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PAGE.

EXPLANATORY NOTE 75

HISTORY OF THE 11TH FIELD COMPANY

AUSTRALIAN ENGINEERS.

EARLY DAYS.

The Company was formed in Australia, Headquarters and Nos. 1 and 2 sections being raised in the Fourth Military District, and two sections in the First Military District. Selection of personnel commenced in the beginning of March, 1916, but Officers had previously been selected and trained at the Engineer Officers' Training School, Sydney. The O.C. , 2nd in command , and a number of N.C.O.'s and men came from the 12th Field Company A.E., C.M.F., at Broken Hill; 2nd-Lieut. J. M. Norton from the 11th Field Coy., A.E., C.M.F. ; while 2nd-Lieut. S. W. Matters came from South Australia, and 2nd-Lieuts. R. W. Lahey and H. St. A. Murray, from Queensland.

The quotas were collected and trained separately, that from South Australia at Mitcham Camp, near Adelaide, and the Queensland sections at Enoggera, near Brisbane, until 29th April, 1916, when the Company concentrated at Mitcham. Work was then carried on with the full Company, at the same time stores and equipment were slowly collected. Horses were issued from the remount dep?t, not for overseas service but for training purposes, but proved so wild as to give the drivers more practice in colt-breaking and riding buck jumpers than in the routine of military horse mastership and drill.

The technical stores of a Field Company are very extensive, but by ransacking Adelaide warehouses to fill the gaps in the available army supplies, Ordnance succeeded in almost completing the equipment. Two tool carts came from 12th Field Company, C.M.F., at Broken Hill , and one from a Queensland Field Coy. The pontoons were made at Cockatoo Docks in New South Wales, but the Weldon trestles, bridging wagons, and water cart were not ready in time. The Sappers were issued with green leather infantry equipment, but this was afterwards changed in England for web. No rifles were issued until the unit reached England.

Embarkation took place at Outer Harbour on 31st May, 1916, on H.M.A.T. A 29, s.s. "Suevic," in company with the 11th Field Ambulance .

After a rough trip round the Lleuwin the "Suevic" arrived at Fremantle on 6th June, 1916, and embarked the 44th Battalion .

Crossing the Indian Ocean the vessel sprung a small leak which necessitated calling at Durban for the services of a diver. The stay was only twenty-four hours , but the troops had a route march through the town.

Cape Town was reached on 24th June, 1916, and left on 27th. As was expected the yellow flag was flown and no leave was granted, but the troops had a route march and a sports meeting.

The next port of call was St. Vincent, reached on the 11th July, 1916. No one was allowed on shore. The run from here was through the submarine zone, and was attended with the usual discomforts. The pontoons of the Company first saw service being installed on the boat deck as emergency lifeboats.

Finally, after a long voyage, during which there was a considerable amount of sickness and the death of one member of the unit, disembarkation took place on July 21st, 1916, at Plymouth. The unit entrained to Amesbury and marched to Camp 20, Lark Hill, Salisbury Plains, joining up with the 3rd Australian Division, then slowly concentrating. The Company was the first of the Divisional Engineers to arrive, and at once came under the orders of Lieut.-Col. H. O. Clogstoun, R.E., C.R.E., of the division.

Before commencing training, the members of the unit received four days' disembarkation leave, which was keenly enjoyed after the confinement and discomfort of the troopship. Work had barely started at Lark Hill before orders were received to proceed to Brightlingsea, in Essex, for pontoon training, in the Engineer dep?t there. No camp being available, all ranks were billeted on the townspeople, and were the first Australians to visit the place. Some surprise was expressed at the lightness of complexion and English speech of the visitors, and both the military authorities and the townspeople were agreeably surprised to find that their lives and property were not appreciably jeopardised by the wild Colonial soldiery.

The visit, originally intended to last only until efficiency had been reached in pontooning, was afterwards extended to include a full course of R.E. training, and some work on the East Coast defences, and it was not until two months had elapsed that the Company rejoined the Division at Lark Hill.

