stiletto_33853 Posted 3 March , 2007 Share Posted 3 March , 2007 The Site last weekend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havrincourt Posted 3 March , 2007 Share Posted 3 March , 2007 The Site last weekend Yes. got some nice apples from there You any other photos of the area? Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lambert Posted 2 May , 2007 Author Share Posted 2 May , 2007 A view of the rear of the supermarket showing a pava road surface this may have been part of the Chemical Works but I could not see any other signs of the factory.Also the railway next to the Works where they may have been the rail siding Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lambert Posted 2 May , 2007 Author Share Posted 2 May , 2007 On the Roux Gravell Road where the 11th Suffoks,10th Lincolns and the 15th R Scots lined up before the attack on 28th April 1917; looking towards the supermarket behind the trees this area may be where many may have fallen.Also the Roux Gravell road as it is today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lambert Posted 2 May , 2007 Author Share Posted 2 May , 2007 Another shot of the Roux Gravell road and what I belive to be Mount Pleasant Wood (named in the Grimsby Chums book by Peter Bryant).Also the Cemetery where many who died on 28th April 1917 lay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havrincourt Posted 3 May , 2007 Share Posted 3 May , 2007 Fantastic photo's , I have great interset in this action since I visited the area Thank you Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spike10764 Posted 3 May , 2007 Share Posted 3 May , 2007 Great thread, great pics, great info- what this forum is all about . A pleasure to read-thanks to all contributors Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Watch Posted 3 May , 2007 Share Posted 3 May , 2007 Another Picture. 1st Battalion Royal Irish Fusiliers attacked Rouex on 11/4/1917 alongside 2nd Battalion Seaforth Highlanders. The objective was about 500 yards of front with the Station fairly central. The Photo was taken about 100 yards behind the sunken road where they formed up. (I managed to drive up the wrong road ) Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lachlan07 Posted 17 July , 2007 Share Posted 17 July , 2007 What was the status of Greenland Hill and Roeux Station and Chemical Works just prior to the attack on 3rd May 1917 ? My maternal great-uncle was a Lance-Corporal with the 8th Btn Black Watch, 9th Scottish Div and he was killed that day. According to the war diary of the 8th BW:- 1st May 1917 Battalion took over front line from Seaforths, holding same frontage as attack would be launched from on 3rd May. Line runs from BRICKWORKS on GREENLAND HILL due SOUTH for 500 yards towards ROEUX STATION. APPENDIX A May 3rd It had been understood that the attack would start at Dawn, and 4.45 am was named as ZERO hour. It was doubtful whether there would have been sufficient light at that hour to carry out the attack as a Daylight attack, but a few hours before the start, ZERO was changed to 3.45 am, which necessitated attacking in pitch darkness. There was no time to set out “lines” of direction or take bearings and the keeping of direction had to be left chiefly to chance. THE ATTACK The moon went down at 3.00 am and the attack started at 3.45 am in pitch darkness. Further troubles were created by all troops losing direction as they were absolutely unable to see where they were going. The troops on the right had to incline to the right, and we had to incline to our left – both these movements were carried out in too great a degree, with the result that there was a gap between The Black Watch and Camerons. This gap seems to have been partly filled by a Company of the Argylls. The troops on right and left of 26th Brigade also lost direction, with the result that the Camerons came into collision with the 4th Division and the Scottish Rifles charged into The Black Watch. Owing to heavy casualties both in Officers and men, it is impossible to collect anything like a correct story, but it appears likely that only a few scattered parties of men reached the German lines and these were captured or killed. The German artillery barrage started almost simultaneously with ours, and it was obvious that the attack was expected. Machine Gun fire, both from the enemy line and from the CHEMICAL WORKS was very heavy. The attack was driven back to our lines, and a second was organised but achieved no success. The defence of our line was re-organised under the surviving officers, 2/Lieuts WILSON and McNEAL and CSM McARTHUR. Many men remained out in shell holes and crawled in during the next few nights. Casualties amounted to 12 Officers and 208 Other Ranks, 45 of whom were missing. APPENDIX C Casualties 3rd May. Killed: 21; Wounded 129; Missing 43; Total 193. [NB The War Diaries do not generally give details of Other Ranks casualties.] Does this mean