Loos – Hill 70: French Flanders by Andrew Rawson

Author:Andrew Rawson
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781783400355
Publisher: Pen and Sword

21st and 24th Divisions move onto the battlefield

As the afternoon wore on the men waiting in the villages to the rear grew restless, wondering when they would be called upon. As the hours passed the tension mounted, and men tried to find out information by whatever means available. The streets were bustling with transport, ambulances, supply wagons and carts of every description. There were also hundreds of wounded, limping along covered in chalky mud and bandages. Many were coughing and choking from the effects of the gas. Every now and again German prisoners passed by, and they were viewed with suspicion. For many of the New Army men the sights were disturbing, for they had never seen anything like it before.

As dusk approached, the rest of 21st and 24th Division brigades received orders to move out without delay. The experiences of 63 Brigade, 21st Division's leading brigade, illustrate the difficulties encountered by the reserves as they made their way forward. Reluctantly, the men formed up, they were tired and hungry, not having had any hot food as their cookers had failed to arrive. For three hours they marched along the Lens highway in the pouring rain. Near Fosse 7 Brigadier-General Norman Nickalls moved to the front of the column, leading the 8th Lincolns and the 8th Somerset Light Infantry across country by compass bearing. Meanwhile, the 12th West Yorkshires and the 10th York and Lancaster continued along the road as far as Lens Road Redoubt. The men were mesmerised by the scene, all around lines of gun batteries fired incessantly on invisible targets, while the skyline in front of them glowed orange. Second Lieutenant F Cragg of the Lincolns recorded his view of the panorama:

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