Bombing Parties

[IanL]

Ive puzzled by this term used in war diaries. Im sure this is a stupid question but how were they used during assault/support?

Im clearly not getting the full picture here what would they be blowing up and with what?

 

IanL

 

[GWF1967]

A bombing party would be made up of Mills Bomb throwers and bayonet men. 
 The bombs would be thrown from traverse to traverse as a group moved along a trench line, and also be thrown down into dugouts. The bayonet men would deal with surviving enemy troops. 

Edited 1 August , 2023 by GWF1967

[squirrel]

In the period, bombs were what were later called hand grenades and bombers were men who volunteered and were trained in their use. Platoons would usually have a bombing section.

For an attack, bombers would be formed from platoon, battalion and sometimes Brigade bombers and be tasked with dealing with strong points, machine gun positions, dug-outs etc.      They would operate with a section of bombers supported by a section bomb carriers who were also trained bombers and could replace casualties, together with a section of bayonet men to follow up.

 

[brianmorris547]

Ian

A good example can be found in the August 1916 War Diary of 10 Loyal Noth Lancashire Regt (112 Infantry Brigade, 37 Division). See the report by Lt Col Cobbold of the Bombing Raid on the Intermediate Line on 11/08/1916. (WO 95/2538/1). 

I started a thread about the Intermediate Line which showed details of all British Units that attacked it. It also records the MMs awarded to 10 LNL for this action.

https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/301616-intermediate-line-august-1916/#comment-3169313

The August 1916 War Diary of 112 Infantry Brigade (WO 95/2535/1-4) mentions the other raids carried out by other Bns in the Brigade which may provide further reading.

Brian

 

[PhilB]

A veteran once told me that he was a first bayonet man in a trench clearing team which would probably be classed as a bombing team. His job was to be the first man round a bend in a trench immediately after the grenade had exploded. It made me realise that trench clearing had to be choreographed when a team is advancing down the trench in single file.

[Matlock1418]

The use of Bombers / Bomber Sections is described in: 

SS143 Instructions for the Training of Platoons in Offensive Action 1917  https://archive.org/details/instructionsfort00washrich - the whole publication should be of interest as it frequently refers to bombers and illustrates their deployment using diagrams,

However, a few abstracts:

Images to Archive.org

Bayonet men to follow up the grenades.

M

 

[IanL]

2 hours ago, brianmorris547 said:

A good example can be found in the August 1916 War Diary of 10 Loyal Noth Lancashire Regt (112 Infantry Brigade, 37 Division). See the report by Lt Col Cobbold of the Bombing Raid on the Intermediate Line on 11/08/1916. (WO 95/2538/1).    

Thanks for the reference - interesting read and pertinent- my GF was in 1Bn Northumberland fusiliers and in action at Bazentin-le-Grand on 14th. 

 

8 hours ago, GWF1967 said:

A bombing party would be made up of Mills Bomb throwers and bayonet men. 
 The bombs would be thrown from traverse to traverse as a group moved along a trench line, and also be thrown down into dugouts. The bayonet men would deal with surviving enemy troops.

Now i get it - the old man mentioned Mills Bombs many times

 

Thanks everyone for the replies

 

IanL

[A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy]

My GF refers to three types of Bombing Party in his memoir. The first is the bombers who took part in relatively minor offensive actions on patrol in No Man’s Land, the second is the bombers engaged in mounting full scale attacks on German trenches, and the third is the bombers who manned the British trenches in a defensive role. Undoubtedly the same bombers took part in all three types of action. Describing the bombers who assumed a defensive role, my GF says of them that theywere, of course, riflemen also, and I can see that in the report that @brianmorris547 refers to dated 11 August 1916 the bombers in the attacking role are  described as each carrying 10 bombs in a waistcoat as well as a rifle with a fixed bayonet.

