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Two seminal moments in history occurred here, 22 years apart.
The Armistice was signed in Marshall Foch's train carriage in 1918 putting an end to the Great War hostilities at 11:00 on 11th November. Just two decades later, an excitable Adolph Hitler would arrive in Compiegne in June 1940 to enjoy witnessing the reading of the Armistice conditions. The following day the Armistice was signed by Generalfeldmarschall Keitel and General Huntzinger.
Across the road from the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery sits the village of Belleau and within the village there is a courtyard of an old chateau that contains a fountain. The cemetery contains the final resting place of 2,289 Marines from the 4th Marine Brigade who fought in and around the woods of Belleau in early June 1918. It is said the Germans facing the Marines called them ‘Devil Dogs’ due to their ferocity and fighting ability. To this day Marines and former Marines visit to drink from the fountain and pay their respects to those who fought in the area and never came home. It is quite a moving sight to see these guys take part in that old tradition as it clearly means so much to the United States Marine Corps
Submitted by Paul Colbourne, SGWT Battlefield Guide
At the beginning of the Second Battle of Ypres, 22nd April 1915, the Germans released a massive amount of chlorine gas.
The green grey cloud floated into French lines, held by their colonial troops. Faced with a new terrifying weapon they had never encountered before, those that were not overwhelmed by the toxic cloud, fled in horror. This then created a huge gap in the Allied line that needed to be filled before the Germans realised and rushed through it themselves.
Canadian and British troops were flung into the gap, extending their lines to prevent a total collapse and the loss of Ypres. Just two days later, yet more gas was released, but the line held.
The Brooding Soldier, a Canadian with his head bowed and arms reversed
Wales Online described the name Mametz Wood "perhaps like that of Aberfan or Senghenydd, is embedded deep in the Welsh psyche, immediately conjuring up images of needless loss of life, bravery, chaos and self-sacrifice".
Some battlefield locations have become synonymous with the service of certain regiments or that of sacrifice from a particular region or country.
At the Mametz Wood on the Somme, the striking Red Dragon tells us immediately that the 38th (Welsh) Division were thrust into action here.
On the 7th July the Welshmen went into attack, their mission to capture the wood and secure the opportunity to get to the open ground beyond. They went in at 08:30 down an exposed slope into heavy machine gun fire and artillery. A second attack reinforced by the 10th South Wales Borderers also failed and a planned third attempt was called off as it was decided it would be futile to continue.
Standing by the Dragon allows you to visualise this action unfolding.
Sophie says "Mametz Wood is one place I find very difficult to enter. It holds the darkness and the trauma of what went on there in 1916".
There are some locations that we will visit that are famous because of some gallant actions, some legendary stories and some that are important because of their strategic position and our overall understanding of the battle. Here at the Bois des Caures, all of the above can be discovered.
This is Colonel Emile Driant's Command Post. He is in command of the 56th and 59th Chasseurs,
On 21st February 1916 at 07:12, the German artillery bombardment began, 80,000 shells would fall here. It would not cease until 16:00 that afternoon when German infantry made their way forward through a snowstorm. These men are lightly equipped as they do not expect much in the way of opposition, but they are to be shocked at the level of resistance they meet.
Driant's men withstood withering artillery fire, bloody hand to hand combat and the use of flamethrowers until it was just too much. On the afternoon of 22nd with just 80 men left, Driant orders a withdrawal to take place in three groups. He would leave last. Setting off across the road, Driant stops to see to a wounded man. As he stands back up, he is hit in the head with a shrapnel splinter and is killed.
Visiting the command post and the trench systems around it gives you the opportunity to explore this story in full and to start your understanding of the Verdun battlefield.
If Norfolk and Suffolk were the home of the Eighth Air Force then Lincolnshire was the home of Bomber Command. The Spire overlooks Lincoln Cathedral which was used as a sighting point for returning crews.
Their nighttime raids would take the fight to Nazi Germany but at a heavy cost. Of the 125,000 Aircrew who served over 44% were killed, the highest rate of attrition of any serving unit.
Submitted by Paul Colbourne, SGWT Battlefield Guide
A reminder that on two occasions, from all corners of the world, came those to serve and that thousands who gave their all #WeWillRememberThem
Using first hand accounts, trench maps and technology, our fantastic guides can really bring a piece of ground alive. This image taken by team member Nick Saunders shows a view taken from Watling Street looking towards the junction with Sunken Lane on the Somme battlefield.
Many visitors are familiar with the story of the Lancashire Fusiliers who tunnelled from their lines to the Sunken Lane prior to going over the top on the 1st of July 1916.
Less well known is that the 1st Battalion the Hampshire Regiment followed in the second wave. Their route took them diagonally across a shallower sunken lane named Watling Street on the trench maps.
The 1st Bn The Hampshire Regiment suffered 585 casualties including 100% of the officers. One officer who was wounded but survived to tell the tale was Lt Shearn. This is his abridged account of the 1st of July and the link to Watling Street.
