Battles of the Somme, 1916

Bazentin Ridge and Trônes Wood

1st July to18th November 1916.

In no other series of battles fought on the Western Front were more Battalions of the Middlesex Regiment engaged than in the operations on the Somme in 1916. Nor alas! were the losses of the Regiment heavier. So far as officer casualties were concerned, the percentage was extraordinarily high; but a week or two from the first day of the Battles, and the common saying was that a subaltern's life was worth about a week's purchase. Fierce and bloody as were the operations of the first day of the Battles, the struggle abated not a whit until, for a while, the winter put a stop to the terrible sacrifice of human life: and it was mud, filth, slush and abominable conditions which beat the opposing forces in November of that year and forced them to stay their hands.

Controversy will continue to rage as to whether the Somme Battles of 1916 were justified: whether the objects of the Allied Commanders-in-Chief were sound tactics and strategy: whether the enormous expenditure of life was worth the relatively small gains of ground.

13th July 1916

Early in July, the 33rd Division left the Béthune area and entrained for the Somme. Moving by stages via Gonnehem, Rainneville, Corbie and Ville, the 98th Brigade, in which the 1st Middlesex were contained, reached Méaulte on 14th July, just as the first stage of the Battle ended. Since the 1st June the 1st Battalion had passed a comparatively quiet existence in the Cuinchy sub-sector, or in billets in Béthune. On the 10th, Lieut.-Colonel Rowley, who had served continuously with the Battalion since its arrival in France in August, 1914, left to take over command of the 56th Infantry Brigade to which he had been appointed. His departure was felt keenly by all ranks of the 1st Battalion. Major Bagley assumed temporary command. On the 17th, Lieut. C. F. N. Draper was severely wounded in the leg, and died the same night in hospital in Béthune. Lieut.Colonel H. Lloyd arrived at Battalion Headquarters on 24th and took over command from Major Bagley.

With other units of the Brigade, the 1st Middlesex had arrived at Méaulte on the night of 13th July, but at 11a.m. on 14th the Battalion moved to Bécordel and bivouacked for some two or three hours. The 33rd Division had been ordered to attack between High Wood and the railway, and later the 1st Battalion moved forward and, after various halts and stops, reached the southern edge of Mametz Wood, finally bivouacking on the western lip of the valley just north of Fricourt. Orders to the 98th Brigade to attack Switch Trench had been cancelled.

The 18th Middlesex (Pioneers) of the 33rd Division had also arrived at Méaulte on 14th, and billeted for the night north-west of the village.

The Battle of Bazentin Ridge

14th-17th July 1916.

Stage 1- The Capture of Trônes Wood.

"Arrangements were... made for an attack to be delivered at daybreak on the morning of 14th July against a front extending from Longueval to Bazentin-le-Petit Wood, both inclusive. Contalmaison Villa, on a spur 1000 yards west of Bazentin-le-Petit Wood, had already been captured to secure the left flank of the attack, and advantage had been taken of the progress made by our infantry to move our artillery forward into new positions. The preliminary bombardment had opened on the 11th July. The opportunities offered by the ground for enfilading the enemy's lines were fully utilised, and did much to secure the success of our attack."-Official Despatches.

14th July 1916

The Battle opened very early in the morning of the 14th (3.25 a.m.); indeed, there was only just sufficient light in which to distinguish friend from foe at short ranges. Just before Zero hour, the Divisions, from right to left, as they stood in line ready to go forward to the attack were: 18th at the Briqueterie and west of Trônes Wood, the 9th north of Montauban, 3rd north of Caterpillar Wood, 7th between the latter wood and Mametz Wood, 21st on the north-west edge of Mametz Wood, 1st northeast of Contalmaison, and the 34th north-west of the latter village: the 33rd Division (98th Brigade) lay between Mametz village and Mametz Wood. Three Battalions of the Regiment, i.e., 1st, 12th and 18th, were therefore engaged in the Battle.

The capture of Trônes Wood has now an official place amongst the "Tactical Incidents" of the Battle of Bazentin Ridge for the Middlesex Regiment it was not only an exceedingly difficult operation, but one of the most successful actions of the Battles of the Somme, 1916, and ranks high on the lists of achievements of the 18th Division, to which the 12th Middlesex Regiment belonged.

Battle of Bazentin Ridge:- Stage 2

Whilst the 12th Battalion at Trônes Wood was adding another glorious page to its war history, two other Battalions of the Regiment, the 1st (33rd Division) and 18th (Pioneers, 33rd Division), were also engaged on the right in the Battle of Bazentin Ridge.

