had searched the previous week, near the town of Rubio, Patton decided to investigate. Leaving two cars to block the southwest exit from the ranch, Patton, a driver, the civilian interpreter and a private took the remaining car to the northwest exit. Patton advanced on the ranch with the civilian interpreter. He spotted an old man and a boy butchering a steer near a fence. Suddenly three horsemen charged out from the ranch.
Initially they rode to the southwest. Encountering Patton’s soldiers they then charged to the northwest, estimating presumably that the odds were in their favor against the lone American officer.
The Mexicans opened up at 20 yards. Ignoring their fire, Patton coolly aimed his Colt single action pistol at the lead rider, knocking him off his horse. Patton fired at the two remaining riders as they rode past him. He then ducked around a corner of the ranch house and reloaded.
Patton brought down the second horseman. Patton waited while the bandit freed himself from his dead horse, Patton only shooting him when the Mexican attempted to fire rather than surrender. The third bandit was brought down in a hail of fire from Patton and two of his soldiers who were now joining the fight.
The first bandit Patton had shot, got to his feet, made the mistake of going for his pistol, and was quickly brought down by the Americans.
The first bandit was identified as Captain Julio Cardenas, the second as Juan Garza and the third was never identified.
Patton had the bodies strapped to the hoods of the car and brought them to Pershing who ordered their burial. Pershing thereafter referred to Patton as “Bandit”. When Pershing went to France as commander of the American Expeditionary Force, he took Captain Patton with him as his aide.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Loved the 'today' photo's Rob and also the little story about Patton
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
Just a sop to our American cousins. I know some of them read this rag of a news sheet, and they really don't get a fair share of the action. However, Lafayette Squadron is in the offing so hopefully all that will change soon.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
I am sure our American cousins will have more to read once their ancestors finally join the fray. Have to admire those brave men who came anyway without waiting for the politicians to wake up to what was happening....
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
It was an interesting bit for the warmup war in Mexico; I don't know a lot about it, except Pershing and Patton were there, and they tested the first air recon component (fir the US) with Jennys.
Also, as with most such operations, it was ultimately futile.
Karl
It is impossible for a man to begin to learn what he thinks he knows. -- Epictetus
May 15th 1916.
No deaths are recorded for Monday May 15th 1916.
Claims.
There are no claims today.
There is fighting on Vimy Ridge.
Captain Henry Evelyn Arthur Platt (Coldstream Guards) is killed in action near Ypres. He has served since August 1914 and wrote the following lines a few days before his death: –
To A Soldier
Say not of him “He left this vale of tears”,
Who loved the good plain English phrase
“He died”
Nor state “he nobly lived (or otherwise)
Failed or succeeded” – friend, just say
“He tried”.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Second Lieutenant John Torrington Morris (Welsh Fusiliers) is killed. He is the son of ‘Sir’ Robert Armie Morris 4th.
Private Jan William Hunter Morkel (Mounted Commandos, South African Forces) dies of dysentery in East Africa at age 25. He is an International Rugby Football player who took part in the 1912-13 South Africa rugby union tour and won four caps.
Private William Henry Barnard (Sussex Regiment) dies of wounds at age 31. He is a policeman.
Private Robert Jones (Cheshire Regiment) is killed at age 26. His brother was killed last July.
Western Front.
Fighting on Vimy Ridge.
Sarah Bernhardt the actress pays her first visit to the trenches, and praises the troops she finds there.
Tunstill's men.
Front line trenches west of Angres
On another cold, dull day the War Diary reported “a considerable increase in the use of rifle grenades is noticed to be used by the enemy”. This calm and measured comment belied the effect such weapons could have on the men. The proximity of the front lines meant that these short-range weapons were especially difficult to defend against. The cumulative effect of this constant exposure to danger can be seen in J.B Priestley’s letter to his family, “Our trenches around here are very close to the Germans and in consequence, every form of death and destruction abounds. Rifle grenades, trench mortars (minnenwerfers or “sausages” – bombs bigger than a Rugby football), aerial torpedoes, are sent over into our trenches at regular intevals, and underneath there are mines ready to be blown at any minute … I’ve had some very narrow escapes from them this last day or two, and since I got wounded, they’ve made me rather nervy. The part of the line we hold now is absolute ‘hell’; the French said it was the worst part of their line, not counting Verdun at the present time”.
Lt. **** Bolton (see 11th May), writing many years later, also recalled the dangers of this sector, “Recollections of this front are of the constant firing of rifle grenades, trench mortars, including the variety known as “rum jars”, and artillery by the enemy, with very little response from our side. Of the extremely long communication trenches, which were not improved by the cavalry working parties, which were supposed to lay an even duckboard floor in them.”
The Battalion finally received its new, if temporary, second-in-command, following the departure, some three months earlier, of Major Buchanan. (Temporary) Major Christopher Galbraith Buckle (known as ‘Garry’) was the son of Brigadier General Christopher Reginald Buckle, and himself had nine years’ experience in the regular army. He had spent the first months of the war on secondment with the Colonial Office in West Africa but had returned in June 1915 and had been wounded, and awarded the Military Cross, at Vermelles in August, while serving with 1st Northants. He had more recently served with 2nd Northants, along with Lt. Col. Hayne (see 20th April) and was temporarily transferred to 10DWR, presumably on Hayne’s request.
(Temporary) Major Christopher Galbraith Buckle
Pte. Lawrence Tindill, serving with 1st/5th Yorkshires was promoted (unpaid) Lance Corporal; he would later be commissioned and serve with 10DWR. Lawrence Tindill (born 11th July 1893 at Milford Junction, Yorks.) was one of five children of Robert and Annie Tindill. His father, who had died in 1909, had been a railway station master and Lawrence himself worked as a railway clerk. He was also a member of the Territorial Army before the war and had been called up on 8th September 1914 and had been in France with his Battalion since 18th April 1915.
It was confirmed that the DSO was to be awarded to Capt. Thomas Lewis Ingram (see 10th September 1915), RAMC, attd. 1st Shropshire Light Infantry for his conduct in recent actions; he was the elder brother of Lt. Robert Stewart Skinner Ingram (see 27th August 1915), one of the officers of Tunstill’s Company. The subsequent citation detailed Ingram’s actions: “He collected and attended to the wounded under very heavy fire, and set a splendid example. Since the commencement of the war he has been conspicuous on all occasions for his personal bravery”.
Southern Front.
Austrians force Italians to retreat south of Rovereto (Trentino).
Austrian troops attack Italian mountain positions in the Trentino. The Italians withdraw southward, forcing the Austrians to stretch their supply lines over the difficult terrain. The arrival of Italian reinforcements and a successful counter-attack then halts the Austrian offensive completely.
Full story here:-
http://www.firstworldwar.com/battles/asiago.htm
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Russians take Rowanduz (east of Mosul).
Khanaqin (North-East of Baghdad) also taken by Russian forces.
Entente blockade Hejaz coast, and assist Sherif of Mecca.
Political, etc.
Statement on war aims by Sir Edward Grey.
Sir Edward Grey gives an interview to an American journalist and enlightens him of the Allies’ war aims.
Sir Roger Casement charged with high treason.
Appointments to the Italian Government.
Sig. Boselli, Italian Premier; Baron Sonnino, Foreign Minister.
A couple of odd reports.
The German food crisis forces a German minister to hand in his resignation, dismissing the official reason of ill health, whilst the appointment of a “food dictator” is expected to deal with the issue.
In the Commons today Mr Brooks asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that a prisoner of war at Wakefield has ordered from time to time electrical accessories from a London firm, and that among them a number of pocket flash-lamps have been included; whether, in October, 1915, prisoner of war, R. Hitner, who is interned at Wakefield, wrote to a London firm asking them to for ward six to twelve samples of pocket-lamps, and in February this year two dozen pocket-lamps, and that these goods were duly delivered to the German prisoner; and, if so, will he explain why the authorities allow a prisoner of war to receive flash-lamps and for what purpose are they used?
The UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE for WAR (Mr. Tennant)
The War Office have no knowledge of these circumstances, but are obtaining information.
Nothing new there then! Ed.
Another one for the American contingent.
On May 15, 1916, US marines who had been landed on the soil of the Dominican Republic entered the capital city of Santo Domingo and took possession of the center of the city. The entry of US forces was unopposed.
The immediate cause of the imperialist intervention was the outbreak of fighting on May 5, during an attempt to overthrow the regime of General Juan I. Jimenez. Several people were killed or wounded in the clashes. As soon as the rebels, led by General Arias, the minister of war, took Santo Domingo, American Ambassador to the Dominican Republic, W.W. Russell issued a warning that armed US intervention would result unless the hostilities ceased within 72 hours.
General Arias initially agreed to surrender, on the condition that the president resign. The threat of a US invasion caused the rebels to evacuate Santo Domingo, stripping the fort there of guns and war materiels. The US dispatched seven navy destroyers on May 6 and 7, bound for the Dominican Republic. On May 9, Santo Domingo was reported quiet as the Australian cruiser, Melbourne and the US collier, Hector arrived.
Five hundred marines took part in the invasion. The Wilson administration made it known through officers of the municipal government that the object of the occupation was to guarantee the “free election” by congress of a provisional president to succeed General Jiminez. US imperialism firmly controlled the political and economic life of the Dominican Republic. In 1905, for instance, the US had assumed control of collecting Dominican customs duties. The occupation did not end until 1924.
Rob.
Last edited by Flying Officer Kyte; 05-15-2016 at 12:44.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Another bit of forgotten or overlooked US history. Thanks Rob.
Karl
It is impossible for a man to begin to learn what he thinks he knows. -- Epictetus
May 16th 1916.
4 airmen have fallen on Tuesday May 16th 1916.
Lt. Trafford Jones 20 Squadron Royal flying Corps.
Capt. Gerald Blunt Lucas 13 Squadron Royal flying Corps. Downed when on observation duty 16 May
Lt. Charles Darrell Merrett Australian Flying Corps. Killed in aeroplane accident at Dover aged 21. He sideslipped his Avro 504A 4068, 20 RS, and nosedived. Capt Lord Lucas was injured in the crash.
2nd Lt. Morden Maxwell Mowat 11Squadron Royal Flying Corps. Missing - Died of Wounds 16 May 1916 as Prisoner of War aged 25.
Second Lieutenant Morden Maxwell Mowat, who was shot down and killed by the German flying ace Max Immelman on 16 May 1916, while serving with the 11th Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. Morden Mowat was 25 years of age and is buried at Cabaret Rouge British Cemetery, Souchez, France.
Claims.
There were six claims today.
Lt. Albert Ball made his first claim today. Flying Bristol Scout 5312 he shot down
Albatros C (OOC/DD) over Givenchy-Beaumont.
Albert Ball was the first British ace idolized by the public. An engineering student when the war began, he joined the 7th (Robin Hood) Battalion of The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) and was promoted to Serjeant on 29 October 1914. He transferred to the Royal Flying Corps in 1915. Described as an "introspective little chap," Ball was a loner with strong religious convictions who soon established a reputation as a fearless pilot and excellent marksman. On 22 August 1916, he scored his 11th victory when he shot down Wilhelm Cymera's two-seater. In just three months over the Somme, he scored his first 30 victories. With the introduction of the S.E.5, he reluctantly gave up his Nieuport 17. Flying the new scout, Ball's flight encountered Jasta 11 on the evening of 7 May 1917 and Ball was last seen by Cyril Crowe entering an extremely dark thundercloud. In the confusion that followed, Ball and Lothar von Richthofen both crashed. Ball was killed but the German ace survived. Officially listed as missing in action, it was several years before the details of Albert Ball's death were known. Although Germany officially credited Lothar von Richthofen with downing Britain's leading ace, there was little or no evidence to substantiate the claim. Moments before he crashed, Leutnant Hailer, a German officer on the ground, witnessed Ball's undamaged aircraft emerge alone from the clouds, 200 feet above the ground in an inverted position with a dead prop. Ball's death greatly disheartened the entire Royal Flying Corps.
