Near the ruins of Hamel there is a little dwarf evergreen which somehow hasn’t been destroyed. A soldier has put a notice on it: ‘Kew Gardens. Please do not touch’.
From a letter from John Masefield. Spring 1917
John Masefield’s Letters from the Front
ed P Vansittart
Constable 1984
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This book is largely the product of other men — those who wrote their accounts of the war, those who wrote Regimental and Divisional Histories, and those who wrote the War Diaries. Like other students of the Great War, I owe them an enormous debt of gratitude, providing the means as they do of making it possible to recall what happened here.
To my friends at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission I am grateful for their help in the section on the cemeteries and for finding particular graves. They have also provided some of the photographic material. I would particularly like to thank Miss Beverly Webb and Mr Jerry Gee, but also to all who help maintain the moving memorials and cemeteries that lie wherever the British or Commonwealth Soldier has fought and died.
On the Somme I have many friends and acquaintances. I would particularly like to thank M et Mme Duthois of the Hotel de la Paix in Albert, for making their hotel such a welcoming base; to Janet and Tom Fairgrieve for their warm greetings — and the coffee — at Delville Wood; to Julie and Mike Renshaw of Les Galets at Beaumont Hamel for a wonderful few days when I was doing the detailed ground work for this book; and to Steve Austin, who has succeeded his father as Superintendant of the Newfoundland Memorial Park.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people of the communes of: Auchonvillers; Beaumont, Beaucourt Gare and Hamel; and of Beaucourt sur Ancre, who accept the invasion of the British pilgrim, visitor and schoolchild with such phlegm and tolerate our wanderings over fields and our occasionally erratic driving. The respect that they show for our war dead and what happened so long ago is a crucial element in the atmosphere of a Somme tour.
I have received much assistance from a wide range of military museums and their curators. I appreciate all that they have done for me on the very limited budgets and resources that they have available to them. Amongst these I would like to thank a number in particular. Firstly to Colonel Scott Elliot and Mr Rod Mackenzie for the wealth of information on the 1/8th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders that they have provided for me. I enjoyed a very productive morning working at Cameron Barracks in Inverness, and my thanks to Colonel Fairrie and his very tolerant staff (especially over the small matter of the photocopier!). For much information on the Trench Raid of 8th June 1918 I would like to thank Major Carroll of the Dorset Military Museum and Brigadier Cubiss of the Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire Museum. The Regimental Museums of the Tanks Corps at Bovington, the Royal Marines at Portsmouth and the Lancashire Fusiliers at Bury were willing to help in any way that they could.
Simon Clough, a pupil here at Ratcliffe, drew the maps for me, despite being in the midst of a busy GCSE year, and was tolerant of my nagging about ‘getting the job done’.
Sue Cox lent me the negative of a precious aerial photograph from the war, and provided an annotated map to go with it. This loan is the product of a friendship created by a mutual interest in the Great War, and not the least enjoyable part of my interest in that conflict has been the opportunity of meeting a great array of fellow enthusiasts who have been free in sharing their expertise and knowledge as well as their convivial company. Mr George Friendship and my father, Colonel TA Cave, spent time reading through various drafts of this effort, and I am grateful to them for spotting errors; any remaining are, of course, entirely my responsibility. I would also like to thank my father for taking me to the Somme in the first place, and confirming an interest which then became an enthusiasm. I am also grateful to him and to Colonel Dick Burge and Dr Graham Keech who were on tour with me in the summer of 1993 and put up with following my needs to prepare for this book for the lion’s share of our trip; thanks go to my brother, Damien, for lending us his Range Rover for the occasion, which enabled us to get to places that other cars cannot reach.
Once more pupils from Ratcliffe were diverted from the essentials of their GCSE tour to pose for photographs for this work; I hope they find their picture in here somewhere.
Finally, my thanks to all at Pen and Sword in Barnsley, in particular to Roni Wilkinson for his work in the design and production of the finished article and for his patience with wayward authors; and to John Bayne for his hospitality when I visit and to Sir Nicholas Hewitt for having the financial courage to publish my efforts.
