7 Oct 1916 - History of the Attack

7 Oct 1916: About 11/30 A.M. On the morning of the attack an hostile aeroplane flew over our lines. This aeroplane no doubt saw the concentration of troops for the attack as considerable hostile shelling broke out about 1/30 P.M. A 77mm Battery was the battery that apparently had been detailed for this portion of the Enemy’s front. The shelling was searching the front British trench the assembly trenches in the rear either side of the Sunken Road running N from Millars Son and considerable concentration of the road itself the latter was kept up for about 6 hours making the road very dangerous to travel up and down.

At 1.45 PM (Zero Hour) the leading waves moved out of the British line and crawling up to the wire which was some 40 yards in front of our trench lay down, and as the Germans had manned the parapet some 60 yards to the front and was delivering a very hotfire from six machine guns and rifles, our troops answered; shortly afterwards the advance began again some men were able to crawl through the wire, other men we're able to move round through gaps, office by placing their feet on the top strand of the wire were able to get through.

The wire obstacle was one single length of barbed concertina wire extending along the whole of the frontage of the Battalion’s left Company, it was about 2’ 6” in height and appeared more of an alarming obstacle than it actually was.

During the period Zero to Zero plus 4 minutes, Enemy’s Machine Gun fire was very intense, at the latter time it was silenced, the Enemy left their trenches and ran back towards their second line unarmed, during their retreat our Lewis guns did considerable damage to them, few Germans got back, and the enemy in the Front line were bayoneted or surrendered.

The advance from the first German trench to the second (Misty Trench) was accomplished with comparatively little loss, although some casualties occurred by snipers on our extreme right who took advantage of that flank being temporarily in the air; shortly after commencing digging in a portion of the Division on our right pushed forward their attack and joined up with our troops and thereby made our extreme right secure.

I should like to bring the following forward for reward [attachment not including in diary]. END