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  Engineers built railways across 89 kilometres of chalky countryside with 17 railheads — two of which would be used as ambulances to carry away the wounded. Soldiers moved into the front lines, backup trenches, and communication trenches. Excitement and optimism mixed with fear surged up and down the lines. For six days beginning on June 24, the Artillery bombarded the enemy with 1.5 million shells, hoping to damage trenches, cut barbed wire, and demoralize troops by cutting off the food and water supply.

  On the evening of June 30, a special order was read to all the soldiers. Among other instructions, it warned: “The use of the word retire is absolutely forbidden, and if heard can only be a ruse of the enemy and must be ignored.”

  John McCrae’s dressing station, which is located beside the Essex Farm Cemetery, several kilometres from Ypres, Belgium.

  When the six-day bombardment and constant noise ended, silence descended over no man’s land. Alerted by the silence (which suggested an imminent attack), the Germans emerged from their deep dugouts, where they had been safe during the barrage, and manned their guns in readiness for the onslaught.

  In the early morning of July 1, Allied trenches facing the enemy across no man’s land were crowded and teemed like anthills. Like ants, each soldier moved silently but purposefully.

  The British command to “fix bayonets,” followed by “over the top,” travelled along the entire 22.5-kilometre front. Side by side, soldiers climbed out of the trenches and raced across a no man’s land of skeletal trees, cavernous craters, and a maze of barbed wire, most of which had remained intact despite the bombardment. As the soldiers moved forward into the tangle of wire, the German bullets found their mark. Before the day ended, it was apparent that the attack had failed: 19,240 British soldiers had been killed and approximately 38,000 were wounded (the British army’s greatest loss in one day in history). Casualties dangled from uncut barbed wire or lay helpless and wounded on the field. After attending church on July 2, General Haig visited two Casualty Clearing Stations and noted later in his diary that the high figure of casualties and deaths “cannot be considered severe in view of the numbers engaged, and the length of the front attacked.”

  By mid-October the British battalions had become so decimated that it was difficult to muster 400 men for an attack. It was apparent that the Battle of the Somme would be won by the side that had the most men to sacrifice.

  — — —

  Immediately behind the trench system were the “dressing stations,’ which were operated by the Field Ambulances. There were no facilities to perform surgery here, but men had their wounds dressed before they were sent back to one of the Casualty Clearing Stations (CCSs).

  A typical dressing station had been set up in the basilica at Albert: “Wounded flooded in on foot, or were brought by stretchers, wheelbarrows, carts — anything. Their wounds were dressed and then they were laid out on the floor to await evacuation. Soon the whole church was packed and we were ordered to stop any vehicle that passed and make them take wounded to the rear. I even put three cases in a general’s staff car. Those who were not expected to survive were put on one side and left. It was very hard to ignore their cries for help but we had to concentrate on those who might live. We worked for three days and nights without rest. It was the bloodiest battle I ever saw.” (Private H. Streets, 58th Field Ambulance, from The First Day on the Somme: 1 July 1916, by Martin Middlebrook.)

  In a memorandum to the War Committee in London on August 1, 1916, British member of Parliament Winston Churchill commented, “We have not conquered in a month’s fighting as much ground as we were expecting to gain in the first two hours.” In 1940, Churchill became both prime minister and minister of defence.

  On that first day of battle, Newfoundland (at that time Britain’s smallest dominion) was the only dominion force fighting on the Somme. The Newfoundland Regiment, held in support near the village of Beaumont-Hamel, had its instructions and was ready to go. After the failure within 30 minutes of the first attack by the British, the communication trenches became clogged with bodies, and flares were not being sent up as planned. Widespread miscommunication resulted in an order for the Newfoundland Regiment to attack. Now the Germans could concentrate their full artillery on the advancing Newfoundlanders. Approximately 800 brave men from the regiment attacked — only 68 answered roll call the next morning. In villages throughout Newfoundland, most of their young men would never return home. The Canadians would not join the Battle of the Somme until late August/early September.

