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Age-36

35, Lesly Street, Barnsbury

First Battle of Ypres

Between 21st October and 22nd November, 1914 a desperate fight took place around the Belgium city of Ypres, the first of three major battles that were to be fought there during the course of the war. British troops entered Ypres in October. The 1st and 2nd Divisions plus the 3rd Cavalry Division had made their way up from the Aisne as part of the “Race to the Sea”, whilst the 7th Division came west to Ypres after Antwerp had fallen. The Germans knew that Ypres was the gateway to the Channel ports and that these were vital to Britain’s war effort so they poured reinforcements into the area. The fighting fell into three distinct battles; the Battle of Langemarck, 21-24 October, the Battle of Gheluvelt, 29-31 October and the Battle of Nonne Bosschen, 11 November. Ypres did not fall to the Germans but its defence during these two months resulted in the destruction of much of the old regular British Army.

Although the Battle of Gheluvelt ended on the 31st October, there was still some bitter fighting over the next few days for those British soldiers who held the line in the Ypres salient as the Germans continued to attack. On 2nd  November, the day on which Charles Morgan was killed, there was a German attack against the 1st Northamptonshire battalion of 2 Brigade, 1st Division still in positions near Gheluvelt, and at 10.30 am their left hand company was shelled out of its trenches and the battalion was withdrawn to the shelter of woods where a company of 2nd Sussex was brought up to support it. At 1 pm the Germans tried to push through the gap left by 1st Northamptonshire but were stopped by the fire of 2nd Border and 1st Northamptonshire themselves, who waited for them to come near before opening up.  They were then driven off by a counter attack by 2nd Sussex and 2nd Worcestershire.