The history of the Twentieth (Light) Division

by Valentine Erskine Inglefield

During the morning of the 25th, while the right of the line between Buverchy and Quicquery stood firm, the left was continually outflanked and was gradually pressed back.

Soon after dawn on the 25th the Germans, attacking down the Mesnil—Nesle road, drove in the front line at this point. Later they got round the flank, and these troops were forced to fall back to a line south of Nesle, where the Lewis gunners of the 11th R.B. did excellent work and captured three German machine guns.

The Scottish Rifles on the right of the 59th Brigade found the enemy working round their left early in the morning, and formed a defensive flank with “A” Company, under 2nd Lieut. H. Grant. About 11 A.M. the French mitrailleuse company came up, and firing over the heads of the infantry on to the Nesle road, gave invaluable help. By mid-day “A” Company, after a very gallant fight, was driven back to a sunken road which ran at a distance of 150 yards behind the front line, and the whole battalion came under intense machine-gun fire from the left flank. The Nesle road was swarming with Germans, who by 2 P.M. were firing straight down the sunken road, making the position untenable. The only way of escape lay along a marshy stream with thickly wooded banks, which ran through the line towards Nesle. By this way small parties were sent back, and by 2.30 P.M. the last man was out of the sunken road. Many were caught by shell and machine-gun fire on their way, and most of those who survived appear to have gone into Nesle, where they must have fallen into the hands of the enemy. After making a fine stand, only 7 officers and 55 men got back to the brigade.

The line of the 59th Brigade then ran from Quicquery back to the high ground north of Billancourt.

At Quicquery the 12th R.B. beat off a determined attack, and on the whole front south of this the troops of the 60th Brigade held their line with very little artillery support and under fire from German field guns which had been brought up close to the front line. Once more, however, they were left with their right flank in the air, for by 6 o’clock the 30th Division was back at Moyencourt. At the same time the outflanking movement on the left of the 59th Brigade became more dangerous, and the two brigades were therefore ordered to retire to the line Cressy (two miles north-west of Ercheu)—Billancourt—Réthonvillers.

Just as the 12th K.R.R.C. were moving out of their position the enemy broke across the canal, led by an officer dressed in British uniform, who called on the K.R.R.C. to halt. The officer was bayoneted at once, but his men pushed on and captured the battalion headquarters. On the whole of the 60th Brigade front, in spite of a good deal of fighting, the retirement was successfully carried out. Divisional Headquarters moved at 9.45 P.M. to Roye.

The 92nd Field Artillery Brigade had been fighting meanwhile with the 30th Division, coming under the orders of the 20th only for a short time on the 23rd of March. At 11 A.M. on that day the brigade marched south to positions of observation to cover the crossings at Libermont and at Ramecourt, a mile and a half further north. Between 3 and 4 P.M. it was decided that guns were wanted just north of Esmery Hallon, so four 18-pdrs. and four howitzers, from A/92 and D/92 Batteries respectively, were pushed forward. By the time these had come into action it was getting dark, and, beyond the fact that the enemy was shelling Esmery Hallon, the situation was obscure. It was a bad bit of country, low-lying, marshy, and full of irrigation cuts, and observation was made difficult by small scattered osier beds.

The early morning of the 24th was misty. Under cover of darkness the enemy had worked his way almost up to the rising ground immediately east of Esmery Hallon and on the flank of the guns. With the enemy established on this vantage point, the guns would be cut off. Fortunately Lieut. Patten, M.C., who had been sent to warn the batteries of the situation, fell in with the limbers already on their way up, and pushing on at the gallop succeeded in withdrawing the guns under the nose of the enemy.

The guns then crossed the canal and took up their former positions. By this time Esmery Hallon was partially enveloped by the enemy, whose infantry, just north of the village, was engaged by C/92. The French, who had come up during the night, were making a gallant stand opposite the western exits of the village. In order to help them the 92nd Field Artillery Brigade maintained constant fire throughout the day, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy. Further south the situation was somewhat quieter; Libermont had been occupied by the French and liaison had been established between them and B/92 and D/92 Batteries. At the request of the battalion commander in Libermont these two batteries searched and swept the Bois de l’Hôpital. This wood, lying east and south of Libermont and extending right up to the canal, hid all the movements of the enemy at this point. By dawn on the 25th the enemy had drawn up to the bridge-heads, but all attacks that morning were beaten off with heavy loss. The French had no guns east of Ognolles (one mile south-west of Ercheu), so the 92nd Brigade found itself responsible for the immediate support of the French infantry. B/92 and D/92 were in and near Ercheu, covering Libermont and the crossings in its neighbourhood; A/92 and C/92 were further north, covering the bridge at Ramecourt and the roads from Esmery Hallon. These two latter batteries accounted for a large number of the enemy, who in this area was forced to attack down an exposed slope. Opposite Libermont the problem was very different. It had become increasingly evident that there was no defensive line on the right, where officers’ patrols had failed to gain touch with anybody except scattered parties of French infantry. It was also reported that the enemy was working his way through the Bois de l’Hôpital. At 12.30 P.M. the enemy was known to be across the canal south-west of Libermont.

At 1 P.M. French infantry began to take up an outpost line south-west of Ercheu, and to dig in along the railway further to the rear, in front of Ognolles.