Request for hospital train network map Western Front

[catfishmo]

Forgive me if this is already posted somewhere. I am looking for a map showing the rail lines/routes of hospital trains--primarily from Boulogne to the Somme and Ypres.

If you have a map or a web link you can share, I would much appreciate it.

Thanks!

~Ginger

[centurion]

I don't think there was a specific hospital network, they would use the same lines as all the other traffic and scheduling must have been a nightmare. Traffic to and from the Somme went through Amiens and Ypres traffic through Hazebrouck (which is why it was vital for Britain to stop the Germans taking these towns/cities in the Spring offensives of 1918). Railway construction teams led by the Royal Engineers doubled the lines from these two centres back to the coast allowing an up line and a down line and therefore two way working which would have greatly increased traffic flow. There would have been a network of lines radiating from each of these two centres to various places at the rear of the fronts and hospital trains would have been scheduled to run through these networks, through one of the two centres and then on to Boulogne. One shouldn't forget that for full hospital trains to make the journey empty ones had first to travel in the other direction. During an offensive train schedulers would have to deal with the competing demands of network places for supply trains of munitions food and reinforcements and empty hospital trains on the up lines and full hospital trains and empty supply trains (going back for more) on the down line. Whist every effort would have been made to stock pile supplies before hand over an extended campaign such as the Somme or 3rd Ypres these would have to be replenished and hospital trains would have to make many round trips. As I said scheduling must have been a nightmare. I once worked on the feasibility study for CIE's (Irish Railways) first computerised scheduling system and having seen how complex manual (paper and pen) railway traffic scheduling can be on even a relatively small system in peace time I have to take my hat off to those men who had to do it under the pressures of war in Northern France.

[catfishmo]

Thank you. Knowing that there were up lines and down lines and that the main hubs were Hazebrouck and Amiens is very helpful. I have read that hospital trains were of the lowest priority in scheduling. A relatively short trip could take 3 or 4 times the 'normal' amount of time as they frequently had to pull onto rail sidings to give troop transport or munitions trains priority.

~Ginger

[Phil Evans]

Ginger,

I have a couple of June 1918 Admin maps showing from Amiens to Abbeville.

They are photos, not scans, so not high-res. They come from WO 153/1155 at Kew.

If you are interested PM me.

Phil

[centurion]

Trains from Amiens to Boulogne would pass through Abbville

Funnily enough I've seen contemporary comments that hospital trains were given a very high priority but leave trains and general transport suffered.

[bobshaw]

Hi Centurion,

Your comment is rather interesting, as I have heard and read quite the opposite to what you say, troops and materials had a very high priority, and that Ambulance trains gave way to them, hence the casualties would take much longer to reach their destination, this may have been because the wounded had doctors and nursing staff looking after them.

Your first comment regarding the trains from Amiens to Boulogne, I am looking for trains from Dernancourt (near Albert) to Rouen, which might also have gone through Amiens, do you have any information to this effect.

Regards, Bob.

[centurion]

Hi Centurion,

Your comment is rather interesting, as I have heard and read quite the opposite to what you say, troops and materials had a very high priority, and that Ambulance trains gave way to them, hence the casualties would take much longer to reach their destination, this may have been because the wounded had doctors and nursing staff looking after them.

Your first comment regarding the trains from Amiens to Boulogne, I am looking for trains from Dernancourt (near Albert) to Rouen, which might also have gone through Amiens, do you have any information to this effect.

Regards, Bob.

Troops and materials would have been on the up line whilst hospital trains and leave trains would have been on the down line so except in a crisis situation when double working was applied there should have been different priorities up and down - after all how many loaded hospital trains will you be trying to get to the front? Empty ones are a different matter

[bobshaw]

Thank you Centurion for your reply which does clarify one point. Can you answer another - I have also heard that each of the Armies (I, II, III and IV) fighting in France obviously had rail lines running through their sectors, so did they have specific trains operating on them hence coming under the command of that army. I am still trying to find which ambulance trains operated between Dernancourt/Rouen between 28th September 1916 and 3rd October 1916.

I am aware that for the build up of 1st July 1916 battle of the Somme at least 15 ambulance trains were allocated but initially only about 5 actually turned up. (I'll stand to be corrected on those numbers).

Regards......Bob.

[hazelclark]

It seems to me there is a "communications" map of France relating to the medical evacuation at the front of Dunn's book, "The War the Infantry Knew".

Hazel