World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal narratives, British
By the time we were on the move again it was full daylight. We dropped
into action again three or four times, but were forced to resume our
retirement, harassed all the time by the Germans.
During the retirement we had several shots at German aeroplanes, which
were flying about spying out our positions and signalling them to their
own people; but field-guns are not much use against aircraft, because
the muzzles cannot be elevated sufficiently high. You need howitzers for
the work, because they are specially made for high-angle fire and can
throw their shots right over aeroplanes.
We were retiring from the Monday till the Wednesday; then we got the
order to drop into action again. That was at eight o’clock in the
morning, and by that time we were at Cambrai, a good distance from Mons,
as you can see from the map.
Mons was bad, but Cambrai was far worse. We had been retreating all the
time, day and night, fighting a heavy rearguard action, so that men and
horses were utterly worn out. Again the artillery did splendid work, and
had to pay for it. The 6th Battery had lost two guns and a waggon at
Mons, because the horses were killed, and they also had another gun put
out of action. They lost a further gun at Cambrai, and the battery was
almost completely cut up, but for their loss we in the 23rd Battery were
able to make up in a way.
Our own guns were concealed so cleverly that the Germans could not find
them anyhow. The nearest they could get to us was about fifty yards in
front or fifty yards behind, and in dropping shells fifty yards make a
lot of difference, as the Germans found to their cost. Our concealed
battery did heavy execution amongst them, and they deserved all they
got.
When I was clear of the valley I got two fresh horses; but at Cambrai,
on the Wednesday, they were both killed. A shell burst and took off the
head of the riding horse, and bullets killed the off horse, so I was
dismounted again; and not a few of my chums were in the same unfortunate
position.
Cambrai was the last battle we had before we turned the tables on the
Germans, and began to drive them back at the Marne, where a tremendous
fight went on for many days. Altogether we had been retiring pretty well
a week, and we rejoiced when the advance began.
The advance made new men of us, especially when we saw what the Germans
had done. There were plenty of wrecks of our convoys on the roads, where
the enemy had got at them. That sort of thing was all right, of course,
and came in fairly enough in warfare; but it made our blood boil to see
the wanton damage that these so-called civilised soldiers had committed
on a people who had done no greater crime than defend their hearths and
families.
You ask about German cruelties and barbarities. Well, I will tell you
something about what I saw myself, and people can form their own opinion
as to what generally happened.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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