The unit took part in two sports meetings at Brightlingsea. In the first it was beaten by a Highland Field Company, R.E., stationed in the town, and in the second carried off a silver cup in competition with the local Naval Forces and with the 10th Field Company, which had arrived for training.

After the return to the division at Lark Hill, training in field works in conjunction with infantry was undertaken; the trench system at Bustard will always be remembered by the original members of the unit. A specially interesting exercise was a route march, under tactical conditions, lasting five days, from Lark Hill, through Chitterne, Westbury, Devizes, Pusey, and back to camp.

Another interesting experience was a fifteen-mile route march of the whole division with full transport. On another occasion, officers and senior N.C.O.'s took part in a divisional tactical exercise, which was memorable chiefly for the coldness of the wind, which preluded a fall of snow--the first many members of the Company had seen.

It was not until noon on the 28th that Bailleul was reached. From there the unit proceeded at once to billets at Bleu near Vieux Berquin, the transport by route march, and the Sappers in grey-painted disreputable London 'buses.

The exposure and discomfort involved in these first adventures in France--which contrasted so strongly with the expeditious and altogether excellent arrangements on the other side of the Channel--resulted in a good deal of illhealth in the unit, and when on the 30th a move was made to Steenwerck, where Divisional Headquarters had been established, a number of men were suffering from bronchitis and similar troubles.

On the 3rd December, Company Headquarters and Nos. 3 and 4 sections moved into Armenti?res, and billeted in the tram sheds at L'Attargette, but Nos. 1 and 2 remained with the transport in the Steenwerck area, and were kept busy on hutments and stables for the division for some little time longer.

When the 3rd Australian Division first went into the line east of Armenti?res, the 9th Brigade took over the right or L'Epinette sector astride the Lille railway, while the 10th Brigade was on the left or Houplines sector. The 11th Brigade was in reserve, and with it the 11th Field Company, which took over from the New Zealand Engineers of "Franks Force" the care of the Lys River bridges and also various jobs for the artillery covering the divisional front.

The billets in the town were a great improvement on the dilapidated, damp, and entirely filthy hutments taken over by the division around Steenwerck. The mud around the stables and horse standings in the area was quite appalling, and the transport had no relief until the famous frost of the winter '16-17 descended on the land and made all clean and dry for a time.

The tramway sheds at L'Attargette, on the northern outskirts of the town, contained a number of cars, which were fitted up by the men of 3 and 4 sections as cubicles. Headquarters was established in the tramway offices, and when Nos. 1 and 2 sections joined up some two or three weeks later they found quite good quarters in the neighbouring Rue de Flandres.

All the existing bridges over the river Lys around Armenti?res and Houplines had been prepared for demolition, but charges, fittings, and magazines all required a great deal of work.

A number of emergency floating bridges--both pontoon and barrel pier--also required attention and repairs. To facilitate bridge inspection No. 4 section built a rowing boat. Another little job was the construction from salvaged material of a spring cart, which accompanied the unit in all its subsequent wanderings, and was always known as the Souvenir Cart.

Work for the artillery consisted in the construction of O.P.'s and of gunpits among the ruins of Houplines and the outskirts of the town. Lieut. R. W. Lahey was wounded in the head by shrapnel while on this work and evacuated, but returned to the unit shortly afterwards.

The 11th Brigade relieved the 9th Brigade on the 24th December, and at the same time the 11th Field Company took over from the 9th, after spending several days in acquiring knowledge of the trenches. Nos. 1 and 2 sections had previously moved to Armenti?res. Very vigorous work on trench improvements was at once commenced and an extraordinary amount accomplished. In spite of the unfavourable weather large numbers of dugouts for the accommodation of the garrisons were built, new communication trenches dug, barbed wire put up, and the drainage of the trench system greatly improved. Material was used in vast quantities--sandbags literally by the million, "A" frames, revetting material, duckboards, steel trench shelters, corrugated iron. All this had to be carted to the forward dumps, "Tissage Dump," at Houplines, and "Fochaber," near Chapelle d'Armenti?res, and night after night, for nearly three months, every available vehicle of the Company transport made at least one journey, without incurring a single casualty to man or beast.