Today, many of Ball's personal possessions can be viewed at the Albert Ball Memorial on the grounds of the Nottingham Castle Museum in England.
Lieutenant Colonel Alan Wilkinson shot down his first two enemy aircraft. Flying DH2 5966 he accounted for an AGO G11 OOC and a Fokker E both over Péronne.
The son of a civil engineer, Lieutenant Alan Machin Wilkinson, of the Hampshire Regiment, received Royal Aero Club Aviator's Certificate 1398 on a Maurice Farman biplane at Farnborough on 4 July 1915. He achieved 10 of his victories while flying an Airco D.H.2. Having equipped it with two Lewis guns, he was eventually ordered to remove one of them.
Max Immelmann achieved his fifteenth victory when he shot down Morden Mowat flying Bristol Scout C (5301).
Francesco Baracca scored his second victory downing a Lohner B.VII over Gorizia.
Major George McFarlane Reid scored his first victory today. Flying F.E.2b (6330) with his observer Observer Lt. James Anderson Mann he dispatched an Aviatik C (FTL/DES) over Souchez
The son of George and Gertrude Reid, George Ranald MacFarlane Reid served with the 4th Battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and was promoted to Second Lieutenant (on probation) on 15 August 1914. He received Royal Aero Club Aviator's Certificate 1900 on a Maurice Farman biplane at Military School, Montrose on 16 October 1915. An F.E.2 pilot in 1916, he downed three enemy aircraft with 25 Squadron and six more with 20 Squadron.
Appears as Major George Ronald MacFarlane Reid in the Supplement to the London Gazette of 1 January 1919 (31098/96).
Lieutenant Ewart Alan Mackintosh.
Private David Sutherland (Seaforth Highlanders) is killed during a raid on the German trenches in the area north of Arras. The experience of this raid had a profound effect on Lieutenant Ewart Alan Mackintosh and the death of Private Sutherland inspires him to write the poem “In Memoriam”. Lieutenant Mackintosh will be killed on 21 November 1917.
So you were David’s father,
And he was your only son,
And the new-cut peats are rotting
And the work is left undone,
Because of an old man weeping,
Just an old man in pain,
For David, his son David,
That will not come again.
Oh, the letters he wrote you,
And I can see them still,
Not a word of the fighting,
But just the sheep on the hill
And how you should get the crops in
Ere the year get stormier,
And the Bosches have got his body,
And I was his officer.
You were only David’s father,
But I had fifty sons
When we went up in the evening
Under the arch of the guns,
And we came back at twilight –
O God! I heard them call
To me for help and pity
That could not help at all.
Oh, never will I forget you,
My men that trusted me,
More my sons than your fathers’,
For they could only see
The little helpless babies
And the young men in their pride.
They could not see you dying,
And hold you while you died.
Happy and young and gallant,
They saw their first-born go,
But not the strong limbs broken
And the beautiful men brought low,
The piteous writhing bodies,
They screamed “Don’t leave me, sir”,
For they were only your fathers
But I was your officer.
Today’s Losses Include:
Second Lieutenant Morden Maxwell Mowat (Royal Flying Corps) dies of wounds received in action as a prisoner of war when his Bristol C Scout is shot down by Max Immelmann while on an offensive patrol. He is Immelmann’s 15th victim and is barely alive when troops of the German infantry reach him he dies in captivity within a few minutes. His brother will die on service in January 1919.
Second Lieutenant Ernest Lumley Hammick (Carnatic Infantry) dies on service in India at age 26. His brother will die on service in October 1918 and they are grandsons of the Reverend ‘Sir’ St Vincent Love Hammick 2nd
Second Lieutenant Edward Herbert Jewell (Lancashire Fusiliers) is killed at age 21. His brother was killed in January.
Rifleman Alfred Walter Elvy (King’s Royal Rifle Corps) is killed at age 26. His brother will be killed in September next year.
Private Sidney Arthur Crundwell (West Surrey Regiment) is killed at age 28. His brother was killed in November 1914.
Southern Front.
Austrian advance checked at Zugna Torta.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Russian advance on Mosul.
Anzacs storm Turkish camp at Bayud (Sinai).
Naval and Overseas Operations.
Dutch S.S. "Batavier V." blown up in North Sea.
British destroyers and monitors engage German destroyers on Belgian coast.
Russian submarine torpedoes three German ships off Sweden.
Political, etc.
Military Service Bill (extending compulsion to married men) passes the House of Commons.
The Sykes Picot agreement signed.
More info here:-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sykes%...icot_Agreement
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 17th 1916.
2 airmen have fallen on Wednesday May 17th 1916.
A Mech 2 Charles John Rough Recruits Depot Royal Flying Corps. Died 17 May 1916 aged 38.
2nd Lt. Edward Frederick Sheffield 7th Kite Balloon Section Royal flying Corps. Died from injuries sustained during a parachute decent from a Kite Balloon.May 17th 1916. aged 28.
Claims.
No claims were made today.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant Colonel Frank Hill Gaskell (raised and commanding 16th Welsh Regiment) is killed in action at age 37. He is a veteran of the South Africa War.
Major Harold Payne Philby DSO (York & Lancaster Regiment) is killed at age 28. His brother was killed in November 1914.
Captain William B Algeo (Dorsetshire Regiment) is killed at age 28. He is the son of the Reverend Frederick Swift Algeo Rector of Studland.
Lieutenant John Lauderdale Stewart-Richardson (Coldstream Guards) is killed at age 38. He was married eleven days ago and his brother the 15th Baronet was killed in November 1914.
Lieutenant Henry Grove Morton Mansel-Pleydell (Dorsetshire Regiment) is killed at age 21. His brother was killed in March 1915 and they are grandsons of ‘Sir’ Thomas Fraser Grove MP 1st
Private John Guthrie (Highland Light Infantry) dies of wounds received in action at home at age 29. He dies of complications after having a foot removed and his brother will be killed in action in 1917 serving as S Murray.
Private Herbert Raymond Standage (Royal Fusiliers) is killed at age 22. He is the son of the Reverend Samuel Ray Standage Vicar of Gt Bourton
Home Front.
The Air Board, with Lord Curzon as President, is formed to handle RFC and RNAS rivalry for access to limited supplies of aircraft and equipment.
Parasite fighter experiments begin in the UK to launch a Bristol Scout from a Porte Baby airship.
Actually a later experiment, but it gives the idea. Ed.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: German attack in Avocourt Wood.
Germans capture British mine crater on Vimy Ridge.
Tunstill's men.
Front line trenches west of Angres
The weather was much improved – “a beautiful day” – as noted in the War Diary. Orders were received for the Battalion to be relieved in the evening by 11th West Yorks. Through the day, “nothing of importance transpired on our front, though both to our right and left there have been heavy artillery duels”. The relief began around 4.30 and was completed without incident or casualties by 9pm, with the Battalion returning to their billets in Sains-en-Gohelle.
The town (Sains-en-Gohelle) had suffered little from German shelling but there was an increasing danger of shells, from long-range German artillery, directed at the pit-head, close to where some of the men were billeted and where they also visited to take advantage of the bathing facilities. Reflecting many years later, J.B. Priestley described the effect this shelling had,
“Far away, behind the ridge they held, the Germans had a great naval gun that had the range of this village. The shell it fired was of such a monstrous calibre that you could easily hear it coming, like an aerial express. We would be hanging about, smoking and talking, enjoying the sunshine and the quiet, when suddenly we would hear this monster coming. There was only one safe place, behind the slag-heap, and everybody would run for it pell-mell. Shirrr-brirrr-bump! There it went, and we would come from behind the slag-heap and see the smoke clearing and another six houses gone. Fortunately that gun did no night-work, and we did not really mind it during the day”.
Another attempt was made to progress the case of 2Lt. William Neville Dawson (see 10th May), who had been reported as being unfit to continue as a platoon officer. Following a request by 23rd Division, 69th Bde. wrote to Lt.Col. Hayne, commanding 10DWR: “can you please furnish any further suggestions as to how this officer should be disposed of: viz. what other employment in the field, if any, he may be suitable for or whether he should be sent home and his services dispensed with, or utilised for training purposes”.
Southern Front.
Austrians claim 6,300 prisoners.
Naval and overseas.
After a bit of a lull the U boat attacks resumed with a vengeance today.
K.u.K. U 15 Captain Friedrich Fähndrich sank Italian Stura.in the Adriatic, 17 miles east of Brindisi.
.
UB 18 Otto Steinbrinck stopped and scuttled the British trawler Research 35 miles E of Cromer with one casualty.
UB 29 Herbert Pustkuchen sank three British ships off Southwold, The fishing smacks Boy Percy, Boy Sam and Wanderer. Only five casualties were recorded all from the Wanderer.
Political, etc.
Speech by President Wilson at Washington.
Daylight Saving Bill passed.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 18th 1916.
There were two deaths recorded today.
Lt. George Simpson Bateman, 60 squadron Royal Flying Corps (22) and Lt. Arthur Penrose Selwyn (26) were both killed when their machine stalled and crashed at Gosport.
Claims.
There were two claim today.
Hauptmann Oswald Boelcke claimed his 16th victory. A Caudron tow engined machine near to Ripont.
Kiffin Rockwell scores the first victory for Escadrille Americaine.
At the outbreak of World War I, on August 3, 1914, Kiffin Rockwell offered his services to France by letter, which he wrote with his brother Paul, to the French Consul-General in New Orleans.[3]James Norman Hall, the author of the "History of the Lafayette Flying Corps",[4] suggested that Kiffin Yates Rockwell was the first American who saw military service with France during the beginning of World War I. Without waiting for a reply, the Rockwell brothers boarded SS St Paul, American Line in New York City and on August 7, 1914 departed for Europe, where they enlisted in the French Foreign Legion.
Kiffin Rockwell was shot through the leg on May 9, 1915 when his unit, the 1st Foreign Legion Regiment charged La Targette, north of Arras. He spent six weeks in the hospital and when he left for Paris on convalescent leave, his leg was completely healed. While in Paris, he spent time with his brother, Paul, who was severely wounded in the winter of 1914–15 in the shoulder, earlier than Kiffin, and became unfit for active service. After recuperating, Paul was transferred to the Allied Press Mission of French Army Grand Headquarters and worked as a war correspondent with the Chicago Daily News. In his turn, Kiffin requested transfer from the trenches to France's air arm and was among the first American's to be added to the infant fighter/pursuit squadron which would come to be known as the Lafayette Escadrille. The Escadrille Américaine (Escadrille N.124) was authorized by the French Air Department on March 21, 1916. Paul Rockwell became a publicist for the fledgling Lafayette Escadrille.
On May 18, 1916, Rockwell on a Nieuport attacked and shot down a German aircraft, a two-man observational plane, over the Alsace battlefield despite having troubles with the motor. Thus, he became the first American pilot to shoot down an enemy plane during the World War I. For this action he was awarded the Médaille militaire and the Croix de guerre. On May 26, 1916, during the defense of Verdun, Rockwell was wounded in the face during combat with an enemy airplane, however refused to stay in the hospital. On September 23, 1916, during a fight with a German two-man reconnaissance plane, Rockwell was shot through the chest by an explosive bullet and killed instantly. His plane crashed between the first and second line of French trenches. Rockwell became the second American airman to die in combat in France, and was buried with military honors.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Major Edward Robert Cureton (King’s Own Scottish Borderers) is killed at age 50. He is the son of General E B Cureton.
