Diary of 2/Lt. A. B. STREET

48 SIEGE BATTERY RGA

1^st Jan. Saturday.  Went over to the Docks by train; they had now started loading Tentage and there was nothing for us to do.  Meade King went up to Town for the night to see his wife.  I returned to Bristol soon after midday.  Went to the Pantomime “Goody Two Shoes” in the evening, a very good show, amusing and some of the scenes very pretty.

2^nd Jan. Sunday.  Went to church at 8.0.  Paid my bill at the Hotel and went to the Docks.  Meade King returned.  Went to the Rest Camp at 2.0 and marched our 15 men and the 30 for Malta down to the ship and embarked them.  Paraded them at 3.0 for inoculation against Cholera and I was vaccinated as well.  Meade King went off to his cousins at Stoke Druid for the night.  I slept on board.  Rain all evening & night.

3^rd Jan. Monday.  Cleared up about 9.0 and was a fine sunny day.  Meade King returned at 10.0.  Said we were both asked by his cousins for lunch, dinner and the night if not sailing.  I went into Bristol to see Mr. Meade King re a power of attorney for Mother and returned to Stoke Druid to lunch with his wife; into Bristol again after lunch to sign P of Att: then to tea at Stoke Druid.  M. K. and I then went out to the Docks to see if the ship would sail.  On finding that she wouldn’t we went to Stoke Druid for the night which was very pleasant.

4^th Jan. Tuesday.  Caught bus after breakfast and were at the Docks shortly after 10.0.  They finished loading by midday and we expected to sail between 4 and 8, no orders came however so we are here for the night.  Started raining in the afternoon and continued.  Sent a wire about 3.30 to say were off!!

5^th Jan. Wednesday.  Fine sunny day.  Took a walk round the Docks in the m’ning.  Cast off about 6.10 p.m. and anchored off Barry at 9.30 p.m. awaiting escorts.

6^th Jan. Thursday.  Left Barry Roads soon after midnight accompanied by our escort which was two armed trawlers whose speed was so slow that we had to reduce to half speed.  A fairly fine day but a bit thick.  A good many men were ill there being a fair amount of motion.  Meade King succumbed also.

7^th Jan. Friday.  A fair day, fresh breeze and some sun.  Most of the men were ill., Meade King in bed all day, the ship was rolling a lot.  Made the Wolf Lightship about 8.0 am and picked up a new escort, 2 armed trawlers which could steam at our full speed, they left us at about 9.0 p.m. when off Ushant, we passed about 60 miles off.

8^th Jan. Saturday.  Fine sunny day, light wind but a heavy swell.  Sunny.

9^th Jan. Sunday.  Fine day, dull.  Wind veered round to the E.  Bigend of H.P. Cyl[inder] began to knock about midday.  Hove to at 6.30 p.m. for engineers to repair it.  Under way again about 10.0 p.m. Abreast off Cape Finisterre, about 150 miles out, at about 5.0 p.m.

10^th Jan. Monday.  Lovely sunny day calm with an Easterly breeze.  Stopped in the forenoon for about 15 minutes to adjust Bigend.

11^th Jan. Tuesday.  Lovely sunny day calm with an Easterly breeze.  Altered course about 9.0 p.m. for the Straits of Gibraltar.

12^th Jan. Wednesday.  Lovely sunny day very calm Easterly breeze. Sighted land N. coast of Africa at 4.0 p.m.  Met Patrol boat outside Gibraltar about 9.0 p.m. and arrived in Examination Anchorage about 12.0.  Did not anchor.

13^th Jan. Thursday.  Lovely sunny day, very calm, practically no wind.  Left Gibraltar at 5.0 am.  Saw Sierra Nevada 11,000 ft. snow covered.

14^th Jan. Friday.  Fine sunny day, fresh breeze dying away in the evening.

15^th Jan. Saturday.  Fine sunny day wind went round to the North.  There was a swell which caused her to roll rather heavily.

