CHAPTER XXIV

BACK TO THE COAL-FIELDS

It is a far cry from the battle-field to the coal-field, but after the events narrated in the last chapter, the 47th Division returned to the area which it occupied during its first few days in France.

On the 7th of September the Civil Service Rifles went by bus from the vicinity of Moislains to billets at Heilly, and after two nights in that once delightful village, entrained in the afternoon of the 9th for Chocques. The train journey took just over 12 hours, and it was consequently in the small hours of the 10th of September when the Battalion reached its billets in Chocques. Two days later, the 140th Brigade marched to the Auchel area, where it remained until the 27th of September.

Auchel is not by any means a pleasant village, but after the Somme battlefield any place was welcome, and the three weeks spent here were very enjoyable, concert parties and football matches being the great attraction. The chief excitement at this time, however, was the prospect of a trip to Italy. Definite orders had been received for the 47th Division to be transferred to the Italian front, and more than once during the stay at Auchel the Civil Service Rifles actually received entraining orders. The last entrainment order was for the 26th, but, like the others, it was cancelled, and on the 27th of September the Brigade marched to the St. Pol area, the Civil Service Rifles being allotted some very poor accommodation in Foufflin-Ricametz.

On the 2nd of October the Division was transferred to the 5th Army. The Civil Service Rifles moved by train from St. Pol to Merville and marched thence to Lestrem, which was reached at 4.30 a.m. on the 3rd of October. There the men rested in tents for a few hours and in the afternoon the march was continued to Fauquissart, where the night was spent in dug-outs.

On the following day the 47th Division began an advance on to the general line Beaucamps-Radinghem, with the ultimate object of taking Lille. The Civil Service Rifles occupied reserve trenches at Le Maisnil, the advance being carried out by the 141st and 142nd Brigades.

It was no doubt in order to avoid unnecessary casualties, and also to avoid doing any further damage to the town, that the taking of Lille was a slow process. There was no determined attack made on it directly, but one by one the various strategical and tactical positions were captured, and the Germans were forced to clear out eventually on the 17th of October. The capture was a somewhat tame affair, and the first intimation that the British troops had was when a few civilians timidly came out and announced that the Germans had gone. For some days afterwards pickets were posted at all the entrances to Lille and only a privileged few were able to enter the town.

The early part of October was uneventful for the Civil Service Rifles. It was certainly a change to get back once more to trench warfare, but it was only for a day or two, and after the short stay at Le Maisnil, a few days were spent in reserve near Fromelles and on the 14th of October the Battalion marched to Estaires, thence on the 15th to St. Venant, thence to Norrent Fontes, where the Battalion trained for ten days.

Arrangements had now been made for a triumphal march of British troops through Lille and the Civil Service Rifles entrained at Berguette on the 26th of October, and after a journey across the devastated area which had been No Man’s Land for more than three years, detrained at Perenchies and marched to Lomme, a suburb of Lille, which was reached at about 7.0 p.m.

The march from the railway station to the factory in Lomme, where the Battalion was billeted, was a memorable one. On approaching the suburb the regimental band struck up the Marseillaise and kept it up throughout the march. The inhabitants--old men, women and children--threw up their windows or lined up on the roadside to sing the words they had not forgotten during the four years of German rule. The kiddies ran by the side of the troops and insisted on shaking hands. The welcome indeed was so spontaneous that it was more impressive than the ceremonial affair two days later.

It was appropriate that the 47th Division should have been selected for the triumphal march through Lille, as it had spent more time in the front line around this town than had any other Division. Further, it claimed to have been the senior division in France at the taking of Lille.

For this, “_L’Entrée Solennelle des troupes Britanniques_,” as it was advertised in the town, which took place on the 28th of October, “C” Company was detailed to form part of a cordon round the Grand Place, and the remainder of the Battalion took part in the long procession through the gaily decorated streets between the cheering crowds of the recently liberated populace.

The Battalion proceeded to Hellemes, a suburb on the eastern side of Lille, and were again billeted in a factory, where German field-post letters were strewn about the floor and orders to troops still posted on the walls. In the afternoon nearly every one enjoyed the interest of a visit to the town, where famine prices prevailed. In several shop windows the following placard printed in red, white and blue had been placed:

“HONOUR AND GLORY TO THE 47TH DIVISION. OUR DELIVERERS.”

“LILLE, le 17 Octobre, 1918.”

The enterprising Canteen Manager of the Civil Service Rifles sought out the publisher of this poster and secured a batch of posters for sale as souvenirs in the Regimental Canteen. One of them has been framed and now hangs on a wall of the dining room in the Civil Service Rifles’ Club.