Major Cureton, who died from heart failure following bronchitis, was at Berwick Barracks until recently. He was spoken of, by people who knew, as a very competent Officer —an able and capable soldier. When he rejoined on outbreak of War, he was, we understand, engaged in theatrical management in West-end of London, and had also written for the Stage. He was an exceedingly well-informed man, and had a fund of interesting recollections and experiences. As a raconteur he was far and away the best in Berwick while he was stationed here.
Lieutenant Arthur Penrose Selwyn (Lancers Indian Army attached Royal Flying Corps) dies at home as a result of an accident. He is son of the late Canon Edward Carus Selwyn and dies at age 26. His older brother has been killed in action one year and one day prior his younger half brother will die of pneumonia in October 1918.
apper James Buchan Cranston (Royal Engineers) dies of wounds at home becoming the first of five brothers who will lose their lives in the Great War.
Driver William Staley Hibbert (Royal Horse Artillery) is killed at age 25 in Mesopotamia. His brother was killed in October 1914.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: German attacks repulsed at Hill 304 and in Avocourt Wood.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Sains-en-Gohelle (Coron Fosse 10)
The weather remained good and conditions were generally quiet, although it was noted that there was, “much aircraft activity also a desultory kind of bombardment”.
J.B. Priestley wrote home to his family, and his reference to the awful conditions recently endured and his hope for a ‘blighty’ wound, give a telling insight into what may have been the prevailing mood of many of the men: “We came out of the trenches last night after spending five days in the firing line, and we shall be going in again in a day or night (sic). Our trenches around here are very close to the Germans and in consequence, every form of death and destruction abounds. Rifle grenades, trench mortars (minnenwerfers or “sausages” – bombs bigger than a Rugby football), aerial torpedoes, are sent over into our trenches at regular intevals, and underneath there are mines ready to be blown at any minute. A rifle grenade caused my wound (referring to his having been wounded in January; see 22nd January); it dropped right into the bay of the trench I was in, and killed one and wounded four. I’ve had some very narrow escapes from them this last day or two, and since I got wounded, they’ve made me rather nervy. The part of the line we hold now is absolute ‘hell’; the French said it was the worst part of their line, not counting Verdun at the present time.
As I told you, the battalion had been about fifteen to twenty miles back for a fortnight’s “rest”, and then we came back in the train to a little town about six miles from the firing line (see 11th May). Our train was just steaming into the station when the Germans started shelling it, because it is the railhead – the furthest point the railway reaches. Enormous 12 inch shells dropped all about us – the engine driver bolted, so we were left about twenty minutes in the train, every minute expecting a shell to hit it. But not one did, though the carriages were well battered with shrapnel, and eventually we backed out of the station and were landed a couple of miles back.
One night while I was at the Base (see 16th April for Priestley’s account of his stay at Etaples), a Zeppelin dropped four bombs on the camp, killing and wounding a few. The Zepp bombs make a nice hole and a tidy noise, but as an experience it’s small beer. I’ve given over thinking about passes. Never mind, I shall be home with a ‘blighty’ soon … We were near the first aid Dressing Station this morning and there I saw the body of a young lad of 18, who came into the trenches last night for the first time, and was shot through the head. Fate seems to have a grim and gruesome humour of her own, and out here she sometimes exercises it. There were two Derby men with the battalion on our left in the trenches – I mean amongst others of course – and these two, not used to the hard conditions out here, complained bitterly of cold feet. The same day a shell came and whipped both feet off one man and one off the other.”
Having been asked for his recommendation in the case of 2Lt. William Neville Dawson (see 17th May), who had been reported as being unfit to continue as a platoon officer, Lt.Col. Hayne, commanding 10DWR, made a swift and direct reply: “I do not consider this officer suitable for employment in the field, I therefore recommend his services being dispensed with on being sent home”.
Payment of the amount due from his army pay was made to the relatives of Pte. Ernest Varley who had been killed in action on 20th March. In accordance with the will he had made in September 1915, two of his brothers, James and Joseph were each paid £4 7s 10d, both of his parents having died before the war.
L.Cpl. Sam Benjamin Farrant was transferred from 23rd Division Cyclist Company to join 2nd Battalion East Lancs. Regiment; he would later be commissioned and serve with 10DWR. Born 18th September 1894, he was one of three surviving children of Alfred and Martha Farrant (three other children had died). Alfred was a coal miner and both Sam and his older brother Alfred jnr. followed their father into the pits. Sam had enlisted on 2nd September 1914, initially joining 8th King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, before being transferred, in January 1915, to 23rd Division Cyclist Company, with whom he disembarked in France on 25th August 1915, by which time he had been promoted Lance Corporal.
2Lt. Eric John Lassen arrived in France en route to join 10DWR. Eric was born at Mount Royd, Manningham, Bradford on 2nd April 1894. He was the youngest of four children of Albert William Lassen and Louise Agnes (Phillip). His father was a yarn, wool, tops, and stuff merchant and Eric and his siblings joined the family business. He had applied for a commission on 8th December 1914, citing two months with the Oxford University OTC as his sole military experience. He was formally commissioned on 20th December and posted to the West Riding Regiment on 2nd January 1915. He had remained in England since then and had clearly become especially proficient in signals, as, on 3rd April 1916, he had been appointed Temporary Captain (though without the pay and allowances of that rank), whilst employed as a Brigade Signals Officer.
Southern Front.
Italians evacuate Zugna Torta and retire from Monte Maggio-Seglio d'Aspio (Trentino).
Naval and Overseas Operations.
There were two losses to U boats today.
U34 Claus Rücker Greek Steamer Adamantios Korais Captured and scuttled 30 miles SSE of Toulon.
UB 19 Walther Gustav Becker British fishing vessel Osprey Stopped and scuttled 13 miles ENE of the Spurn LV.
H.M. motor launch 40 destroyed by fire, Suez Canal
Detachment of Cossacks from Russian force in West Persia effects junction with British army on the Tigris.
British advance in Para and Usambara districts (German East Africa).
British bombard El Arish (northern Sinai).
Political, etc.
Royal Commissions on Irish rebellion opens.
Mr. Balfour makes a statement on sea power.
The US Cavalry kill 5 Mexican bandits who participated in the raid on Glenn Springs, Texas, and rescue two kidnapped Americans.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 19th 1916.
No deaths are recorded for Friday May 19th 1916.
Claims.
Three claims were made today.
Jean Navarre scored his 10th victory. An Aviatik C over Chattancourt, shared with S/Lt G Boillot.
Charles Nungesser scored his 8th victory. An LVG C over Bois de Forges.
Finally, George Reid scored his 2nd victory. Flying F.E.2b (6330) he shared with
Shared with Lt A D Pearce & 2Lt W F Findlay (A19) a Fokker E (DES) over Mericourt.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant Colonel William Renwick Marshall DSO (commanding Central Ontario Regiment) is killed at age 45. He is a South Africa War veteran and his brother will die of wounds in October.
Lieutenant William Noel Soames (Cheshire Yeomanry) is killed in Egypt at age 27. His brother was among the 1st 99 to be awarded the Military Cross and was killed in July 1915.
Second Lieutenant Alec Gordon Boulton (Special List and Interpreter attached Baluchistan Infantry and APM Headquarters 3rd Army) dies of pneumonia from wounds received in action at age 36. The son of Major General C F Boulton had been a prisoner of war in the South Africa War.
Second Lieutenant Alexander Neill Bain (Gordon Highlanders) is killed in action at age 23. His brother will be killed in August 1917.
Private Charlie Smith (Northumberland Fusiliers) dies of wounds at age 31. His brother will be killed in April 1917.
Private William James Lamb (Berkshire Regiment) dies of wounds at age 18. His brother was killed in November 1914.
Home Front.
German air raid on coast of Kent; 1 killed, 2 injured; one German seaplane destroyed off Belgian Coast.
This night raid by seven floatplanes took the Kent coastal defences completely by surprise and in the darkness the authorities struggled to unravel exactly what had happened. They estimated only five aircraft took part in the attack. And while they accounted for 59 bombs (ten of which are recorded as falling in the sea), German records claim 90 were dropped. It is likely therefore that in the darkness many more than the ten listed fell in the sea and were not recorded.
Three Friedrichshafen FF33s,
three Hansa-Brandenburg NWs,
and a Gotha Ursinus appeared over the Kent coast just after 2.00am.
It appears the first attack took place on the St. Peter’s area of Broadstairs where about 12 bombs fell, many around the Victoria Avenue area. A few minutes later an aircraft appeared near Sandwich and, turning north, dropped at least nine bombs in the sea off the Small Downs Coastguard Station. It then came inland behind Ramsgate dropping three more near St. Peter’s. One landed close to Rumfields Water Works, one at farm at Bromstone and one at a cottage in Dumpton. The raider then went out to sea over Dumpton Gap. Damage accrued by these 15 bombs amounted to 15 broken windows.
Another aircraft came inland near Kingsdown and headed towards Walmer. It then turned back and followed a south-west course to the village of Ringwould where it released ten bombs all of which landed harmlessly in fields. Then, right on the coast to the north of Deal - at Sandhills, Sholden - nine bombs landed on a short south-west running line starting close to the Chequers Inn.
But all fell in fields without causing damage. The most damaging attack that night, probably made by two aircraft, struck Dover. It appears the first bomb landed in Barton Road on the nursery gardens of G & A Clark Ltd, followed quickly by a bomb on the steps of 8 Maison Dieu Place and another in the roadway in Effingham Crescent. Four bombs landed in the ground of Dover College off Effingham Crescent, giving the boys ‘a very alarming experience’ but no serious damage occurred. More minor damage took place when a bomb struck the iron railings outside 12 Saxon Street, before the next fell on the gravel approach to Christ Church on Folkestone Road. The main damage caused by all these bombs was broken windows. A bomb fragment from an explosion in the roadway of Military Hill injured Mrs Bridges Bloxham in her bedroom, and another bomb landed on a grass bank above Christ Church schools.
Damaged gravestones in Cowgate cemetery were the result of the next bomb and later an unexploded bomb was dug out in Albany Place adjacent to the cemetery. In the ditch of the Drop Redoubt a bomb exploded harmlessly but seconds later another, which struck some stables in Shaft Barracks, resulted in the death of Private Henry Frederick Sole, 3rd Battalion, East Surrey Regiment. Approaching Dover Harbour a bomb from the same aircraft struck the Ordnance Inn at 120 Snargate Street, ‘smashing down the top of the front of the building and unroofing it’.
One account adds that several tons of masonry fell into the street but fortunately no one was passing by at the time. The occupants escaped injury as they were in rooms at the back of the house. The next bomb landed on Commercial Quay with a splinter from it severely wounding deckhand James Harvey onboard HM Drifter E.E.S. moored close by. Observers saw a final bomb falling in the Outer Harbour. The official report states that 16 bombs (one of which fell in the sea) fell on Dover although there are 18 described here.
