The Queens Own Royal West Kent Regiment
1914 to 1919 by C T Atkinson
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Alphabetical index of those names mentioned in the narrative (does not include Roll of Honour, Honours and Decorations)
| L to R |
Chapter 1 - Mobilization - Mons - The Retreat - pages 1 - 28
The Queen's Own on August 4th 1914. Mobilization. 1st Battalion crosses to France. Advance to Mons. In action on Mons - Conde Canal. The German attack. The Brandenburg Grenadiers meet The Queen's Own. Beginning of the retreat. Le Cateau. Retreat from Le Cateau. Action of Crepy en Valois. End of retreat.
Chapter II - The Marne & Aisne. pages 29 - 42
Situation on September 6th. The British advance. Forcing the Petit Morin and Marne. Von Kluck's retreat. Advance to the Aisne. The passage of the Aisne. In trenches at Missy. Beginnings of trench warfare.
Chapter III - La Bassee & Neuve Chapelle pages 43 - 63
The move to Flanders. The advance against La Bassee. Held up at Vermelles. Under the Third Division. Stopping a gap. German attacks renewed. The attack of October 27th. Neuve Chapelle lost. The counter attack of October 28th. The stand at the crossroads. Relieved. In line opposite Messines. Move to Ypres. The first experience of "the Salient"
Chapter IV - Expansion pages 64 - 77
The 2nd Battalion in India. The 3rd Battalion. Guard finding and draft providing. Second Line Territorial battalions formed. 1/4th and 1/5th Battalions to India. Raising "Service" battalions. The start of the 6th. The 7th Battalion formed. The 8th and 9th Battalions. The Volunteers.
Chapter V - The First Winter - Hill Sixty - Second Ypres pages 78 - 97
Trench warfare, 1914 - 1915. Wastage. In the Wulverghem Line. Moved to the Salient. Redressing the balance. Hill Sixty. The Assault. Consolidating the position. Resisting counter attacks. Back in action. The gas attack. The counter attack of April 23rd. Holding on. Hill 60 lost: the effort to recover it.
Chapter VI - Mesopotamia in 1915 pages 98 - 111
2nd Battalion ordered to Mesopotamia. At Qurna. The move to Ahwaz. The operations in Arabistan. Amara. Move to the Euphrates. Nasiriya.
Chapter VII - Trench Warfare, 1915. pages 112 - 123
The "New Armies" in France. The 6th Battalion at Ploegsteert. The 7th Battalion's move to France. 1st Battalion in Flanders; its move to the Somme. The 7th Battalion's first experience of active service.
Chapter VIII - Loos pages 124 - 138
The 8th Battalion in training. Its move overseas. The attack at Loos. The Twenty-Fourth Division's task. The 8th Battalion's "baptism of fire": its losses. The 6th Battalion brought South. Gun Trench. The attack of October 8th. The capture of Gun Trench. Trench warfare.
Chapter IX - The Territorials in 1915 - Sulva - New Battalions pages 139 - 152
1/4th and 1/5th Battalions in India. Formation of the "Kent Battalion" renamed 2/4th. Move of 2/4th to Gallipoli. At Sulva. Move to Egypt. 3rd Battalion. Draft for 2nd Battalion sent to 7th RDF. Formation of 10th, 11th and 12th Battalions. 9th and 12th Battalions converted into Training Reserve Battalions.
Chapter X - From Loos to the Somme pages 153 - 165
Lull on the Western Front. 1st Battalion at Arras. 6th Battalion at Givenchy. The fighting for the Hohenzollern Craters. 7th and 8th Battalions during first half of 1916. 10th and 11th Battalions in France.
Chapter XI - Mesopotamia in 1916. pages 166 - 179
B and D Companies, 2nd Battalion on the Tigris. Defence and capitulation of Kut al Amara. Sufferings of the prisoners. Headquarters wing of 2nd Battalion at Nasiriya. Butaniya. 2/4th Battalion in Egypt. The advance across Sinai.
Chapter XII - The Somme pages 180 - 203
Preparations. 7th Battalion on July 1st. 6th Battalion at Ovillers la Boisselle. 7th Battalion at Trones Wood. The defence of Trones Wood. 1st Battalion at High Wood. The attack on Switch Trench. 1st Battalion at Longueval. 8th Battalion at Guillemont. The defence of Delville Wood. 6th Battalion back in the line. The fighting for Ration Trench.