16^th Jan. Sunday.  Fine sunny day.  Swell went down v. light wind.  Passed several ships, one a 4 funnel cruiser on the horizon.

17^th Jan. Monday.  Hot sunny day calm light breeze.  Arrived off Malta at 4.45 p.m. and were sent round to St. Paul’s Bay to anchor for the night.  Anchored at 7.30.

18^th Jan. Tuesday.  Weighed anchor at 6.30.a.m. and proceeded into the harbour, anchoring off the fish market about 8.30.  The 30 men for Malta were disembarked before noon.  Meade King and I went ashore in the afternoon, cabled home, did some shopping and walked about.  Fine sunny day.

19^th Jan. Wednesday.  Fine day but cloudy.  Meade King and I went to lunch with 3 Subs. of 603 Coy. M.T. A.S.C. at Mosta Cross Roads about 7 miles outside Valetta.  Did some shopping and posted letters.  30 men R.N.D. ratings joined on board.

20^th Jan. Thursday.  Fine sunny day.  Fresh breeze from N.  We left Malta at midday.

21^st Jan. Friday.  Warm sunny day no wind.  Clouded over in the evening.

22^nd Jan. Saturday.  Dull.  Rain on and off all day.

23^rd Jan. Sunday.  Dull and wet in the morning but cleared up in the afternoon.  Calm sea fresh breeze.

24^th Jan. Monday.  Arrived off Alexandria at daybreak and entered about 7.0 am.  We anchored out in the harbour.  Rather windy some showers but warm and pleasant in the sun.

25^th Jan. Tuesday.  N. W. gale all day.  No communication with the shore.  Some sunshine and heavy squalls.

26^th Jan. Wednesday.  Fine day fresh breeze.  Hill came on board in the m’ning and gave us news of the battery.  Pilot came on board after dinner and we berthed at No 44 at 2.45 and soon after cargo began to be discharged.  Meade King and I drove up to the town after tea and sent some cables.  30 R.N.D. ratings disembarked at 5.0.p.m.

27^th Jan. Thursday.  Fine day fairly sunny fresh breeze.  Continued to discharge tentage.  Harvey, Lane and White came down in the afternoon.  Langford and Hutchings in the m’ning.

28^th Jan. Friday.  Warm sunny day.  Began discharging lorries.  Sent a cable to Judith.

29^th Jan. Saturday.  Lovely hot sunny day.  Continued to unload lorries and tentage.  Received mail from home.

30^th Jan. Sunday.  Lovely hot sunny day.  Continued unloading all day.  Got 4 of the gun pieces out.

31^st Jan. Monday.  Fine sunny day.  Finished discharging the ship at 4.15p.m.  After tea on board we all left for the Camp after just a month on board.  Had a very comfortable happy time on board and a very pleasant voyage.  Dined at Camp, sharing a tent with Harvey.  Quite comfortable.

Diary of 2/Lt. A. B, STREET

48 SIEGE BATTERY RGA

16^th Feb. Wednesday. Weather same.  Camp and Battery Ord. Off: in Camp all day.  Wrote some letters.  Telegram came in asking us for strength etc. and whether ready to move.

Moorside

Crowborough

31.1.16

My Dear Gladys

I was delighted to hear of your success now all you have to do is to pull the two scholarships off, it would be a huge honour.

I am a bit fed up at present as I am working up a lot of old drills &c and have not much news, except that Boon is getting married when his course finishes.  He is a silly fool but he may be sued for breach of promise before long from what I hear.

The girl at Preston is very ill or has been through the shock and her father wrote to Pa Boon telling him all about it.  It seems Boon had told them his mother hated him & he hated her.  Affleck mentioned this in his letter & I don’t think his father is over pleased.

They have now written to me asking for Lilian’s address but as they have removed I told them I did not know it and that I wanted to have nothing more to do with it.  I have not yet heard from the Golden Hen so far this week but Tuesday is usually the time.  Elsie will be pleased to hear of your success.

