johnboy Posted 15 August , 2015 Share Posted 15 August , 2015 It must have been a quiet day! I wonder if the writer was asked to explain why nobody took a shot at him?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allison01 Posted 15 August , 2015 Share Posted 15 August , 2015 Brilliant! Which diary is this from? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ss002d6252 Posted 15 August , 2015 Share Posted 15 August , 2015 At least he tried to bring some bottles with him. It sounds like the sort of thing a man would do when the pressure made him crack. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPT Posted 15 August , 2015 Share Posted 15 August , 2015 Craig, my dear fellow. It simply sounds like a Saturday night in Newcastle. "Come on. I'll teck yers all on" "Nein, Otto. They're not worth it man" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ss002d6252 Posted 15 August , 2015 Share Posted 15 August , 2015 You're quite right, those from across the river are a bit like that. I can say that safely knowing that I'm from south of the Tyne but from up in the hills at Consett. We would never do anything like that up there... Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 16 August , 2015 Author Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Brilliant! Which diary is this from? I just came across it and found it amusing, but not enough to make a note of the diary! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWK Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 And all that at 02:30 PM ! Must have been quite a party the night before! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Craig, my dear fellow. It simply sounds like a Saturday night in Newcastle. "Come on. I'll teck yers all on" "Nein, Otto. They're not worth it man" Don't be silly. The chap's top half was clothed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trajan Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Bearded, bespectacled, AND wearing a dark blue tunic? Must be one of them part-time soldiers in the reserves... Probably a plashy-footed Friesan to boot (if he had any)... No sense of order and dignity... Now in my time (blah, blah, blah).... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Bearded, bespectacled, ... and weighing 20 stone? Re-enactor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allison01 Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Craig, my dear fellow. It simply sounds like a Saturday night in Newcastle. "Come on. I'll teck yers all on" "Nein, Otto. They're not worth it man" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allison01 Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 ... and weighing 20 stone? Re-enactor. Steven, your very bad! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Bearded, bespectacled, AND wearing a dark blue tunic? Must be one of them part-time soldiers in the reserves... Probably a plashy-footed Friesan to boot (if he had any)... No sense of order and dignity... Now in my time (blah, blah, blah).... English propaganda! Frisians only drink tea.....or so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IRC Kevin Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 On a similar note, the last sentence in this excerpt from a report by Brig.-Gen. Kentish about the events of 10th April 1918 makes for amusing reading. I would dearly loved to have witnessed this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 16 August , 2015 Author Share Posted 16 August , 2015 There must be many more amusing reports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allison01 Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 On a similar note, the last sentence in this excerpt from a report by Brig.-Gen. Kentish about the events of 10th April 1918 makes for amusing reading. I would dearly loved to have witnessed this. Oh my God! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ss002d6252 Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 The drunk German gets himself around.You can be taught how to deal with shells but I'm pretty sure drunk Germans weren't in the syllabus. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 16 August , 2015 Author Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Would a Brig=Gen have been left in such a position? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IRC Kevin Posted 16 August , 2015 Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Would a Brig=Gen have been left in such a position? Things were a little hit and miss at the time- he was shelled out of this farm house and his next Brigade HQ was behind a haystack 200 yards further back. When he was shelled out of that position he moved to a nearby culvert. Every available man was trying to construct the G Switch Line to plug the huge hole left after the Portuguese had retired so promptly, this line being manned by a conglomeration of various infantry units, Transport & Stores personnel, every spare bod from various HQs and a couple of RE Field Companies (who performed superbly in the infantry role!). I estimate that there were no more than 150 men holding the immediate portion of line between Brigade HQ and the German attacking force and their artillery support consisted of one 18-pounder. When support from Howitzers was eventually garnered later that evening, they actually dropped their rounds onto his HQ and the British front line. I wouldn't actually be surprised if Kentish was armed with a rifle and bayonet- he was very much in the same mold as Stockwell (Jeudwine had his work cut out with these two!) and had been a company-commander with the Royal Irish Fusiliers at Le Cateau. In June of that year he actually gave the entire Brigade a demonstration of bayonet fighting, which apparently was quite impressive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 16 August , 2015 Author Share Posted 16 August , 2015 Thanks for the explanation. Still begs the question of how a drunk German soldier managed to get so far behind the line without attracting attention! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ss002d6252 Posted 17 August , 2015 Share Posted 17 August , 2015 Thanks for the explanation. Still begs the question of how a drunk German soldier managed to get so far behind the line without attracting attention! Maybe he found the brigadier generals stash Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IRC Kevin Posted 17 August , 2015 Share Posted 17 August , 2015 Thanks for the explanation. Still begs the question of how a drunk German soldier managed to get so far behind the line without attracting attention! Visibility was down to 25 yards when the Germans attacked on 9 April. The 1/5th were called forward from La Tombe Willot and ordered to deploy along the Emperor Road, on a line near Rue de Touret (see Company positions below). A Company (all 85 of them) were to link on their left with a Cyclist Battalion deploying southwards from La Couture, but there was a gap of 1,000 yards between them and the Cyclists and no-one left to plug it. Somewhere around Midday, A Company were encircled from their left and overrun from behind, (local visibility was still less than 50 yards) only three men managing to fight their way out. B Company were attacked next, but managed to hold, though they were forced back 100 yards. I suspect that the drunken German was either one of the original attackers who'd displaced the Portuguese division, or from one of the force that penetrated to the left of A Company. Although the fog lifted there later in the afternoon of 9 April, visibility was almost as bad on 10 April, though it didn't hang around as long that day. These positions were some 2.5 miles behind the front line of 8 April as held by the Portuguese Division, so you're not looking at a line of prepared defences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seaforths Posted 17 August , 2015 Share Posted 17 August , 2015 Bavarians! A prisoner gave the following information in a statement from April 13th 1918... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 17 August , 2015 Share Posted 17 August , 2015 English propaganda! Frisians only drink tea.....or so With milk in, presumably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnboy Posted 17 August , 2015 Author Share Posted 17 August , 2015 I don't think it is quite that black and white. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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