The most compelling of the references my GF makes to a Bombing Party in his memoir is his description of a typical foray into No Man’s Land during the autumn of 1915 or early summer of 1916 by a party of bombers on patrol. Typically the OC of the party might be a close colleague of my GF called Norman Kemp, a 2^nd lieutenant who was appointed Bombing Officer of the 2/5^th Lancashire Fusiliers on 24 June 1915. In this typical operation they were to climb out of a British sap and advance across No Man’s Land to a German sap, and, if the German sap was manned, were to lob their bombs into it, and retire.

He describes the build up to the operation, the daytime preparations comprising poring over trench maps and “and filling khaki apron-like articles with numerous pockets with bombs – for we had got small quantities of a new interesting toy delivered to us, in the form of the No 5 Mills hand grenade”; then the night coming, calm and still, but with too much moon at first, the party climbing out of the British sap, and being lost to the sight of their anxiously watching fellows as they advance across No Man’s Land towards their objective. 

Although the party was no longer visible to those left behind, my GF continues with his description, presumably from an eye-witness report after the event; describing a single scout raising himself up in advance of the rest of the party, freezing as a chance star shell bursts nearby and enables him to see the objective more clearly, and reporting back to the rest of the party once darkness had descended again.

He goes on to describe how the party “form round the sap in the form of a crescent – about 20 yards away from the sap head. The first bomb is thrown at the sap, followed in quick succession by several more. A shattering roar, a hail of shrapnel, several flashes – a cloud of smoke – shouting and groaning; then a succession of flare lights from the Boche trench – a burst of enemy rifle fire – and the zip zip of Machine Gun bullets.

Meanwhile, Kemp and his party are lying on the ground, breathing hard, their brows wet with perspiration, awaiting their opportunity to return to our Line.

About half an hour later they return, and tumble into our sap to report the results of their labour to many anxious watchers.

The party indulge in a rum ration, and anxiously enquire whether the mail has come up …” 

Now the OC goes to write his official report, which is in marked contrast to the tension and excitement of the actual operation as described by my GF (and perhaps as described to him by Kemp himself):

“On the night of October 11th at 9.00pm a small party of the 2/5th Lancashire Fusiliers under 2nd Lieutenant Kemp bombed a suspected sap head at A12 d.o.2. Loud groans were heard indicating that some casualties were inflicted on the enemy. The enemy retaliated with rifle fire and Machine Guns. Our party returned safely without casualties.” (I don't think that this is a quote from an actual report but rather that it - including the date and co-ordinates - is intended for illustrative effect only).

Edited 2 August , 2023 by A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy

[FROGSMILE]

There’s some specific information concerning the x 10 grenade carrying vest at this thread: https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/136832-british-ww1-10-pocket-grenade-vest/

Edited 3 August , 2023 by FROGSMILE

[A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy]

On 03/08/2023 at 09:06, FROGSMILE said:

There’s some specific information concerning the x 10 grenade carrying vest at this thread: https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/136832-british-ww1-10-pocket-grenade-vest/

Thank you for the link to the other thread, Frogsmile, also for posting the photographs of the bomb carrying vests here, which make sense of my GF's reference to "apron-like articles".

I meant to say, too, that the report by Lieutenant Colonel R. Cobbold of the 10th LNL dated 11 August 1916 to which Brian Morris drew attention is anything but an example of the typically bland report illustrated by my GF in his memoir, but impressively detailed and vivid.

[FROGSMILE]

11 minutes ago, A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy said:

Thank you for the link to the other thread, Frogsmile, also for posting the photographs of the bomb carrying vests here, which make sense of my GF's reference to "apron-like articles".

I meant to say, too, that the report by Lieutenant Colonel R. Cobbold of the 10th LNL dated 11 August 1916 to which Brian Morris drew attention is anything but an example of the typically bland report illustrated by my GF in his memoir, but impressively detailed and vivid.

I’m glad that you found it interesting.  The grenade carrying vest has always interested me, as along with the British Army infantry web equipment it was well ahead of its time and the soldiers of today still use items that are very similar.  As for trench clearing, I just watched today a short report by a Ukrainian SNCO explaining how important the hand grenades are in clearing enemy trench lines.  It was very deja vu.

Edited 4 August , 2023 by FROGSMILE