17TH (S) BATTALION ROYAL FUSILIERS 1914-1919 Guillemont ARRAS Bourlon Wood ANCRE

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Seller: dilapsus ✉️ (8,444) 100%, Location: Flamborough, Bridlington, GB, Ships to: AMERICAS, EUROPE, ASIA, AU, Item: 381927145741 17TH (S) BATTALION ROYAL FUSILIERS 1914-1919 Guillemont ARRAS Bourlon Wood ANCRE.
 
 
 
 

The 17th (S.) Battalion Royal Fusiliers

1914-1919

by

Everard Wyrall

With a Foreword by Major-General Sir C. E. Pereira K.C.B., C.M.G.  

 

This is the 1930 First Edition

 

Front cover and spine

Further images of this book are shown below

 

 

 

 

Publisher and place of publication   Dimensions in inches (to the nearest quarter-inch)
London: Methuen & Co. Ltd   5 inches wide x7¾ inches tall
     
Edition   Length
1930 First Edition   [viii] + 312 pages
     
Condition of covers    Internal condition
Original blue cloth gilt. The covers are rubbed and the gilt blocking is very still bright, though there is variation in colour to the front and rear boards. The spine ends and corners are bumped, with some slight fraying to the head and tail of the spine. There is a crease in the spine, near the centre, and a small bump on the front leading edge, near the top corner.   There is a previous owners' stamp on page (iv): "Romolo e Remo Notarianni" with the handwritten number "3955" (please see the image below). There is a small, old, Bookseller's label ("E. S. Fowler of Eastbourne") on the bottom edge of the front pastedown. There are no other internal markings and the text is very clean throughout; however, the edge of the text block is heavily foxed, with the foxing occasionally extending into the margins. There is also some scattered foxing to the end-papers and preliminaries. There is a crease on the bottom inside edge of the Title-Page and the next five pages (please see the images below) but this appears to be a minor production fault; otherwise, this volume is very tightly bound.
     
Dust-jacket present?   Other comments
No   Generally a very clean example of the First Edition, noting some variation in colour on the front and rear covers and heavy edge foxing.
     
Illustrations, maps, etc   Contents
NONE : No illustrations are called for; there is one folding map.   Please see below for details
     
Post & shipping information   Payment options
The packed weight is approximately 6 00 grams.

Full shipping/postage information is provided in a panel at the end of this listing.

  Payment options :
  • UK buyers : cheque (in GBP), debit card, credit card (Visa, MasterCard but not Amex), PayPal  
  • International buyers : credit card (Visa, MasterCard but not Amex), PayPal

Full payment information is provided in a panel at the end of this listing. 

 

 

The 17th (S.) Battalion Royal Fusiliers 1914-1919

Contents

 

I The Call to Arms II In the Line: November, 1915-July, 1916 III The Devil's Wood IV The Battle of Guillemont V Three Months of Trench Warfare VI The Battle of the Ancre, 1916: 13th-18th November VII The Valley of Mud VIII Arras, 1917 IX 'Third Scarpe, 1917': 3rd-4th May X Trench Warfare: May-November, 1917

XI The Great Fight XII The Withdrawal from the Bourlon Ridge

XIII The Last Winter in the Trenches: 1917-18 XIV The Grey Avalanche XV The Period of Active Defence XVI The Advance to Victory Conclusion Appendices: The Battalion Scouts Roll of Honour Roll of Officers, N.C.O.'s and Men Index

 

 

MAP Bourlon Wood: The Great Fight, 3oth November, 1917

 
 

The 17th (S.) Battalion Royal Fusiliers 1914-1919

Foreword

 

