Poem ~ Plan, Prepare, Attack: Neuve Chapelle - Thursday, 11 March 1915

 Neuve Chapelle: Garwhal Soldiers. Sketch by Jamie. See the original image at http://www.cwgc.org/foreverindia/military-honours/gabar-singh-negi.php

Source: File: Map.jpg, 2015. Situation 11th March 1915 at 2 p.m.
1 (circled) indicates two reserve companies advance at 2 p.m.
2-2 (circled) indicates ground seized by the two attacking platoons. [online] Available at: <http://www.worcestershireregiment.com/h_neuve_chapelle.php> [Accessed: 11 March 2015].

The Plan

By winters end

And springs beginning,

Hardships of weather

Still pounded along

The western fronts

Of France and Belgium.

Generals behind lines,

In formulating plans -

Having been waiting

For this point in time.

In the closing months

Of 1914, came rumours

Of low Russian ammunition

Supplies - to suggest

That German forces,

Might gain success

On the Eastern front -

Leading to repercussions

On the Western front -

A prompt for British military

Plans for an operation,

In early months of 1915.

A French General,

Joseph Joffre, had opinion

That the Russian position

Was over exaggerated -

But by January’s start

Joffre began to believe

Some type of offensive

Action was needed.

While allied reasons

May be different, their aims

For an outcome would

Be the same - with German

Spread over various fronts,

The allies might just win.

By 21 January, Joffre

Joined in principle,

To a combined offensive

Action  - a place where

This might commence,

Came in February,

With General Haig 's

Plans for a campaign

About Le Bassee

And Aubers Ridge -

Ultimately to capture

The ridge of Vimy,

In the area of Douai.

A draft plan was to take

Aubers Ridge - which gave

Command over Lille -

A prelude to regain

The captured French city.

To make such a step

Would shift British

From the waterlogged

Ditches to higher ground.

But the plan faltered;

Sir John French would

Be given the 46th

North Midland Division,

An inexperienced force -

Without possible assistance

Of Canadians Haig decided

On an independent operation.

Aubers Ridge

Had been held by British,

But only over three days  -

To be driven out

Under a heavy attack.

A fierce German

Presence was virtually

Everywhere - except

For a place called

Neuve Chappelle -

Here Enemy held land

That bulged into the allies.

Neuve Chapelle was

A centre of a salient -

Whose village buildings

Had been used for

Observation and housing

Snipers, that fired

Either way, into

The British held trenches.

At the salient’s northern

End was a fortified

Farm of Moated Grange,

While at southern

End was situated

A cross roads, called

'Port Arthur' - Haig

Hoped a campaign could

Coincide with French

In the southern side.

The plans approval

Came by 15 February -

Haig had to act soon

From 9 March, to form

Two phases. First was

To capture Neuve Chapelle -

Making a line east

Of the village - Then gain

Aubers Ridge, and cut

German communications

Of Lille and Le Bassee.

The Preparations

This plan would

Be the first full attack

To be launched,

From any allied trench line -

A major undertaking,

And audacious plan

With three British armies

Based in the region.

Late February found

The rapid unrolling tasks

For a reorgainsed front.

All attack preparations,

Would be within two weeks.

Neuve Chapelle village

Was to be situated centrally -

With the first army

To be on the left,

And I corps on the right -

With Indian Corps

Centralised.

Such prospects to get out

Of hollow ground,

Would boost the troops.

The campaign's secrecy

Was held by officers,

But many movements

Hinted at such plans.

So first days of March

Became rapidly taken

with training and hard

Exercise of all battalions.

In getting stores promptly

To the frontline tramlines

Were quickly devised -

Bombs and ammunition

Were packed into newly

Constructed magazines

As advanced dumps were

Placed at short intervals,

Stationed closely

To breastworks -

Heavy guns were moved

into hidden positions.

For this operation new

Methods had to be devised;

How would attack troops

Get to the assembly points?