The first member of the unit to lose his life in action was Sapper Dahl, of No. 3 section, killed by a shell in the support line on Christmas Eve.

Christmas Day was spent the same as any other day of the period, hard at work in the line. Shortly afterwards the frosty weather commenced, which was to make this winter the coldest known for many years. The Lys river froze over so completely that it could be crossed by troops in fours and by horses and wagons; the soil was frozen as hard as iron to such a depth as to almost preclude any digging; and the very breath congealed upon the faces of those who wore moustaches. Still the work went on, albeit more slowly, and the weather at least gave No. 2, the drainage section, some respite from their labours.

The clothing issued by Ordnance helped all ranks to withstand the unaccustomed rigours of such a climate. Warm underclothing, extra socks, worsted gloves, and fingerless gloves of sheepskin were all appreciated, but the most useful "issue" was a sleeveless jerkin of leather, lined with flannel or something of the sort and worn over the tunic. This garment was extremely popular, as it kept the body warm, shed rain or snow, and did not interfere with the use of the arms.

The active service rations, too, were much better than the unit had been accustomed to in England. The only serious shortage was that of fuel, but of course in a shell-torn country-side there were ways and means of improving the supply.

At this time Armenti?res sheltered quite a large civilian population; Estaminets, caf?s, and shops were numerous; and it was very strange to see the business of the town carried on so calmly within easy range of the enemy's guns. It was quite the usual thing to have a cup of afternoon tea or a glass of beer in a caf? on return from the line, or to buy the daily papers at the little shop at the Five Corners.

The proceedings in the trenches themselves were characterised by a certain amount of regularity. The hour of our daily artillery and trench mortar "strafe" was advertised beforehand to all concerned, except the Boche, and the garrison and working parties were largely cleared in time from the front line and tucked away in some spot sheltered from the enemy retaliation. The numerous raids by both sides were the chief cause of casualties, and the occasional intense Minenwerfer barrages put down by the enemy did a lot of damage to our trenches, besides causing loss of life. The "trenches" were really in most places breastworks built up above the level of the flat and ill-drained country, and were very susceptible to damage from shell fire, and required much labour to repair.

The whole system of defence works in the Brigade area was carefully surveyed by the Company Surveyors, and a remarkable map produced, to a scale of 1 to 2,500. While engaged on this work one of the surveyors was arrested by some suspicious infantrymen and his section sergeant had some trouble in persuading them that they had not caught a spy at last.

Spy hunting was very popular, as it was firmly believed that whoever caught a real one would receive a sum of money and be granted a fortnight's leave!

The Company left Armenti?res on March 14th, when it crossed the river and commenced working in the Le Touquet sector, the defence of which was taken over at the same time by the 11th Brigade. The whole company, including transport, concentrated in Stuff Camp, Pont de Nieppe, which was taken over from the New Zealand Engineers.

The Le Touquet sector was chiefly distinguished by drainage difficulties, and time did not permit of much improvement being effected, as on the 5th April the area including Ploegsteert Wood and St. Ives Hill was taken over and work started on preparation for the attack on Messines Ridge--the so-called "Magnum Opus." The 105th Field Coy., R.E., took charge of the Le Touquet area on the 7th, leaving the 11th Coy. free to devote all its time to Messines preparations.

These included a big programme of trench improvements and extensions and Battalion Headquarters for the various attacking battalions, well forward in our existing trenches. The Battalion Headquarters were made of concrete, chiefly in the form of blocks and steel girders and rails. The block construction was not very successful.

As the 9th and 10th were to be the attacking Brigades, and the 9th & 10th Companies to be associated with them, these two Field Companies took over all these works from the 11th Field Company about 26th April, leaving the 11th free to devote itself to such work as the preparation of approach routes up to and through Ploegsteert Wood, signboards and fixed maps throughout the area, and further accommodation for various headquarters and command posts. Two sections-1 and 4-were taken up with artillery work--preparing the positions for the field artillery to be used in the attack; acres of camouflage screen were erected over battery positions, scores of splinter-proof shelters made for the gun crews, gun pits dug out and protected, and tram lines laid. A very strong dugout for use as a Divisional Command Post was made in the cellars of the lodge on the road from Hyde Park Corner to Messines, and a great deal of work was done fixing up the "Catacombs." This was a very large dugout in Hill 63, dug some time before by the 1st Australian Tunnelling Company. It was big enough to hold some 1,400 men, but had been allowed to become rather dilapidated. It was cleaned out and improved in various ways so as to accommodate a Brigade Headquarters, Battalion Headquarters, and a battalion complete, together with a few stray detachments.

