Its been somewhat a hard time for me recollecting the story of Pilkem. To remember it is to go through it again. I've not been able to put pen to paper to write to you but I must do this. I need to tell this story for those who won't be coming back so they aren't forgotten.
Well chums we were stood to all night on the 6/7th of July awaiting the Hun to attack us. We were in their Trench and lots of their pals had been killed, we knew it wouldn't be long before they tried to take it back. I was in the closest part of the Trench to their front line. This map shows the Trench systems and closeness.
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| Pilkem Trenches held by 2LF 7th July 1915 |
Sure enough during the small hours of the morning, just as it was getting light, the Hun attacked. He came down the three saps leading into our trenches. These are the one connected to our Trench in the North and the other two that cross the road from the east. If you zoom in on the map you can see these.
Well chums we were waiting for them with baited breath, just as the light was starting to break a volley of bombs came over the barricade that was constructed across the end of the trench. I dived for cover around a bend and then grabbed some of the bombs we had. The Huns bombs went off with blinding flashes and a deafening noise. Tons of earth shot up and showered all around me and my chums. We then heard the Huns battle cries and he started to mount the parapet of the trench. We let go with a volley of fire and then threw our bombs over into his Trench to kill anyone following up the assault. There must have been a dozen or so Hun charging down the trench towards us, some were charging across the tops. Half our men were letting rip with their rifles whilst the other half were throwing bombs for all we were worth. I'm a bombardier so I let them have it with several bombs. Some into the front of our Trench and others over the barricade at the end into theirs.
It went in for what seemed to be an age. Our boys were getting into them with bayonets I was following up and hurling bombs for all I was worth. Machine gunners opened up on the Hun coming over the tops. There was bullets, blades and bombs all over the place. Grunts, screams and cries filled the air and were interjected with flashes and deafening bangs. It was raining showers of earth, bullet cases and shrapnel.
Finally the Hun stopped coming and it all went quiet. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would burst out of my chest. I was breathing heavy as though I had just done a mile long dash. All my chums were crouched in the trench listening for the Hun coming again.
As we paused there in anticipation of the next assault I became aware of the groans of my fallen pals and injured Hun in and around our Trench. We retrieved our men but left the Hun. If another assault came we didn't want to get caught off guard whilst helping the enemy!
The minutes passed by but no further attack came. We made good the damage to the trench and removed the dead and injured Hun within it. Those out on top were left. We weren't going to risk getting killed to going out there.
We had used a tremendous amount of bombs so a runner was despatched to get more brought up.
We had quite a few dead and injured in the Hun attack. It was mainly all the new boys the ones that had joined us since the gassing in May. I didn't know them that much, I hadn't got to know them, but my heart went out to their loved ones. I didn't think much about the Hun. I'd seen him do many evil deeds and didn't much care for him.
By now it was early morning and the sun was well up. It was unusually quiet, we didn't think it would be like this.
Some bombs arrived following our earlier request but to our surprise it was a new sort called a Mills Bomb. We hadn't used this before and so I decided to familiarise myself with it.
I managed to get some scoff and a brew in the morning, we had half the men on stand to and the other half feeding themselves. We then swapped around.
At about 11:30am the Hun opened a barrage of shells on us. My god the whole place shook and rumbled. He was firing across the whole area. Me and my mates clambered into a hastily repaired dugout. The shells were landing all around us. With each whoosh and crump the ground shuddered and exploded. Showers of earth fell down into the trench. I was scared stiff that either we would get a direct hit or be buried alive.
During this barrage the HQ on the canal bank was hit. It had been unscathed for many a week before and had served well for other battalions but the Hun had managed to find it today. The top brass were all present in the HQ and were completely bowled over by the last. Colonel Griffin, Captain Spooner and Lieutenant Appleby all got injured. Lieutenant Charleston got severely injured and died two days later. The injuries to Lieutenant Appleby caused him to be blinded.
The injuries to this party would have been much greater had not been for Captain Spooner. The blast had set fire to a box of hand grenades. With great courage and despite his injuries he picked the box up and then hurled it into the canal. He therby saved them all from further harm or death.
The heavy shelling of our lines continued all day. My god it was terrifying but after an hour or so one got somewhat used to it. I thought if they haven't got me by now they aren't going to. I continued to huddle in the dugout with my mates whilst Fritz pulverized all around us. None of us moved from our little shelter, for all we knew everyone around us was dead. I thought no one could survive this bombardment.
Then at 3:00pm the shelling stopped. We sat in the dugout for a while listening. I couldn't hear a bloody thing. I thought I must have gone deaf from all the blasts. Then as me and pals were about to climb out shrapnel shells started bursting overhead. We dived back and huddled together once again in our shelter.
The shells were mainly bursting over the support and reserve Trench lines. We knew what was coming next, Fritz was going to charge us. He was blasting the rearguard to pieces so that he could deal with us alone. Knowing what was coming me and my mates steeled ourselves. We knew where I supply of bombs and bullets were so once the shrapnel shells stopped we were going to dash there and arm ourselves to the teeth. That's if the ammo was still there and not blown away or buried!
After about 20 minutes the shrapnel shells stopped, that was our signal to make a mad dash for the ammo. We jumped out of the dugout and ran for all we were worth. As we did so another thought crossed my mind, what if we were all that was left of our battalion, just half as dozen of us to take on the might of the Hun. Bloody hell I thought.
As we ran down the trench, well down the shambles that was the trench, I became aware of other scampering figures. Cripes, the Hun was already upon us. We all started to bring our rifles to bare but then when we focused we realised it was our fellow soldiers. Others had survived the battering.
As quick as a flash we reached the area where the bombs were but couldnt see anything, the area had been knocked about a bit. We scrambled in the loose piles of earth, scrabbling about and digging with our hands. We hit lucky, boxes, it was boxes of bombs. More boxes of ammunition were found and we crammed as much into our pockets and packs and ran back down the trench. We were now ready for the Hun.
Our artillery now opened up. There was whooshes as our shells went overhead and slammed into the Huns trenches blowing him apart. The shout went up that the Hun was attacking across no man's land. We let him have it with everything we had, bombs, mortars and bullets. It was mayhem again but this time we were causing it.
We couldn't see the Hun but we knew he was there. Our artillery was blasting away making sure he was pinned down. They could see the Hun lines better than us and we're firing all along the front whilst the Hun was attempting to assault us. Then after what could have only been 10 minutes our artillery stopped. The Hun had withdrawn and what was left of him returned to his own lines. I was surprised that he could be repulsed so easily but on reflection there was still plenty of my chums alive and we let him have it.
Then it started up again, the bombardment of our lines. It was back to the dugout with all haste.
So it continued for the rest of that day.
I'll continue this recount of this Pilkem saga in my next post. The battalion is in Proven at present but tomorrow we're on the move. Hopefully it's out of the front for a long rest. We need it, I need it.
I'll post again in a couple of days from the new billets.
Albert (nine lives) Kyte x
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