As soon as I got out of the assembly trench I discovered that the story that there would be nothing left alive in the German lines was a myth. We went into literally a hail of machine gun fire. I could hear the ‘smack’ of the bullets as they hit the ground or sandbags or whatever. I got hit on my prismatic compass which I carried on the left front of my belt. I felt the impact of the bullet. I did not however, feel pain or unwell. I thought it as well to look and see what damage had been done so I opened my belt and pulled up my tunic to see. There was a small and very neat hole under my left ribs from which a little blood was coming. I debated briefly whether I needed medical attention but decided that as I felt so unaffected by the bullet wound I had better get on with the war. I make no claim that I am in any way brave but I do distinctly remember feeling some surprise and indeed satisfaction that I did not feel afraid. I did my belt up and hurried to catch up with my platoon.
Map showing Watling Street and the junction of Sunken Lane
The 3rd Day of war with Japan the Battleship, HMS The Prince of Wales, and the Battle Cruiser HMS Repulse, were sunk off the coast of Malaya. Part of Force Z, which had sailed from Singapore and was commanded at sea by Admiral Sir Tom Phillips (Known as Tom Thumb due to his 5ft 4 inch stature.)
Phillips was trusted by Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and both had a strong belief that Fortress Singapore could be defended from an inferior Japanese Army by a strong Naval deterrent force.
Philipp’s signalled. ‘We are out looking for trouble, and no doubt we shall find it.’ Prophetic words that would prove disastrous for him personally. It is likely he was ignorant of events at Pearl Harbour 2 Days earlier, and the ability of the Japanese Air Force. Attacked by Japanese Bomber and Torpedo Bombers, and in an engagement lasting less than 3 hours both ships were sunk with the loss of 840 lives. A total of over 2300 sailors survived. Admiral Phillips went down with the Prince of Wales. Singapore fell 7 weeks later.
Today’s post was chosen by Francis Mullen, SGWT Battlefield Guide due to his personal connections to Singapore. Francis always makes a pilgrimage to Kranji CWGC cemetery and memorial when visiting Singapore. There are 22 known burials of sailors from both ships, who were injured in the brief engagement and either died by the time they reached Singapore or shortly afterwards.
The battle of Fromelles – 19/20 July 1916 fought by the 5th Australian Division and the 61st (2nd Midland) Division described as "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history". The Australian Division suffered over 5,500 casualties in their first action on the Western Front. The Cobbers Memorial stands in the Australian Memorial Park, perched on the old German front line. It represents Sergeant Simon Fraser who helped recover wounded men from No Mans Land during the battle, it represents strength in adversity and the one thing the Australians had in bucket loads – ‘Mateship’.
By Paul Colbourne, SGWT Battlefield Guide
Guests never fail to comment on the beauty of Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) cemeteries. It is the story of the soldiers we try to reveal. Here is one shared by team member Nick Saunders.
For me as a battlefield guide, telling the stories of the men and women who are buried or commemorated on the battlefield is very important. If we know who they were and what happened to them, saying ‘We will remember them’ becomes for me, more meaningful.
I bring people to the grave of Captain Walter George William Bailey of the Hampshire Regiment, who is buried in Serre Road No.2 Cemetery on the Somme battlefield.
Walter was born in Bournemouth in 1895. He was educated at Bournemouth Grammar School for Boys. After leaving school he went to Queens College, Cambridge. He had decided he wanted to take Holy Orders and go into the church. He was an active supporter of St John’s Church at Boscombe.
Whilst at Cambridge he was a member of the University Officer Training Corps. On the outbreak of war, instead of finishing his degree Walter volunteered to serve in the army. He was commissioned and posted to the newly formed 15th Battalion the Hampshire Regiment. This was one of two service battalions, known unofficially as the ‘Pompey Pals’, raised by the Mayor of Portsmouth.
In December 1915, Walter married Miss Emeline Jane Webster in St John’s Church, Boscombe.
In May 1916, the battalion was posted to France. By September 1916 the battalion had moved to the Somme area and on the 12th of September went into the front line west of Delville Wood. By now Walter Bailey was a captain and a company commander.
The battalion was part of 122nd Brigade part of Fortieth Division which was tasked with the capture of the village of Flers on the 15th of September 1916. History was made on that day as it was the first ever use of tanks in battle.
The war diary and the regimental history record that is was during the latter stages of the battle when the battalion attempted to capture Flers Trench that Captain Bailey, the last surviving Company Commander was killed.
That evening the 15th Hampshires were relieved and went onto reserve. Total casualties were 292 killed, wounded and missing. This included eight officers killed and five missing.
Captain Bailey’s wife Emeline was informed that her husband had been killed but that his body was missing. On the 19th of November 1916 his daughter Margaret Emeline Bailey was born.
Post war, Walter’s wife and his mother visited Flers and started to look for Walter’s body. They were shown around the battlefield by one or two survivors from the battalion. They spoke to local farmers and land owners and frequently wrote to the CWGC, then Imperial asking for any information on the bodies of British officers located in the area.
In December 1930 people searching for metal and items of scrap value on the battlefield found a body. There were captain’s pips, a Hampshire badge and a wedding ring as identification. The body was buried in Serre Road No.2 Cemetery.