With no advance warning of the raid, defence aircraft only took off as the raid ended and they failed to sight the retreating raiders.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: Germans take a work south of Hill 287.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Sains-en-Gohelle (Coron Fosse 10)
Another fine, clear day. The Germans sent a number of shells into the village, killing a French man and a boy and wounding a young woman. The rest of the day then passed quietly until 9pm when the British artillery opened a bombardment against the German lines. As the evening progressed the bombardment became more intense and the Germans responded in kind. The details are described in the Battalion War Diary: “Our artillery commenced a bombardment upon the enemy lines. It commenced just to the left of the Arras road and was confined to a small portion of the front and continued for ½ hours; the portion bombarded was ablaze with Very lights. The bombardment was then extended to the left considerably and became most intense; the enemy replied with some weight. About 10pm it decreased in violence and developed into a big gun duel, our machine gun sending a few shots probably with the intention of harassing work, the smaller guns sending salvoes at irregular intervals. As far as can be judged the duel is over a 2½ to 3 mile front. The operation continued until midnight though occasional shots were exchanged throughout the night”.
Pte. Albert Saville (see 1st June 1915) suffered what was subsequently recorded as a “trivial injury” whilst carrying rations; it was formally recorded that Saville was not to blame and the injury, though “it occurred while he was in the performance of military duty … will not interfere with his future efficiency as a soldier”.
69th Field Ambulance took over the medical arrangements in the sector and their report on conditions gives an insight into conditions:
Medical arrangements
Main dressing station at Fosse 10.
Three large schools capable of holding 500 patients easily. HQ, A (less bearers) and B sections there; A section open; B section packed. Cellars to hold 100 patients.
Advanced Dressing Station at house in Bully Grenay.
Personnel: 1 officer; 2 NCO’s, 26 men.
Accommodation:
Unprotected: Two receiving rooms on ground floor; three rooms on first floor; large room (soldiers’ club) in adjacent building which could be taken if required; large yard.
Protected: cellars in basement; bad approach, impossible for stretchers; could hold 6 lying or 20 sitting. In adjacent buildings, cellars to hold 45 sitting.
Transport: 1 Daimler ambulance and 2 wheeled stretchers.
Notes: the protected accommodation is bad.
I propose to add: 1 MO; 1 Ford car for urgent cases; 1 wheeled stretcher as soon as possible.
Advanced Post no.1: Morocco South
Personnel: 1 NCO; 4 men
Accommodation: Dugout; 2 good entrances but facing front line; could hold 8 lying or 20 sitting; splinter proof but not shell proof, even from small stuff.
Advanced Post no.2: the Rat Pit in Bovril Alley
Personnel: 3 men by day; 2 by night.
Accommodation: 3 sitting; impossible for stretchers; splinter and light shell proof.
Regimental Aid Post: between Bully Alley and Algiers Trench
Owing to bulging of sandbags entrance cannot be used; exit trench is not deep enough and therefore exposed. I made arrangements with OC 9th Yorks to have these defects remedied at once.
Accommodation: 2 lying or 6 sitting; splinter proof.
Trenches
Up trench: Bully Alley; good going, wide enough for stretchers whole way.
Down trench: 1. Bully Alley from RAP to Morocco, as above; 2. Morocco North; bad going, awkward corners; 3. Bovril Alley; good going most of way but too narrow in many places, necessitating carrying of stretchers over shoulder high.
Time required for evacuation from RAP to ADS
Quick walking from ADS to RAP by Bully Alley occupies 40 minutes; back by Morocco and Bovril Alley, 60 mins. I estimate therefore time required for carrying, 90 mins by Bully Alley and 120 to 150 by Bovril Alley, owing to difficulty. Owing to Bovril Alley being the down trench and Bully Alley the up trench, the former must be used at present as the normal route. From a medical point of view it would be much better to have Bully Alley as the down trench: the one-wheel stretchers could be used all the way and a patient would be got from RAP to ADS in it in 60 mins. I doubt if this stretcher can be used in the present down route owing to the narrowness of Bovril Alley, but I propose to try today. Another advantage of using Bully Alley as a down trench is that extra protected accommodation could be obtained in Mechanics Trench (about 1/3rd of the way back).
The one-wheeled stretchers were a solution which had been improvised in the Divisional workshops during the rest period, and they were illustrated in the Field Ambulance War Diary.
Brig. Gen. Lambert, commanding 69th Bde., made a further report to Division in the case of 2Lt. William Neville Dawson (see 18th May), who had been reported as being unfit to continue as a platoon officer. Following the recommendation by Lt. Col. Hayne that Dawson should be sent home, Lambert commented, “I have seen 2Lt. Dawson again. I am not purposed to recommend that his services be dispensed with at a time when every available man is needed. 2Lt. Dawson was an undergraduate at Oxford and has done his best to qualify as an officer but is not by nature fitted to take command of men in action. He has not specialized in any subject, military or otherwise, but was studying history and law and has had some experience, though not of any extended nature, in law work”. Lambert requested that Division find some suitable employment for Dawson in which to continue his service.
Lance Sergeant Cyril Edward Agar, (see 10th May), who had recently re-joined 9th Yorkshires, after a period in hospital, was promoted Colour Sergeant and appointed Company Quartermaster Sergeant. He would later be commissioned and serve with 10DWR.
Cyril Edward Agar, pictured while serving with 10DWR
(Image by kind permission of Henry Bolton)
Cpl. John Robert ****inson, (see 16th March) serving in France with 18th Royal Fusiliers, left his Battalion to return to England to begin his officer training with no.4 Officer Cadet Battalion, based at Oxford. Once commissioned, he would serve with 10DWR.
The weekly edition of the Craven Herald carried news of one of Tunstill’s Company who had been home on leave:
Home from the Front
Pte. S. Hoar (see 9th May) has been spending a well-earned leave at home from the Front. He enlisted with Capt. Tunstill’s men in 10th Duke of Wellington’s shortly after the outbreak of the war. Since going to France some ten months ago he has been engaged in transport work. He returned to the Front on Tuesday last.
Southern Front.
Italians retreat from Monte Toraro-Monte Campolon-Spitz Tonezza line (Trentino).
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Turks evacuate Es Sinn position on right bank (Tigris).
Political, etc.
Evidence of Mr. Birrell before Irish Commission.
Britain and France conclude the Sykes-Picot Agreement.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 20th 1916.
1 airman has fallen on Saturday May 20th 1916.
2nd. Lt. Maurice Duncan Basden, 27 Squadron Royal Flying Corps.
Attached from 16th Battalion, London Regiment. Killed in Action 20 May 1916 aged 21.
And here is more info on this, not mentioned in any other official sources that I have checked. Ed.
Extract from ROYAL FLYING CORPS Communiqué 37
May 20th 1916.
2/Lt. M D Basden, 27 Sqn, in a Martinsyde Scout, was brought down in the German lines as the result of a combat in the air.
Note: 2/Lt. Basden was in Capt Smith's flight, flying Martinsyde 7278. He was brought down on 20 May by a Roland two-seater while on a reconnaisance patrol. [He is buried at Y Farm Military Cemetery, Bois-Grenier].
Claims.
Four claims were made today.
Roderic Dallas RNAS. made his second claim. Flying Nieuport 11 (3993) he shot down a Seaplane (DES) Off Blankenberghe.
Fernand Jacquet Belgium made his second claim. Flying a Maurice Farman he shot down a Hydr C ? (DES) over Nieuport.
Kurt Wintgens made his fourth claim when he dispatched a Nieuport 12 over Château-Salins.
David Tidmarsh made his third claim when flying D.H.2 (5965) He shared a C (DESF) S of Pozières with Capt W A Summers (7284)
Capt W A Summers.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant James Rendell Willkinson (Lancashire Fusiliers) is accidentally killed in a fall from a roof as a prisoner of war at Gnadenfrei prison camp while making meteorological observations. He is 26 years old.
Second Lieutenant George Edward Elliott (Royal Sussex Regiment) is killed in action at age 20. He is the son of the late Reverend W Elliott Vicar of Bramhope, Leeds and a scholar of Queen’s College, Oxford.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: Great German attack on Mort Homme; they capture summit of Hill 295.
British regain mine crater on Vimy Ridge lost three days ago.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Sains-en-Gohelle (Coron Fosse 10)
There was a further increase in German artillery fire; this was most noticeable further south, beyond Souchez, against the portion of the British line held by 47th Division, but the Battalion War Diary also recorded that, “The enemy artillery is showing a marked activity and is ranging upon various places with a high velocity gun of small calibre. This gun can easily be distinguished from others”. Shelling was also directed against Sains-en-Gohelle and on the pithead area of Fosse 10. During the morning one heavy shell demolished one of the houses in the village, killing a French civilian and seriously wounding Pte. John Smith (13487); he was evacuated to 22nd Casualty Clearing Station at Bruay.
Pte. Sam Shuttleworth (see 25th April) again found himself in trouble, having again been found to be drunk; he was ordered to be confined to barracks for three days.
Maj. Genl. Babington, commanding 23rd Division, having received the recommendation of Brig. Genl. Lambert in the case of 2Lt. William Neville Dawson (see 19th May), who had been reported as being unfit to continue as a platoon officer, issued his own recommendation that Dawson should be posted to an administrative position, considering him unfit for employment with a labour battalion.
L.Cpl. Maurice Harcourt Denham (see 5th April), who was still at 23rd Infantry Base Depot at Etaples following recent medical treatment, was promoted Corporal.
The original commander of Tunstill’s Company, Maj. Harry Robert Hildyard, (see 11th April) was transferred to 1st (Home Service) Garrison Battalion, Leics. Regt.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
South bank of Tigris to Shatt-el-Hai cleared of Turks.
3 officers, 110 men, Cossacks from Mahidasht join British on Tigris at Ali Gherbi.
Naval and overseas.
There were five U boat sinkings today.
Three of them by U 34 Commanded by Claus Rücker.
The Italian sailing vessels Erminia, Stopped and sunk 20 miles S of Palma (Maj) and Fabbricotti F. 45 miles off Cap San Sebastian.
Then French Steamer Languedoc off Cape San Sebastian (Spain), Gulf of Lyon.
Two more Italian ships were accounted for by U 39 captain Walter Forstmann.
Another pair of sailing vessels, Redentore and Valsesia in the Strait of Messina
Political.
Roosevelt Uses Big Stick On Henry Ford Today; Speaking before an audience of representative Detroiters Colonel Roosevelt lambasted Ford's pacism.
The White House asks Britain not to execute Jeremiah Lynch, a naturalized US citizen, for his part in the Easter Rising, and they agree. Lynch was a staff captain during the occupation of the General Post Office. He will be released with other prisoners in 1917 and deported to the US in 1918. From exile, he will be elected to the British Parliament in 1918.
A Royal Commission isinvestigating the Easter Rising, which the NYT is pleased to call “the Sinn Fein revolt,” though SF had little enough to do with it. Former Chief Secretary of Ireland Augustine Birrell defends his failure to foresee the events, although he admits he knew little about what was going on in “the cellars of Dublin” and was uneasy about it. He defends spending most of his time in London instead of Ireland, saying he had to attend Cabinet meetings, although “a jackdaw or a magpie might have done just as well to cry out ‘Ireland!’ ‘Ireland!’ when bills were being discussed by the Cabinet.”
Rob.
Last edited by Flying Officer Kyte; 05-21-2016 at 03:47.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Great run of posts Rob - when would you like me to pick up the reins?
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
A week today we go away with the Regiment until Tuesday so if you could cover that period please it would keep the continuity flow going. Plus you will get Jutland an all.
Thanks Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Thanks again and agian keepup the good work.
May 21st 1916.
One airman has fallen on Sunday May 21st 1916.
Flt Lt. Taunton Elliott Viney D.S.O 5 Wing Royal Naval Air Service. Age 24.
Killed whilstflying a Sopwith 1 1/2 Strutter (Serial 9384) on the Western Front
Buried at Ostende, Belgium (Oostende New Communal Cemetery)
Native of Johannesburg & Frinton-on-Sea.