Chapter XIII - The Somme (continued) pages 204 - 224
September on the Somme. 1st Battalion again in action. Falfemont Farm and Leuze Wood. The Tank attack of September 15th. The 10th and 11th Battalions at Flers. The 7th Battalion at Thiepval. The fight for the Schwaben Redoubt. The attack of October 7th: the 10th and 11th Battalion at Le Sars, the 6th at Guedecourt. The 7th's last fight on the Somme: Desire Trench. The 7th's losses on the Somme.
Chapter XIV - From the Somme to Arras pages 225 - 241
The close of the Somme. 1st Battalion at Givenchy: the raid of February 10th. 6th Battalion at Blangy: the Arras front. 7th Battalion on the Ancre: the attack of February 14th. 8th Battalion in the Loos salient. At Lens. 10th and 11th Battalions in Flanders: raids and bombardments.
Chapter XV - Arras pages 242 - 260
The Spring offensive. 1st Battalion on the Vimy Ridge. 6th Battalion at Observation Ridge: Monchy le Preux. Advance by 8th Battalion. Offensive continued: 1st Battalion on April 23rd. Attack on 3rd May: 6th Battalion at Gun Trench: 7th Battalion at Cherisy: 1st Battalion at Oppy. End of offensive: 6th Battalion: 1st Battalion.
Chapter XVI - Messines pages 261 - 274
The Flanders offensive - The 8th Battalion in the Spring of 1917 - The battle of Messines: the 10th and 11th Battalion in action: the 8th Battalion consolidate. The 11th Battalion's action on Optic Trench. The 7th Battalion move to Flanders. The 1st and 6th Battalions on the Arras front. Preparing for the new offensive. The 3/4th Battalion selected for service in France.
Chapter XVII - Third Ypres pages 275 - 290
The beginning of the new offensive: the 10th and 11th Battalions attack astride the Canal. Hollebeke taken. Consolidating under difficulties. Unfavourable weather as a cause of delay. The 7th Battalion at Stirling Castle. The 8th Battalion at Inverness Copse: the German counterattack of September 8th and its repulse. The attack resumed: the 11th Battalion on September 20th. Tower Hamlets taken. The 10th Battalion in action. The 11th's honours.
Chapter XVIII - Third Ypres (continued) pages 291 - 303
The 1st Battalion's return to the Salient. The German attack of October 3rd repulsed. October 4th: a successful advance. The 7th Battalion in action again. The attack on Poelcapelle: mud the chief obstacle. The 3/4th Battalion in the Salient. The 1st Battalion's second attack (October 26th). A disastrous day.
Chapter XIX - Infantry Hill pages 304 - 315
The 6th Battalion in the Monchy sector. The tactical situation. The loss of Long Trench. Long Trench retaken. The attack on Hook Trench: the Germans driven back. The raid on Strap and Buckle Trenches.
Chapter XX - Cambrai pages 316 - 325
The Tank attack. The Hindenburg Line broken. The 6th take Lateau Wood. Major Alderman's death. Holding on under difficulties: an unsatisfactory situation. The counter attack of November 30th: the stand at Battalion Headquarters: the front line companies overwhelmed. The Germans checked. The 6th nearly wiped out: the task of reconstruction.
Chapter XXI - Palestine & Mesopotamia in 1917 pages 326 - 339
The Eastern theatres in 1917. The first attack on Gaza: the demonstration along the coast. The second attack: the capture of Samson Ridge. The checkmate on the Gaza front. The fresh attack. Beersheba taken. The fighting for Hill 1250. The advance up the Hebron Road. Jerusalem taken. The storming of Tel Aziziye Ridge. The 5th Battalion on active service: its arrival at Baghdad. The 2nd Battalion transferred to the Tigris.
Chapter XXII - Italy pages 340 - 345
Caporetto and its consequences. The Forty-First Division move to Italy. The march across Lombardy. In line on the Piave. The Fifth Division in Italy. The recall to France.
Chapter XXIII - The Last Winter pages 346 - 355
The "man - power " problem. The 6th Battalion at Fleurbaix: raids and counter raids. The 7th at Houthulst Forest: its move to the Oise. The reduction of brigades to three battalions: its grave disadvantages. The 8th at Hargicourt: its move to Vandencourt. The 3/4th broken up.
