2nd Battalion Middlesex Regiment

Battle of Aubers Ridge. 9th May, 1915

The Battle of Aubers Ridge. 9th May, 1915. Whilst the Battles of Ypres, 1915, were in progress the IVth, 1st and Indian Corps had been engaged in operations against the enemy's line from the La Basse Canal to north-west of Fromelles. The French had planned to attack the enemy between the La Bassée Canal and Arras on 9th May, and Sir John French had promised to support them by making an attack along the front held by his IVth, 1st and Indian Corps. The operations subsequently divided themselves into two parts : in the first the Battle of Aubers Ridge, fought on 9th May, and in the second the Battle of Festubert, 15th-25th May ; but with the former only was the Middlesex Regiment concerned, the 8th Division of the IVth Corps attacking the enemy's line about Rouge Banc (N.W. of Fromelles).

Actually, the part taken in the Battle by the 2nd and 1/7th Middlesex (both of 23rd Infantry Brigade, 8th Division) was of minor importance, as neither Battalion attacked the enemy, but its interest lies chiefly in the fact that it was the first major operation in which the Senior Territorial Battalion (1/7th) of the Regiment was involved.

The 1/7th Battalion (Lieut.-Col. E. J. King) had embarked on 4th September, 1914, for Gibraltar, and after five months spent in " eating out its heart," was at length rewarded by orders to embark for England and report for service in the field. The Battalion was relieved on 8th February, 1915, and reached Avonmouth on 13th, entraining on the following morning for Barnet. Fitting out took longer than was expected, but at length, on 12th March, the 1/7th Middlesex left Barnet for France, and disembarked at Havre on 13th. The Battalion landed with a strength of 31 officers and 904 other ranks, the four companies, "A," "B" "C" and " D," being commanded respectively by Captain S. C. M. Smith, Captain W. J. Eales, Major S. King and Captain E. G. Frost.

On reaching La Gorgue (in the IVth Corps area) on 15th March the Battalion learned that it was posted to the 23rd Infantry Brigade of the 8th Division, which (to the delight of all ranks) included the 2nd Middlesex, and of the latter, Lieut.-Col. King (commanding 1/7th Battalion) said : "The 1/7th can never be sufficiently grateful to the 2nd for its valuable advice and guidance, which so materially assisted its Territorial Battalion to adapt itself to the novel conditions of trench warfare."

For the first ten days at the front the 1/7th Middlesex remained in reserve, sending parties to the 2nd Battalion for instructional purposes, providing working parties and gradually accustoming itself to life in the trenches. On the 18th March the Battalion billets at La Flinque, near Laventie, were shelled. On 20th March the 1/7th suffered its first casualty, Private J. E. Phillips, who was killed.

On 25th March the 1/7th Middlesex relieved Canadians in the La Boutillerie sector of the front covering Fleurbaix. This was the first sector in France for which the Battalion was responsible. Six days in the front line, six in close support, was the rule at this period, so that on 31st March the Battalion was relieved and marched back to Fleurbaix, little the worse for its first tour in the front line. April was a quiet month, without incident, the Battalion on the last day of the month being in billets at La Cruseubeau.

On 1st May the 1/7th received orders to move to Estaires and La Gorgue on the following day, preparatory to taking over a portion of the front line. At La Gorgue the Battalion went into billets, and it was not until the 4th that a move was made to Rue du Bois, where " A " and " B " Companies were placed in support of No. 1 Section and " C " and " D " Companies in support of No. 2 Section, relieving the 2nd Scottish Rifles in front of La Cordonnerie Farm, and it was ~in this portion of the line that on the night of the 7th May an incident took place which attracted considerable notice at that time.

In front of the section held by the 1/7th Middlesex there was a small detached post on the holding of which great stress was always laid. This post, occupied by 15 Highgate men under Lieut. A. G. Groser, and the attack made upon it, was the subject of an account by " Eye-Witness," an Army officer who at that period wrote reports under orders of G.H.Q. for publication in the press.