IT was a most interesting experience for a regular officer to see the wonderful esprit de corps of the new army battalions. I don t know any battalion where this spirit was more marked than in the 17th Battalion Royal Fusiliers; it was so strong that it has survived and is vigorous to this day, as their Old Comrades Association shows. I had the honour to command the 2nd Division from December, 1916, until the division was broken up on the Rhine in March, 1919, the 17th Royal Fusiliers being transferred to one of the divisions newly formed for the occupation of the Rhine. During this time I had excellent opportunities of judging the fine sterling qualities of this Battalion. Their organization and administration were excellent, but it was as a fighting battalion that they made their mark; during the time that I commanded the division there was no important operation in which we were engaged that the work of the 17th Battalion was not outstanding. The Battalion was exceptionally favoured in having a commanding officer who had been awarded the Distinguished Service Order three times and the Military Cross; I refer to Brigadier-General Weston. A fighting battalion led by a fighting commanding officer is bound to have a wonderful record of service. Brigadier-General C. G. Higgins, and Lieut.-Colonels Grant and Smith, were also enthusiastic Commanding Officers whose influence helped to make the 17th Royal Fusiliers into a first-class fighting unit. Of the many great fights of the Battalion I select the most spectacular when the German counter-attack broke on the northern side of the Cambrai salient on the 30th November, 1917, on the front held by the 2nd Division. The 17th held a trench running at right angles to the general line. They received orders to withdraw from the dangerously exposed line and organize a new position conforming to the general front. The tale of the gallantry of their rearguard under Captain Stone and Lieutenant Benzecry which inflicted heavy losses on the enemy with bullet, bomb, and bayonet, sacrificing themselves and thereby gaining invaluable time for the remainder of the Battalion to consolidate their new position, is one of the finest actions related of any battalion in the war. It is indeed a matter of congratulation to the Battalion that their gallant deeds have been worthily told by Mr. Everard Wyrall, an old acquaintance of the 2nd Division whose war history he wrote soon after the Armistice. Cecil Pereira Major-General October, 1930

 
 

The 17th (S.) Battalion Royal Fusiliers 1914-1919

Excerpt:

 

. . .  Colonel Weston's report of the operations is as follows: 'On the commencement of the attack the enemy vacated their positions with the exception of two men who were killed. All objectives were reached and three posts were established at A.9.d.95.1o, A.9.d.90.15 and A.9.d.90.175 (i.e. on the lip of the crater). The enemy's retaliation was not severe and the work of consolidation proceeded vigorously. Three wiring parties wired the flanks of the posts. Bombs and ammunition were carried up. A trench commanding the posts was started. The 276th Field Company, R.E., under 2nd Lieutenant Miller, taped a new trench from A.9.d.94 to A-9.d.95.10. The trench was dug to an average depth of four feet by a party of seventy-five of the 24th Royal Fusiliers. 'At 2.45 a.m. the attacking troops were withdrawn. The two flank posts were manned by an officer, six men and a N.C.O. each, and the centre post by six men and a N.C.O. In addition a Lewis gun was placed in each flank post. Our total casualties amounted to 3 killed and 10 wounded. Identifications were forwarded to Brigade Headquarters. 'Beyond continual sniping and machine-gun fire the enemy kept perfectly quiet until 3.10 a.m. At that moment a furious bombardment was concentrated on our new position and the front and support lines. This continued until 3.30 a m. when it gradually died down. 'All ranks displayed a fine military spirit both in the attack and in the work of consolidation. In conclusion I wish to draw the attention of the Brigadier-General Commanding to the courage and organizing ability displayed by Major Hole throughout the entire operation.' The Battalion diary finally adds: 'The undermentioned have been awarded the Military Medal in connection with the operation: Sergt. J. Carrington, L/Sgt. S. Ellis, Sergt. A. Dray, Cpl. G. Ayres, L/Cpl. A. Uttley, L/Cpl. D. Lowry, Pte. W. Smoker.' 'Warlingham', the new crater, now loomed large in the life of the Battalion. In 'Comic Cuts' (otherwise Tactical Progress Reports) the crater is frequently mentioned as being shelled and trench mortared, though a little wholesome retaliation by the 2nd Division artillery dampened the enemy's ardour. He had, however, pushed out a sap towards the crater, which foreshadowed trouble in the future. On the 12th the Battalion relieved the two companies of 24th Royal Fusiliers who had held the line during the above operation, and on the 13th took over the company frontage immediately south of the Canal from the 2nd Highland Light Infantry. But on the 14th the 24th Royal Fusiliers relieved the 17th as a whole and the latter marched back again to Le Preol. Private H. Clarke is mentioned on the 15th of August as having been awarded the Military Medal. The six days' 'rest' ended, the Battalion returned to the Canal Sector. But the tour was uneventful, the diary mentioning only intermittent shell-fire on 'Warlingham'. The 26th found the Fusiliers moving back into Brigade Support, Battalion Headquarters being at Kingsclere (south of the Canal), and companies at Braddel Castle, Mountain Keep, Tower Reserve, Marylebone Road, Esperanto Terrace, Cambridge Terrace, Spoil Bank and Orchard Keep. Three days were thus spent and then back again into the Canal Sector the 17th returned. Portuguese troops were attached to the 2nd Division at this period for instruction in trench warfare. They were a curious lot and regarded themselves as professional soldiers, whereas they looked upon the British as amateurs and therefore incapable of giving instruction. The men were good material, but the officers were of poor quality. The Portuguese had been given a sector of their own, but they were so lazy that the trenches were falling into disrepair. They were, therefore, told that unless they worked they would be taken out of the line as incompetent to hold trenches. Their reputed saying was, 'The night is for sleep and the day for repose'. That there was good material among the N.C.O.'s and men is evident from the fact that one night one of their lance-corporals saw two Bosche in front of the wire. He went out, wounded one German with his bayonet and collared the other and brought him in a prisoner. The 17th Royal Fusiliers merely mention that Portuguese troops were attached to the Battalion and were split up amongst the posts.