Well I have no more news at present, write soon

Love to all

George

27-1-16

Dear F & M

Just a line to let you know I am in the pink.  Sorry I have not dropped you a line every week but things have been much the same as being at home nothing exciting happening.  We have had Divnl football competitions, boxing contests and sports of all kinds including marathon races needless to say I did try the marathon.  We have also had concerts 2 or 3 times a week in a big YMCA Tent just below us.

I had a look in there the other night Kennerley Rumford’s Troupe giving the concert.  Unfortunately Kennerley was indisposed but nevertheless it was worth going to.  We have had a very good time indeed and we feel a little sorry to be leave the place which we are expecting to leave ere this gets in your hands.  Still I believe we are going into decent billets from what one can hear so that’s something we can’t have anything much worse than the time before we were in action so we are not at all upset.  Well I don’t think there’s anything particular to relate.  Sorry to hear Mar’s not so well but hope she will be better by now.  Hope all at home keep smiling and that you will remember me to all enquiring friends.  Have so much kit now I don’t know how to move it however I shall endeavour to wrangle some of it on the mules.

Well Bye Bye for present.

Love to all Burgie.

Moorside

Crowborough

26.1.16

My Dear Gladys

Cheer oh!  Jolly glad to receive your letter.  I am most anxious to hear that you have passed your exam and are well on the way for the scholarship.  You must get it.

Had a letter from Willie yesterday.  He seems to be getting along alright.  Says you enjoyed yourself.  Their board have not released the men in the first four groups so it does not look as though he will be called upon.

Glad to hear that the photo is alright.  You had better have it framed for me and I will let you have the money.  I think I told you I had paid Beaty’s so my banking account does not look so healthy as it did.

We have received a number of Derby recruits and I have bought a revolver, Webley £3.6.2.  it is a fine little thing.  I have not received it yet.  Let me know what you would like for your birthday up to 10/-, can’t afford more at present as I have not quite recovered from the Christmas excitement.  Did I tell you AB was overdrawn 7-10-0£ at the bank.  He returned the quid I lent him alright after I wrote rather a rotten letter.

I have been on a course of Physical Drill & bayonet fighting.  Pass alright.  Am very busy at present have been playing rugby today & feel awfully stiff.  Hope you enjoy yourself on Friday.  By the way the captain who was to bring the recruits down came back with Uncle Tom to London he says he was pumping him to find out what kind of a lad I was.  The report I believe was quite favourable.

Well no more at present

Write earlier next week

Fondest love

George

Have sent powder to Fred.  When are you going to have your photo taken?  G

20.1.16

Dear Mar & Pa

Just a line to let you know I am in the pink.  I have nearly resumed my ordinary civilian proportions after living a village life so long but I suppose we shall be living a rough life again soon.  There is really nothing to relate and we all feel ready for a change.

One of our Brigades had a route march through our village the other day and we came across Winnie and he gave us a nice salute.  He was walking evidently trying to get his weight down so everyone thought.  Well and how are you all getting along?  Glad to hear Mar & Pa are OK.  How did Gladys go on in her exam?  What has become of Lt. GG not had a word from him since I returned?  I suppose the Conscription has put the wind up a lot of them nowadays.  Turk still seems to wander away still I suppose he’s glad to get home again as his Master was at times.  Remember me to all enquiring friends

Yours  Burgy

La Bezie entered in blue biro later

9.1.16

Dear M & Pa

Just a line to say alls well.  I received your little parcel OK.  We are still resting in fact I have never been so spruce since I join the HARMY.  I went and had a bath this morning & got a full rigg out of underwear.  I also have new breeches, boots and putties so you wouldn’t recognise me now.  In fact we have had to dubbin our boots at present.  We have had a good time.  There are 5 of us billeted in a house in the village & get our food & extras cooked there.  We are well known in the village now and are busy trying to learn French choruses.  Tommy Earlam came yday to see us he is only about 9 miles away we were very pleased to see him but he’s very comfortable where he is.  The weather has been rather mild but very damp lately.  I don’t think there is any special news to tell as we are just living a country life.  Winston is with us now so things are looking up.  Well I hope you are all well I suppose we shall be having a turn at the mud etc Ha men tears

Cheer ho

Burgy

H.E. WITTY

18^th SIEGE BATTERY R.G.A.

