In August 1916 the battle of Guillemont in France continued day after day with attack followed by counter attack. The shellfire was horrendous and bodies were left out in no man’s land in the sweltering heat. Contemporary accounts talk of the unrelenting noise of shells and machine guns. And the sickening smell of death.
My great uncle Jack Walker was with the 12th battalion Royal Fusiliers when they arrived in Bernafay Woods about a mile to the west of Guillemont. I was there last month and walked (unwisely) through Bernafay. I wouldn’t do it again. As you can see in the photos, unexploded ordinance lies everywhere. I saw two hand grenades and a huge unexploded shell lying just yards from a main path. Some of those shells go off every year when tractors roll over them. Some shells still contain gas.
The 12th Battalion diary entry for this day is brief but poignant. And perhaps all the more shocking for its brevity. Three soldiers were killed. Only officers are named in the diary. The rest are just referred to as “other ranks”
10.8.16
Location: Bernafay Wood.
Dull and misty. A lot of gunning all day. One shell falling just outside HQ, causing casualties. Draft 2 OR (two Other Ranks joined the battalion)
Casualties: Killed 3 OR. Wounded: 6 OR.
Ramblings of a Walker 