FIFTEENTH ANNIVERSARY

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXII, Issue 147, 7 June 1932, Page 8

FIFTEENTH ANNIVERSARY

BATTLE OF MESSINES SUCCESSFUL ATTACK. PART PLAYED BY ANZAC'S. The Allied Powers at the end of 1916 had decided upon a definite series of operations for the year 1917, the chief of which was to be the French offensive on the Aisne. It was hoped that this attack would prove decisive and all British operations were therefore to be subsidiary to it. In the event the Nivelle attack was a failure and left the French army in no condition for further offensive operations for some time to come. Hence the British operations assumed a special importance in every way. The main operation which had been planned for 1917 was tho Third Battle of Ypres. But immediately south of Ypres tho enemy was in possession of the Messine-Wytschaete ridge, from which he commanded Ypres, the Salient and tho valleys of the Lys and Douve. It was therefore necessary to secure this high ground as a preliminary to operations further north, and to General Plumer and the 2nd Army this task was allotted. GERMAN ORGANISATION. Te German defences in this area were highly organised and consisted of two trench systems on the high ground with two more in the rear on the reverse slopes of the ridge. As so much depended on the success of tho Messines operation, it was prepared with a thoroughness never excelled. Numerous mines, involving five miles of galleries, were constructed under the German defences and from May 11 onward our artillery became increasingly active against the German forward defences and wire. On May 21 the preliminary bombardment began in earnest.

At 3.10 a.m. on June 7 the battle commenced with the simultaneous roar of exploding mines and the crash of our artillery placing an intense concentration on the German forward defences. At the same moment the infantry of the three corps taking part—from the right, 2nd Anzac, 9th and 10th Corps—commenced their advance. The attack was to take place in two phases. The forward divisions worn to secure the Messines-Wytschaete ridge, arid the reserve divisions would then pass through them and take the Oostaverne line. GALLANT ACTION. By midday the first phase had been successfully accomplished. The Now Zealand Division had been given the task of capturing Messines itself and had carried out its task with hardly a pause. On tho left of 3rd (Rifle) Brigade a slight check had occurred, due to some machine guns firing from the ruins of a small village. But this had been overcome with slight delay by the gallant action of Lance-Corporal (now Captain) S. Frickleton, who, rushing through our barrage, fell on the guns’ crews with the bayonet. Single-handed he disposed of the two gun crews, permitting our advance to continue, and, incidentally, winning for himself the Victoria Cross.

A long pause now ensued till 3 p.m. in order to consolidate the ground already won and to prepare for the final phase. During this period a determined counter-attack developed against the New Zealand Division, but our artillery and machine guns smashed it utterly. Shortly after 3 p.m. the artillery opened for the final act of the day and the troops detailed for it moved out against the first of the German rear lines. By 5 p.m. the Oostaverno line was in our hands except for a short stretch on tho right. Here confused fighting went on for some time, but early on June 8 the situation was finally cleared up and everywhere the 2nd Army was in possession of the objectives planned for the Battle of Messines. —‘‘ Dominion. ’ ’ CARILLON RECITAL. MESSINES BELL TO BE SOUNDED. Miss Gladys Watkins has arranged the following programme to be played on the carillon at Wellington this evening, commencing at 8 o’clock: — “Tipperary” (Judge and Williams), “Bonny Mary of Argyle” (Scotch), “The Ash Grove” (Welsh), “Rubensmarsch” (Benoit), “Mother Machree” (Irish), “Absent” (Metcalfe), “Song Without Words” (Tschaikowsky), “On Wings of Song” (Mendelssohn), “The Hills of Donegal” (Sanderson). The hour of eight will bo struck on “Messines,” the memorial bell to members of the Government Departments.