The CWGC wrote to Emeline and asked her what the inscription was inside the ring. Emeline went to Mr Meader, the jewellers in Boscombe and obtained a statement from him describing the ring and the inscription he had engraved inside it. It was ‘From Lena. Dec 8 1915.’ With this information along with the captains rank pips and the Hampshire Regiment badge, the CWGC identified Captain Bailey. He had initially been named on the Thiepval memorial. His name was erased and a new stone bearing Walter’s name was placed on the grave. The epitaph reads ‘God is Love’.
The love and perseverance of his wife and mother helped to identify Walter when his body was found.
A special place for team member Eugenie Brooks
Eugenie’s Gt Uncle was killed on the Somme but never found, so his name is on the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing. She decided to adopt an unknown grave at Ovillers Cemetery, close to where Arthur Fredrick Whitrod was killed on 8th July 1916 #WeWillRememberThem
6th December – Post 6 – WN60, Normandy
A visit to WN60 is one of those truly “wow” moments. Make sure to visit when the tide is out and you’ll be guaranteed breathtaking views of Omaha Beach. Directly below is Fox Red Sector. This strongpoint was attacked by men of L Company, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Division, Led by 26-year-old Lt Jimmy Monteith of Virginia.
For his leadership and bravery that day, Jimmy Monteith was awarded the Medal of Honour. His citation reads:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on 6 June 1944, near Colleville-sur-Mer, France. 1st Lt. Monteith landed with the initial assault waves on the coast of France under heavy enemy fire. Without regard to his own personal safety he continually moved up and down the beach reorganizing men for further assault. He then led the assault over a narrow protective ledge and across the flat, exposed terrain to the comparative safety of a cliff. Retracing his steps across the field to the beach, he moved over to where 2 tanks were buttoned up and blind under violent enemy artillery and machinegun fire. Completely exposed to the intense fire, 1st Lt. Monteith led the tanks on foot through a minefield and into firing positions. Under his direction several enemy positions were destroyed. He then rejoined his company and under his leadership his men captured an advantageous position on the hill. Supervising the defense of his newly won position against repeated vicious counterattacks, he continued to ignore his own personal safety, repeatedly crossing the 200 or 300 yards of open terrain under heavy fire to strengthen links in his defensive chain. When the enemy succeeded in completely surrounding 1st Lt. Monteith and his unit and while leading the fight out of the situation, 1st Lt. Monteith was killed by enemy fire. The courage, gallantry, and intrepid leadership displayed by 1st Lt. Monteith is worthy of emulation.
Section I, Row 20, Grave 12.
Whenever I am in Prague, I make a point of visiting St Cyril and Methodius Cathedral. Inside the crypt in 1942 hid Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, the two Czech parachutists that carried out the assassination of Heydrich.
After After their hide out was discovered, they and fellow resistance fighters fought gallantly, holding off more than 700 German soldiers. There was only so long this resistance could continue, however. A truly moving place to visit.
“He is not missing: he is here!”
The Menin Gate is home to the names of 54,588 servicemen who died in this sector (up to Aug 1917) and have no known grave.
You’d be forgiven for not knowing that just outside Cambridge UK, in the beautiful quaint village of Madingley, is the Cambridge American Cemetery & Memorial. Like all American Battle Monuments Commission sites, it is beautiful!
The symmetry of the headstones, the grandeur of the masonry work is staggering. After a hard day, it is the perfect place to sit quietly, reflect and give thanks.
Caterpillar Valley Cemetery the final resting place for over 5,500 casualties. On the same site there is Caterpillar Valley (New Zealand) Memorial, listing 1205 New Zealand casualties who have no known grave.
I often have the place to myself at sunset, peaceful and quiet with just the sound of birdsong for company.
By Paul Colbourne, SGWT Battlefield Guide
On 6 Oct 1918, the 15th Durham Light Infantry would attack across this ground to take the fortified Ferme de Montecouves, seen in the distance. A number of Durhams would die that day, amongst them was Corporal Thomas Marshall Iley, my wife’s great uncle.
An insignificant piece of farmland today but back in 1918 it formed part of the Beaurevoir Line which was well wired and strong in concrete machine-gun emplacements. The Durhams took and held their objectives without artillery support but not without cost.
By Paul Colbourne, SGWT Battlefield Guide
Last December, each day we posted an object from either #WW1 or #WW2 - my style of advent calendar! This year I will be posting images and stories from a specific battlefield location.
I hope this will give you some insight into personal stories from history why so many of us find these locations so special. Posts will come from myself, but also my lovely team of guides. If you'd like to share also, please feel free to contact team@sophiesgreatwartours.com
Last December, each day we posted an object from either #WW1 or #WW2 - our style of advent calendar!
This year we will be posting images and stories from a specific battlefield location. I hope this will give you some insight into personal stories from history and why so many of us find these locations so special.
Posts will come from Sophie and the team of battlefield guides. If you'd like to share your special locations and memories, please feel free to contact team@sophiesgreatwartours.com