Friday,
22nd March 1918
The
march from Brie to the Green line was a weary
business for already everyone was tired. The
dark, thick mist and heavy traffic on the main
road, delayed progress. The men were carrying
their packs and on reaching their bivouacs soon
after dawn, were in an exhausted condition’.
The
trenches were about one foot deep with one double
apron of wire in front of the greater part of the
line. Here they dug in. Hot food did not arrive
until 8.40am just as orders were
received to man the defences immediately. This
line was well wired but only from one to two feet
in depth.
 At 4pm the
enemy assault began, with eight waves of infantry,
providing easy targets for rifle and machine gun.
Within half an hour the Germans broke through the
left flank of the 24th Divn south of the Omignon
river, and by 5pm had
broken through the left flank of the 4th Bn. With
both flanks exposed, the Bn was forced to retire
to Caulaincourt. Lt Col Robb
was wounded here, so command of the Bn devolved
to the Adjutant Capt T.A.Lacy-Thompson.
The
5th Bn counterattacked from St Martin at 5.15pm,
driving the enemy back over the Caulaincourt-Poeuilly
road and retaking the greater part of Caulaincourt.
At 5.50pm the enemy again drove
the Bde out of Caulaincourt, but a 2nd counterattack
by one Coy of the 5th Bn partially retrieved the
situation.
However,
the enemy had by now driven the 24th Divn over
the Caulaincourt-Beauvois road
to the west of Treicon and
exposing the right flank of the 4th Bn. The Bde
line now ran from the road south of the … in
Caulaincourt to Poeuilly the whole of which was
still held by the 6th Bn.
By 8pm the
artillery had been withdrawn by four thousand yards
and were therefore quite useless.
Casualties,
especially amongst the officers were heavy with
all the Company Commanders either killed or missing.
At 11pm 50th
Divn ordered a withdrawal to a line running from
the crossroads one-mile south west of Vraignes
to Merancourt. This was completed under protection
of a rear guard and ………..
‘During
the night orders were issued from Divn HQ for all
three Bdes to retire to a line running from Monchy-Lagache-Vraignes-east
of Beaumetz to Brusle and
to defend it at all costs. All units immediately
began to move in order to get dug in before dawn’.
The
Bn withdrew by orders through Tertry to
Monchy Lagache. In accordance with general instructions
received by Capt Thompson the whole line was withdrawn,
under cover of darkness, to Mereaucourt,
where the men were provided the men with hot tea
and food, and later through Devise to
the river at St Christ.
However,
while the withdrawal was in progress fresh orders
were received at Divn HQ from Corps HQ; the 50th
Divn was to withdraw as rapidly as possible to
the line of the Somme during the 23rd, crossing
to the west bank by the St Christ, Brie and Eterpigny
Bridges.
Divn
HQ issued orders at 7.30am stating
that Bdes were to withdraw to a line running between Le
Mesnil and Athies,
at the discretion of Brigadiers. From this line,
a withdrawal to the Somme was to be carried out
under orders from Divn. The 149th Bde was to cross
the Somme by the St Christ bridge, the 150th Bde
at Brie and the 151st Bde at Eterpigny.
At 10am,
under the orders of 50th Divn HQ a withdrawal to
the line Devise-Mons en Chausee was
made in preparation for a further withdrawal to
the line of the Somme river. The Bde reached the
line Athies road junction west of Prusle at 10.30am,
fighting the whole way. The 150th Bde was in contact
but echeloned about 1500 yards to the west. The
Bde order of battle from right to left was 5th,
4th and 6th Bns with the 149th MGC distributed
along the line and the 149th TMB on the inner flank
of the 5th Bn, as they had no ammunition left for
the guns.
The
withdrawal to the western bank of the Somme began
at 11am with one coy from the
5th Bn providing cover from Ennemain and the high
ground immediately east of the village. This coy
was heavily engaged by the enemy, but managed to
hold its ground while the rest of the Bde crossed
the Somme at St Christ and took up defensive positions
between Crancourt (excl)
and Happlincourt (excl).
The 4th Bn had retreated through Devise, supporting
the 6th Bn in action along the way and eventually
after some confusion and straggling crossed the
canal and took up a position commanding the bridgehead.
'C' Coy was ordered to hold the bridgehead, which
they did until relieved by the 8th
Divn. By 2.45pm the
Bde was in position and the order of battle from
right to left was 4th, 5th and 6th Bns with the
two remaining machine guns in the line. St Christ
bridge was blown up and burned.
Heavy
fighting took place around the partially destroyed
bridge that night with the enemy making repeated
and desperate attempts to gain possession. Around 9.30pm they
actually succeeded in crossing, but 'C' Coy managed
to destroy or drive them back with concentrated
rifle and Lewis gunfire. . The assistance of the 22nd
Entrenching Bn bridge was
obtained to repel attack. Cpl Steele was one of
the men covering the bridge with his Lewis gun
that night, until compelled to withdraw when it
was put out of action, he was  subsequently
awarded a Military Medal. Bde HQ by this time had
moved to Misery.
Our Battalion had taken
up its position on the ''Green Line,'' knowing
that the Bosche hordes had succeeded in breaking
our front defences. It was on the ''Green Line''
that we joined battle with the enemy, and the
fight waged fiercely through Friday afternoon.
Casualties, especially amongst officers were
heavy from the first, the Commanding Officer
(Lieut-Col William Robb, MC)
being wounded, and all Company Commanders killed
or missing. The story of Capt W.B.Hicks and 'A'
Company will be told later; suffice it to say
here that on Friday evening they were regarded
a s
missing, probably captured. Captain T.W.Gregory,
of 'B' Company, was wounded, but continued to
fight; was wounded again in several places, and
died in the Field Ambulance in the neighbouring
village of Tertry. Captain A.Finlayson, of 'C'
Company, was wounded in the arm, but refused
to go back, fighting with a number of his men
from behind the shelter of a broken wall in the
village. It is feared that this officer, an unyielding,
indomitable Scot, fell at the spot from which
not even wounds could dislodge him.  Equally
gallant, scarcely varying in a word, is the story
of Captain King, of 'D' Company, another officer
who never came back. 2nd Lieut Chevreau, a Franco-British
officer, holder of the Croix de Guerre, was in
charge of an advanced position with a platoon
of ''B'' Company. He and his 34 men fought until
they were reduced to 8, of whom several were
wounded. Though badly wounded himself he continued
to fight, in order to cover the escape of his
wounded men to the Aid Post. He gave no ground
to the last and died at his post. Lieut Lund
was wounded in two places, treated at the Aid
Post and not seen again. 2nd Lieut Cockburn was
wounded at the opening of the action. 2nd Lieut
Tibbs was missing, being last seen heroically
defending his position. (Rev
Callin C.F,1919: )
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