In accordance with orders from 33rd Divisional Headquarters, the 98th Brigade (of which the 1st Middlesex formed part) moved to Bécordel on 14th July, arriving at that place about 12.30 p.m. At 5 p.m. further orders were received stating that the Brigade was to attack Switch Trench between High Wood and the railway, but before units reached their assembly positions these orders were cancelled and the Brigade bivouacked. The Middlesex in their advance had reached the southern edge of Mametz Wood, but here the Battalion turned about and bivouacked on the western edge of the valley just north of Fricourt.

15th July 1916

At 3 a.m. the next morning the Brigade was again ordered to attack, and the 1st Middlesex (Lieut.-Colonel H. Lloyd) set out at about 6.30 a.m. for Bazentin-le-Petit, from which village the assault of the enemy's position was to be made. The advance was made through a gas cloud, which made everyone feel most uncomfortable, though apparently none of the troops were actually "gassed." On reaching the church at Bazentin-le-Petit, "B" and "C" Companies worked round the northern side of the village, whilst "A" and "D" Companies went straight through it. Just beyond the eastern edge of the village there was a road running north and south*; here the Companies deployed for the attack. "B" and "D" formed the front line, with "C" and "A" in support. The Battalion attacked on a frontage of 800 yards. The 1st Queen's of the 100th Brigade (33rd Division) were on the right of the Middlesex, and 2nd Welch Regiment (1st Division) was on the left. Supporting the 1st Middlesex of the 98th Brigade were the 1/4th Suffolks, while the 2nd Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and the 4th King's Regiment were in reserve. *In order for the account to match other accounts and the named German Switch Trench, this should read East-West not North-South.

The first objective allotted to the Battalion was the German Switch Trench.

The Battalion had scarcely deployed for action when a party of the enemy in the Northern corner of Bazentin Le Petit Wood* fired into the left flank of the advancing Middlesex men, with machine gun and rifle. Moreover, the enemy sent up red and white flares, and soon the hostile field guns and howitzers had placed a heavy barrage on the line of advance. Machine-gun fire "principally (from) High Wood, which we had been informed was in our possession," (From the Battalion Diary, 1st Middlesex) now began to take heavy toll of the advancing Companies, which were finally brought to a standstill on the crest of a slight ridge east of the village. Shelled unmercifully and machine-gunned from both flanks, the gallant Middlesex, attempting to "dig in" on the position gained, were eventually compelled to fall back to the road running north and south on the eastern outskirts of Bazentin-le-Petit from which they had started. The flanking units apparently fared no better, and the Suffolks, in support of the 1st Middlesex, were likewise brought to a standstill. *(A note in the regimental history claims the war diary should have said High Wood here not Bazentin-le-Petit Wood. Other accounts of this action disagree, the situation as reported was very confusing. See extract of the 1st Middlesex War Diary). Next to the 1st Middlesex was 1st Queen's, see an extract from their war diary here for 14th-15th July.

The day's fighting had cost the 1st Battalion many brave lives. of the officers, 6 had been killed and 7 wounded; in other ranks the losses were 44 killed, 201 wounded, and 63 missing. The total casualties on 15th were 13 officers and 308 other ranks. The C.O. (Lieut.-Colonel H. Lloyd) and the second-in-command (Major G. 0. T. Bagley) were amongst the wounded.

On reaching the original "jumping-off " positions Captain G.E. Bucknall assumed temporary command, and every effort was made to reorganise the Battalion. One Company of the 2nd Argylls was brought up to strengthen the left flank of the Battalion, for opposite this flank the party of Germans who had caused so many casualties by their flanking fire had not been dislodged. The road was held until about 10p.m., when the 4th King's Regiment arrived to relieve the Middlesex. The latter* then marched back to the valley just north-east of Mametz Wood, and there bivouacked for the night. The 16th was spent in cleaning up and reorganising. *(under Major Potter, who had arrived from the Transport lines shortly before the relief and assumed command)

Part of Official History map for 15th July 1916

17th - 18th July 1916

On the 17th, at 9.30 a.m., the German guns shelled the valley heavily, and continued to do so until 4.30 in the afternoon. But as soon as the hostile artillery opened fire, orders were given for the Battalion to "scatter," and very few casualties were suffered. About 6 p.m., after the shelling had died down, the Battalion re-assembled, and two hours later moved up into the line, again taking over Bazentin-le-Petit Wood. The relief was completed about 4a.m. on 18th.

It is strange that no mention is made in the official dispatches of the part taken by the 33rd Division in the Battle of Bazentin Ridge, though the other divisions are mentioned.

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