"The outpost referred to was a disused trench about 70 yards long and equidistant from the English and German trenches, being 70 yards from each. A sap ran out from the trenches to the disused trench, and at times it was necessary to post a picquet in the latter to protect working parties engaged on the entangle-ments in the rear. At 8.30 p.m. on 7th May Lieut. Groser and seventeen men of No. 3 Platoon, ' A ' Company, proceeded down the sap and into the trench and relieved the day guard posted there. It was then quite dark. While the sentries were being posted a party of Germans who had crept up and cut their way through the entanglements ' rose ' out of the ground in front, on both flanks, and even in rear of the trench, fired at the picquet and then made an attempt to rush the trench, using clubbed rifles and knives. The party of the ' Highgate Boys ' were quite equal to the occasion, and, after a hand-to-hand fight lasting about three minutes, the Huns were driven off under a very rapid fire turned on to them. On the extreme right of the trench Lance-Sergeant Hocking, with Lance-Corporal Willis and five men, withstood the attack of twelve Huns, who, firing on them from front, flank and rear at a distance of five yards, attempted to rush their post.

"In the meantime the left end of the trench was attacked by eight Huns, who rushed in and jumped into the trench, using clubbed rifles. One German, armed with a knife, attacked Lance-Corporal Hutchings, who, lunging forward with his bayonet, and missing, was quite exposed. Lieut. Groser, however, slipped in between them and, after a fierce struggle on the ground, during which his left hand was wounded by the knife, succeeded in drawing his revolver and shooting the German in the chest. No Sooner had Lieut. Groser got up than he found himself covered by the rifle of a German standing on the parapet. The man with whom Lieut. Groser had the fight was found to be decorated with the Iron Cross." Colonel King also reported of Lieut. Groser that " he fought splendidly, killing the leader with his own hands after a sharp struggle in which he was wounded."

The result of this incident was that the enemy was beaten off, leaving five dead behind him, while the losses of the 1/7th Middlesex were 1 other rank killed and 7 wounded, including Lieut. Groser.

The 8th May was uneventful, but final preparations were made for the attack on the Aubers Ridge, which had been definitely fixed for 5.40 a.m. on the 9th. On the morning of the 9th, the 2nd and 1/7th Middlesex held Nos. 1 and 2 Sections (respectively) of trenches as Divisional Reserve. The attack of the 8th Division was launched by the 24th (Right) and 25th (Left) Infantry Brigades. The remaining Battalions of the 23rd Brigade were in support of the left attack. The point attacked was the enemy's trench system on each side of the Sailly-Fromelles road, the attack issuing from the 23rd Brigade front between Nos. 1 and 2 Sections. A forty-minute bombardment preceded the assault. The attack was unsuccessful, for, although troops of the 25th Brigade succeeded in reaching the enemy's trenches, the 24th Brigade was unable to advance, and, after two attempts, abandoned the attack. The 25th Brigade thereupon fell back to its original trenches.

So far as the 2nd Middlesex was concerned, the Battle is described in the Battalion Diary in very few words : " During the whole of the 9th May, and at intervals during the 10th May, the enemy's artillery heavily shelled our trenches and the approaches to them." Two companies of the 2nd Middlesex, however, appear to have held the front line of No. 1 Section, covering the attack by rifle fire, and again the withdrawal when the assaulting troops were drawn back to their original trenches. The shell fire cost the Battalion 14 other ranks killed, 65 wounded and 2 missing.

The 1/7th Middlesex took similar action to that of the 2nd Battalion. Two companies- "B" and "C"-held the left half of No. 2 Section, with "A" and "D" Companies in support. Throughout the day, with the exception of covering fire main-tamed by the Machine Gun Section and " B " and " C " Corn-panies, the 1/7th Battalion was in reserve. In the evening, the Battalion was ordered to take over the Brigade frontage in order to cover the withdrawal of the Brigade and the shattered remnants of the assaulting battalions. The 1/7th was not withdrawn from the front line until the night of 11th May. "During this period," said Colonel King, "the casualties were extraordinarily slight whilst the battalions of the 23rd Brigade were losing men by the hundred, the 1/7th Middlesex had only 15 killed and 37 wounded, and it was from this time that it began to be known as ' the lucky 7th,' a soubriquet which it retained until the tragic days on the Somme."

The casualties amongst senior officers during the period of the Battle were, however, somewhat disproportionate : Captains Frost, Eales and Tully were wounded on 9th, and Captain Moody on 11th. The first officer killed, belonging to the 1/7th, was Lieut. C. N. Stacey, who was shot through the head by a Bavarian sniper early on the morning of 10th, and died the same day of his wound. The remainder of May (from the Battle of Aubers Ridge) and the whole of June were uneventful, and casualties were small. One officer was killed-2nd Lieut. W. W. Hardwick-who was shot and died of wounds on 11th June. On the last day of the latter month, the 2nd Middlesex were in Divisional Reserve, occupying billets one mile west of Sailly on the Estaires Road.