 

The final entry in the Battalion diary for August is a list of names of those who during the month had made the supreme sacrifice: 2nd Lieutenant S. F. Drummond, Corporal E. Perkins, Lance-Corporals D. Gordon, J. Dunn, R. Hart, and Privates W. Wolfe, J. Wilson, F. Saunders, E. Spear, H. Brown, L. Jenner, A. Daisley, A. Utteridge and J. Finch. On the 31st of August the ration strength of the Battalion was 474 all ranks and the trench strength 364 all ranks. The tour ended on the 4th of September and the Fusiliers moved back to Le Preol, the attached Portuguese going back to Beuvry. The month was, however, the most uneventful since the Battalion moved north from the Arras front, i.e. so far as the front line was concerned. The Battles of Ypres were at their height and as a consequence the British artillery on other sections of the Western Front was 'rationed': their ammunition was limited. This had the effect of drawing less fire from the enemy and as a consequence life in the front line was more peaceful. Yet, the Bosche was kept very much on the qui vive, for a prodigious quantity of gas was projected on to his lines and he must have regretted having first used it. On the 10th the Battalion lost Major J. Brett, who returned to his own Battalion—2nd Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry—as second-in-command. On the 29th of September 'usual' billets were occupied in Le Preol. Only one tour in the front line was served by the 17th Royal Fusiliers during October, i.e. from the 4th to the 6th, and by the 9th the Battalion was located in billets at Lapugnoy, the 2nd Division having moved to the Auchel area, where at last the long-overdue training period was to be carried out. The Fusiliers had marched into Lapugnoy, via Chocques, on the 8th, and on the following day the Battalion was reorganized on the old lines of four platoons per company. Companies were then inoculated. Then began a vigorous training programme which, in the not too distant future, was to bear splendid fruit. Rifle practice on the range, practising the attack and all the various items of the usual training programme kept all ranks busy during the working hours. On the 17th the results of a Brigade Musketry Competition, which had taken place some days previously, were published. The 17th Royal Fusiliers had won both the Lewis-gun and Platoon Competitions. On this date also the Divisional Competition was fired off at Auchel, the Fusiliers finishing second and only 4½ points behind the ist King's Royal Rifles—the winners.

 

The rapid-fire competitions held in the Division at this period were of great benefit and several units were almost back to the pre-war rate of fire, i.e. fifteen aimed shots per minute. Lectures on all sorts of subjects were given by various officers, including a lecture to all officers and N.C.O.'s by General Bullen-Smith, the Brigade Commander. On the last day of October the ration strength of the Battalion was 39 officers and 729 other ranks: not for a long while had it stood as high as that; even so, some 200 N.C.O.'s and men were still required to bring the Fusiliers up to full strength. November began with increased activity in the instruction of snipers and many hours were spent on the ranges. The diary also speaks of the new drafts having settled down—'of good physique'. The first few days were spent at Lupugny, but rumours had already circulated that the Division was to move north to take part in the Battles of Ypres, and when on the 5th the Battalion began to pack up and received orders to march to Thiennes on the 6th, rumour gave place to certainty. Nobody fell out on the march to Thiennes, though it was 20 kilometres distant, but on the following day when the march was continued to St. Sylvestre Cappel— 15 kilometres—the cobble stones temporarily knocked out some of the men's feet. The 2 nd Division now formed part of the II. Corps and on the 8th moved to Zermezeele via Cassel—another xo kilometres. Companies were rather scattered in the Zermezeele area but billets were good. The Battalion was informed that it would probably stay in the area for a short while, and indeed it was the 14th before orders were received to move and the Fusiliers again 'packed up'. On the 15th they marched to Winnezeele— 12 kilometres—where a vile camp, pitched in a ploughed field, inches deep in mud, was to be their resting-place. It took two days to clear the place before it was in anything like a habitable condition. Again rumours beset the Battalion: the Division was to go to Italy. But no such thing happened, for on the night of the 22nd the Fusiliers marched to Cassel Station and entrained for Achiet-le-Grand—they were going back to the old battlefields of the Somme area. They did not know it, but they were going also to where their courage, their devotion to duty and self-sacrifice were to be put to the test, as fierce and as fiery as that to which gold is subjected. They had trained hard during the longest period of training they had ever had out of the line since they landed in France: they were fit, they were eager. As the train carried them south they sang their songs, they whistled their war tunes, the while Death counted his numbers and the gods plaited their laurel wreaths for those who were to fall—to rise no more.

