The Sherwood Foresters in the Great War, 1914-1918- the 28Th Battalion
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presented to Zbe Xibraq? of tbe innivcreit? of Toronto bs fr-H HISTOEY OF 2/8th BATTALION SHERWOOD FOEESTEKS 1914—1918 COLONEL AND MASCOT. V^ I \ IS THE SHERWOOD FORESTERS IN THE GREAT WAR 1914-1918. THE 2/8TH BATTALION BY Lieut.- Colonel W. C. OATES, D.S.O. NOTTINGHAM \ J. & H. BELL LIMITED CARLTON STREET 1920 I PEEFACE In writing this History of the gallant deeds of my comrades, I have endeavoured to temper tragedy with comedy, and to weave among the sorrows of War all those little intimate happenings, the memory of which are the salt of Regimental Life. By so doing I hope to make this Book more readable, not only to those who have served with the Battalion, but to the General Public by whose verdict it must stand or fall. My main objects, however, in writing this preface are to give myself the opportunity of thanking those Officers who have written Chapters in this book, or have given me invaluable help in many matters with which they were more conversant than I. Without their assist- ance this Book could not have been written. Also to express my deep appreciation of the loyal devotion— can call it by no other name—which all Ranks gave ungrudgingly to the Battalion and myself. Lastly I wish to offer my grateful homage to the memory of those brave souls who served with me and have fought their last fight. W. COAPE OATES. FOKEWOKD By Brigadier- General E. W. S. K. MACON CHY, C.B., C.M.G., CLE., D.S.O. Colonel Coape Oates has done me the honour of asking me to write a foreword for his History of the ' 2/ 8th Battalion of the Sherwood Foresters," one of the Battalions comprising the 178th (Sherwood Foresters) Brigade, which I commanded for nearly two years during their training at home and in Ireland, and finally on service in France in the Spring of 1917. When I assumed command Colonel Coape Oates was the only " regular " Officer in the Brigade, all the others being Territorials, and yet the training of the Battalions was in a condition which spoke volumes for the keen- ness and devotion to their work which must have been shewn by Officers and all ranks of the Territorials before the War. Colonel Oates had raised and trained the 2/ 8th with that indefatigable spirit and energy which character- ises him, and had produced a splendid Battalion by the Summer of 1915, but I think he will admit that he found before long that he had serious rivals in the " civilian Soldiers of the other Battalions. I am glad to have this opportunity of adding my humble quota of admiration, and appreciation of the Territorial Force and its organisation as well as of the gallant and devoted service they performed for their Country. The 2 /8th showed a splendid spirit from the start, and maintained it throughout the whole of their service. 8 Before £oing to France they shewed, in the Irish Rebel- " lion, what " Mufi they were made of. The 2/ 7th had had several hours of severe street fighting most gallantly carried out, and their ranks had been thinned by many laities amongst both Officers and men, when I brought up the 2 /8th and called on them to take the final objective by assault. Led by their Colonel, they went forward with a spirit and dash that shewed they were tit to take their place beside the finest troops in the Army. Both Officers and men shewed an elan which promised a future of gallant deeds when put to the test in France, which promise was nobly fulfilled, and it will with the greatest interest that I shall read Colonel Oates' account of the career of the Battalion after I left the Brigade. My thanks are due to the Commanding Officer, the Officers, and all ranks for the loyal service they rendered to me, and I greet them once more as comrades and friends. It was an honour I feel deeply to have com- manded such a splendid body of men as the 2/8th, and the other gallant Battalions of the Sherwood Foresters, who so gloriously upheld the honour of their Country and King. Many, alas, have fallen, and I salute the proud memory of those noble lives given in a noble cause. E. W. S. K. MACONCHY, Brig. General, Late Commanding 178th (Sherwood Forester) Brigade. Edknmokk, H'»ok, Hants , 15th Oc-roBEit, 1010. CONTENTS Preface 5 Foreword 7 Chapter I. —Newark and Early Days 11 Chapter II. —Luton and Dunstable 19 Chapter III. —Watford 27 Chapter IV. —Dublin 35 Chapter V. —Athlone and the Mobile Column . 50 Chapter VI. —The Curmgh and Faltia 65 Chapter VII. —Fovant 86 Chapter VIII. —France at Last 91 Chapter IX —Vendelles, and After .. 