egbert Posted 9 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 9 December , 2005 As I promised to the other friends here: Rachel I will; stand by for more.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 9 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 9 December , 2005 (edited) The second letter of his aide, still hospitalized explains all the circumstances of what happened at 3 o'clock May 1st. Here are excerpts from his letter, dated 4th August 1918: “…..would like to report more but regret (remember he was buried alive; my Grandmother sent letters to the aide because she wanted to know more of the circumstances) that I cannot tell you more about the grave of Mr. S., because it was impossible to recover his corpse during daylight……..The cause of death was a shell whose splinter killed him. Mr.S. must have had darksome foreboding, because he told me at 2 o’clock about his foreshadow of his nearing end. His pretty much last words on 1st of May with me were about:” Well Kabitschke, if something will happen to me, take care that all my stuff, watch etc. will be sent home to my wife.” His knapsack- including letters and other gems- was with him. Neither him nor me realized the approaching shell; otherwise he would have slipped into our hole. I could not even hear the thundering impact, because I was buried immediately in the hole by the effects of the air pressure. After I was dug out, I saw the sad view of your husband. He was in the same sitting position as before when he was writing. The splinter went through his back and must have penetrated the heart and lung area so that sudden death occurred….. Edited 9 December , 2005 by egbert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted 9 December , 2005 Share Posted 9 December , 2005 (edited) The foreboding of his death is shuddery. Poor man - I wonder why he was at the front since he suffered so badly from gout? And what a good friend he had in Kabitschke. Do you know what happened to him? Marina Edited 9 December , 2005 by marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Mackenzie Posted 9 December , 2005 Share Posted 9 December , 2005 Egbert. With every extraordinary item you have revealed we have got to know your grandfather a little better. However, I think for me the main thing is that he is not extraordinary at all. Millions of men on all sides of the conflict, including our own relatives, would have had the same thoughts and feelings as Gottfried for their loved ones at home. Most of us do not have the pictures and letters to give us such a direct link to our relative as you do. But, by sharing the secrets of Gottfried's trunk with us, you have given us something of an insight into what they all went through. I think that Merville Cemetery will be getting a lot more visitors in future. Thank you. Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StAubyns Posted 9 December , 2005 Share Posted 9 December , 2005 Egbert Thank you Many Thanks Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 9 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 9 December , 2005 And what a good friend he had in Kabitschke. Do you know what happened to him? Marina Marina, it is believed he survived the war Neil you are perfectly right! Thank you Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 9 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 9 December , 2005 Field letter to Grandmother from Musketier Spindler, KIA 1.9.1918 " .....since I laid nearby (your husband) I can tell you what I know and what I witnessed. A shell exploded next to him, killed him by splinters in the chest area, also some other comrades have been wounded (by this shell). He was immediately dead without making any sound. At the very same evening I participated burying him, he rests nearby Merville..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truthergw Posted 10 December , 2005 Share Posted 10 December , 2005 Please carry on with the marvellous revelations. This and De diggers thread are the best I have seen and I hope you both carry on for a very long time yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 10 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 10 December , 2005 Now we need a map. Where did it happen? His batman sent this handdrawn map to Grandmother which is the basis of all my fathers and my research Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted 10 December , 2005 Share Posted 10 December , 2005 What a painstaking man the batman must have been to draw such a meticulous map. Nice man! Marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 10 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 10 December , 2005 Location of KIA and provisional grave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 10 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 10 December , 2005 Who killed Gottfried? The direct opponent of IR 49 was 1st Bn DCLI; but as we all know he was killed by RFA; the relevant units are depicted here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 10 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 10 December , 2005 All Quiet on the Western Front The 1st Bn DCLI War diary/Intel Summary concludes for 1st of May: "Rather dull day" From 1st Bn DCLI, 1st May 1918, two men were killed (one of them Private Bowles and Grandfather was the only one from IR 49). What a tragedy for 3 families on an "All Quiet Day on The Western Front", especially if the families only knew that they rest together for ever on the very same spot. What a waste of human being! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 10 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 10 December , 2005 Let's get back to the question which RFA unit killed Granddad? War Diary of 27th RFA 'Summaries of Operations: Summary of Operations etc. 6 PM 30/4/18 to 6 PM 1/5/18. Situation: Unchanged Our artillery: Harassing fire was continued during night and day, on communications, troublesome houses etc. Owing to bad weather and consequent lack of aeroplane photos, tracks used by the enemy are mostly unknown and cannot yet be harassed. Today 18-pounders of 160 Brigade shelled PONT RONDIN, and D/84 engaged a Tank gun at K.22.4.15.80 and TM (=Tench Mortar, Minenwerfer) Position at K.21.b.2.2 obtaining several hits on the latter. 120 Battery shelled house at K.15.b.5.1 at Infantry request. B and C/84 answered a N.F. call in K.29 at 11.4 am. In addition to this and harassing fire, batteries registered and checked lines and tested ammunition - and found one 'lot' defective. Grandfathers own position was next to the TM position; so with artillery straying I can assume that most likely a shell fired from D/84 killed my Grandfather. Unfortunately i have no further information from D/84 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 10 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 10 December , 2005 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spike10764 Posted 11 December , 2005 Share Posted 11 December , 2005 Egbert , I would once again like to thank you. Thank you for sharing this whole story with us. Possibly beyond the bounds of what you should have shared, but it has made it a whole story, a real story and has impressed even more on me, the true meaning of loss and bravery on both sides in the Great War. Rest in Peace Gottfried. Thank you ....Spike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 11 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 11 December , 2005 Thanks spike, Marina and Tom; before we go on and leave the field letter section behind, I'd like to show you the actual scale , my Grandmother used to weigh the letters for proper postage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPotter Posted 11 December , 2005 Share Posted 11 December , 2005 Egbert, I have followed this thread enthralled since the tantalising start and must thank and congratulate you on the simply excellent work to date. I must say that your revelations and presentations have put my humble efforts at 'proper' research to shame. Keep it up.......I'm sure there is a silent (though not too silent I hope) majority out here who await each post in anticipation. Regards Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted 11 December , 2005 Share Posted 11 December , 2005 before we go on and leave the field letter section behind, I like the sound of 'field letter section' - implies more sections to come and more goodies? Marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 11 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 11 December , 2005 The trunk reveals an artifact related to Granddad, but from May 1940, well kept by Grandmother: it says "Flowers from the grave of my dearest.....(picked by Gue... in the second World War) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted 11 December , 2005 Share Posted 11 December , 2005 Still 'her dearest' after all those years. Nice. Marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 12 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 12 December , 2005 Carefully removing the paper clips, this is the result: 65 years old dried flowers from the grave of Gottfried who was then - 1940 - already buried for 22 years. The son visited his father first time and started some research near Merville... P.S. Zooloo, what flowers please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marina Posted 12 December , 2005 Share Posted 12 December , 2005 Are those buttercups? marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J T Gray Posted 12 December , 2005 Share Posted 12 December , 2005 Zooloo seems to know more than me, but it looks to me as though the flowers are buttercups and cranesbills - a wild geranium (as opposed to pelargoniums, which everyone called geraniums for years - you know, the red ones in pots!). They are both grassland "weeds" - personally so long as they aren't in my veg I think they are beautiful, especially the cranesbill. Early summer date, I'd guess, so if the IWGC staff had left following the invasion of France, or had been unable to mow the grass for whatever reason, I'd say that while Gottfried didn't lie under the manicured grass he does now, he had a beautiful wild flower meadow for company. Adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 12 December , 2005 Author Share Posted 12 December , 2005 Marina and Adrian; so buttercups than! I am still trying to see some cranebills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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