[66] The arrival of the Meerut Division on 29th October allowed some of the most exhausted units of the II Corps to be relieved on the front east of Festubert, south-east of Richebourg St. Vaast, west of Neuve Chapelle, but these battalions were not destined to enjoy a very long spell of rest.
[67] The ‘reinforcements’ which the Allies had received on 29th-30th October were not even sufficient to redress the balance against them. (See [footnote 66].)
[68] The troops holding Gheluvelt consisted of two battalions of the 3rd Infantry Brigade, with portions of two of the 2nd Infantry Brigade, at most 2000 men. Against these the Germans by their own account put in about eight battalions.
[69] It would not be gathered from this account that the British artillery had, as was the case, already been severely restricted as to ammunition expenditure.
[70] The statement that ‘many attacks had to be delivered against fresh troops in good sheltered entrenchments’ is almost ludicrous in its travesty of the facts.
[71] It was not in ‘long colonial wars’ but in careful training on the ranges that the majority of the defenders of Ypres had learnt that mastery of the rifle which was the mainstay of the success of the defence. Between the close of the South African War (1902) and the outbreak of war in 1914, scarcely any British troops had been on active service.
[72] The position west of Reutel was maintained intact on 31st October, the right of the 2nd Division and left of the 1st Division holding on successfully even after the centre of the 1st Division had been pierced at Gheluvelt.
[73] The picture of the great profusion of machine-guns in the British possession is a little dimmed by the recollection that the war establishments allowed two machine-guns per infantry battalion, that by 31st October there had been no time to produce enough machine-guns to increase the establishment; indeed, most battalions had already one or both their guns put out of action. The Germans clearly took for machine-gun fire the rapid fire which the infantry of the original Expeditionary Force could maintain.
[74] The capture of Gheluvelt was earlier than 3 p.m. by at least an hour, 1 or 1.30 p.m. seems more like the correct time. The ‘château and park,’ north of Gheluvelt, were held by the 1st South Wales Borderers, who maintained their ground, although their right was left in the air by the loss of the village, until the 2nd Worcesters came up and delivered their celebrated counter-attack past the right of the S.W.B. This apparently occurred about 2 p.m. The German account is, however, accurate in saying that Gheluvelt was not retaken; what the Worcesters did was that they completely checked the German efforts to push forward; the position their counter-attack reached enabled them to flank any advance west of Gheluvelt.
[75] The German claim to have captured three guns does not seem founded on fact: one gun of the 117th Field Battery was lost, but was subsequently retaken.