Two sections of the 83rd Field Company R.E. were resting after night work north of Lateau Wood when the attack began, and became involved in the fighting between Lateau Wood and La Vacquerie. Their bivouacs were completely outflanked and they lost 2 officers and 22 men. The rest of the company manned a trench in front of Villers Plouich.
The 84th Field Company, under Major P. G. Norman, was south of Marcoing, and under orders of the 61st Brigade took up a position on Welsh Ridge, 2000 yards south of the village. As he could see parties of the enemy to the east and large numbers advancing down the slope of Bonavis Ridge, Major Norman sent reinforcements to the D.C.L.I. and to an important trench on the right, where they met the two sections of the 83rd Field Company. Then, as both the brigade major and the staff captain of the 61st Brigade had become casualties, Major Norman took over the duties of brigade major. Two sections of the company were sent later to reinforce the K.O.Y.L.I., under whose orders they remained until the brigade was relieved.
Two companies of the 11th D.L.I. took part in the fighting on this flank. “D” Company was on Welsh Ridge. On seeing the troops retiring Capt. Pemberton in command took up a position facing north-east and later advanced to reinforce the front line. At 5.30 P.M. this company was ordered to gain touch with the 7th K.O.Y.L.I. “B” Company, under Capt. Jee, returning from work near Les Rues des Vignes, occupied a line on the north end of Welsh Ridge to bar the Marcoing valley, and during the afternoon joined “D” company further to the right.
The A.D.S. near Les Rues Vertes was kept open until the enemy came within a few hundred yards. Capt. Edmond, 60th Field Ambulance, who was in charge of the dressing station, then withdrew his bearers, but finding a man dangerously wounded he ran back under heavy fire to get a stretcher, and with the help of Private Barker, carried back the wounded man for 6000 yards. Later he went forward again under severe shell fire to attend to other casualties and then was unfortunately killed by a fragment of shell.
A bearer party of the 61st Field Ambulance with a party of infantry fell into the enemy’s hands near Masnières. An officer broke away, collected some 20 men and fought for two days while the bearers, often at great risk, collected and treated the wounded. On the second night the few remaining men of the infantry party and the bearers returned to their own lines, bringing the wounded with them. The M.C. was awarded to Captain Rogerson, temporarily commanding the 61st Field Ambulance, for his excellent organisation, and to the bearer officer, Captain Jones.
At an early stage in the battle the situation of the artillery in the La Vacquerie valley became critical. The 92nd Brigade, in a fold of the ground on the slope of Bonavis Ridge, remained in action after the infantry had retired through the guns and drove back four attacks, firing at a range of 200 yards. Finally, with the enemy close in front and on both flanks, the gunners were overcome and the survivors were compelled to remove the sights and as many of the breech-blocks as possible and to withdraw. Part of the waggon lines of this Brigade, 2000 yards east of Fins, had been captured, but the rest got away with some loss, and the brigade collected at Metz-en-Couture.
The 91st Brigade was about a thousand yards in rear of the 92nd. When information was received that the enemy was advancing and had taken the valley in which the 92nd had been in action, Lieut.-Colonel Erskine turned all guns on to the spur just beyond this valley in order to prevent reinforcements coming up and to give room for a counter attack, sending officers forward to the crest just in front of the batteries. No counter attack, however, was possible with the few troops who were left. The trench which had formed the headquarters of the 61st Brigade and 91st Field Artillery Brigade was a short distance to the left front of the 91st battery positions. When the enemy had captured the 92nd Field Artillery Brigade and had advanced to a few hundred yards of Brigade Headquarters, Brig.-General Duncan moved his headquarters to a ravine north-east of Villers Plouich, the headquarters of the 91st Field Artillery Brigade joining the batteries in action.
Throughout the rest of the day the men continued to serve the guns with great coolness and gallantry under heavy fire and repeated aeroplane attacks, although the Germans were only a few hundred yards in front and completely overlooked the flank from the Bonavis Ridge. The steady fire of this brigade played no small part in checking the advance and in enabling the infantry to hold on.
The 11th R.B., the reserve battalion of the 59th Brigade, moved forward at 8.50 A.M. with the object of occupying a line below the north-east slope of Welsh Ridge. It soon became evident, however, that the enemy had broken through on the front of the 20th Division. Major Morgan Owen, who was in command of the battalion on this day, therefore decided that the two most pressing duties were to endeavour to save the guns and to take up a defensive position and gain touch with the troops on each flank. A position in front of the guns of the 92nd Brigade was then impossible. The line chosen crossed the La Vacquerie valley about 1500 yards from the village, and followed the south-east slope of Welsh Ridge. A platoon of “C” Company, under 2nd Lieut. Crawford, drove the enemy back from a wireless station on the lower slopes of the ridge so that some secret papers might be removed and the destruction of the apparatus completed. This platoon, with some forty artillerymen, then took up a position commanding the dismantled guns of the 92nd Brigade. Half “B” Company was sent up as a reinforcement and the guns were temporarily retaken, enabling the artillery to remove the remaining breech-blocks, but heavy shelling and an encircling movement of the enemy afterwards compelled this party to withdraw. 2nd Lieut. Crawford was awarded the D.S.O. The battalion, with both flanks in the air, repulsed four attacks before the remains of the other three battalions of the brigade fell back on to this line.
At 6 P.M. Lieut.-Col. Priaulx, commanding the 11th K.R.R.C., was placed in command of the battalions of the 59th Brigade.