ASC or Devons?

[FROGSMILE]

From the LongLongTrail:

 

8th (Service) Battalion Devonshire Regiment.

Formed at Exeter on 19 August 1914 as part of K1 and attached as Divisional Troops to 14th (Light) Division.

 

May 1915 : left 14th Division and landed at Le Havre 26 July 1915.

 

4 August 1915 : came under orders of 20th Brigade, 7th Division.
Moved with the Division to Italy in November 1917.

 

The 7th Division was formed during September and very early October 1914, by the bringing together of regular army units from various points around the British Empire. They were assembled in the New Forest in Hampshire before initially moved to Belgium. The Division landed at Zeebrugge in the first week of October 1914, ordered to assist in the defence of Antwerp. However, by the time they arrived the city was already falling and the 7th was instead ordered to hold certain important bridges and other places that would help the westward evacuation of the Belgian army. Once the Belgians were through, the Division was moved westwards, where the infantry entrenched in front of Ypres, the first British troops to occupy that fateful place.

 

1915
The Battle of Neuve Chapelle
The Battle of Aubers
The Battle of Festubert
The second action of Givenchy
The Battle of Loos
The Division took part in the initial assault north of the Vermelles-Hulluch road, facing the Quarries and a series of strongpoints. Suffering badly from British cloud gas – which was not moved sufficiently by the gentle breeze – and badly cut up by German machine gun fire and artillery, the Division nonethless seized the Quarries and only failed to penetrate the third German line due to the relative weakness of the numbers of men that got through. The Divisional Commander, Major-General Thompson Capper, died of wounds received during this action.

 

1916
The Battle of Albert* in which the Division captured Mametz
The Battle of Bazentin and the attacks on High Wood*
The Battle of Delville Wood*
The Battle of Guillemont*
The battles marked * are phases of the Battles of the Somme 1916
Operations on the Ancre

 

1917
The German retreat to the Hindenburg Line
The Arras offensive in which the Division fought in the flanking operations round Bullecourt
The Battle of Polygon Wood+
The Battle of Broodseinde+
The Battle of Poelcapelle+
The Second Battle of Passchendaele+
The battles marked + are phases of the Third Battle of Ypres

A major change now occurred with 7th Division being one of five British formations selected to be moved to Italy. This was a strategic and political move agreed by the British Government at the request of the Allied Supreme War Council, as an effort to stiffen Italian resistance to enemy attack after a recent disaster at Caporetto. Many diaries at this time, by men who had witnessed slaughter in the floods of Passchendaele, talk of the move and Italy as being “like another world”. Much work was done preparing to move into the mountainous area of the Brenta, but eventually the Division was instead moved to the line along the River Piave, taking up positions in late January 1918. In October 1918 the Division played a central role in crossing the Piave, the Battle of Vittoria Veneto and the eventual defeat of Austria-Hungary.

 

1918
Italy

Edited 14 January , 2021 by FROGSMILE

[TEW]

Not based on many names but for Devons:

 

19109 Thomas. Date of entry to theatre 21/12/1915.

19113 Kerswell enlisted 24/7/1915

19115 Tonkins enlisted 25/7/1915

19117 Clarke enlisted 23/7/1915

 

Last three were discharged with no overseas service.

 

Two men turned up on casualty lists in Nov 1915 - 19116 & 19119 but these are typos for 10116 etc.

TEW

 

[NR72]

12 hours ago, TEW said:

Not based on many names but for Devons:

 

19109 Thomas. Date of entry to theatre 21/12/1915.

19113 Kerswell enlisted 24/7/1915

19115 Tonkins enlisted 25/7/1915

19117 Clarke enlisted 23/7/1915

 

Last three were discharged with no overseas service.

 

Two men turned up on casualty lists in Nov 1915 - 19116 & 19119 but these are typos for 10116 etc.