1. Section

1^st January 1916.  Saturday.  OFF DAY.  Very wet – played footer in morning.  Reading ‘Les contes des collines’ and writing afternoon and evening.  Letter from R.  ANS.

Gormley’s court martial **holder before Major for shooting a dog in camp – got off with a rep.

On the 1^st Jan 1916, the British introduced a new weapon against the German U-boat, the depth charge. Herbert Taylor, of the Royal Navy’s torpedo school HMS Vernon based near Portsmouth had experimented with and perfected the first workable depth charge. Shaped like an oil barrel and filled with TNT, the depth charge exploded at a preset depth. Over 16,000 depth charges were released by the end of the war, sinking 38 U-boats and helping to destroy 141 more.

Before the Great War Germany, like most European countries, had a number of colonies in Africa. Each colony was surrounded by allied territories effectively starving the Germans of supplies. Cameroon, sited on the west coast of Africa was a German colony consisting of mountains, plateaus, dense jungle and swamps. On the 1^st Jan 1916 British and French forces advance and reach Yaonde, after combatting skilful defence together with tropical rain. The Allied forces numbered approximately 25,000 but poor planning and lack of intelligence hindered their progress. The German opposition comprised approximately 5,000 troops, who used cunning tactics to hinder the allied advance. The allies’ final aim was to reach the last German stronghold of Mora, in the north of Cameroon.

By late 1915 the British army had lost approximately 60,000 officers and many more other ranks. On the 6^th Jan 1916, the British Government introduced the Military Service Bill providing for the conscription of single men aged 18-41 to join the British armed forces. Britain had declared war on Germany in 1914 with a regular army of 100,000 men and approximately 125,000 Territorial Forces. Britain’s Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener, requested young men to volunteer for the armed forces. With heavy casualties already sustained, the Military Service Act was passed into law on the 27^th Jan 1916. Conscription was the only solution to maintaining the supply of forces necessary for the British army to win the war. The law became effective from 10^th Feb 1916, despite Prime Minister Herbert Asquith’s reluctant submission of the act.

The final evacuation of Helles at Gallipoli on the 8^th and 9^th Jan 1916 was effected     with no loss of life. Previously the evacuation of Suvla Bay and Anzac Cove, in Dec 1915, had been a brilliant success and achieved without any casualties.

The Gallipoli campaign overall was a complete disaster and the two evacuations were the only successes. Overall allied casualties numbered over 200,000 with many deaths from disease. The number of Turkish deaths is not clear but over 200,000 is     generally accepted.

Admiral Hugo von Pohl was exceedingly cautious, not wanting to risk the German navy against the vastly superior British navy. Reinhard Scheer joined the German navy as officer cadet, and progressed through the ranks reaching the position of commander of the 11 Battle Squadron of the High Seas, at the outbreak of the Great War. On the 24^th Jan 1916 Scheer was promoted to Admiral, and given the command of the High Seas Fleet, after the Kaiser dismissed von Pohl because of ill health, coupled with his cautiousness.

During the first years of the Great War Paris suffered very little damage to its streets and buildings, but on the 29^th Jan 1916 a German Zeppelin dropped 19 bombs onto the house on 34 rue du Borrego. The owner, sous-brigadier (Lance Corporal) Bidault was killed, one of 54 people who lost their lives. A special funeral was held for them at Notre-Dame-de-la-Croix.