  In mid-August, troops confronted another enemy almost as threatening as the one that lay in wait across no man’s land. The skies opened up and pelted the land with rain, making great swamps of the grain fields. The Canadians arrived to a scene of ashen villages, limbless trees, and a no man’s land dotted with crater graves filled with mud, water, and decaying corpses. The thick mud would cake on their trench coats and pull the rubber boots off their feet.

  Earlier that summer, on June 8, Jim had written to his mother from the Ypres Salient: “So your hired man is anxious to get the kilts. If he was in the trenches a few times and it [was] raining he would not be quite so anxious, especially when the bottom of them get[s] clogged up with mud — but luckily we have had very good weather while in the trenches.”

  Later the same summer, Jim wrote to his father about life on the farm back home, with no mention of the conditions he was facing in the trenches:

  France, Aug 25/16

  Dear Father,

  I think I owe you a letter as it is sometime since I wrote to you. Very sorry to hear that you had some of your crop hailed out, but I suppose there were some who got hailed out completely. I am glad the Inspector was around and you insured your crop.

  So Cecil is helping with the crop this year. When I get back he will be able to drive a four horse team.

  Any time you ever want any money, Father, you can draw it from that $15 that comes home every month for me.

  From your loving son

  Jimmie

  On September 3, Jim wrote, “I have been taking a course at a gas school for the last few days. We are back of the firing line at present and drilling very steady; but we are away from the roar of the guns and it certainly is a pleasant change and it rests your nerves a little. Today is Sunday and in the early morning the church bells can be heard ringing in the distant towns. The French go to church in the early morning.”

  At the Somme, attack and counterattack had led to virtually no advancement during two months of fierce fighting. The objective (the four-kilometre long Regina Trench) lay only two kilometres away. This see-saw back and forth, with both sides in turn advancing and retreating, would continue through early September. Jim’s diary chronicles the move of the Third Division from the Ypres Salient toward the Somme:

  Sept 14/16

  Left the camp in the bush on top of hill 4:00 p.m. and arrived our next camp eight p.m. one mile from Albert. Bivouaced for the night.

  Sept 15

  Left camp and marched through Albert about one mile the other side. Bivouaced for the night.

  As he marched through Albert, did Jim look up at the Golden Virgin statue holding her child, now hanging precariously atop the basilica spire? Had he heard the superstition that the war would end only when the Madonna finally fell?

  Only when the Germans advanced into Albert in the spring of 1918 did the British Artillery deliberately target the statue, toppling it into the rubble below, so that their enemy could not use the tower as an observation point.

  On September 15, 1916, the German front line — the Sugar Refinery, Candy Trench, Moquet Farm (later recaptured by Germans), part of Courcelette, Fabek Graben — was taken. This one-and-a-half-kilometre advance provided guarded optimism. Tanks, the British “secret weapon,” brought in under the noise of artillery fire and hidden from view, surprised the enemy. Of the six tanks assisting the Canadians, one failed to start and only one really helped in the offensive. Although many were hit by German shell
fire or suffered mechanical difficulties, those able to advance penetrated more than 1.8 kilometres — the most successful advance since the battle had begun on July 1.

  Sept 16th

  Saw about thirty prisoners coming down. Four officers among them. Left place 4:30 p.m. and walked towards the trenches. Spent the night in trench near the Chalkpit.

  Sept 18th

  Left Chalkpit and proceeded to the front line. Relieved the 60th. Rained all evening.

  The 43rd Battalion entrenched near Courcelette, where they would attempt to clear the high ground overlooking the River Ancre. On September 20, D Company, 43rd Cameron Highlanders, captured part of the Zollern Graben, a large trench that ran from Thiepval to just west of Courcelette.

  That day Jim writes in his diary: “Went from front line to Bombing post in ‘No Man’s Land.’ D Company took Fritz front line but had to retire after holding for eight hours on account of shortage of ammunition. Nearly whole company wiped out.”

  September 20, 1916, was the last entry in Jim’s diary. He did, however, continue to write letters home:

  September 29, 1916

  My dear Mother,

  Some of the Canadian mail came in yesterday but I didn’t receive a letter from you; but expect one today.