that the 8th BW had a position on Greenland Hill ? They mention a brickworks which I don't see in other descriptions. I thought I read somewhere that the Chemical Works had been temporarily captured by the British, yet by this account it certainly was not. I ask members to help me locate the jumping-off position of the 8th Black Watch that morning. Can anyone help ? Strangely enough, my paternal grandfather was a corporal with the 6th Black Watch of the 51st Highland Division which attacked Roeux within a few days of the 9th Scottish Division. I'm related to them both, yet they did not know each other ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4thGordons Posted 19 July , 2007 Share Posted 19 July , 2007 Bit of a latecomer but .... I just transcribed the 1/4th Gordons Bn diary for their attack around here in April...still a bit rough but thought it might be of interest: 23/4/1917 B & C Coys left assembly trench in front of sunken road at Zero hour i.e. 4.45am. They got into parts of the German front line but in other parts the Germans still held out particularly on left near Railway in front of Chemical Works where a party of 50 or 60 Germans with a machine gun held out until much later. A & D Coys left the assembly position in the sunken road at Zero plus 10 mins. On the left they were completely held up before reaching the Black Line, but the Coy on the right (D Coy) went right through discovering no enemy in the Black line. One platoon of this company appears to have lost direction towards the right and gone right through ROEUX village. This platoon remained through ROUEX somewhere in I 19a for at least 15 minutes. No one appeared on the right or left of the platoon the commander decided to withdraw as he was being heavily fired on by machine guns and snipers from all sides. He withdrew along the front of MOUNT PLEASANT WOOD to the Black line. Just west of MOUNT PLEASANT WOOD this platoon took 25 prisoners. About 6:30am part of this Coy appears to have accompanied a tank into ROUEX village where it remained for some time holding the line of the Tramway Track. On the left of the attack the two Coys held up appear to have been enabled to get into Black Line by the action of the 4th Seaforth Highlanders who came up about 8.30 working along the railway. 60 to 70 Germans were captured along with one machine gun. A small bombing squad from the right two Coys appears to have worked its way forward along the communication trench as far as the Chemical Works – ROEUX Road where it held on for some time. The barrage appears to have been very light and the German front line seems to have been very little damaged when the companies entered it. The enemy appears to have been very quick in getting machine guns into action as soon as the barrage lifted and also appears to have held up the advance by machine gun fire through the barrage. Telephone communication was never established. Casualties in Officers and NCOs were very heavy and nearly all the commanders were casualties very early in the attack. Companies and platoons thus became very much disorganized in this operation. About the center of the Battalion attack small parties appear to have penetrated early as far as the Eastern edge of the group of buildings near the Chemical Works. But they were unsupported and isolated and had little eddect on operations generally. The bulk of two platoons on the right Black line company appear to have gone right through towards their objective but have not returned. At 3pm the remains of all 4 companies were in the Black line holding it in conjunction with a company of 4th Seaforth Highlanders. They remained there until about 9pm when they were withdrawn to the assembly positions by order of the OC 4th Seaforth Highlanders. I have also transcribed the operational order for this action if anyone wants it PM me. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havrincourt Posted 13 April , 2008 Share Posted 13 April , 2008 Great thread this one Has anyone else taken a trip over to Roeux/Fampoux with any new views to show Thanks Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david crouch Posted 17 April , 2008 Share Posted 17 April , 2008 I have studied the 23rd to 28th April from the perspectice of the 6th Bedfords who attacked Greenland Hill, between Rouex and Gavrelle. The German guns in the chemical works were what cut their attack to pieces both times and left the Btn 58 strong by the end of the 28th. Was there Sept and despite the motorway having cut through much of the line of advance from 23rd April, the line they reached and assaulted from on the 28th is still there & if you go armed with trench maps you can stand on the ground OK. Dear Steve Sorry to bother you. I notice from the above text that you have researched 37th Divisions attack on Greenland Hill. My great grandfather was killed with the 10th York & Lancasters in 63rd Brigade. I have searched for information