Mansell Copse / Devonshire Trench

[docchippy]

Hi Pals

I will attempt to add a pci to this message. Its a photo c.1991 of cross-section of what appears to be a trench with fire-step cut into the chalk at Mansell copse. the road which runs up form teh main road to the Devonshire cemetery runs adjacent to a cuting where chalk appears to have been excavated out. This exposed the cross ection of what appeared to be a trench in 1991. it has since been cut away. mansell copse is behind the section. In front of what appears to have been the fire step area in undergrowth/earth I found a 1915 French cartridge case. My questiosn are...

a. is it a trench cross-section? Is the forward area the fire step?

b. when did the French leave this area/ did they return after the 1916 somme battles?

c. hence is is likley that the cartridge case was in situ during the July1916 events in the area?

thanks folks

[Paul Reed]

I would reserve an opinion as to whether that is a trench or not (the 'fire step' is probably a little too high), but I certainly remember seeing this and wondering if it wasn't a dugout.

To answer your question, the French left this sector in the summer of 1915; over the years I have seen and found quite a few French items here (including early pattern French grenades unearthed by the farmer and best left alone...), as you would expect with nearly a year in the line here. The French didn't return to this sector for the rest of the war.

[Rob Gray]

I have found many French Lebel rifle rounds when field walking the "British" sector of the Somme, and as Paul says, they were there up until 1915, and they were pretty carefree with their ammo, judging by the ratio of live rounds to spent ones, always much higher than British .303 rounds..!!

Rob.

[stephen binks]

In Feb. I noticed for the first time seeing the field opposite the Gordons and behind Mansell Copse, being ploughed down to the road. We also found many French rounds.

Steve