Behind the busy

Administration of war,

Troops undertook

Wire-cutting practice

Bayonet charges,

And bombing drill -

As their officers

Considered problems

In controlling a vast size

And scale of armies -

A further issue concerned

Conveying information,

During the unfolding fight -

Messages would be passed

Through four HQ's to reach

The army - use of wireless

Restricted to divisional

HQ - with telephone line

Being the next  -

But wires could be easily cut  -

And runners could be killed.

Shortages meant orders

Were generally written in

Field Service Pocket Books,

Then passed on as carbon

Copies, out to all units -

This method, to become

Standard Battle practice,

Lacked accuracy and speed -

As found in first use

In battle for Neuve Chappel -

Another method made

By the first army,

Was devising an artillery

Timetable  - in provision

Of set tasks for each battery.

Coloured lines were drawn

On objective maps, marking

Limits of their advance,

These would then coincide

With action of artillery fire -

An English barrage would

Deluge shells on an enemy

Point, for a set time - then

The infantry set forward

With gunnery lifting, aiming

On other, advanced targets.

With ten days

To the attack, the troops

Edged their way

Into positions  -

With 5 March all guns

Took their place.

But an exception

To affect the outcome

Was the late arrival,

Of 6in howitzer Batteries -

Only getting into place

On 9 March  -

Whose accuracy

Would be affected

By lack of preparation -

340 guns finally stood

Ready and waiting.

Low-lying flat land

Added to issues

As in the lack of officer's

Vantage points,

To give direction,

In the control of guns -

Guns that might sink,

In mud had to be fixed.

With the ground troops

Maneuvering,

Royal Flying Corps pilots

Came into their own -

In undertaking Artillery

Observations their flights

Took on a grand scale -

Armed with new cameras

Being used to gain

Images of the war zone.

8 March and the troops

Finally heard about

The planned attacks  -

Rumours gave way to relief.

Then 9 March saw

More troops moved

Into place - as the day went

From afternoon into evening

The wintery weather did

Not relent - into the face

Of this the 2nd Scottish

Rifles slogged a long

Six miles from billets

In freezing conditions.

On a icy road

With mud made solid

The Scottish Rifles

Moved in silent march.

They marched into

The bitter wind - formed

In fours, moving in platoons

In company columns

And at their rear

Came bomb companies.

Shrugged in great coats

They carried

100 standard rounds

With two more bandoliers -

Each a hundred rounds -

On each man's hip

Hung rations haversack,

A rifle slung

On each man's shoulder,

As against their leg

Thumped an 18 inch

British Bayonet.

The Attack

Halfway to their objective

Scottish Rifles gladly halted

At Pont du Hem -

It was 10 March 1 a.m.

Rested and fed

By a Quartermaster's stew,

Until 2 a.m.

The march resumed -

Only for a short distance

Further, where the Scots

Left the road,

To turn East, making for

The front line trenches.

The Company had been

Met by two officers,

In their role as guides -

The day before

In the light the two had

Familiarised the route -

But in the dark,

Across featureless

And flat ground,

They led the Scots

Into alien country

Finally at 4 a.m. reaching

The 2nd Northants -

In relieving these men,

From forward trenches,

The Scots made ready

For next days attack.

In the clumsy dark

On icy mud, they took

Positions with one man

To every yard.

Ladders propped

Against mud walls -

Ahead their own wire

Cut in preparation,

And steps sliced

Into parapets  -

All was set

To go over the top.

With only hours to go

Platoon leaders,

In the weak daylight,

Looked above parapets,

Checking where gaps

In the wire were placed -

And to see general lay

Of the land - 

At 50 yards the enemy

Trench seemed too close

A potential disaster

Could happen -

If their shells fell short.

A misty morning

Was forming

With men stood

In the morning cold.

The night’s activity

Could not escape

One German officer,

Who sent back

A message, for allied

Trenches to be fired on -

Where, during night

Many British troops

Had gathered.

Only the commander

Could authorise this

Attack - and no one

Would wake him.

