The Barry Hobbs Collection of Great War Medals
A highly successful raid by the Hull Commercials on German trenches at Boar’s Head near Richebourg on the night of 18/19 September saw Hermann of C Company suffer multiple wounds:
‘The raid on the 18/19th was to be unorthodox. For a week prior to the raid the division had practised a non-offensive policy with the intention of duping the enemy into thinking that they had a peace-loving division opposite them. Lieutenant-Colonel Stapledon, in the face of opposition from his superiors, insisted that there should be no artillery prior to the attack; stealth would be used to position the troops and Bangalore torpedoes used at the last minute to open up the German wire. One officer and twenty five men from each company would take part under the command of Captain Lambert. In the report written after the raid the aims of the raid were stated as: ‘to enter enemy’s trenches, capture and kill any of the enemy, bomb his dugouts and do as much damage as possible.’ This was to be achieved by entering the enemy’s trenches at: ‘four separate points as silently as possible, with 4 parties, each party not to be more than 36 strong, enemy’s wire being cut by a bangalore torpedo at each point of entry, the moment before entry. ’
The four raiding parties waited in No Man’s Land until midnight when the Bangalore torpedoes went off and the raid started. C Company was in position at 11.57 and at midnight when the torpedo exploded rushed into the trench under the cover of the smoke. The party entered a bay occupied by four sentries, three of whom were killed and the other taken prisoner. Flank parties bombed their way down the trench while a third party bombed another trench (Kampe Strasse) causing the Germans to run down the trench and out into the open at the back of the trenches. At 12.10 the raiding party left the trenches leaving behind an estimated ten dead Germans with an unknown number wounded. C Company casualties were light, with one officer and three men slightly wounded. There was no enemy retaliation of any sort after the raid.
The raid was a great success and congratulations were received from all quarters. Battalion orders for the 20th gave details of the compliments: ‘I should be glad if you will ask the G.O.C. 31st Division to convey to Brig. Gen. Williams, Commanding the 92nd Infantry Brigade, my congratulations to all ranks of the 10th East Yorkshire Regiment, under Major C.C. Stapledon, who took part in the successful raid carried out last night. The casualties inflicted on the enemy and the capture of prisoners and a machine gun, proved that the raid was not only prepared in the most careful manner, but that it was carried out with fine energy, determination, and gallantry by the officers and men of the East Yorkshire. The capture of the prisoners has enabled us to establish some identifications which are of the utmost importance at the present time to the whole of the allied armies. (signed) R. Haking, General Commanding, First Army.’ (Hull Pals - 10th, 11th, 12th & 13th (Service) Battalions of the East Yorkshire Regiment - A History of 92 Infantry Brigade 31st Division by David Bilton refers.)
Having been wounded in action during the raid, Hermann was admitted to hospital at Wimereaux on 23 September 1916 with wounds to his left hand, neck and legs. Sufficiently recuperated, he rejoined his unit in the field back on the Somme on 9 November 1916 and was wounded again four days later on the opening day of the Battle of the Ancre during which the 10th provided flank guards and carrying parties as opposed to the 12th and 13th battalions who suffered terribly in the main attack to the north of Serre.
Acting Sergeant Hermann died of his wounds on 17 November 1916. He was the son of Niels Christian Hermann and the husband of Elizabeth Mary Hermann of 5 Eldon Grove, Beverley Road, Hull and is buried in Couin British Cemetery, France.
83
Three: Corporal H. H. Shuttle, 1st Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment, who was killed in action at the Battle of Le Cateau on 26 August 1914
1914 Star, with clasp (9734 Cpl. H. H. Shuttle. 1/Bedf: R.); British War and Victory Medals (9734 Cpl. H. H. Shuttle. Bedf. R.); Memorial Plaque (Harold Henry Shuttle); Memorial Scroll, ‘Cpl. Harold Henry Shuttle, Bedfordshire Regiment’; together with a Bedfordshire Regiment cap badge, nearly extremely fine (5)
£260-£300
Harold Henry Shuttle was born on 18 December 1894 at Chigwell, Essex and attested for the Bedfordshire Regiment in 1911. He served with the 1st Battalion during the Great War as part of the 15th Brigade, 5th Division, on the Western Front from 15 August 1914.
“A” and “B” Companies engaged the enemy at Wasmes on 23 August 1914, coming under fire from enemy field guns, their shallow trenches offering little protection. The Battalion then reunited at Paturages on 24 August and beat off the advancing enemy whilst inflicting heavy casualties. Withdrawing to Bavai and then Le Cateau on 26 August, they then took up a position near Troisville facing Le Cateau-Cambrai road, the 5th Division holding the right of the line from a point halfway between Le Cateau and Reumont, to Troisville, with the 15th Brigade covering the left half of the line, just east of Troisville.
As they waited for the inevitable onslaught, the men tried to deepen their trenches: ‘The mist started clearing mid morning and the first German guns opened up on the British positions. Although it started slowly, the bombardment gradually picked up pace and determination until the sheer scale of it almost overwhelmed the thin British lines. The weight of the German attack fell on the right and centre of the 5th Division’s lines, to the right of the Bedfordshires, which was II Corps most vulnerable flank with the least support. As the afternoon wore on, rifle and machine gun fire increased in intensity, especially on the right flank, and column after column of German infantry assaulted the British positions. In a replay of events at Mons, intense and accurate British rifle fire and field guns firing over open sights from positions alongside the infantry held the Germans back. During the assault, the Bedfords themselves were spared the attentions of the German Infantry and contented themselves with providing supporting fire to the units on their right when the opportunity arose... By 4pm the bulk of the 5th Division was already retiring and orders reached the Bedfordshires to ‘retire by bounds’ if possible. They were to make their rearguard action deliberately slow and ensure the advancing enemy paid dearly, thereby allowing the main body to get away as unmolested as possible. To their right the King’s Own Scottish Borderers retired and A, B and C Companies followed suit in small groups. D Company on the extreme left was pinned down by intense machine-gun fire but got away eventually, Captain William Wagstaff from D Company being wounded in the thigh during the withdrawal.’ (1st Bedfordshires Part 1: Mons to the Somme by Steven Fuller refers)
The War Diary records casualties as being mercifully light - around 30 killed or wounded, Private Shuttle being among those killed. He was the son of Frederick and Emma Matilda Shuttle, of 5, Smeaton Road, Woodford Bridge, Essex and, having no known grave, is commemorated on the La Ferte-sous-Jouarre Memorial, France.
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