11 Batt Royal Warks

[KIRKY]

Hi. I have just got some info on a soldier from Royal Warks 11th Batt who died on 10 July 1916 but cannot find out where he was around that time.

He is remembered on Thiepval.

[Mark Hone]

The battalion was part of 112th Brigade, 37th Division. On the first day of the Somme (1st July) the battalion was at Hannescamps, the division providing a defensive flank and smoke bombs in support of 46 Div's attack at Gommecourt. They were at Bienvillers (3rd), Halloy (4th) Millencourt (6th) then marched through Albert to Tara-Usna Line (7th).2 companies occupied old German position 'Heligoland'. On 8th went into forward positions between Contalmaison and La Boisselle. On 10th they helped to repulse a German counter-attack 'during which three officers were killed' ('Story of the Royal Warwicks' p151). This was also presumably the action in which your soldier fell. Relieved and back to Tara-Usna line on 11th. The War Diary says that in the period from 8th-11th they suffered 170 casualties from shelling.

Sources: Westlake 'British Battalions on the Somme'

Kingsford 'Story of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment'.

Hope this answers your query.

[Mark Hone]

I forgot to cross-check Gliddon 'When the Barrage Lifts'. There are quite a lot of references to the battalion in this excellent volume, gleaned from the book 'The 11th Royal Warwicks in France' by C.S. Collison. Pages 107 to 109 of Gliddon contain a detailed account of the battalion at Contalmaison. On 10th July at 4-30 they attacked the village from the West, then repulsed a counter-attack by the 'Prussian Guard' bloodily, chopping the disordered remnants up with Lewis gun fire. This whole section of Gliddon is worth reading but the original source volume by Collison should be worth getting hold of via inter-library loan or in a reference library.