98 Chaptkr X. —Le Verguier 106 Chapter XI. —Hargicourt Quarries .. 118 Chapter XII.—Havrincourt and Gouzeaucourt Woods 140 Chapter XIII. — Out at Rest 149 Chapter XIV.—Ypres 160 Chapter XV. — Sport with 2/8th Sherwood Foresters 179 Chapter XVI. —Lens .. 189 Chapter XVII. —Cambrai, and After 197 Appreciation 216 honouks and awards 223 Roll of Honour 225 HISTORY OF 2/8th BATTALION SHERWOOD FORESTERS 1914—1918 CHAPTER I. NEWARK AND EARLY DAYS. Formation Upon the outbreak of War many of our of the Territorial Units were in Camp, and this Battalion, was the case with the 8th Sherwood Foresters, whose Headquarters were at Newark. It was obvious to everyone that the full re- sources of Great Britain must be called into play with the least possible delay if we were to emerge successful from the gigantic struggle before us. In a very short- time the best Territorial Units were earmarked for service abroad, and it was evident that 2nd line units must be formed with all possible speed to feed and keep these Battalions up to strength. The 8th Battalion had marched to Derby for Mobilization, and were then moved to Harpenden for training. Their first necessity was to weed out all unfit War- rant Officers, N.C.O.'s and men, and it was on Sept. 5th, 1914, that the first party consisting of 4 Officers and 140 N.C.O.'s and men left Harpenden for Newark. This party was commanded by Captain, afterwards Major L. C. B. Appleby, who had under him Captain, after- wards Major A. C. Clarke, Lieutenant R. W. Smith and 2nd Lieutenant J. W. Turner. 12 This party was meant as a nucleus upon which to form the 2 8th, or as it was first called the 8th Reserve Battalion Sherwood Foresters, and the Battalion may be considered to have come into existence on the above- mentioned date. Shortly afterwards this party was moved to Dun- stable where Divisional details were concentrated under i olonel Fearon. Captain Appleby remained behind at Newark io ;<t Colonel Foljambe, V.D., in the arduous duties of recruiting ; Captain Clarke returned to Harpenden, and Lieutenants Smith and Turner proceeded with the party to Dunstable. Later on Captain J. P. Becher and Lieutenant J. K. Lane took charge of the party until about the middle of October, when Major Appleby assumed command. Meanwhile Recruits were coming in rapidly at New- ark, and these were being trained by Captain Appleby, Captain J. B. Hooley, Lieutenant A. H. Quibell and 2nd Lieutenants R. E. Hemingway and E. F. S. Hand- ford. The Battalion was fortunate in having the assist- ance of Sergt. -Instructor Benford and Police Constable J. Lacey. Both became Regimental Sergeants-Major, and the latter, being an old Grenadier Guardsman, rendered invaluable service to the Battalion. Further help in this direction was forthcoming as both Police Constable Brunt and Mr. Thurlby, old regular N.C.O.'s, were enlisted shortly afterwards, and these four formed a useful nucleus for instilling discipline into the newly joined recruits. By the middle of September a strong draft was sent to Harpenden to replace the unfit men who had recently left the 1st Battalion. Appointment On September 14th Lieutenant Colonel of a CO. W. Coape Oates was gazetted to the Command of the newly formed Bat- talion, and as he was well-known locally and had seen a good deal of Active Service with the 1st and 2nd Royal Munster Fusiliers, he was warmly welcomed by all ranks. Route marching, squad drill and physical train- ing comprised the daily work of the men, and it had to 13 be carried out in civilian attire for a considerable time, though, thanks to the energy of the Notts. Territorial Force Association, the Battalion was very well served in the matter of clothing as time went on. The men were all in Billets, and this constituted a serious handicap. Discipline under such circumstances always suffers, and much time is wasted by the Company Officers in paying landladies. During the early days a sort of Mothers' Meeting used to be held for this pur- pose, but the babel of sound which issued on such occasions from the room used soon resulted in the ladies being paid at home. Plenty of good ground was available for training purposes, as Mrs. T. O. Quibell very kindly lent the Grove to the Battalion during their stay in Newark, and a better place for Battalion Drill, Drill Outposts and Elementary Exercises could not be found, and there is no doubt that the smartness on parade and the steadi- ness of the men generally was mainly due to the work done here. The N.C.O.'s used to assure the writer that the men looked forward to the daily 2 p.m.