on Greenland Hill but never found much apart from the official history. I was wondering if you have anything that would be useful in my personal research. I have been trying to find out more about 37th Divisions assault of Greenland Hill and would welcome anyway in which you may be able to help. I hope this is ok. Best regards Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 31 March , 2009 Share Posted 31 March , 2009 Roeux May 1917 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 31 March , 2009 Share Posted 31 March , 2009 Corona Trench area May 1917 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Kastner Posted 1 April , 2009 Share Posted 1 April , 2009 I'm a new member of this forum so I hope that taking the liberty with some of the pictures posted is not in bad taste. I've taken the trench map provided by Havrincourt and overlayed it on Google Earth. It's fairly close but not exact. I've just schooled myself in Google Earth overlays, this was an initial attempt. The forum will only allow upload of a small picture, which really doesn't give a good representation, it's provided here but essentially useless. I've saved the file as a KMZ file if others would like to experiment with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Bone Posted 2 April , 2009 Share Posted 2 April , 2009 On spotting that google earth had been updated for the Arras area I went to have have a nose. Just to southwest (ish) of Roeux is Battery Valley, now it could be me 'wanting' to see things, but in the dark green field on east side of Battery Valley i'm sure I can make out zigzag trench pattern markings. When last I looked (6 months ago) there was nothing so obvious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimSmithson Posted 2 April , 2009 Share Posted 2 April , 2009 Hi John Yes, there are a lot of earthworks on the east side. They will be from the period post April 1917 when the British used the same valley for the same reason, i.e. artillery. They are on the wrong side of the valley to be German. I have a photo somewhere which I will dig out. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimSmithson Posted 2 April , 2009 Share Posted 2 April , 2009 Found it Not as clear as I remembered as it was December and a bit mis and I was actually taking a shot of Battery Valley! You can see a some works on the left of picture though. I love it when a super thread like this reappears! Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asdarley Posted 10 April , 2009 Share Posted 10 April , 2009 my avatar, Trooper John Joseph Darley Household Battalion fought at the chemical works. I have his diary extracts for the period ( July to September 1917) and they make grim reading. Here is a bit from Tuesday July 31st when he writes about being in Corona trench "Orders to be ready to move at 6:15 pm. Went to Corona the same as last time. Arrived at No7 outpost at about midnight a shell hole with a bit of covering. Rained all night. Seven of us in the shell hole what hopes." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Banning Posted 16 June , 2009 Share Posted 16 June , 2009 This seems an appropriate thread to ask the following question – does anyone have an idea what the inn along the Roeux-Gavrelle road was called? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eltoro1960 Posted 2 July , 2009 Share Posted 2 July , 2009 As a wee project I have been trying to model the Chemical Works , does anyone have any pre-destruction shots by any chance. The 60 foot tall chimneys must have gave a very commanding view for anyone brave enough to climb them ,which they did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 2 July , 2009 Share Posted 2 July , 2009 Good luck with project John. Hope this helps a wee bit, scroll down for photo. http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=h...0DZCZjAe5pL3IBQ Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delta Posted 17 June , 2012 Share Posted 17 June , 2012 On Friday, I was with the daughter of Victor Smith who commanded one of the tanks at Roeux Grateful if anyone could identify the location of the Railway Arch, mentioned in the unit diary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 17 June , 2012 Share Posted 17 June , 2012 Hi Stephen . Not sure if it helps much, but Mt Pleasant Wood Co-ordinates are roughly 50°17'47.64"N 2°53'30.30"E if you copy and paste into google earth, and I imagine the railway is still in the same area as 14-18? How about arch at 50°18'5.74"N 2°53'15.25"E Cheers Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delta Posted 17 June , 2012 Share Posted 17 June , 2012 That's extremely kind - what a superb steer The railway is still there but a motorway runs across the route from the bridge to Mount Pleasant wood I think that the bridge is located within the red ellipse . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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