Chapter XXIV - The German Attack pages 356 - 369
The German attack of March 21st. The 7th Battalion overwhelmed: the defence of Durham Post. The retreat of the Eighteenth Division: rear guard actions. The remnant of the 7th moved round to Amiens and amalgamated with the 12th Entrenchment Battalion. The attack on the 8th Battalion: the Germans held up at Vadencourt. The Twenty Fourth Division forced back. Across the Somme. The stand at Fonches Cross-roads. Back to the Amiens Defence Line. The German advance stayed. The 8th's achievement.
Chapter XXV - The German Attack (continued) pages 370 - 386
The disbanding of the 11th Battalion: its record. The 10th thrown into the fight. The stand at Vaulx - Vraucourt: the battalion overwhelmed. The 6th Battalion brought down from Flanders. The stand at Ancre. Aveluy Wood. The Germans held up. The reconstituted 7th in action again. The defence of Amiens. The fighting round Hangard. Villers-Bretonneux. A successful counter-stroke. What the 7th went through.
Chapter XXVI - The Channel Ports in Danger and the Last Summer. - pages 387 - 400
The return of the 1st Battalion. The German offensive on the Lys. The Fifth Division at Nieppe Forest. The advance stopped. The counter-stroke at Plate Becque: a fine achievement. The 6th on the Albert front: the attack at Bouzincourt. The 7th reconstructed. The 8th back at Lens. The 10th in Flanders again.
Chapter XXVII - Turning the Tables pages 401 - 420
August 8th 1918: the turn of the tide. The work of the Third Corps. The 7th's attack. The 6th at Morlancourt: Sergeant Harris' V.C. The battlefront shifted. The Third Army strike at Bapaume. The 1st Battalion at Irles and the advance of the Fourth Army from the Ancre: the 6th and 7th in action. Trones Wood again. The capture of Saillisel. The Germans driven back to the Hindenburg Line.
Chapter XXVIII - Preparing for the Decisive Blow - pages 421 - 434
The 8th Battalion at Lens: the defence of Dean's Post. Another V.C. Preparing to break the Hindenburg Line. The 6th and 7th at Epehy: a stubborn resistance. The 1st at Gouzeaucourt. The battle spreads to Flanders: the 10th advance on Menin.
Chapter XXIX - Through the Hindenburg Line pages 435 - 449
The attack on the Cambrai - St Quentin front. The 6th reach the Canal. The advance past Cambrai: The 8th join in: Awoignt and Haussy. The 1st Battalion at Selle. The 7th at Le Cateau: the attacks of October 23rd and 26th. The First Army on the move: the 6th Battalion advance from Lens to St Amand. Colonel Dawson wounded again. The 10th in the advance to the Scheldt.
Chapter XXX - The Last Battle pages 450 - 456
The Germans defence weakening. The last big attack. The 8th at Baval. The 1st near Maubeuge. The 7th in Mormal Forest. The 10th's last fight. The Armistice.
Chapter XXXI - Eastern Theatres in 1918 pages 457 - 469
The 2/4th's last actions. The "Indianization" of the Army in Palestine. The 2/4th broken up. A quiet time for the 2nd and 5th Battalions. The advance on Tekrit. The passage of the Fattah Gorge. The 5th in action. Qalat Shergat: a fine attack. The Turkish surrender. The 5th at Mosul.
Chapter XXXII - Demobilization pages 470 - 484
After the Armistice. The Army of Occupation. Colonel Dawson's death. The 1st reduced to cadre and brought home. Its reconstruction. The return of the 2nd Battalion. The 3rd disembodied. The 1/4th gets a chance in Afghanistan: its return. The 5th in garrison in Mesopotamia: it comes home. The end of the 7th and 8th Battalions: their records. The 6th and 10th on the Rhine: their disbandment and their achievements. The War Memorial: its unveiling. The laying up of the Colours.
Appendix 1 - A record of the work at The Depot and of the comforts & prisoners of war funds - pages 485 to 499
Compiled from materials supplied by Colonel G W Maunsell (CMG) & Lieut-Col. J P Dalison
This page was last updated on 05-Mar-2021.
Copyright © 2008 Janet & Richard Mason