 

 

Please note: to avoid opening the book out, with the risk of damaging the spine, some of the pages were slightly raised on the inner edge when being scanned, which has resulted in some blurring to the text and a shadow on the inside edge of the final images. Colour reproduction is shown as accurately as possible but please be aware that some colours are difficult to scan and may result in a slight variation from the colour shown below to the actual colour.

In line with eBay guidelines on picture sizes, some of the illustrations may be shown enlarged for greater detail and clarity.

 

 

 

 

There is a crease on the bottom inside edge of the Title-Page and the next five pages (please see the images below) but this appears to be a minor production fault.

There is a previous owners' stamp on page (iv): "Romolo e Remo Notarianni" with the handwritten number "3955" (please see the image below).

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PROSPECTIVE BUYERS

 

U.K. buyers :

To estimate the “packed weight” each book is first weighed and then an additional amount of 150 grams is added to allow for the packaging material (all books are securely wrapped and posted in a cardboard book-mailer). The weight of the book and packaging is then rounded up to the nearest hundred grams to arrive at the postage figure. I make no charge for packaging materials and do not seek to profit from postage and packaging. Postage can be combined for multiple purchases.

 

Packed weight of this item : approximately 600 grams

 

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  • Please contact me with name, address and payment details within seven days of the end of the auction; otherwise I reserve the right to cancel the auction and re-list the item.

  • Finally, this should be an enjoyable experience for both the buyer and seller and I hope you will find me very easy to deal with. If you have a question or query about any aspect (postage, payment, delivery options and so on), please do not hesitate to contact me, using the contact details provided at the end of this listing.

 
 

International buyers :

To estimate the “packed weight” each book is first weighed and then an additional amount of 150 grams is added to allow for the packaging material (all books are securely wrapped and posted in a cardboard book-mailer). The weight of the book and packaging is then rounded up to the nearest hundred grams to arrive at the shipping figure. I make no charge for packaging materials and do not seek to profit from shipping and handling.

Shipping can usually be combined for multiple purchases (to a maximum of 5 kilograms in any one parcel with the exception of Canada, where the limit is 2 kilograms).

 

Packed weight of this item : approximately 600 grams

 

International Shipping options:

Details of the postage options to various  countries (via Air Mail) can be obtained by selecting the “Postage and payments ” option at the head of this listing (above) and then selecting your country of residence from the drop-down list. For destinations not shown or other requirements, please contact me before buying. Tracked and "Signed For " services are also available if required, but at an additional charge to that shown on the Postage and payments page, which is for ordinary uninsured Air Mail delivery.

 

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  • Please contact me with your name and address and payment details within seven days of the end of the auction; otherwise I reserve the right to cancel the auction and re-list the item.

  • Finally, this should be an enjoyable experience for both the buyer and seller and I hope you will find me very easy to deal with. If you have a question or query about any aspect (shipping, payment, delivery options and so on), please do not hesitate to contact me, using the contact details provided at the end of this listing.

Prospective international buyers should ensure that they are able to provide credit card details or pay by PayPal within 7 days from the end of the auction (or inform me that they will be sending a cheque in GBP drawn on a major British bank). Thank you.

 
 

(please note that the book shown is for illustrative purposes only and forms no part of this auction)

Book dimensions are given in inches, to the nearest quarter-inch, in the format width x height.

Please note that, to differentiate them from soft-covers and paperbacks, modern hardbacks are still invariably described as being ‘cloth’ when they are, in fact, predominantly bound in paper-covered boards pressed to resemble cloth.

 
 

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  • Condition: A detailed description of this item's current condition is given in the listing below but please do not hesitate to contact me (gm@flamboroughmanor.co.uk) if you require any further information.
  • Non-Fiction Subject: History & Military
  • Binding: Hardback
  • Language: English
  • Place of Publication: London
  • Year Printed: 1930
  • Special Attributes: First Edition
  • Author: Everard Wyrall
  • Publisher: Methuen & Co. Ltd

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