FSL T E Viney was awarded the DSO (Gazette of 1 January 1916) for his action on 28 November 1915 when, with his [French Navy] observer Lt Comte de Sincay, flying Henri Farman 3620 of No 1 Wing RNAS, he attacked and dropped two 65 pound bombs on a U-boat off Middelekerke.
The airmen were credited with sinking the U-boat, but the loss is not reflected in German records. However, UB-6 and UC-1 'suffered some damage' from air attacks about the time in question.
Claims.
Roderic Dallas flying Nieuport 11 (3991) shot down his third victim, a C (OOC) North of Dunkerque.
Redford Mulock flying Nieuport (3992) dispatched his fourth and fifth victims, two C (OOC) Near Nieuport
Jean Navarre dispatched his eleventh. A two seater near Avocourt.
Oswald Boelcke shot down his seventeenth and eighteenth aircraft. A pair of Nieuports, one near Morte Homme and the second over Boisse-de-Hesse.
Wilhelm Frankl's sixth victim was F.E.2b (5206) at Houthem.
Franz Walz's second kill was a Nieuport.
Kurt Wintgens' fifth victim was a Caudron G.IV at Château-Salins.
George Reidgained his third flying F.E.2b (6330).accompanied by Observer Lt James Anderson Mann. At 18.05 hrs they shot down a C (DES) over Annay-Lens.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lieutenant Richard Basil Brandram Jones (Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) is holding with his platoon a crater recently captured from the enemy. At about 19:30 the enemy explode a mine forty yards to his right and at the same time put a heavy barrage of fire on our trenches, thus isolating his platoon. They then attack in overwhelming numbers. Lieutenant Jones keeps his men together, steadying them by his fine example, as he shoots no less than fifteen of the enemy as they advance, counting them out loud as he does so to cheer his men. When his ammunition is expended he takes a bomb, but is shot through the head while getting up to throw it.
For his actions he will be awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.
Captain Harold Charles Norman Taylor (London Regiment) is killed at age 23. He is the son of ‘Sir’ Frederick Taylor 1st
Lieutenant James Henry Van Den Bergh (Royal Field Artillery) is killed in action at age 23. His older brother will be killed in October 1917 in Palestine.
Lieutenant James Miller (London Regiment) is killed at age 32. He is the son of Major General James Miller.
Sergeant Samuel Grayson (North Lancashire Regiment) is killed. His son will be killed in April 1943.
Gunner William James Hiles (Royal Field Artillery) is killed at age 23. His father died on service just over two months ago.
Private Archibald Thomas Bishop (London Regiment) is killed in action at age 21. His brother William will also fall in the Great War.
Private Arthur Illtyd Prichard (London Regiment) is killed at age 35. He is the Private Secretary to the First Commissioner of Works.
Western Front.
On 21 May 1916 Lt. James Turner of 27 Sqn distinguished himself by capturing an enemy aircraft from the ground. This exploit is described in RFC Communiqué 37 below:
Extract from ROYAL FLYING CORPS Communiqué 37
May 21st 1916
Miscellaneous
At about 2.45 a.m. on the 21st, the pilot on duty at 27 Sqn's aerodrome at Treziennes was informed that a machine had been heard flying over the aerodrome. The weather was very misty, and he prepared Very lights in order to signal to the aeroplane. About 3 a.m. the machine was again heard, and was seen over Isebergues. Lt. J. C. Turner, the orderly pilot, fired one Very light. This was answered from the machine by one white star-light. Lt. Turner again fired a red light and the machine again replied with a white star-light. The aeroplane then endeavoured to land but misjudged the landing and went round the aerodrome again. By this time Lt. Turner had been able to see that the machine had German markings, but the pilot was evidently under the impression that he was landing at a friendly aerodrome. Lt. Turner restrained the guard from firing, and ordered his machine to be got ready. The hostile machine now landed successfully and taxied up to the sheds where pilot and passenger at once surrendered.
The captured LVG overpainted in British markings.
The German Offensive on Vimy Ridge.
On 21 May the offensive began with a powerful bombardment lasting several hours which focused on a narrow section of the front, the Germans firing deep into the Allies' lines. In relative terms, the bombardment was one of the heaviest of the Great War with 70,000 shells fired in four hours. The Germans exploded a mine and then sent in their infantry which easily took the British front line, capturing numerous British soldiers in their shelters and "turning" the trenches on their makers.
Battle of Verdun: French capture quarries of Haudromont and take two trenches on Esne Haucourt road; German attack on western slopes of Mort Homme succeeds.
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Sains-en-Gohelle (Coron Fosse 10)
On a beautiful morning the artillery activity of the previous day increased even further; again there was intense shelling of British positions south of Souchez (held by 47th Division) but there was also a considerable bombardment against the Angres sector. The Battalion War Diary account of the shelling: “Beautiful day. About 11am the enemy commenced a heavy bombardment on our front line trenches which extended to the whole of the front visible to the eye. This continued until the early afternoon, after which he lengthened his range and rained shells of heavy calibre on the supports, and roads leading to the trenches, and also within the vicinity of our batteries”. The Brigade War Diary noted that a part of the front line was, “considerably damaged, the front trenches being blown in in three places and a dugout destroyed, but, compared with the amount of ammunition expended, no great damage was done”.
From mid-afternoon the barrage against 47th Division, and also against the extreme right of 23rd Division’s front (held by 68th Brigade), where it met 47th Division, just south of Souchez, became even more intense and was accompanied by the use of gas shells; this was again noted in the War Diary, “ At 4.50pm we received advice from the 68th Bde that the enemy was sending gas over to our lines, this was accompanied by a torrent of shells from the enemy which were principally composed of what is known as tear shells”.
There was also a marked degree of counter-battery fire from the Germans and the impact on an artillery battery located close to the Battalion billets was noted, “The enemy got very near to a number of our batteries but the damage done generally is not obtainable. A battery of R.G.A. which was in action played a very important part in the days proceedings. This battery was subjected to such a hail of shells for 5 to 6 hours which can only be explained by the word terrific. Needless to say the men of this battery stuck to their guns in the good old fashioned way, and when the enemy thought he had succeeded in silencing them they roared forth again and again. This battery continued the fight throughout the night and the enemy gave it up as a hopeless case about 11pm”.
Around 6pm shelling of 68th Brigade subsided but the bombardment of 47th Division continued unabated until, at 7.45pm, the Germans launched an infantry assault against the British lines in the Berthonval sector, near Neuville-Saint-Vaast, around the area generally notorious as ‘The Labyrinth’. The British defences in this area were known to be vulnerable on account of the desperately difficult conditions and the central section was quickly overrun; as a result it was necessary to withdraw from adjacent positions both left and right. There was no assault against 23rd Division.
J.B. Priestley, in a letter home to his family, painted a more graphic picture of events,
“The village we were in last Sunday was shelled with armour-piercing Jack Johnsons, but we had only one man killed, though there were many civilians killed and wounded. It was a ghastly day. All the roads leading to the trenches were shelled too, and there were mules and limbers going up in the air. They sent every kind of shell over – gas shells (it was quaint to see the French children with gas helmets on), tear shells (everybody’s eyes were watering and sore), incendiary shells, shrapnel, and last but not least, the enormous Johnsons. I tried to imagine Saltburn Place (Priestley’ home in Bradford) being shelled in a similar manner, but it was too horrible to think about. They crash through houses and roads and steel girders like paper. And the concussion! Our heavy batteries, just near, were thundering in response, and our stretcher bearers had to keep dashing down to the gun pits to bring out the wounded, poor maimed creatures – burnt, twisted, torn and many of them dazed beyond immediate recovery with the sheer noise”.
Lt. Richard Bolton (see 15th May), writing many years later, recalled that, “The barrages laid down by both sides for several nights in succession made the hilltop look like a volcano on eruption”.
Pte. John Smith (13487), who had been wounded in the German shelling the previous day, died of his injuries at the 22nd Casualty Clearing Station, Bruay.
Southern Front.
Austrians capture Armenterra Ridge (south of the Brenta, Trentino).
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Russians repulse Turks south of Trebizond.
Russians occupy Serdasht (Persia).
Port Said bombed.
Naval and overseas.
Rücker and Forstmann are at it again bagging a brace each today.
U34 French sailing vessel Myosotis 32 miles N of Port Soller, Majorca Islands and Norwegian steamer Tjømø Scuttled 50 miles NE of Formentor, Mallorca.
U19 sank the Italian steamer Birmania Scuttled NE of Marettimo and sailing vessel Rosalia in the Strait of Messine.
Political, etc.
German food control board created; Herr Batocki, president.
Daylight Saving Bill comes into operation.
Don't forget to put your clocks back by one hour tonight chaps. Ed.
Rob.
Last edited by Flying Officer Kyte; 05-21-2016 at 03:44.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 22nd 1916.
No deaths are recorded for Monday May 22nd 1916.
Claims.
Sergent Adolphe duBois d'Aische Belgium made his first claim an Albatros over Varninay. His observer was a Lt Meunier.
Jean Chaput claimed his fourth victim which was a balloon near to Verdun.
Noel de Rochefort scored his third kill. An LVG shared with Captain Perrin NE of Cassel.
Sous Lieutenant Joseph-Henri Guiguet France had his first success with a balloon at Sivry.
Guiguet was wounded in action on 1 July 1916 whilst attacking an enemy balloon. Wounded again on 23 May 1917.
"Remarkable and courageous pilot full of initiative, always volunteers for the most perilous missions and exerts himself with an untiring zeal. On 22 May 1916, he attacked an enemy observation balloon at 1000 meters altitude and downed it." Médaille Militaire citation, 31 May 1916.
Charles Nungesser's ninth victory was also a balloon at Verdun.
Boelcke, promoted to Hauptmann on 22 May 1916,
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Major Reginald Thomas Annesley Ball-Acton (King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry) is killed at age 38. He the son in law of the Reverend William Richmond and his brother was killed in September 1915. They lost a younger brother in the South Africa War at Paardeburg in February 1900.
Captain Capel Lisle Aylett Branfill (Glamorgan Yeomanry) dies of pneumonia in Cairo at age 29. He is the grandson of Richard Hanbury Miers JP and the son in law of Philip Seymour Williams JP. He is also descent from Kings of England, 14th in descent from Henry VII and 21st in descent from Edward III.
Captain Hobart Brooks Farquhar (London Regiment) is killed in action at age 41. He is the son of the late Admiral ‘Sir’ Arthur Farquhar KCB and son-in-law of ‘Sir’ John Wolfe Barry KCB and a veteran of the Matabele and South African Wars.
Second Lieutenant George Archibald Colin Lomas DCM (London Regiment) is killed at age 28. He is the son of the Reverend Charles Lomas.
Corporal George Henry Bolton (Suffolk Regiment) is killed in action at age 29. His brother will be killed in November.
Private George G Veness (Sussex Regiment) dies of wounds at age 26. His brother will be killed next month.
Private William Henry Burrell (Sussex Regiment) is executed by firing squad at age 21. He deserted in 1915 and was arrested, tried and sentenced to death. His sentence was commuted to one year in prison and he was released last month and immediately deserted again. His brother was killed in March of this year.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: French gain a footing in Fort Douaumont.
Before the Germans begin their attack, they are surprised by the French, who start a counter attack of Fort Douaumont. Between Tuesday 16 May and Sunday 22 May the fort is under heavy gunfire. Large-bore weapons and poisonous gas grenades are used. On Monday 22 May two regiments commanded by General Mangin attack the fort. The French manage to occupy the top of the fort and even enter it in some places. The French artillery moves the frontline right up to the fort so that the Germans are cut off from reinforcements. The Germans do exactly the same behind the fort, so the French are equally cut off from reinforcements.