Dumps of Engineer stores for use during and after the battle were gradually built up in various forward positions, particularly in the north-east part of Ploegsteert Wood. One of these dumps in the wood was shelled one day and a sapper of the company, a tough old veteran of the South African Campaign, was hit in the leg by a splinter. He started to hobble down the duckboards towards an aid post, but after proceeding a hundred yards or so his indignation overcame him, and returning to the dump, he demanded his rifle in a voice choked with anger, saying, "I'll make the -- pay for this!" It was with some difficulty that the old warrior was smoothed down and started afresh for the aid post.

Lieut. W. H. Thomas was in charge of the dumps during both the preparations and the battle itself, and he and his party of sappers and attached infantry had a bad time from gas, which was used in shells very largely by the enemy at this time, Ploegsteert Wood, in particular, being drenched with it immediately before and during the attack.

For his work during the period, Lieut. Thomas subsequently received the Military Cross, but was evacuated suffering from gas shortly after the action.

The increasing rain of shells of all calibre which was poured on the enemy defences in preparation for the battle, provoked heavy shelling in reply, particularly counter battery work, and while Messines village could be noticed visibly dwindling under the fire of our heavies, many farmhouses on our side of the line, which had hitherto escaped, were battered to pieces. Ploegsteert Wood, with its clean duckboard tracks and rustic cabins, was no longer a suitable spot to study the phenomena of spring. The scent of the violet became lost in the odour of lachrymatory gas, and the note of the cuckoo, while still to be heard, alternated with the whistle and the crash of shells. Pont de Nieppe and its vicinity were shelled on two or three occasions, and on June 6th, the day before the battle, the company lost four men killed and three wounded in Stuff Camp itself.

Some little time before this the enemy had fired a few shells at the bridge itself, the Pont de Nieppe, on the main road into Armenti?res, and had succeeded in putting one shell through what appeared to be the crown of the arch. In reality, the arch had no proper crown, the central 23 feet or so of the span being bridged across by girders connected with brick jack arches. From underneath these girders looked like, and had always been taken for, steel, but the shell, which broke three of them, disclosed the interesting fact that they were only of cast iron. While just strong enough to take 3-ton motor lorries, there was certainly not sufficient margin of safety for heavier loads. The damage was repaired and the bridge incidentally strengthened by a party of sappers from the company, who stripped the damaged portion and replaced the broken cast iron beams with steel girders. These had to be slowly and painfully shaped by hand to fit exactly to the cast iron seating at each end.

Part of the medical arrangements were carried out by the 11th Company, who built an R.A.P. near Hyde Park Corner and some extensions to other posts and dressing stations.

Early in June the elaborate preparations were at last complete, and Z day was fixed for the 7th of the month. The 3rd Australian Division had reached the eve of its first large scale offensive.

MESSINES, YPRES, AND AFTER.

The 11th Field Company was reserve company in the first stage of the attack on Messines Ridge, and very early in the morning of the 7th of June, 1917, marched from Pont de Nieppe to Weka Lines, in the little village of Romarin, on the road to Ploegsteert village. With the company moved a party of attached infantry from the 9th Brigade, which had reported to Stuff Camp some days previously. The morning was still and warm and there was a good deal of gas about the battery areas, so that part of the march was done in gas masks, and until the sun rose all ranks solemnly sat around the camp wearing them.

A special feature of the arrangements for the attack was the organisation of a divisional pack train for the transport of ammunition, food, water, and R.E. stores to the newly-captured areas. The company contributed a considerable number of drivers and mules under Lieut. J. M. Norton, to this train.

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