This week Sabine”s battlefield guide Saturday
153e regiment d’infanterie attacking Wallemolen 11 December 1914
Let see what the French write down about the attack
11 December 1914, strength 29 officers and 1961 troops
The 2nd Bn. continues to be in Bde reserve at St Julien. 1st and 3rd Bn.: at 2 a.m., the 1st Bn. (Commandant Cornet) and the 3rd Bn. (Major Pompey) leave their billets to go and execute an attack on German trenches situated in front of a farm called ‘en Bonnet d’Evêque’, 1500 m south-east of Poelkapelle. the attack takes place at 6 a.m. after a preparation by artillery fire for 1/4 hour The 1 Bn. forms the right column, the 2nd Bn., the one on the left, a section of machine-guns on the flank of each column. The first line was preceded by engineers (Cie 20/2), other fractions of the engineers marching in other with the support and the partial reserve. A reserve of 2 sections under the command of LT. Pallat This was at the farm called ‘Bonnet d’ eveque’, at the disposal of the colonel of the 153rd in charge of the operation. The attack failed, the surprise didn’t have its effect. Why ? well preparation by artillery fire was badly conducted, noises and soggy ground. However, some elements reached the first German line , but did not succeed in holding on to them. In the evening the 2 Bn returned to their divisional reserve billets. Sanitary condition : Fair
Now the Casualties are a long list of names, very detailed, by company if they were wounded, killed or missing. Even their regimental number is given from some. in total 5 pages of names.
Captain Mangin Paul ( 1 battalion, 2nd company) was wounded and died of these wounds in the ambulance. In his file it says he died the 12th of December in Vlamertinge, no location of burial. Checking the database online for how many died that day, I got 202 names some names were written wrong, but a few I can give :
Adjudant ALASOEUR Jules born 19-10-1890 in 75 – Paris (ex Seine) location of death St Julien. No location of burial.
Now towards the diary I had to count them all or I would not have slept for the rest of the week. The ones missing 530 , 158 wounded and 29 reported dead ( Some of the wounded died later and I suppose some of the missing were found dead later and put down as died on the 11thof December), one line got my interest immediately the names on the ones that were imprisoned : Sergeant Gandgury, Ygout Marcel , Sergant, Augagneur Antoine, Tauvain Paul ,Beldicot E and Goleé.
Beldico Emmanuel ( yet again name not correct) I found in the POW red cross files, same for Sergeant Ygout Marcel and Augagneur Antoine. I hoped to find more names, and indeed page after page I found names that were recorded as being missing in the French war dairy but were actually taken prisoner by the Germans. In January 1915 Emannuel was in kriegsgefangenlager Wetzlar and by 25.01.1915 he was ill the file describes it as : ‘bronchialkat. Abzess am halse’ so he was admitted to the lazaretto in Wezlar.
It is possible that some of these POW were taken by Sticht (RIR236 see blog from last week)
The Farm the French called ‘ Bonnet l’eveque’ I did not find on any map but I think the farm was in a shape of a bishops hat and could be known as Varlet farm on British maps any input is more than welcome.
Source : Memoiresdeshommes.sga.defense.gouv.fr journeaux des marches et operations des corps de troupe 1914-1918
Images : https://gr