Beaumont Hamel is a small Picardy village, nestling in between chalk uplands and ridges north of the River Ancre. Apart from a rather rowdy time during the mid-sixteenth century French Wars of Religion, the most exciting thing that had probably happened to it was the overnight stay in its vicinity of Henry V and his rather bedraggled army as it made its way towards its glorious fate at Agincourt in 1415. Five hundred years later it featured prominently in the Somme battlefield. Yet the name does not have quite the same instantaneous evocation as perhaps Delville Wood, High Wood and Flers. The reason is that the fighting here was limited to a few titanic clashes that lasted a day or two — elsewhere on the Somme, the battles for villages and woods went on and on in a seemingly never-ending grinding action. Beaumont Hamel is therefore rather atypical of much of the Somme fighting. Yet it was to this village that I made one of the first stops on arriving in the area for my first time in August 1968, when I was fourteen. The reason? Because one battalion of the forces of the British Empire had suffered such terrible casualties on July 1st; and because that was the only battalion of the (then) Newfoundland Regiment the decision was made by its government to purchase an eighty acre site which included the bulk of the ground over which it attacked. The consequence is that they have left for posterity the finest trench park on the Western Front. When I arrived here on that summer’s evening in 1968 I can remember finding remnants of tin helmets and half rusted away tins of bully beef; there was not another soul (apart from my father) in sight. The hordes come here now; but the park still retains that ability to evoke something of the past, despite the fact that all is peaceful, that sheep graze the trenches, and that the remnants of the soldiers are in the deceptive peace of war cemeteries scattered around the park.
Thus the park is the magnet that draws every first time visitor to the Somme. As time went by, and with more and more visits, I extended my interest outside its artificial boundaries and found more — much more — to interest and to admire and to grieve over. Thus the range of the book has been extended to cover the ground from Redan Ridge to the Ancre, and to give at least a cursory look at some of the villages behind the Front Lines which were home to the opposing armies.
It should be noted that, like my first book in this series, Sanctuary Wood and Hooge, this is not by any means meant to be an inclusive guide. Although the style is similar to that work, the battles here were of such a different character (a few pitched battles and a relatively short period of trench warfare between Briton and German compared to four years of unceasing struggle and action) that it is perforce rather different in content, with rather more factual description of what went on between the opposing forces. There is enough in it, I hope, to give a reasonable explanation as to what was going on — possibly in some cases why it was going on, but I have only been able to cover a few of the incidents and personalities that figured in the history of this place. On the other hand, I hope that it provides enough to give all readers the food for thought that this place, and the intention of the Government of Newfoundland, should provide.
‘Going up to the trenches’. Passing through the village of Hamel in the autumn of 1916.
Taylor Library
ADVICE TO TOURERS
I have talked of guides and other reading in a separate section of this guide.
As regards maps, those in the guide are meant to be sufficient for the purpose of the immediate area. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission produces the standard Michelin map overprinted with details of its cemeteries; this is obtainable from 2, Marlow Road, Maidenhead, Berks SL6 7DX. The best map for navigating from is the 1:100 000 version produced by the IGN (the French equivalent of the Ordnance Survey). You want Number 4 in the Green series, titled Laon and Arras. This is available in most newsagents and bookshops in the area. There are also the Red series 1:50 000 (Bapaume for this area), and the excellent Blue series 1:25 000 (Bapaume West, but Bapaume East would be useful, as Beaumont Hamel is close to the edge of the map) available, but they are a little more difficult to come by.
I talk elsewhere of relics from the Great War. There are plenty of harmless pieces of shrapnel scattered about the place, but please do be warned of the danger from the shells, grenades and mortar bombs that are still found in considerable profusion along the old battle lines. There is no reason to treat them in any more cavalier fashion than one would with a similar find in your garden at home.
