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Description: | British NCO served with 1/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt in GB and on Western Front, 1914-1915; served as officer with 2/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt on Western Front, 1916-1917; POW in Germany, 1917-1918
REEL 1: Background in Bristol, 1895-1914: family; education; employment in sugar refinery; memory of relief of Mafeking, 1900; memory of visit to Bristol by Queen Victoria; reaction to outbreak of war, 8/1914; story of refusing uncle's offer of commission in 1/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt; reason for enlistment as private in 1/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt, 9/1914; reaction of parents; attitude to length of war. Aspects of training with 1/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt in GB, 1914-1915: opinion of uniform and boots; question of being billeted at home and reporting daily to Drill Hall; attitude to military life and discipline; question of uncle's position as Colonel of 1/4th Bn; posted to Danebury, Essex for further training; description of billets and accommodation; opinion of sleeping arrangements and food; story of adjutant; rifle training; problem of lack of ammunition and bombs; use of jam tins as bombs; bayonet practise; drill.
REEL 2 Continues: memory of being read Army Act prior to overseas service and nature of penalties; opinion of BEF boots; care of kit and uniform; question of relations between officers and other ranks and question of competency of officers; attitude to conscientious objectors; question of role of Territorial Army; description of journey to France, 3/1915. Recollections of operations with 1/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt on Western Front, 1915-1916: story of night march and memory of sleeping on barbed wire; posted up to the line and question of inexperience in trench warfare; problem of lack of ammunition; daily routine and lack of activity; description of trenches in Armentieres area; line inspections; opinion of rations; problem of shaving; comparison of rations for officers and other ranks; story of wearing full kit and carrying heavy loads in trenches; memory of collecting remains of friend killed by shell; description of conditions around Hill 60; role in consolidation of positions following Battle of Loos, 1915; problem of digging in clay soil.
REEL 3 continues: sanitary conditions in Armentieres area; problem of flies in hot weather; amusing story of latrine on Somme; question of unnecessary artillery fire and retaliation; story of being commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant; story of home leave and obtaining officer's uniform; reaction to being handed white feather; story of course in map reading and question of accuracy of maps; training as musketry instructor on Salisbury Plain, 9/1915; attitude to role as officer; recreational activities including playing bridge. Recollections of operations as officer with 2/4th Bn Gloucestershire Regt on Western Front, 1916-1917: story of return to France and arrival in camp at Rouen; story of escorting men to camp at Etaples; description of use of Mills bombs; description of role on night patrols in No Man's Land.
REEL 4 Continues: story of night patrols on Somme and problem of flares; question of fear; methods of cutting German barbed wire; description of terrain in Somme area, 10/1916; story of using compass bearings to locate positions in dark; story of attending Company Commander's course; memory of death of close friend at Passchendaele; problem of using American ammunition; question of French control of No Man's Land; description of advance to Hindenburg Line, 11/1917; problem of booby traps; story of night operation and problem of sleeping.
REEL 5 Continues: description of role in attack at Fresnoy-le-Petit, 11/1917; problem of German machine gun fire and trees used as barricades; question of exhaustion and lack of sleep; story of being awarded Military Cross for role in action; attitude to award of medals. Aspects of period as POW in Germany, 1917-1918: description of being captured at Cambrai, 1917; memory of tanks; question of 2/4th Bn being under strength; reaction to being taken prisoner; attitude of Germans to prisoners; description of interrogation; moved to camp on Rhine for French and British officers; description of living conditions; opinion of food and problem of shortages; question of Germans locating POW camps near bombing targets; moved to Saarlouis camp and description of living conditions, 1918; question of Red Cross inspections; opinion of organisation of camp and attitude of guards to prisoners; description of accommodation and sleeping arrangements; daily drill and inspections; opinion of food and importance of Red Cross parcels; question of camp money and pay; problem of boredom and setting up of educational classes; popularity of German classes for potential escapers; story of learning to play flute and playing in camp orchestra; question of following progress of war; role in escape attempts and story of dummy in bed.
REEL 6 Continues: further comments on dummy in escape plan; discovery of tunnel made by prisoners; story of failed attempt to escape by impersonating Germans; nature of punishments for attempting to escape; recreational activities including camp theatre and playing bridge; question of parole system and going for walks in countryside; moved to camp in Coblenz and description of conditions, summer 1918; question of breakdown of military discipline in German Army and lack of guards; memory of celebrating Armistice, 11/ 1918; use of soap and cigarettes as currency; memory of German troops returning. Aspects of post-war life: story of journey to GB; problem of weight loss and difficulty eating after captivity; story of being reported killed; problem of jaundice and depression following end of war; story of carrying Regimental Colours in Peace Parade; reflections on period of military service; attitude to Germans; question of relations with German guards in POW camp; attitude to role as soldier and reflections on nature of war. | Publisher: | http://www.iwm.org.uk | Source: | Imperial War Museum | Creator: | Smith, Lyn E | Identifier: | http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/o... | Go to resource |
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recording
British private served as signaller…
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