  It has been raining all morning but hope it will stop soon. The last trip in the trenches was very wet and it makes it very unpleasant and I hope it clears up before we go in again.

  Mac has been having quite a bit of trouble with his feet and they sent him down to the base. I am glad, as his feet are flat and he is unable to stand any heavy marching at all.

  Well Mother, the French and British have been making good progress on the Somme front and have taken quite a few prisoners so it should shorten the war up and I hope it will soon be over.

  With love to all

  From your loving son

  Jim

  Regina Trench was the longest German trench on the Western Front — four kilometres long, it snaked along the Ancre River and was only two kilometres from the Canadian jump-off line by September 15. It was guarded by three trenches — the Fabeck Graben, the Zollern Graben, and the Hessian Trench — which had all been captured by the Allies by the end of September. The Regina Trench was now only 600 metres from the new Canadian front line, but would evade capture for another six weeks.

  After three months of fighting, the advances in the latter half of September — small though they were — allowed the generals optimism as they planned for the next large offensive, which was planned for October 1.

  France, Oct 1/16 Sunday

  My dear Mother,

  I received your long letter today and was very pleased to hear from you. We are having beautiful weather now, especially today, the sun is shining but the nights are very cool. While I was in Bramshott I sent a scarf to London to Leslie Smith’s grandmother for [her] to keep for me as I had one when I came over and she is going to send it over as it gets rather cool in the evening.

  Was sorry to hear that you had so little wheat, but if the price keeps up it won’t seem to be so bad. I suppose flour is up in price and will likely be up all winter. We get good bread here and generally enough; but now and again there are short rations. The Germans use black bread and you should see some of the prisoners eat our white bread. They work on the roads around here and get so much a day. They seem to be well satisfied.

  I enjoyed your letter today and thank you for the scripture chapter as I read my chapter every night when I possibly can.

  We had service this morning and communion after the service. Major Gordon is certainly a good minister and is well liked among the boys.

  From your loving son Jimmie.

  ON THE BATTLEFIELD

  The Toll of the Great War

  Due to the scope of the damage inflicted during the First World War, despite intensive research by historians, there is no definitive list of the casualties suffered in those years. The following numbers are estimates only.

  Canada: 66,573 soldiers killed; 138,166 wounded*

  The Colony of Newfoundland: 1,593 soldiers killed; wounded unknown*

  Great Britain: 703,000 soldiers killed; 1,663,000 wounded

  France: 1,385,000 soldiers killed; 4,266,000 wounded

  Belgium: 13,000 soldiers killed; 44,000 wounded

  Italy: 460,000 soldiers killed; 947,000 wounded

  Russia: 1,700,000 soldiers killed; 4,950,000 wounded

  United States: 117,000 soldiers killed; 204,000 wounded

  Australia: 59,000 soldiers killed; 152,000 wounded

  New Zealand: 18,000 killed; 55,000 wounded

  Romania: 200,000 killed; 120,000 wounded

  Those who had fought against the Allies suffered heavy casualties as well:

  Germany: 1,718,000 soldiers killed; 4,234,000 wounded

  Austria-Hungary: 1,200,000 soldiers killed; 3,620,000 wounded

  Turkey: 336,000 soldiers killed; 400,000 wounded

  Bulgaria: 101,000 soldiers killed; 153,000 wounded

  Other nations that suffered losses include Greece, India, Japan, Montenegro, Portugal, Serbia, South Africa, as well as many other countries in Africa and the Caribbean. The total deaths of all nations who fought in the war is thought to have been close to 8.5 million, with 21 million being wounded.

  * Royal Canadian Legion website

  All other figures from The Longman Companion to the First World War (Colin Nicholson: Longman, 2001), 248.

  That first day of October broke — a sunny day. Most of the Canadian efforts along their area of the Regina Trench failed except for taking of the Kenora Trench, which gave a connection to the Regina Trench. The 2nd and 3rd Canadian Divisions attacked. Before the attack took place, scouts had reported that the wire was very thick and that it appeared untouched by the artillery. Only one small gap existed on the left. In trying to find this gap, practically the entire company was wiped out. One officer and the remainder of the company did reach the Regina Trench and stayed in position until 2:00 a.m., when they fell back.

