Current Information:

Age-21

40A, Wallbutton Road, Brockley

The Battle of the Somme (July-November, 1916)

By the beginning of September, 1916,  the Battle of the Somme had been raging for two months. Thousands of men had already been killed or wounded or were simply missing, never to be seen again and and just a few square miles of the French countryside, all in the southern part of the battlefield, had been captured from the enemy. Mistakes had been made by the various commanders and would be continued to be made but there was no turning back as the British, Australians, South Africans, New Zealanders and Canadians carried on battering away at the German defences in the hope of a breakthrough, So it continued all the way through to November with nearly every battalion and division then in France being drawn into it at some stage. In the end the German trenches had been pushed back a few more miles along most of the line but the cost in lives had been staggering. By the end of the fighting in November, 1916, British Army casualties numbered over 400,000, killed, wounded and missing.

24th Division arrived on the Somme at the end of July, 1916 and were involved in heavy fighting in front of the village of Guillemont in mid-August, before moving to Delville Wood at the end of the month. During the night of 30th August, it took 8th Royal West Kent of 72 Brigade, eleven hours to cover the one mile from their assembly trenches to the front line in Delville Wood in the pouring rain, one of their most trying experiences during the war, the Regimental history records. Their first full day in the trenches, 31st August, 1916, coincided with the enemy’s last and most determined attempt to win back lost ground in the wood. A fierce artillery bombardment of their positions lasted all morning and then at 1pm the German infantry attacked. A stout defence was made by all the units involved but with subsequent attacks launched at 2pm and 7.30pm, 8th Royal West Kent were forced to withdraw their right to Inner Trench, allowing the enemy to seize a strongpoint in Cocoa Lane. The following day, 1st September these losses were regained in a counter attack and 8th Royal West Kent were relieved the next night but not before more names had been added to the casualty list, including that of Charles Early who was probably killed during the relief that night.