The German attack is so severe that of the 200 men in a French attacking company, only 40 manage to reach the fort. Two days of bitter fight ensue. At a certain point the French are outnumbered, as Germans reinforcements were able to reach their troops after all. The French are also using up their ammunition and when the Germans have a huge mine-thrower attack the fort, the battle is decided in a terrible hand-to-hand fight. Only a few French soldiers return to Verdun.
This French counter attack is commanded by General Mangin, who halfway through the battle announces to the world that the fort has fallen into the hands of the French; a message that has to be recalled later. This rash attack has not been well prepared for. Mangin moved his entire regiments forward into a very narrow frontline and put all of his reserves into action as well. During an attack this causes a 500-metre gap in the French line, which weakens the front considerably. The French troops are clobbered. Over 1,000 French are imprisoned and not a single reserve company is left. Mangin is relieved of his duties by his superior Commander Pétain. (Note: Mangin supposedly offered to serve as a common soldier again.) The failed attack has a demoralising effect on the French troops; several cases of insubordination are reported at the side of the French.
Dead bodies after the battle
Tunstill's men.
Billets at Sains-en-Gohelle (Coron Fosse 10)
At 12.15am news of the German assault further south reached the Battalion in a message from 69th Brigade HQ: “Situation *** Enemy attacked VIMY RIDGE today; British Counter attacked; situation still undecided *** Heavy shelling but not attacked CALONNE and SOUCHEZ section. All ranks in trenches to be warned to keep a good lookout. Message ends”. In fact the situation would remain quieter through the day, although there was a continuation of artillery duels.
During the morning orders were received for the Battalion to relieve 11th West Yorks in the front line. ‘D’, ‘C’ and ‘A’ Companies were to be in the front line (from left to right), with ‘B’ in close support. The relief began at 3.30pm and was complete by 8pm. Despite German shelling the Battalion suffered only one casualty, with one man slightly injured by shrapnel. Regular artillery exchanges continued throughout the night. The Brigade War Diary noted that, “Work on trenches continued, but work on wire hampered by nervy state of enemy, who threw up innumerable “Very” lights throughout the night and fired at our working parties”. Much work had been done over the previous few days to try to improve the state of the British wire, and this would continue over the following days.
Prior to departure for the front line, Cpl. Wilfred Blackburn, serving with Tunstill’s Company, had written home to his family:- "Thanks for parcel. Besides being beneficial to us in a practical sense, one feels we are remembered sometimes that the giving of ourselves is not forgotten. Lately, death has been exceedingly close, far too close to feel indifferent. Yesterday, and for many days previously, bombardments have been little short of terrifying. Houses go up like feathers, and soldiers and civilians are dug constantly from the debris. I don't know what to think of an advance for my eye, of course, is very limited in its sight and the object in hand so vast a poor soldier cannot see much of things in general. Today we leave for the trenches, having been out for five days."
Wilfred Blackburn had been one of the contingent from the Addingham and Ilkley area who had been added to Tunstill’s original recruits when ‘A’ Company was created in September 1914. He was born on 27th May 1893 in Barrowford, the second child and only son of William and Elizabeth Ann Blackburn. His mother had died in 1904 and young Wilfred, aged 11, along with his sister Jessie, had gone to live with his uncle Thomas (William Blackburn’s elder brother) at West Hall, Nesfield, near Addingham. Wilfred worked on his uncle’s farm, while Jessie was employed by another local family.
Cpl. Wilfred Blackburn
The recent increase in the intensity of shelling also meant that the Advanced Dressing Station at Bully Grenay (see 19th May) was re-located to a new house with better cellars; this now provided three cellars with accommodation for 24 lying cases. It was also reported that the experiment with the new one-wheeled stretchers had been “found to be useful, reducing time of carrying from RAP to ADS from 2 ½ hours to 1 ½ hours in spite of two narrow galleries to pass through, where stretcher has to be taken off carrier and carried shoulder high”.
Pte. John Smith (13487), who had been wounded by German shelling two days earlier and had died the following day, was buried at Bruay Communal Cemetery Extension.
Lt. Genl. Henry Wilson, commanding IV Corps, signed an order in the case of 2Lt. William Neville Dawson (see 20th May), who had been reported as being unfit to continue as a platoon officer. Following a request by Maj. Genl. Babington that Dawson be appointed to an administrative post, Wilson’s report concluded, “I cannot see what qualifications this officer has and I am not prepared to recommend him for any employment which requires technical military knowledge. As he is not fit to command a platoon in the field, I recommend that he be sent home, for such employment as he may be considered suitable there”.
Pte. John Beckwith (see 31st March) who had been wounded in March and had been treated in hospital in Staffordshire before returning to the Regimental Depot at Halifax was reported absent without leave.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
British defeat Ali Dinar, Sultan of Darfur, at Beringia.
For the whole Campaign see here:-
http://www.kaiserscross.com/188001/224322.html
Naval and overseas.
The trawler Merse (Skipper Frederick Richard Beckett) is sunk by a mine off the west coast of Scotland laid by UC-65. Seventeen are killed including her skipper.
The vessel was sunk whilst escorting HMS 'Ramilies' - which had damaged her rudder on launching.
SM UB-36 was a German Type UB IIsubmarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 22 July 1915 and launched on 15 January 1916. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 22 May 1916 as SM UB-36.
U34 and its captain Claus Rücker had a field day, accounting for no fewer than five vessels.
Italian sailing vessels Australia, Stopped and sunk 65 miles SE of Barcelona. Also Genista, off Balearic Islands. Orealla also off Barcellona, and Roberto G,again Stopped and sunk off the Balearic Islands.
Plus the Greek Steamer Istrus, 40 miles off Farragona.
UC 10 captained by Alfred Nitzsche sank the British Steamer Rhenass, Mined 9 miles ExN of Oxfordness 52°08’30”N 01°48’E. In this case with six casualties.
Political, etc.
M. Briand delivers a speech to the Russian delegates..Daily cost of war £4,820,000.
An official Letter of Complaint to the U.S. Government was sent by President Carranza on May 22nd 1916.
For full text see here:- http://www.firstworldwar.com/source/mexico_carranza.htm
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
May 23rd 1916.
1 airman has fallen on Tuesday May 23rd 1916.
2nd Lt. Petrus Andries Steenekamp 26 (South African) Squadron Royal Flying Corps. Killed 23 May 1916 aged 23.
Claims.
No claims were made today.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Brigadier Colquhoun Grant Morrison CMG (General Staff) President of the Claims Commission is killed in an auto accident at age 56.
Lieutenant Colonel Algernon Bingham Anstruther Stewart DSO (commanding 1st/4th Seaforth Highlanders) is killed in action at age 46.
Chaplain Robert Mansel Kirwan dies at age 55 in London after an operation. He was Chaplain to the Expeditionary Force to Mesopotamia and the son of the Reverend Richard Kirwan Rural Dean of Honiton and his wife Rose Helen Kirwan. He served as Chaplain to the Tirah Expeditionary Force between 1897 and 1898.
Entered College in Michaelmas Term, 1880. A member of the 1st Cricket XI, 1884 - 1885 and 1st Association Football XI, 1881 - 1884. B.A., 1885; M.A., 1894. Assistant Master at Bedford Grammar School in 1897. Took Holy Orders, (d. 1888; p. 1889): Curate, Westbury, 1888 - 1891; Assistant Chaplain (Eccles. Estabt.), Allahabad, 1891 - 1893; Cawnpore, 1893 - 1895; Lucknow Cantonmt., 1895 - 1898, 1908 - 1912; Meerut, 1898 - 1902; Chakrata, U. P., 1902 - 1905; All SS., Lucknow, 1905-1906; Bareilly, 1912 - 1914.
Commenced service as Chaplain, Indian Army, 1915 - 1916. Conflicting accounts of his death, he was either invalided home and died in the 2nd London Military Hospital on 23 May 1916 after a severe operation or he died in Mesopotamia on active service, 23 May 1916.
Second Lieutenant John Douglas Wyld McMichael (Worcestershire Regiment) is killed at age 24. He is the son of Douglas McMichael JP.
Second Lieutenant Guy Victor Edmunds (London Regiment) is killed at age 19. His brother will be killed in March 1918.
Private Van de Heriz (Australian Infantry) died on service in Egypt. He is the son of the Reverend Lionel Forbes Van Smith de Heriz who will lose two other sons in the Great War.
Private Montague Henry Frost (Suffolk Regiment) dies of wounds at age 25. He is the second of three brothers who will be killed over a 4 month period.
Private Henry Edward Beesley (Rifle Brigade) is killed in action. His brother will be killed in July.
Private Ernest Levi Brown (Lincolnshire Regiment) is killed. His brother will be killed in January 1918.
Western Front.
Battle of Verdun: German assault on Thiaumont-Douaumont front and on Cumieres.
Memoirs & Diaries - Account of the Struggle for Fort Douaumont, Verdun, 20-23 May 1916
Verdun has become a battle of madmen in the midst of a volcano.
Whole regiments melt in a few minutes, and others take their places only to perish in the same way. Between Saturday morning [May 10th] and noon Tuesday [May 23rd] we estimate that the Germans used up 100,000 men on the west Meuse front alone.
That is the price they paid for the recapture of our recent gains and the seizure of our outlying positions.
The valley separating Le Mort Homme from Hill 287 is choked with bodies. A full brigade was mowed down in a quarter hour's holocaust by our machine guns. Le Mort Homme itself passed from our possession, but the crescent Bourrus position to the south prevents the enemy from utilizing it.
The scene there is appalling, but is dwarfed in comparison with fighting around Douaumont. West of the Meuse, at least, one dies in the open air, but at Douaumont is the horror of darkness, where the men fight in tunnels, screaming with the lust of butchery, deafened by shells and grenades, stifled by smoke.
Even the wounded refuse to abandon the struggle. As though possessed by devils, they fight on until they fall senseless from loss of blood. A surgeon in a front-line post told me that, in a redoubt at the south part of the fort, of 200 French dead, fully half had more than two wounds. Those he was able to treat seemed utterly insane. They kept shouting war cries and their eyes blazed, and, strangest of all, they appeared indifferent to pain.
At one moment anaesthetics ran out owing to the impossibility of bringing forward fresh supplies through the bombardment. Arms, even legs, were amputated without a groan, and even afterward the men seemed not to have felt the shock. They asked for a cigarette or inquired how the battle was going.
Our losses in retaking the fort were less heavy than was expected, as the enemy was demoralized by the cannonade - by far the most furious I have ever seen from French guns - and also was taken by surprise. But the subsequent action took a terrible toll. Cover was all blown to pieces. Every German rush was preceded by two or three hours of hell-storm, and then wave after wave of attack in numbers that seemed unceasing.
Again and again the defenders' ranks were renewed.
Never have attacks been pushed home so continuously. The fight for Cemetery Hill at Gettysburg was no child's play, nor for Hougoumont at Waterloo, but here men have been flung 5,000 at a time at brief intervals for the last forty-eight hours.
Practically the whole sector has been covered by a cannonade, compared to which Gettysburg was a hailstorm and Waterloo mere fireworks. Some shell-holes were thirty feet across, the explosion killing fifty men simultaneously.
Before our lines the German dead lie heaped in long rows. I am told one observer calculated there were 7,000 in a distance of 700 yards. Besides they cannot succour their wounded, whereas of ours one at least in three is removed safely to the rear.