In January 1916, The American President, Woodrow Wilson, sent his Chief Foreign Policy advisor, Colonel Edward M House, to Europe to attempt to negotiate peace terms. The negotiations failed to reach an agreement, ending Wilson’s hopes the war would end. The outcome would be the inevitable inclusion of American involvement mainly due to the loss of American lives in the submarine incidents in the Atlantic.

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                         THE BALKANS

Flora Sandes was an English lady who had travelled to Serbia as an auxiliary nurse at the outbreak of the Great War. At the beginning of the Serbian retreat, during the autumn of 1915, she had enlisted as a private soldier in the Serbian army. Due to her many British contacts, she was able to obtain supplies for troops in her regiment. Her reward for this was promotion to Corporal on the 1^st Jan 1916.

On the 6^th Jan 1916 the Montenegrin army had entrenched themselves around the village of Mojkovac. The intention of the battle was to allow a general retreat to Corfu. The Austro/Hungarian forces attacked the village with a heavy bombardment but the assault was unsuccessful, the Austro/Hungarian forces suffering heavy casualties. The Austro/Hungarian forces followed up with a second attack on the Montenegrin positions on the 7^th Jan 1916. Despite having a stronger, larger and better-equipped army, Austro/Hungary again failed, with both sides having suffered heavy losses. The result being the abandonment of the Austro/Hungarian positions in Mojkovac.

From the 8^th Jan 1916 the Austro/Hungarian army continued pushing their offensives south and gradually overcame Montenegrin forces until on the 16^th Jan 1916 Montenegro capitulated and sought surrender terms.

On the 11^th Jan 1916, France occupied the Greek Island of Corfu, and the first of the retreating Serbian troops began to land on Corfu on 15^th Jan 1916.

On the 25^th Jan 1916, the entire army of Montenegro surrendered and laid down their weapons.

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      The Caucasus and Middle East Campaign

Three new Indian divisions commanded by British Major-General Aylmer were despatched on 4^th Jan 1916, to relieve the besieged British forces at Kut-al-Amara. En-route, the Turkish army blocked Aylmer’s forces at the Battle of Sheikh Sa’ad. After two days fighting, without any success, Aylmer’s forces attacked the Turkish defences only to discover the Turkish trenches were unoccupied. Despite this, Aylmer’s forces were not able to relieve Kut-al-Amara.

Russia had declared war on the Ottoman Empire in Nov 1914. Their two armies fought along their border.  A mixture of assaults and defeats resulted in stalemate.

10-18^th Jan 1916, the Russians achieved total surprise by defeating the Ottoman forces at the Battle of Koprukoy. Russia continued attacking to the south into the Ottoman Empire, heading for Erzerum.

The Battle of Wadi occurred on the 13^th Jan 1916, being the unsuccessful attempt to relieve the beleaguered forces of Sir Charles Townsend then under siege by the Ottoman Sixth Army at Kut-al-Amara. General Fenton Aylmer was ordered to launch an attack against Ottoman defensive positions on the banks of the Wadi River. The Wadi was a steep valley with a stream running into the River Tigris. The attack was generally considered to be a failure, although Fenton managed to capture the Wadi, it cost him 1,600 men.

After the setbacks at the Wadi, Aylmer was ordered, on 21^st Jan 1916, once again to attempt to break through the Ottoman lines. Aylmer’s relief force, now reduced to about 10,000 men, continued its movement up the Tigris until it encountered 30,000 men of the Ottoman army at the Hanna defile 30 miles downriver of Kut-al-Amara. After a short bombardment the British forces charged the Ottoman lines. In an advance across 600 yards of flooded no-man’s land, the British sustained 2700 casualties. Well prepared Ottoman positions, notably well-sited machine gun nests, forced the British to abandon the assault and withdraw the relief force to the base of Ali Gharbi. The night after the attack was freezing and, with medical care practically non-existent, many wounded British troops suffered unnecessarily. Morale for both the relief and the besieged forces at Kut-al-Amara plummeted, after the failure to secure the breakthrough.