  Bad weather delayed further attacks until October 8, when the rain finally cleared.

  In the darkness just before 5:00 a.m. that day, rumours abounded that the bombardment had not severed the barbed wire as planned, that many of the shells were duds and still lay unexploded in no man’s land.

  LEST WE FORGET

  The Unknown Soldiers

  Those individuals who reached a hospital in a safe area behind the fighting lines and who died of their wounds would usually be buried in a cemetery near to the hospital, often in an existing town or village cemetery or in a specially created burial plot. These burials could be registered and their locations marked.

  But thousands of soldiers were buried on the battlefields in individual or communal graves by their comrades during the fighting. They were often buried where they fell in action or in a burial ground on or near the battlefield. A simple cross or marker may have been put up to mark the location and give brief details of the individuals who had died. Early in the war many of these burials were not formally recorded with the soldier’s name and the location of the grave.

  The difficult task for the graves registration services was made worse by the nature of the fighting on certain battlefronts, such as the Western Front, where siege and trench warfare meant that fighting often moved back and forth over the same ground. Between battles, day-to-day survival in the trenches and the hazards of exploding artillery shells, snipers, and grenades resulted in many casualties from sickness and wounds.

  Many were lost when underground tunnels collapsed as they were being dug in order to set explosives under enemy positions. Conditions in the landscape also added to the number of casualties. Heavy rain could turn the fields into a sea of mud. Accounts by soldiers during the 1917 Battle of Passchendaele at Ypres tell of men drowning and disappearing in the waterlogged shell craters and deep mud.

  Graves and burial grounds near the battlefronts were often damaged by fighting across the
same location, resulting in the loss of the original marked graves. Some bodies simply could not be retrieved.

  Added to this, the technological advancement in the weaponry used by both sides often caused such horrible injuries that it was not possible to identify or even find a complete body for burial. These factors combined to create a high number of “missing” casualties and for the many thousands of graves for which the soldier’s identity is described as “Unknown.”

  That last few minutes before the “over the top” order was given, each man was alone with his thoughts as he tightened his pack, checked his gun, fastened on a bayonet — alone with the question Will I have the courage?

  Was Jim alone? Or did the voices of family and friends — voices that for over a year he could only imagine behind the words written on paper — come to him before he stepped out onto that battlefield? Certainly, those letters he had carried into the trenches with him, which held those voices from home, sang into the dark so that he did not feel he was alone.

  As night fell on October 8, held up by the uncut barbed wire and enemy machine-gun fire, the Canadian Scottish Battalion were pinned flat to the ground at one point, with their commander, Major Lynch, dying from his wounds. Piper Jimmy Richardson asked, “Wull I gie them wund (wind),” and proceeded to walk back and forth in front of the uncut wire playing his bagpipes, ignoring the enemy shells falling all around him. Hearing the pipes and seeing the piper’s courage, the soldiers jumped to their feet and stormed the Regina Trench; they held it for just a short while.

  The Regina Trench became known as the “Ditch of Memory” — only six officers and 67 other ranks responded to roll call the following morning. It was in this battle that Jim was seriously wounded in the leg and thigh.

  Did Jim crawl through mud or was he carried by stretcher-bearers from the field of battle? Perhaps he almost welcomed the stabbing pain from his wound just to be away from the din of constant artillery fire and the fear of being hit, or worse still, being a target for enemy fire on uncut wire? Did he fear the doctor’s diagnosis when he saw the mutilated thigh and hip? Did his medical officer in the trench, on seeing the seriousness of his wounds, wave him through to the Advanced Dressing Station for further attention, from where he was sent farther back to the Casualty Clearing Station? We know that Jim was finally sent by train or ambulance convoy to Étaples, home to one of the larger hospitals serving the wounded. The hospital was bombed later in the war by the Germans, on May 19, 1918.