ON THE HEELS OF THE ENEMY.[ToC]
The taking of Savy—casualties—patrolling—capture of Fayet—congratulatory messages—strenuous days—Canizy—competitions with the French—work and sport—Hangard—leaving the Fourth Army—Farewell message from General Rawlinson.
The Battalion moved off from Germaine at midnight on April 1st, 1917, and proceeded by Companies at 200 yard intervals cross country to Fluquieres. Arriving there they passed through the village, a pile of smouldering ruins, and on the main St. Quentin road and about half a mile along it they reached Roupy with its destroyed cross-roads and proceeded towards a point near Savy where the Battalion deployed, and attacking at 5 a.m. moved forward, overcame the opposition and took Savy. In the village the Bosche put up a desperate stand and some fierce fighting took place before they were pushed beyond the railway bank north of the village. Most of the fighting took place in the neighbourhood of an orchard at the southern end of the village, and here the 11th Border Regiment joined forces in helping to drive out the stubborn enemy. Once through the village serious destruction was caused by heavy machine gun fire from an enemy strong point in a mine crater. With the aid of two Lewis guns, the crater was soon in the hands of the 17th and a heavy fire directed on the retreating enemy. Thereafter the Battalion started to dig in (about 6.30 a.m.), and soon consolidated their gains, although subject to strong artillery, machine gun and sniping fire. In the afternoon a further attack was made by the 96th Brigade, and before evening Bois-de-Savy was in their hands. The Battalion was relieved in the evening and moved off to take up quarters in dug-outs on the Fluquieres-Douchy Road, but the place had been so badly knocked about that a large portion of the unit bivouacked.
The total casualties in this day's fighting was 103, 31 of whom were killed. During the following week the Battalion suffered from the severe winter conditions, coupled with incessant shelling and had much to do strengthening their positions. On the 9th some magnificent patrolling was done, for which the Battalion was deservedly congratulated. In the afternoon of that day four patrols set out to gain information of Fayet and the ground between Francilly and St. Quentin. One patrol went to the ridge overlooking St. Quentin, one went into a German trench near Fayet, one went within 300 yards of Fayet, and the fourth reconnoitred the southern approaches of the village—and much valuable information was accordingly gained.
On the 12th April, Major Lumsden, V.C., D.S.O., who was in temporary command of the Battalion, relinquished that post, to take up duty as Brigadier-General of the 14th Infantry Brigade—which this very distinguished officer commanded until he was killed—and Captain Morton assumed command of the Battalion, with Captain Paterson, M.C., as second in command.
While at Holnon on the 13th, "C" and "D" Companies were sent forward in support of the 2nd K.O.Y.L.I., who were attacking Fayet. This attack was carried out in conjunction with one being made by the French, who were endeavouring to take St. Quentin. "B" Company joined the others in the front line, and later the Battalion took over a sector of the front line. After consolidating here, congratulatory messages were received from Brigadier-General Blacklock, General Shute and General Rawlinson.
The road from Nesle to St. Quentin is a long and cruel one, but in these early days of 1917, it was to the 17th H.L.I. the pathway to glory. They were sweeping onwards in the track of the retreating enemy, with the glow of victory to strengthen their hearts and the blessings of a delivered people in their ears. The echoing trumpets of romance called to them from the Cathedral City, and their blood stirred to the call. These were the impressions that led them, in common with the rest of the Division, to surmount appalling obstacles, natural and devilish. They soaked in the snow, and froze in the keen blast; they starved and toiled on the way, but "stuck it," and their reward was the fall of Savy village. There was fighting all along the 50 mile front just then, and Savy did not loom very large in the chronicles of the time, but those who took part in its capture, and in the taking of the wood a mile beyond, knew that they had achieved the heroic. There was no resting; Francilly and Holnon were the next to fall, and the men were within sight of the spires of St. Quentin. They lived for some days in earth holes, and the weather flayed them unmercifully. Then one dark morning, the 13th of April, they assembled silently and lay down in the field, whilst dawn broke with singing of birds, and the shriek and whistle of the barrage. The Division was attacking Fayet, the enemy's last stronghold beyond the city. Before they went over, grey and green coated figures were being brought down. There were many other grey and green figures grotesquely contorted in the brown ribbed fields, and those of them who had escaped from the inferno fought it out intermittently, in the woods beyond the village. But their sniping was braved for a few days more, and then one night they staggered weakly back through nightmare villages to Germaine for rest.
After resting at Germaine the Battalion set off on the 19th for Canizy which was reached by evening. They found this village emptied of the native populace and saw that the Germans had been carrying out their usual work of destruction in the same wanton and deliberate scale as in nearly every village in the regained area. A more cheerful memory of this devastated village is that while here the Battalion got its new bugle band. While stationed there the Battalion marched over to Ham where a football match was to be played. Their march into the town caused great interest, and they passed through a long line of French soldiers and civilians who lined the roads. On their approach along the main street, the square seemed totally blocked with a mass of French soldiers, and a company of infantry stood at the "present" as a Guard of Honour as they marched past the Town Hall, while the French band rendered our National Anthem. After the Battalion team had won their match by 6 goals to 1 against the 121st Infantry Regiment and a scratch team had played a drawn game against the 408th Regiment, the French band played the men out of the village. But the French were not allowed to have all their own way of it with the music, for the Battalion Pipe Band played to them and was received with much favour.
The regiment was in highest spirits, battle scarred and with a glorious record of great achievements established. The Battalion remained at rest in the village of Canizy until May 15th—that is, they trained hard and played hard, went marches and were inspected, performed innumerable fatigues and parades and carried out generally that never ending programme of activities which always makes a soldier smile at the mention of the word "rest!" The men played some of their keenest and most memorable games of soccer here, and one of the principle pastimes engaged in by the officers was hunting, until this was forbidden by G.H.Q. The country, being entirely uncultivated made ideal going. Major Campbell, in charge of Physical Training, G.H.Q., was with the 17th for some time, and put extra life into sport and training.
On the 15th the Battalion moved off to Curchy, via Voyennes and Nesle, and on the succeeding day to Rosieres and so on to Hangard on the 18th, where the "resting" was carried on until the end of the month, when they proceeded to Villers-Bretonneux. Of the villages in the regained area little or no description in the normal sense is possible beyond the fact that while some semblance of streets could be traced in some of them, the majority of them were simply masses of masonry debris literally peppered with shell craters. But it was noticeable in such villages as Nesle that the civilians showed a very marked physical improvement as the result of better feeding and life under British occupation. While at Hangard, Battalion Headquarters occupied Hangard Chateau—one of the finest chateaux in France. (It was demolished during the 1918 German offensive.) The Brigade concentrated at Villers-Bretonneux prior to entraining for the Second Army.