Bitter hand to hand fighting at Neuve Chapelle 1915

 

Another one of those Englishmen who became completely devoted to their Irish soldiers was Lieutenant Guy Nightingale. He had served with the
first Battalion Royal Munster Fusiliers, since before
the war and wrote to his family his now oft - quoted
comment
" I would sooner be in an Irish regiment with Irish soldiers behind me in a scrap than any English or Scotch unit they would like to produce"

The share of this Battalion in the campaign on the Western Front is in many respects unique. Landing with the Expeditionary Force, it was never out of earshot of the front line during the fifty - one months the war lasted. Thirteen times in the campaign it went into battle up to full strength, or nearly so ( +/- 1000 ); ten times it came out of action with less than 6 officers and 300 men all ranks. " On five occasions it was surrounded by the enemy and cut off from all support; On four of these it cut its way through and joined up again; on the fifth it engaged an entire Army Corps of the enemy for over twelve hours. On seven different occasions it captured the objectives of adjacent units , as well as its own. ( H.S. Jarvis, The 2nd RMF in France 1922)

The Battalion had been stationed at Aldershot, England since 1912 having been previously stationed in Ireland.It was part of the 1st Army Brigade of the British 1st Division, and provided mainly their best trained men for the 1st Battalion RMF, a situation they were not happy with. At the outbreak of the war it was under strength, reservists travelling from the regimental depots at Tralee and Fermoy amid much local cheering, 485 out of 703, to join the battalion at Aldershot bringing it up to a strength of 27 officers and 971 other ranks for its departure to france on the 13th August .

The Germans were pushing their advance when on the 27th August the 2nd RMF was chosen for the arduous task of forming the

rearguard to cover the retreat of the 1st Division during the Battle of Mons. The Munsters were directed to hold on to their position until ordered or forced to retire. By noon the road to Etreux was reported clear of all transport and a little later General Maxse despatched orders to retire to all units of the rearguard. this message failed to reach Major Paul Charrier and his Munsters, and by late afternoon the battalion was cut off. Charrier then went forward to organize an attack on the enemy holding the outskirts of the village, his gigantic figure made conspicuous by the green and white hackle of the Munsters he always wore in his khaki coloured helmet. Captain H.S Jervis, a company commander in the battalion was captured by the Germans and while a prisoner of war wrote to Mrs Charrier a graphic first hand account of the heroic action of both her husband and the Munsters...

 

 

  The Munster Fusiliers held off 'nine'German Battalions for 12 hours saving Haig's 1 Corps

  Major Paul Charrier

"Eventually the Germans cut us off completely, the key to their position being a loopholed house. The major personally led two charges in a magnificent attempt to capture this. In the first of these he was wounded, but insisted upon retaining command cheering us on. Shortly afterwards he was wounded again....He heroically continued ..till after sunset ...still leading and setting an example to all, he was shot a third timeand mortally. He fell in the road "

After Charrier's death the heroic action of the Munsters, surrounded as they were by a ring of fire, was continued by old soldiers like regimental Sergeant major P. Cullinan ' the third most senior warrant officer in the army ' who fell wounded. After Captain C.R Hall was wounded leading a bayonet charge, command of the battalion remnant fell to Lieutenant E.W Gower who continued resistance from the orchard near the main road where a last stand was made with ammunition taken from the dead. By around 9.15pm he had to surrender with some 240 men, including many wounded and four unwounded officers; the Royal Field Artillery also lost heavily. After the battle it was discovered that Charrier's small force had been fighting nine German battalions for nearly twelve hours and by their resistance and sacrifice had been responsible for the safe withdrawl of Haig's 1st Corps. The Germans acknowledged this gallant resistance of so few against so many, albeit with annoyance when actual numbers became known; no less than 1,500 German wounded were assembled in Etreux the next day. Munster prisoners of war were allowed by the Germans to collect and bury their dead. Major Charrier was found ' lying as he had fallen, head towards the enemy' When the scattered battalion reassembled on the 29th August it was down to a disastrous 5 officers and 196 other ranks. These were withdrawn seeing action most notably at Langemarck, Belgium on the 22nd October. By the 5th November, recruits from home brought its strength up to 800 men.

The Battalion next saw action at near Zillebeke, Belgium on the 12th November and helped to defend against the last great german effort in the First Battle of Ypres. From 15th November as snows began they drove off further attacks, trench warfare now becoming dominant. Early December they aided in the ecacuation of Ypres Benedictine Convent, whose occupants subsequently established Kylemore Abbey in Connemara, Ireland.

The battalion was moved south to the Festubert sector in France, after a 36 hour march were ordered on the 22nd November to fill a gap by taking two lines of trenches. There were 200 casualties in the first 10 minutes of heavy fire. Withdrawing in total exhaustion on the next day, many wounded drowned in water - filled shell holes. throughout Christmas and New Year they were fully occupied maintaining the trenches. On the 25th January, the Kaiser's birthday the Germans tried unsuccessfully to break through with terrific shellfire. There then followed three months of rebuilding and training the battalion when it numbered 28 officers and 700 other ranks in May. Only four of the officers were pre - war.

The 2nd Royal Munster Fusiliers next role was participating in the Franco - British Battle of Aubers Ridge, in the area of the March attack at Neuve Chapelle. The day before the attack of 9th May 1915 the battalion received Absolution from their Chaplain ( as depicted on the previous page). The British Bombardment began at 5 a.m, the Munsters then pressing forward with extraordinary bravery, German fire sweeping No - Mans - Land, some Munsters audaciously charging ahead through the German lines, briefly waving a green flag on its breastwork, then moving beyound until cut off by the British artillery bombardment that followed, which killed many sheltering in shell craters.

By 11 a.m the 2nd RMF was withdrawn forming 3 officers and 200 men having lost 19 and 370 respectively. It was one of only two battalions to reach the German lines. But suffered the regiments highest loss of any day of the war, 11 officers and 140 men killed in action. It was an unsuccessful day for the British forces overall, casualties exceeding 11,000, the devastating losses exposing the British forces weakness in artillery. Morale was subsequently at a low web.

Sergeant Gannon assisting an officers orderly to bring his wounded master back to British lines under enemy fire.

 

As the 2nd Royal Munster Fusiliers fell back from the attack on the enemy's trenches , near the Rue du Bois on Sunday May 9th 1915, many fell wounded or else wondered helplessly about under the enemy's appalling fire. Seeing an officers orderly trying to carry his wounded master, Gannon got out of the trench to go to his assistance . The officer was to heavy to carry and they were therefore obliged to drag him along the ground, but he was brought to safely to the trench under a storm of shrapnel , machine gun and rifle bullets. Gannon had been out twice before and he went out again and helped the wounded . For his most gallant conduct he was awarded with the DCM and the Order of ST George ( third class) was bestowed upon him by the Czae of Russia.