Current Information:

Age-21

6, Sussex Place, Hyde Park

Vailly British Cemetery, France

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.

On 13th September the 11th Field Company of the Royal Engineers, part of 2nd Division, left Courcelles and moved to Pont-Arcy on the Aisne to repair the bridge there which had a hole in it where the enemy had tried but failed to blow it up. This work continued on the 14th September and that afternoon, while an artillery unit was crossing the repaired bridge, it was heavily shelled. Two of the engineers, one of whom was Godfrey Miller were killed and another ten were wounded.