Despite the bombardment supplies keep coming. Even the chloroform I spoke of arrived after an hour's delay when two sets of bearers had been killed.
The dogged tenacity needed to continue the resistance far surpasses the furious élan of the attack. We know, too, the Germans cannot long maintain their present sacrifices. Since Saturday the enemy has lost two, if not three, for each one of us. Every bombardment withstood, every rush checked brings nearer the moment of inevitable exhaustion. Then will come our recompense.
Artois, Vimy:
BEF IV Corps counter-attack with 2 brigades ruined by German counter-barrage; British losses 2,500 to 1,344 German.
Riflemen and a Lewis gunner of the 2nd Australian Division in a trench at Croix du Bac, near Armentieres at this time.
Tunstill's men.
Front line trenches west of Angres.
On another beautiful day, regular artillery exchanges continued as on the previous days. Most of the German shelling was directed against British batteries in rear rather than against the front lines and Fosse 10 and Aix Noulette were again reported to have been heavily shelled. About 7pm the British shelling to the south increased markedly in support of an attempt by 47th Division to recover the ground lost to the Germans two days earlier. Some initial gains were made in this attack but they could not be held and troops were forced to withdraw, leaving the position as it had been, with the Germans still occupying their gains from the attack on 21st. During the British assault, German artillery fire was re-directed upon the British front lines and four men in the Battalion were reported wounded.
Lt. **** Bolton (see 21st May) reported that, under cover of the artillery fire, “The enemy had a working party out from about 10pm in front of their trench … the sounds seemed to indicate that they were digging in the old trench which lies in front of their wire”. British machine guns were unable to engage the Germans because British wiring parties and patrols were also operating in No Man’s Land. At 10.30pm Bolton accordingly ordered a patrol of two men plus 2Lt. Redington (Bolton did not make clear to which of the Redington brothers he was referring; both were serving as Second Lieutenants with the Battalion - see 27th December 1915) out to investigate. The patrol returned after an hour having located a shallow sap, around two feet deep, reaching out into a shell hole which had been deepened; however, it was found to be then unoccupied. The Brigade’s wiring parties continued to put out wire, with defences extending anywhere between ten and eighty yards ahead of the front line.
One of the men who had been wounded was from Tunstill’s Company; Pte. Anthony Goulding had been one of the Keighley contingent added to Tunstill’s original recruits in September 1914. Aged 19 when he enlisted, Anthony Goulding was Keighley born and bred, though his father, Thomas, was originally from County Sligo in Ireland. Thomas and his wife Ellen had 12 children, two of whom had died in infancy. Prior to enlisting Anthony had been working as a coremaker in an iron foundry. Goulding recovered sufficiently from his wounds to return to active service (date unknown) although he did not re-join 10DWR but was instead posted to 2nd Battalion.
The other wounded men (none of them from Tunstill’s Company) were Ptes. William Brassington, William Larvin and William Leach. The wounds suffered by both Larvin and Leach were sufficient to see them both discharged from the army (with effect from 1st September and 29th August 1916 respectively) and later awarded the Silver War Badge on account of their wounds; Brassington, however, recovered sufficiently to return to active service, though not with 10DWR, and he was finally released from the Army on 15th February 1919.
Southern Front.
Italians retreat between Astico and Brenta and in Sugana Valley (Trentino).
Austrian XXI Corps east of river Adige attacks Buole Pass (4,773 ft) (until May 28) against Italian 37th Division.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
British occupy El Fasher, capital of Darfur.
The forces of the Sultan of Darfur are bombed a day after they have been broken. This bombing raid causes such panic in the ranks that the British are able to enter El Fasher virtually unopposed. All danger to Sudan from the Sultan of Darfur ends with this incident.
That afternoon at 1600 hours the British Force advanced towards El Fasher, halting and entrenching a few miles outside the capital. Here at 0300 hours next morning 500 Fur cavalry with 300 infantry attacked the British square. The British illuminated the battlefield with star shell and magnesium flares, giving the Artillery and Maxims another good shoot. After ten minutes of heavy defensive firing this attack dispersed. A British aircraft piloted by Lieutenant John Slessor (later to become Air Marshal Sir John Slessor) bombed the Fur assault group in daylight as it withdrew towards El Fasher.
At 1000 hours Lt Col Kelly and the mounted troops entered El Fasher, which now was inhabited by women, children and old men. Sultan Ali Dinar tried to rally his men for another attack on the British, but his two best commanders had been killed at Beringea and his men started dispersing. John Slessor bombed these dispersing troops at the southern end of El Fasher, but Fur riflemen hit him and his plane. It is believed that as Sultan Ali Dinar withdrew southwards with loyal troops he hit John Slessor in the thigh with a round from a sporting rifle presented to him some years earlier by the Governor-General. The aircraft rudder controls were also damaged, making Lieutenant Slessor’s return to base difficult. Because of the impending rainy season the Royal Flying Corps now withdrew to Egypt to repair planes and pilot.
At 1000 hours Lt Col Kelly and the mounted troops entered El Fasher, which now was inhabited by women, children and old men. Sultan Ali Dinar tried to rally his men for another attack on the British, but his two best commanders had been killed at Beringea and his men started dispersing. John Slessor bombed these dispersing troops at the southern end of El Fasher, but Fur riflemen hit him and his plane. It is believed that as Sultan Ali Dinar withdrew southwards with loyal troops he hit John Slessor in the thigh with a round from a sporting rifle presented to him some years earlier by the Governor-General. The aircraft rudder controls were also damaged, making Lieutenant Slessor’s return to base difficult. Because of the impending rainy season the Royal Flying Corps now withdrew to Egypt to repair planes and pilot.
Ali Dinar flees to Jebel Marra.
Naval and overseas.
A torpedo attack by the submarine E18 on the German destroyer V100 blows the bow of the ship off. Even though severely damaged the destroyer manages to limp back to port.
10 U-boats (sailed from May 17) begin to take up minelaying stations off Grand Fleet bases and in key areas ready for Admiral Scheer’s planned sortie..
A particularly bad day for the Italian shipping.
U34 Captain Klaus Rucker sank the Italian Steamer Cornigliano 12 miles S of Columbreta Island (Baleares area).
Whilst U39 Captain Walter Forstmann sank the Italian. Hercules, Maria Porto Di Salvezza, Teresa Accame, and Washington off Corsica.
Political, etc.
House of Commons votes £ 300 million war credit (no 11); war cost est £4.8m per day since April 1.
Dr. Bethmann-Hollweg replies to Sir Edward Grey.
USA. George Patton was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Thanks Rob - a great read - hope you dont mind me adding a little postscript....
French Nieuport 11s of Esc N65 destroy 6 kite-balloons using very short-range firework*-type rocket projectiles devised by French Navy Lieutenant Le Prieur.
The Le Prieur rocket was essentially a cardboard tube filled with 200 grams of black powder with a wooden conical head attached (by doped paper or linen tape) and had a triangular knife blade inserted in a slot across its apex forming a spear point. A square sectioned wooden stick (usually pine) was taped to the rocket with about 1.5 metres (4.9 feet) extending back from the base of the rocket and fitted snugly into a launch tube attached to the aircraft inter-plane struts.
As top French military officers had expressed concerns about fire hazard for the attacking aircraft, Yves Le Prieur first experimented with his weapon by fitting one on a short section of a Voisin aircraft wing bolted on a Piccard Pictet (Pic-Pic) automobile (one of the few period cars with a genuine 120 km/h capability). As the tests went on with full success, the weapon was soon put into active service.
The rockets were fired electrically from the interplane struts supporting the wings of biplanes via a cockpit switch. The switch would launch all the rockets consecutively. The rockets were generally fired at a range of 100–150 metres with the aircraft at an inclined dive angle of 45 degrees.The steeper the dive the straighter the trajectory and the more accurate the attack. Attacks were made in the direction of the length of the balloon and against the wind, the pilot taking aim via the plane's existing gun-sight. However, the ignition and discharge of each rocket did not occur immediately and a delay varied slightly from one rocket to another. Thus the pilot had to continue to hold the target in his gun-sight and the dive continued until the last rocket discharged.
It successfully brought down observation balloons, but never managed to bring down a Zeppelin, although it was used to defend the United Kingdom from Zeppelin raids. Amongst users of the rockets were France, United Kingdom, Belgium, and Germany. After planes became equipped with tracer rounds and incendiary bullets which were highly effective against hydrogen filled aerostats, the rockets were gradually abandoned through 1918. Aircraft that were armed with the rockets included the Nieuport 11/16/17, SPAD 7/13, Sopwith Baby/Pup/Camel, Farman HF.20/21, and the B.E.2/B.E.12. They were usually armed with eight rockets but the SPAD 7 carried six and the B.E.12 had ten.
You can fit them to a SPAD VII !!!! now where is my 'D' damage deck.....
Never Knowingly Undergunned !!
Not at all chief.Stop Press is always acceptable. Where did you pick up this bit of extra history. Was it that chap from Reuters again?
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
BIG ISSUE.
May 24th 1916.
2 airman have fallen on Wednesday May 24th 1916.
Lt. Robert Henry Hubert Le brasseur Royal Flying Corps. Died of injuries 24 May 1916 aged 31.Received fatal injuries in a motor car accident near Aylsham, Norfolk on 23 May 1916. The deceased, who was on sick leave from the front, was motoring to Norwich when a tyre burst, causing the car to collide with a house.
2Lt John Arthur Ruck Royal Flying Corps flying Maurice Farman Longhorn 6685, 12 RS, Thetford Overturned on forced landing and caught fire, He was aged 21.
First casualties for L'Escadrille Lafayette in combat near Etain. no details given.
Claims.
There was one claim today.
Lieutenant Colonel William Thaw. French Air Service/United States Air Service, claimed his first of five victory's, today. Flying with N124 in his Nieuport he shot down a Fokker E III over Douaumont Verdun.
Abandoning his studies at Yale in 1913, William Thaw, the son of Benjamin Thaw, obtained a pilot's certificate from the Curtiss school and became a flight instructor. When war broke out in Europe, he volunteered for the French Air Service but was rejected. Instead, on 4 September 1914, he joined the French Foreign Legion and served in the trenches. Despite poor vision, defective hearing and a bad knee, Thaw was permitted to join the French Air Service in December 1914. After serving as an observer/gunner, he received flight training and was reassigned to the Escadrille Americaine on 28 April 1916. By the time this squadron was disbanded in February 1918, Thaw had achieved two confirmed victories. While serving with the 103rd Aero Squadron, he scored three more victories to become an ace. The first American to be cited for gallantry and promoted by the French, Thaw may well have been the first American to participate in aerial combat during World War I. When the war ended, he returned to the United States and became an insurance agent. He died from pneumonia, age 40, at his home in Pittsburgh.
For more of this story see below. Ed.
Today’s highlighted casualties include:
Lance Corporal Frederick Harry Benjamin Alp (Royal Fusiliers) is killed. His brother was killed on HMS Clan McNaughton in February 1915.
Gunner Dennis Wilfred Locke (Royal Garrison Artillery) dies of wounds at age 28. His brother will die of wounds in May 1918.
Private John Thomas Skeen (Lancashire Fusiliers) dies of wounds in Egypt. He is the first of 3 brothers who will lose their lives in the Great War.
Western Front.
The first Sopwith 1½ Strutter 2-seat fighters arrive in France with No.70 Squadron. The 1½ Strutter was the first British aeroplane to enter front-line service equipped with interrupter gear, allowing a machine gun to fire through the propeller arc, and it also had a Lewis gun mounted in the rear cockpit.