There are a number of hotels in the region. I have often stayed at the Hotel de la Paix in Albert; the proprietor is most helpful, and his wife produces an excellent meal at supper. The restaurant is popular with the locals — a sure sign of good food and value for money. There is also the Hotel Basilique in Albert, and both provide good value accommodation. There are more palatial rooms provided at the Hotel de la Paix in Bapaume, and in a large hotel on the outskirts of Rancourt. Finally, there are an increasing number of British owned Bed and Breakfasts in the area: at Ligny Thilloy at 12 Rue d’Arras, Tel 21 59 52 48; at Auchonvillers, just behind the old British Line before the Hawthorn Crater at Les Galets, Tel 22 76 28 79; also in Auchonvillers, in the village itself, Tel 22 76 23 66; and in Mailly Maillet, at La Maison Blanche, 24 Rue Eugene Dupre, Tel 22 76 28 65. I have stayed at the first two named here, and can vouch for the comfort of the rooms, the hospitality of the hosts and the high quality of the meals (dinner is usually available on request).
View from Malins’ position across No Man’s Land and the British positions. Old Beaumont Road is in the centre of the photograph.
A lunchtime drink is often difficult to come by — there are not many cafes in the area. Your best bet would be to go to Albert, to Puisieux, or to an excellent little auberge on the road between Authuille and Aveluy. Should you merely want to buy a coffee and browse through an excellent range of Great War books for sale, then I would suggest you visit the South African Memorial at Delville Wood. There are also tables outside for your French-style picnic of baguette, cheese, ham and tomatoes.
There are two museums within easy access. A new one has been opened in the old Second World War air raid shelters in Albert; the entrance is alongside the famed basilica. The French have opened a most impressive ‘Historial’ in Peronne — it is expensive to gain entry, but is well worthwhile. Amongst other things it reminds us of the French and German armies that fought on the Somme, and of the poor civilians who suffered so much in the dark days of the Great War.
I would recommend comprehensive insurance cover of yourself and your car. Bring all medication that you are likely to need with you. Ensure that your tetanus jab is up to date. Film is expensive on the continent, as are batteries, so ensure that you have all your camera requirements. A small notebook and pen or dictaphone are helpful — very often there are things that you want to note down, or to write details of the photographs that you have taken. A pair of binoculars is also useful. A corkscrew is almost as necessary as strong walking shoes or a pair of Wellingtons.
Finally, bring a sense of awe with you, for this place deserves it.
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
The book is split into chapters which run on more or less chronological lines. The reader has a number of alternatives when using it as a guide. One is to sit somewhere and read the whole thing through in a sitting or sittings before making one’s visit to the battlefield. A relevant map is usually included, where appropriate, in each chapter. References are made to other maps, where necessary, at an appropriate point in the margin.
It might be that the tourer wishes to follow the events at Beaumont Hamel chronologically — in that case simply start at the beginning, visit each area under discussion in turn, and spend a fair amount of your time driving from point to point.
Should you wish to deal with a whole area at a time, then look at Chapter 16 in the section under the walking tour. This has been split up into parts, and I have indicated which chapter is relevant to the ground being covered. There is an element of repetition of viewing instructions — usually each chapter starts by giving details of vantage points, and this is on occasion repeated in the Walking Tour instructions. It seemed, however, to be the best way to ensure that the visitor is best served by the guide.
I would recommend, if you are mobile, that you follow the car tour at the beginning of Chapter 18 to familiarise yourself with the terrain before attempting to follow things on the ground.
There is a section which gives a brief description of the cemeteries and the memorials in the area under discussion in the book.
LIST OF MAPS
1.The Battle of the Somme 1916
2.Beaumont Hamel and the rear areas at time of Great War
3.Beaumont Hamel and neighbourhood to-day
4.Official History Map, attack on Beaumont Hamel, 1 July, 1916
5.Official History Map, attack on Beaumont Hamel 13 Nov, 1916
6.29th Division Front north of Y Ravine
7.29th Division Front south of Y Ravine
8.Attack of the 51st Highland Division, 13 November 13, 1916
9.Trench map—barrage on Beaumont Hamel, 13 November, 1916
10.Dispositions map of 152 Brigade (51st Division) for 13 November attack
11.63rd (Royal Naval) Division attack, 13 November, 1916
12.Trench Raid, 8 June 1918
13.Car tour behind the lines
14.Car tour in the Beaumont Hamel area
15.Walking Tour of the old Front Line from Hunter’s Lane to the valley of the Ancre
