Current Information:

Age-28

64, Prout Road, Upper Clapton

The Battle of the Aisne 13th September -28 September

After the Germans were defeated on the Marne they fell back to the River Aisne, closely pursued by both the British and the French. The new German line was a very formidable defensive position. To attack it  meant  having to cross the Aisne and then climb up a 500 foot high ridge on top of which was the Chemin des Dames, a road that gave the Germans an easy way to move troops along the top of the hills. On 13th September the Aisne was crossed by both British and French troops but after that progress became slower, until there was no progress at all. Both sides dug in and the fighting settled down into trench warfare. The fighting on the Aisne continued for two weeks at the end of which both sides realised that frontal attacks on entrenched positions were both costly and non-productive, not that this deterred them from continuing with this tactic throughout the war.

The 2nd Highland Light Infantry battalion of 5 Brigade, 2nd Division crossed the Aisne near Bourg on 13th September and on the following day were involved in halting a strong enemy counter-attack after which they advanced up the eastern slopes of the Beaulne spur and dug in. They remained here until  1pm on 17th September when they were relieved and moved back to billets at Verneuil.  While in these positions they came under persistent and often heavy shell fire, specially on 15th September when they suffered fifty casualties. All their casualties, including Charles Jepps who was killed in action, are recorded as 17th September but it is probable that this was when they were written up, after the battalion had been relieved and as the Battalion Diary makes no mention of any casualties on the 17th September it is more likely that he was killed on 15th September.