Battle of Verdun: Germans capture Cumieres and regain Fort Douaumont.
French eyewitness statement:-
I have read a good many stories of battle, and some of their embroideries appear to me rather exaggerated; the truth is quite good enough by itself. Although they were bombarded beforehand, my men went very firmly into action. The cannonade worked on the ears and the nerves, getting louder with every step nearer the front, till the very earth shook, and our hearts jumped in our breasts.
Where we were there were hardly any trenches or communication trenches left. Every half-hour the appearance of the earth was changed by the unflagging shell fire. It was a perfect cataract of fire. We went forward by fits and starts, taking cover in shell-holes, and sometimes we saw a shell drop in the very hole we had chosen for our next leap forwards.
A hundred men of the battalion were half buried, and we had scarcely the time to stop and help them to get themselves out. Suddenly we arrived at what remained of our first-line trenches, just as the Boches arrived at our barbed wire entanglements - or, rather, at the caterpillar-like remains of our barbed wire.
At this moment the German curtain fire lengthened, and most of our men buried in shell-holes were able to get out and rejoin us. The Germans attacked in massed formation, by big columns of five or six hundred men, preceded by two waves of sharpshooters. We had only our rifles and our machine guns, because the 75's could not get to work.
Fortunately the flank batteries succeeded in catching the Boches on the right. It is absolutely impossible to convey what losses the Germans must suffer in these attacks. Nothing can give an idea of it. Whole ranks are mowed down, and those that follow them suffer the same fate. Under the storm of machine gun, rifle and 75 fire, the German columns were ploughed into furrows of death. Imagine if you can what it would be like to rake water. Those gaps filled up again at once. That is enough to show with what disdain of human life the German attacks are planned and carried out.
In these circumstances German advances are sure. They startle the public, but at the front nobody attaches any importance to them. As a matter of fact, our trenches are so near those of the Germans that once the barbed wire is destroyed the distance between them can be covered in a few minutes. Thus, if one is willing to suffer a loss of life corresponding to the number of men necessary to cover the space between the lines, the other trench can always be reached.
By sacrificing thousands of men, after a formidable bombardment, an enemy trench can always be taken.
There are slopes on Hill 304 where the level of the ground is raised several metres by mounds of German corpses. Sometimes it happens that the third German wave uses the dead of the second wave as ramparts and shelters. It was behind ramparts of the dead left by the first five attacks, on May 24th, that we saw the Boches take shelter while they organized their next rush.
We make prisoners among these dead during our counterattacks. They are men who have received no hurt, but have been knocked down by the falling of the human wall of their killed and wounded neighbours.
They say very little. They are for the most part dazed with fear and alcohol, and it is several days before they recover.
Tunstill's men.
Front line trenches west of Angres
The day began fine, but became showery. There were regular exchanges of rifle grenades and trench mortars along the Battalion front and from 1.30pm a somewhat more concerted German artillery bombardment of the sector. One man was killed in the shelling and another wounded. The man killed was Pte. Ernest Dawson (13541) of ‘D’ Company. He was a Keighley man and would likely have known some of Tunstill’s Company before the war, especially as the Keighley News would later report that he “was very well known in the town”. Dawson’s Company Commander, Captain James Christopher Bull (see below), wrote to Dawson’s mother the same day, with news of her son’s death: “I expect you will have heard from the War Office that your son was killed today by a trench mortar bomb, but I felt I must write to you personally to say how sorry I am for you in your trouble. I have known your son since October 1914 at Frensham, and he was always a hard-working and good soldier and we shall miss him a great deal. Mr. Marks (2Lt. Isidore David Marks, for whom, see 26th March), his platoon officer, who was with him when he died, is partially trained as a doctor, and he assures me that your son suffered no pain. I hope that this fact and the knowledge that he died for his country may be some consolation, but please accept the sympathy of all the officers of this Company, for we all had a high opinion of your son’s soldierly spirit”.
Work progressed on improving the barbed wire defences and it was stated that the Brigade as a whole had, in the course of the night, laid “16 lines of wire, varying from 20 to 80 yards in length”, despite the fact that “Work hampered by enemy patrols and machine gun fire”.
There was no renewal of the attempt to recover the lost ground further south and it was concluded that the German intention had been primarily to gain control over a number of mine shafts and galleries which had been prepared by the British. In this it was acknowledged that, “he (ie the Germans) could claim success for his operation … but the extent of ground gained by the enemy in these operations had been small”.
Again, as at Loos in September 1915, the Battalion had found themselves on the fringes of-, and only partially engaged in -, a significant operation.
The continued shelling of Fosse 10 meant that all casualties at the main dressing station located there (see 19th May) were moved into the cellars of the buildings.
Captain James Christopher Bull had been commissioned in September 1914 and posted to the newly-formed 10th Battalion, taking command of ‘D’ Company. Born on 10th May 1881 he had attended St. Catharine’s College, Cambridge, where he had been a member of the University Volunteer Corps, before graduating in 1903. Since then he had been teaching, firstly at Dunchurch Hall School for two years and then as an Assistant Master at Twyford School, Winchester, where he was in charge of physical training.
Six new subalterns arrived in France, en route to join 10DWR.
2Lt. Frederick Lowther Dawson Barker was just 18 years old and had been commissioned with 3DWR on 16th August 1915. He was the elder of two sons (he also had two sisters) of William Grisdale Barker and his wife Florence. The family had lived in Guiseley and William had been the managing director of a brewery, but had died on 2nd December 1914.
2Lt Roland Herbert Wyndham Brinsley-Richards was 29 years old (born 18th January 1887). He was born in Austria, where his father, James Brinsley-Richards was correspondent for The Times in Vienna (he had also been correspondent in Berlin). Roland was educated at King's School Canterbury from 1894 to 1906. He went on to Queen's College, Oxford on an Open Classical Scholarship (1st Place) where he obtained first classes in Classical Moderations in April 1908. Later in 1908 he moved to Hertford College where he achieved Literae Humaniores in July 1910. He was a prominent speaker at the Union Society at Oxford, serving on its committee from 1908 and was Assistant Treasurer in 1909. In 1910 he had worked as a journalist for The Times for six months before taking up an appointment as a junior clerk in the India Office (Home Civil Service); he was appointed Resident Clerk at the India Office in 1912. In June 1913 he became an MA and became private secretary to the Permanent Under-Secretary for State in 1914. In early 1915 he received permission to undertake military service and on 7th June 1915 he enlisted in the Inns of Court Officer Training Corps and on 10th September 1915 he was commissioned 2nd Lieutenant.
2Lt. Ernest Cyril Coke had been commissioned on 23rd September 1915. He was 25 years old (born 18th April 1891), the fourth of seven children of William and Mary Coke; his father was a surgeon and the family had lived in Kent. Ernest had attended Haileybury School, where he had spent two years in the OTC and had been a prize-winning marksman. He had then studied at the Crystal Palace Engineering School and had then worked for two years in Borneo as assistant engineer for the Rajah of Sarawak. In his application for a commission he had requested that he be commissioned into the Royal Engineers, or into another unit where he might apply his engineering skills.
2Lt. Cecil Crowther Hart was 25 years old (born 17th June 1890); he was the youngest son and one of nine children of Rev. Frederick Hart, Rector of Kimberley, Notts. He had attended Nottingham High School and had then spent two years in the USA before returning to England to take up his theology studies at the Medical Missionary Training College, Leytonstone. However, following the outbreak of war he had enlisted (on 25th September 1914) as a Private in the Notts. and Derbys. Regiment (Sherwood Foresters). In June 1915 he applied for a commission and was formally discharged to his commission with 3DWR on 25th August.
2Lt. John Selby Armstrong Smith was just 17 years old (born 28th June 1898); the son of John and Isabella Selby Smith. His father had died when John was only an infant and he, along with his mother and two sisters, had lived for some time with his paternal grandmother. He had been educated at Manor House School in Clapham. He had applied for a commission on 30th September 1915, at which time it was stated that he had, “passed the army entrance exam in two subjects out of four. He has a good general education”.
The sixth new officer, 2Lt. Henry Dawson, has not yet been positively identified beyond his name and rank.
May 24, 1916 - Volunteer Pilot William Thaw becomes the First American to Receive the Légion d'honneur
Pictured - Thaw poses with Whiskey, one of the Lafayette Squadron’s two lion cub mascots (the other was named Soda). He survived his wounds from the day’s battle and made it through the war. He returned home to Pittsburgh, but the war had killed his love for flying.
. A German reconnaissance plane flew lazily home from a mission on May 18 when a biplane swooped onto it from out of the morning sun. On its wings it wore the blue and red French roundel, but it also bore a device never seen before on its fuselage, the face of a yelling Indian brave. Before the German observer could fire back, he and his pilot were dead, their plane spinning towards the ground.
It was an ordinary aerial kill, but for the nationality of the pilot in the French plane: Caporal Kiffen Rockwell from Asheville, North Carolina. Rockwell’s victory was the first for the Lafayettes, the American volunteer squadron flying for France. The Lafayette Escadrille was an odd mixture of New England blue-bloods, southern boys, college men and soldiers-of-fortune. Most of them strongly disagreed with America’s isolationist streak, many had fought in the trenches with the Foreign Legion in 1915. All of them were devoted to the Allied and the French cause, but also to having fun: whenever they threw a party (which was all the time), it ended with the sacking of the local hotel.
Among them was William Thaw, a former student at Yale who had developed a passion for flying and bought his own flying boat during college. Now a Lafayette, Thaw became its next hero after Rockwell’s victory. On May 24, flying support for the ground attacks on Douaumont, he got in a bitter scrap with four Fokker monoplanes. A bullet from a German fighter severed the artery in his arm, fixing it forward permanently for the rest of his life, but Thaw managed to down one of his attackers and escape the other three, landing on the French side of the lines in his bullet-ridden machine. For his day’s exploits, he became the first American to win France’s highest honor, the Légion d'honneur.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres.
Russians capture Mamakhatun (Armenia).
Naval and overseas.
Submarine E18 (Lieutenant Commander Robert Crosby Halahan) makes a radio report of its attack the previous day on the German destroyer V100. This is the last contact with E18 and the cause of her loss remains undetermined. It has been reported that the German decoy ship K41 is responsible for her loss. Lieutenant Commander Halahan is killed at age 31.
His brother will be killed at Zeebrugge in April 1918. Also killed is Sub Lieutenant Douglas Nowell Colson RNR DSC who is killed at age 24. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for service in the action between HMS Carmania and the German Armed Merchant Cruiser Cap Trafalgar on 14th September 1914.
Left to Right, Front Row: Harris, Percy, Ruaux, Bass, Phillips AP, Duffield.
Second Row: Powell, Robinson, Phillips AC, White, Guest, Maddox.
Third Row: Clack, Ashmore, Landale, Halahan, Colson.
Fourth Row: Godward, Fuller, Holland, Spencer, Bagg, Galloway, Ryan.
Back Row: Edwards, Sheppard, Welsh, Nye, Hall, Hunt.
Only one U boat strike today.
Once again it was U 39 with our old friend Walther Forstmann in command.
This time his victim was the Spanish Steamer Aurrera, sunk at location 43° 16'N, 8° 25'E off Corsica
Political, etc.
Sir Edward Grey speaks in House of Commons on peace terms.
Legislators gave Canadian-born women over the age of 21 the right to vote (in federal elections only) on May 24, 1916. Manitoba followed suit that same year, with other provinces giving women the right to vote in 1918 and 1922, with the exception of Quebec. That province didn't give women the vote until 1940.
Rob.
"Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you're scared to death."
Many thanks and good works keep it up
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