War Diaries

London Regiment War Diary

The Regimental War Diary

1/16^th London Regiment (Queen’s Westminster Rifles)

1914

25^th Dec       No war today.  Much conversation with enemy between trenches.  The 107^th Regiment opposite us.  Trenches strongly held.  Their men of good military age for the most part though few very young ones.  Seemed happy and healthy and well fed.  Some, however, were despondent and some said they were just outside Paris having been brought up the line in closed railway carriages.  They also believed the Germans were occupying London.  [c.f. letter written by Pte. Morley – I think he mentions guards and Buckingham Palace ? ]

                   Casualties- 0          Missing - 3

1915            [The QWR are in trenches named ORDER HOUSES]

6^th Oct         On the 6^th the Battalion was relieved at night by the 2^nd Sherwood Ferrestors and went into billets at Popperinghe. 

7^th Oct         In billets

8^th Oct         ½ were in billets and  ½ were in reserve. 

11^th Oct       The whole Battalion went into support trenches.  ½ company in Potjize ??? 2 ½ company in  x4, x5, Squad 8A  [These are, I think map references to places in the trenches.] ??  1 Platoon in S.Jean.

12^th Oct       Killed O.R. - 3       Wounded – 2  [O.R. = Ordinary Rank]

13^th Oct       Wounded – 1  O.R.

14^th              Another day of the usual shelling

15^th              A certain amount of shelling all around in usual   ??? in trenches.

                   Casualty – 1  O.R.wounded

16^th              Enemy ?? shelling and heavy sniping at night.

17^th              At night battalion went into dug outs in canal ?bomb? with our company in Potijze  ??? defences.

                   Casualty –2 wounded

18^th              Casualty – O

19^th              Canal bunch? At night

                   Casualty – 1  O.R.

20^th              Casualty  -  1  O.R. wounded.  ??? at night into Wieltje trenches ??? the Yorks and ?? A8, B9, 10.  A company of E.Yorks in 3, 9a.

21^st              Considerable shelling ?? trenches.       Casualty – O  Normal day with shelling.

22^nd             At night Lt.Adams, with Lt. Agate and Rifleman Davidson went out on patrol in front of A8 & B9.  Found no abandoned German trench.  Lying in shell hole they saw a German ?? which was bombed and sniped.

                   Casualty – 3 killed, 4 – wounded.

23^rd              Battalion ?? E.Yorks went into billets at Popperinghe

24^th              4 wounded

25^th              The Battalion moved into camp B

26^th              Work on cleaning camp B

27^th              In camp B

28^th              Camp B cleaning up

29^th              Battalion went into Poitjze.  Section 11 Essex taking on A6, 7 & 1^st A + ORDER HOUSES and Warwick Line.  Headquarters in ?? and dumps and shelled  at night

                   Casualty – 7 wounded O.R.

30^th              Fair amount of shelling all around. The parapets suffered and snipers.

                   Casualty – O

 [All written in pencil on very thin exercise book paper with blue lines and margin line too.  The last page of the month had a tally of all men accounted for.  Only men of rank were mentioned by name except a few Riflemen (i.e. Privates) for example going out on Patrols.  Officers Killed or wounded were mentioned by name.  The writing was not hurried, but I had trouble reading it, being old fashioned.  Some sketches were included of the military ground. ]

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