Current Information:

Age-20

61, Howbury Road, Nunhead

St Souplet British Cemetery, France

The German offensive of 21st March, 1918

With an end to the fighting on the Eastern Front after the Russian Revolution, Germany was able to bring its troops from there to France and launch a series of offensives in the Spring of 1918, designed to bring the war to a swift conclusion. Four times between March and July they attacked in strength and on each occasion they broke through the British and French lines and made spectacular gains but in each case they over extended themselves and without adequate supplies keeping up with their rapid advances, they could go no further.

The first of these attacks, Operation Michael, was made on 21st March by 63 specially trained divisions, attacking along a 60 mile front held by 26 British divisions, many of them in a weakened state At 4.40am the German artillery opened up with the most ferocious and concentrated bombardment of the war, the likes of which the British had never experienced before. The Forward Zone, consisting mainly of individual posts was blown away. Very few of the men there made it back. Many were killed and many more were taken prisoner. The Battle Zone was also battered as were the British guns, firing from positions just to the rear. Brigade and Divisional HQs were targeted as well and then, from out of the thick mist came the German storm troopers. Moving fast, they skirted round the few remaining strongholds and penetrated deep into the British lines, including those of the Battle Zone, causing the utmost confusion. There were many cases of heroic stands being made but the relentless pressure forced the British back everywhere and there then began a general retreat that went on for two weeks and which ceded to the Germans a huge amount of territory, including all of that that had been won at such great cost during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

On 21st March, 14th Division were in the line a few miles south of St. Quentin. 42 Brigade was in the centre of the divisional line with 9th King’s Royal Rifle Corps in the Forward Zone in the Urvillers Wood sector, both sides of the St Quentin-Venduille road. The ferocity of the bombardment of their positions which commenced at 4.40 am and which included a high percentage of gas shells, immediately broke all communications to the rear and the thick fog made signalling impossible. When, at 9.30 am, the German infantry moved forward those of A and C Companies who had survived the shelling were killed or captured and only a few of B Company managed to escape. Nevertheless, some of the battalion’s forward positions, notably ‘Funny’, ‘Frosty’ and Excellent posts, held on until at least 11 am and in some cases through to the afternoon. D Company in reserve in Lambay Switch saw no sign of the enemy until 11.30 am but then German storm troopers appeared in the Bois de Lambay and began crossing the Lambay-Urvillers ridge. D Company now found themselves outnumbered and surrounded and they suffered the same fate as the other companies. Very few of the battalion made it back to Brigade HQ in the rear of the Battle Zone. Among the many casualties sustained by 9th King’s Royal Rifle Corps during the course of the day was Edwin Side.