It was a fact that

German troops

About Neuve Chappell

Sector were lacking

In March - with only 13th

And 14th Divisions -

The order From British

HQ made note,

On 9 March,

That the allies

Had 48 battalions

Against only three

German Battalions.

Calling on reserves

The 11th Jäger Regiment

Filled the German gap

South of Moated Grange -

Their tactic being to man

Frontline trench, lightly

With fuller defences

At some 1000 yards back

On the second line.

Yet pressures

Of maintenance

Meant this second line

Only partially constructed

Their solid defences

being the strong points.

10 March 6 a.m.

And gunnery fired

Their ranging shots -

By 7.30 a.m. distances

Were fixed - heavy

Bombardment began.

Explosive clouds

Of a lyddite stench,

Began to blow back

Onto the British

Who waited - covered

In filth and grime -

Yet excited at the

Prospect that German

Defences would not

Be able to take the fire.

8.05 a.m. and barrage

Moved, to creep

Toward Neuve Chappell

The whistles called out

And men climbed

Onto a battle ground.

Indian troops,

Of the Garwhal Brigade,

Made a mistaken move.

Their two forward

Companies, took

To the right of their

Intended target -

Reaching where no

Artillery had hit -

Two more companies

Followed into the heavy fight.

Still the determined

Garwhal Brigade

Gained a enemy trench.

Others of the Garwhal

Brigade succeeded

As they sped over 200 yards

To dive into the German

Ditches - gaining five

Machine guns, to take

200 prisoners.

Yet some had slipped

Through a gap

Into vacant trenches  -

But reserves of Seaforth

Highlanders acted, to curtail

Any possibility

Of an enemy wedge.

Royal Irish and Rifle Brigade

Moved into Neuve Chappell

All By 8.50 a.m. -

But movement

Through the village

Was halted

As British artillery

Bombarded ground

Between the village

And Bois Du Biez.

On the right contact

Was made with Indian

Troops who dug down

Into poor ground.

Problems had started

To occur for the 23 Brigade

And the Scots - late

Arrival of 6in howitzers

Had failed to crush

The wire - where Germans

Were hardly affected -

They immediately started

Firing their heavy

Machine guns,

On attackers

At point blank range.

With first two waves

Cut down - from Front

And right  - the British

Waited for a further

Bombardment -

A German game

Played out  -

Yet one Scottish

Company despite

Their losses, gained

An enemy trench.

9.40 a.m. and shells

Barred down on those

Germans opposite

The waiting Middlesex's

This time making

An effective hit.

No in their advance,

The Jäger Battalion

Lifted arms in surrender

With objectives reached

And taken, faults slowly

Began to unwind.

Communications began

To falter and go awry -

Generals had to wait,

To hear by mid afternoon,

Of success and objectives

Gained  - a confusing

State had unraveled.

After some hours

On from events, new

Orders were passed -

Made along a large

Chain of commanded -

Finally 24th Brigade

Were told to progress -

It was 1800 hours When

The General advance

Was to go ahead.

With darkness falling,

Movements about mud

And ditches of earth

Became harder still -

Yet an Indian Advance

That had begun at 1700

Hours - over 300 yards -

Was done to reach

Layes Brook - unopposed.

The stream

Being 10 foot wide

With 4 foot of water

And steep slopes,

Was easily crossed

Using light bridges.

With 400 yards more

To Bois du Brez -

At the wood's border -

Lay a road and ditch.

By 1800 hours

With fall into darkness

The Indians began

To dig in.

Then reinforcements

Of Germans nearby

Changed all plans.

By 8 p.m. Indian troops

Withdrew to Layes Brook -

Avoiding any likely

Mix up in darkness

With an enemy presence.

The darkness of night

Fell on end of the first day.

by Jamie Mann.

BAYNES, J. Lieutenant-Colonel  (1966) Neuve Chappelle. Purnells History of the First World War. Volume 2  (Part/Month unknown). P. 733-741

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 11 March 2015). 

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