TEW

 

Thank you excellent information

[FROGSMILE]

15 hours ago, TEW said:

Not based on many names but for Devons:

 

19109 Thomas. Date of entry to theatre 21/12/1915.

19113 Kerswell enlisted 24/7/1915

19115 Tonkins enlisted 25/7/1915

19117 Clarke enlisted 23/7/1915

 

Last three were discharged with no overseas service.

 

Two men turned up on casualty lists in Nov 1915 - 19116 & 19119 but these are typos for 10116 etc.

TEW

 

Excellent extrapolation TEW.  It certainly seems likely that he arrived in theatre in time for 2nd Guillemont and Loos, and so would’ve been right in the thick of it.

Edited 15 January , 2021 by FROGSMILE

[NR72]

 

 

On 14/01/2021 at 19:17, FROGSMILE said:

From the LongLongTrail:

 

8th (Service) Battalion Devonshire Regiment.

Formed at Exeter on 19 August 1914 as part of K1 and attached as Divisional Troops to 14th (Light) Division.

 

May 1915 : left 14th Division and landed at Le Havre 26 July 1915.

 

4 August 1915 : came under orders of 20th Brigade, 7th Division.
Moved with the Division to Italy in November 1917.

 

The 7th Division was formed during September and very early October 1914, by the bringing together of regular army units from various points around the British Empire. They were assembled in the New Forest in Hampshire before initially moved to Belgium. The Division landed at Zeebrugge in the first week of October 1914, ordered to assist in the defence of Antwerp. However, by the time they arrived the city was already falling and the 7th was instead ordered to hold certain important bridges and other places that would help the westward evacuation of the Belgian army. Once the Belgians were through, the Division was moved westwards, where the infantry entrenched in front of Ypres, the first British troops to occupy that fateful place.

 

1915
The Battle of Neuve Chapelle
The Battle of Aubers
The Battle of Festubert
The second action of Givenchy
The Battle of Loos
The Division took part in the initial assault north of the Vermelles-Hulluch road, facing the Quarries and a series of strongpoints. Suffering badly from British cloud gas – which was not moved sufficiently by the gentle breeze – and badly cut up by German machine gun fire and artillery, the Division nonethless seized the Quarries and only failed to penetrate the third German line due to the relative weakness of the numbers of men that got through. The Divisional Commander, Major-General Thompson Capper, died of wounds received during this action.

 

1916
The Battle of Albert* in which the Division captured Mametz
The Battle of Bazentin and the attacks on High Wood*
The Battle of Delville Wood*
The Battle of Guillemont*
The battles marked * are phases of the Battles of the Somme 1916
Operations on the Ancre

 

1917
The German retreat to the Hindenburg Line
The Arras offensive in which the Division fought in the flanking operations round Bullecourt
The Battle of Polygon Wood+
The Battle of Broodseinde+
The Battle of Poelcapelle+
The Second Battle of Passchendaele+
The battles marked + are phases of the Third Battle of Ypres

A major change now occurred with 7th Division being one of five British formations selected to be moved to Italy. This was a strategic and political move agreed by the British Government at the request of the Allied Supreme War Council, as an effort to stiffen Italian resistance to enemy attack after a recent disaster at Caporetto. Many diaries at this time, by men who had witnessed slaughter in the floods of Passchendaele, talk of the move and Italy as being “like another world”. Much work was done preparing to move into the mountainous area of the Brenta, but eventually the Division was instead moved to the line along the River Piave, taking up positions in late January 1918. In October 1918 the Division played a central role in crossing the Piave, the Battle of Vittoria Veneto and the eventual defeat of Austria-Hungary.

 

1918
Italy

Thank you much appreciated 

 

[FROGSMILE]

34 minutes ago, NR72 said:

 

 

Thank you much appreciated 

 

Glad to have been able to help.  The Long Long Trail website connected at the top left of the forum is an excellent resource.

Edited 16 January , 2021 by FROGSMILE