Bourlon Wood, 30th November 1917

For the 2/6th Battalion, there were two days during their war service which resulted in most of the deaths in the Battalion. The opening day of the German offensive, 21st March 1918, gave the largest number of casualties, but the defense of Bourlon Wood, the previous November, resulted in a large number of deaths, and also the invaliding out of the army a large proportion of the Battalion.

Below are three accounts of this action, including extracts from the war diary, which show that the Battalion required 10 weeks out of the line to recover, and receive a large number of reinforcements.

The War history of the Sixth Battalion The South Staffordshire Regiment (T.F.), by a committee of Officers who served with the Battalion, William Heinmann, Ltd, MCMXXIV
Reproduced, and available on CD, by the Midlands Historical Data.org
Part of “Autumn and Winter 1917: Ypres, Hulluch and Cambrai
Bourlon Wood

On the morning of November 27th sudden orders were received to move within half an hour, the route being through Gouzeaucourt, Villiers Plouich to Ribecourt, and along a road packed with military traffic of all sorts. On November 28th news of difficulty in progress was received, and there was a check on the forward movement. A party from each Company went forward to learn the lie of the land and the scene of operations, and saw every sign of a coming battle on a big scale. Notably there were the Tanks. The particular locality from the Battalion’s point of view was Bourlon Wood, where Battalion Hqrs. were situated in a big and deep dug-out. The wood was crowded with British troops—guardsmen, dismounted cavalry, Londoners, North-countrymen and Staffordshire Midlanders. The Battalion arrived in the midst of a formidable shelling, its CO. then being Lieut.-Col. Stuart Wortley and its Company Commanders Captain Yeatman (” A “), Lieut. Astbury (” B “), Captain Sheppard (” C “), and Captain A. F. Brown (” D “).
Shelling continued and casualties, now begun, did not cease. The air became heavy with gas, and there was no wind to scatter it. It was a crowded area, extremely inconvenient and poisonous. If the shelling diminished with the dawn, the obsession of enemy ‘planes took its place, the ‘planes flying low and reconnoitring for a purpose it was not possible to doubt. And with the dusk the intensity of the shelling was renewed and increased, the range being even more accurate than before on account of the reconnaissance. An endless stream of casualties poured from the wood, looming a dark and formidable mass in the night. Incessant gas-shells made the ubiquitous poison deadly, The defenders of the place were blind and vomiting long before the attack ahead developed. The serious and critical nature of the attack was evident from the appalling noise and energy of our own bombardment. It was on the morning of November 30th that the impact came. If it had reached our men in the wood, the mustard gas would have destroyed all power of resistance. As it was, the front line held and there were still some remnants of our unit for the 2/4th Lincolns to relieve on Saturday, December 1st. But the casualties had been devastating. Particular mention should be made of Captain Atkinson, who, returning from leave on the evening of the 30th, refused to avail himself of the usual boon of staying in the transport lines over-night, and preferred to return at once to his men, and so went voluntarily to his death. Of the five hundred or six hundred men of the Battalion who marched into Bourlon Wood, less than one hundred marched out. The stretcher-bearers had over half a mile to travel with their burdens, and yet they excelled themselves in their effort and achievement, as is authoritatively recorded. Of those who had to make their own way on foot, the picture of those strings of blind men, led by one who could see, and each with a hand on the other’s shoulder, is never to be forgotten. Such, indeed, was the havoc wrought by the poison gas, that what was left of the Battalion had to be withdrawn for a period of six weeks, to recover some measure of physical fitness. For them, Christmas 1917 passed pleasantly enough, thanks to such entertainments as Miss Lena Ashwells Concert Party, or to the ever-increasing friendship with the 2/6th North Staffords, near neighbours

59^th Division 1915-1918
Chesterfield. Wilfred Edmunds, Limited, Printers. 1928
Reprinted by Naval & Military Press, ISBN 1-84734-475-5
Part of the chapter “The 176^th Infantry Brigade, By Colonel Sir T. G. Cope, Bart., C.M.G., D.S.O

We stayed in this area till November 17^th, when we were relieved by the 3^rd Canadian Brigade, and moved South to be in reserve for the Cambrai battle, which commenced on November 20^th. On November 23^rd we arrived at Heudicourt in reserve to the South portion of the salient we were now holding in front of Welsh ridge. I went up to see the 6^th Buffs of the 12^th Division, and was shocked to see how thin the whole line was. The men had been in the line since carrying out the first attack, and had suffered 50 per cent. Of casualties, and the O.C. told me all the Brigades of the Division were in like plight. This so impressed me that I determined to practice for a counter attack on Gouzeaucourt. On the supposition that the enemy had broken through, I held a tactical scheme for officers on November 26^th, and on November 27^th we were to have done it with the whole Brigade, but fortunately the morning dawned wet, so we stood by. At 10 a.m. we were told to march across the base of the salient to Flesquieres to relieve the Guards, who had one Brigade roughly handled at Bourlon Wood. The Brigade billeted that night round Ribecourt, and on November 28^th took over from the 2^nd Guards Brigade in the Bourlon Wood and Fontaine sectors. The
2/5^th Leicesters were attached to the Brigade, and were put to the right support.

