Current Information:

Age-21

14, Frampton Road, Hounslow

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.

After their involvement in the opening stages of the battle, the 2^nd Royal Warwickshire battalion of 22 Brigade, 7th Division were withdrawn on 22nd July and moved back to Yzeux, to the west of Amiens, for two weeks of training and reorganisation. On 12th August they moved forward again, this time to Dernancourt for a further two weeks of training before moving back into the line at Montauban Alley, on 26th August, preparatory to an attack on the village of Ginchy

This attack was carried out as part of the Battle of Guillemont on 3rd September, 1916. Overnight 22 Brigade had relieved 91 Brigade in the front line south of and on the Longueval-Ginchy road but the Germans in Ale Alley and Hop Alley commanded the ground between Waterlot Farm and Ginchy over which the brigade was to attack. At noon 20th Manchester, 1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers, and 2nd Royal Warwickshire began their offensive. 20th Manchester swept forward into the southern part of Ginchy but were then lost to view. 1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers met enfilade fire from Ale Alley and were checked and an attempt to take Hop Alley and Beer Trench over the open came to grief except for a small lodgement in the southern end of Beer Trench. The right hand company of 1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers got into the northern part of Ginchy but nothing was heard from them again. The supporting company met increasing fire but managed to pass a few men into the orchards north-west of the village where they were joined by parties of 2nd Royal Warwickshire. At 3.50pm 20th Manchester reached the enclosures on the far side  of Ginchy and began consolidating under machine-gun fire. The enemy still in the northern part of Ginchy, began working round their left flank and launched a counter attack which forced the survivors, including most of the two support companies of 2nd Royal Warwickshire, back to Porter Trench. One party of 2nd Royal Warwickshire held on near the sunken part of the Guillemont road where, later in the afternoon it beat off a determined counter attack. At 5pm, the 2nd Royal Irish were sent forward from reserve but nothing was gained by their two attempts to reach Hop Alley over the open. The other two companies lost heavily before reaching Stout and Porter Trenches where they joined up with parties of 2nd Royal Warwickshire and 20th Manchester but they got no further. All the while there was a heavy and accurate artillery bombardment of the British trenches and there was much confusion in 7th Division HQ with little info trickling back. The operation against Ginchy had not been a success and very little ground had been gained. 22 Brigade, were relieved that evening by units from 91 Brigade, after suffering many casualties including Albert Barnes of 2nd Royal Warwickshire.