2/5^th South Staffs. On right
2/5^th North Staffs. In centre.
2/6^th North Staffs. Bourlon Wood
2/6^th South Staffs. Support in Bourlon Wood

I at once realised that no sane man would attempt to attack through Bourlon Wood, which at that time was so knocked about that it was almost impossible to get through, and I asked General Romer if I might hold the wood with two Companies and move the remainder back to a more healthy position, where they could be used if required to counter attack, as it seemed quite obvious that in case of a Hun attack, the enemy would fill the wood with gas and attack on each side. General Romer quite agreed, and orders for this had actually gone out when a wire arrived to say that Corps did not approve as they considered Bourlon Wood a most important tactical feature, and the minimum garrison must betwo Battalions. I could have cried as I knew what was coming, and if my Battalions broke on the Fontaine Sector (they were stretched like a bow-string), I had no reserves. On 30^th November the storm broke, but miraculously the bow string held, but all the while gas was being pumped into Bourlon Wood. The Hun broke through the 55^th Division front and captured Gouzeaucourt, threatening our rear. If only we had still been at Heudicourt we should have had the unique experience of actually carrying out in reality what we had practiced in a field day, and I have always regretted that this experience was denied us. Certainly no one could have done the job better than the Guards did without any rehearsal at all, but I could not help smiling to myself when I remembered the unholy glee with which the Guards handed over to us, and departed to their well-earned rest, only to be hauled back again. On December 1^st the poor 2/6^th South and 2/6^th North were in a very bad state suffering from gas; the whole wood smelt like a laboratory, and these Battalions had now had 36 hours of it, so that it was almost impossible to avoid taking off your gas mask, if only to put some food in. The result, of course, was that these Battalions, with the T.M. Battery, had to be sent back to Rue on the sea coast to recover. They left on December 10^th, and did not rejoin the Brigade until the end of January; practically all those who had been in the wood had to be evacuated and took no further part in the War. The 2/5^th South Staffs and 2/5^th North Staffs, although stretched to their utmost, withstood the repeated attacks of the enemy. Corporal Thomas, 2/5^th North Staffs, as related elsewhere in this book, gained the V.C. for his gallant conduct on this day. On December 5^th the Brigade was withdrawn to Ytres and Lechelle, but on December 10^th the 2/5^th South Staffs and 2/5^th North Staffs returned to the trenches, coming under the orders of the 178th Brigade, but Christmas and New Year was spent in the Le Cauroy area well behind the lines.

War Diary of the 2/6^th Battalion, the South Staffordshire Regiment
The National Archives WO 95 / 3021

	HEUDECOURT
November 24th/27th	The Battalion remained at Heudecourt and continued training:
November 27th	The Battalion marched to the Ravine at Q 6 a (57c) Where it was bivouacked for the night:
November 28th/29th	The Battalion relieved the 2nd Batt Coldstream Guards in support trenches in the SW of BOURLON WOOD F 13 C & D (57c): Captain R M Sheppard Commanding C Company was wounded:
	BOURLON WOOD
November 29th	Enemy heavily bombarded Bourlon Wood with HE and Gas shells and attacked front line positions on the 2/6th North Staffs Regt front, to which we were in support: A Company of this Battalion advanced through the wood under heavy fire and reinforced the front line in answer to the SOS signal: Captain H Yeatman Commanding A Company was wounded and gassed and the Company sustained several gas casualties:
November 30th	The Battalion was heavily bombarded by Gas and HE shells and Captain B S Atkinson commanding D Company was killed: During these two days the Battalion suffered heavy casualties from gas, the whole of A, C & D Companies becoming casualties:Captain J R S Herron, Captain C E L Whitehouse and Lieutenant T P F S Barrett were gassed and Captain A F Brown was wounded:
	In the field7th December 1917 Stuart-Wortley Lieut.-Col: Cmdg 2/6th South Staffordshire Regt:

	EXTRACTS FROM WAR DIARY
1st December	Relieved from Boulon Wood
	FLEQUERES
2nd December	Arrived Flequeres ~ 150 strong
	YTRES
7th December	Medical inspection by ADMS 59th Division of all men who had been in Bourlon Wood
	RUE
15th December	Draft of 30 ORs arrived
31st December	Reinforcements arrived. 5 Officers 450 ORs from Depot BattalionA, C and D Companies reorganisedA Company – Captain T L AstburyC Company – Captain W S LynesD Company – Captain W A Adam Final check on casualtiesOfficers 1 killed 3 wounded 14 gassedOR 13 killed wounded and gassed 392 missing 15(of the 392 wounded and gassed 64 have died)
4th January 1918	All men who were in Bourlon Wood were inspected by DADMS
11th January	Men who were in Bourlon Wood inspected by ADMS 59th Division
13th January	Inspection during the afternoon by DMS 3rd Army and DDMS VIth Corps for remainder of men who were in Bourlon Wood, 50 present
16th January	16 Officers joined ex Depot Battalion and Third Line
	Training continues
10th February	Reenter from line at Noreuil
13th February	4 Officers and 90 ORs join (draft from 8th Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment)

Deaths listed in SDGW, Battalion history
September 1917 30
October 1917 1
November 1917 31
December 1917 68
January 1918 1;

Deaths mentioned in War Diaries : 1 Officer, 78 Other Ranks
Drafts received December 1917 - February 1918 25 Officers and 570 Other Ranks

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