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k2kid · 6 years ago

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Source: Halifax Herald. April 13, 1915. Page 9.

On April 13, 1915 the 10,187[i] gross tonne Canadian Pacific Railway Line S.S. Grampian arrived in England. The Halifax Herald reported that the liner had “taken precautions” when departing Liverpool against German submarines. She brought 15 first class, 85 second class, and 150 third class passengers as well as 4,000 bags and passengers of English mails. Of the 256 passengers, only thirty-seven disembarked in Halifax and he was to move on the St. John, New Brunswick to drop off the remaining passenger before she would return to Halifax for her next voyage.

“Here is another view of Allan Line steamships moored in the North Basin of Prince’s Dock. The ship in the foreground is the S. S. Grampian which, at 10,187 tons gross, was one of the largest vessels in the Allan Line fleet. She was completed by Alexander Stephen & Sons of Linthouse in 1907. “

She was to transport the 18th Battalion from Canada to England.

The Battalion left London April 15 and arrived late on April 17 or early on the 18th. The 18th boarded her and by the evening on that Sunday she had slipped her moorings and headed out of the harbour gap via the Western Passage towards open sea.

Had the men of the 18th seen the prior day’s front page of the Herald it would have given them pause to trip that was before them as the headlines did not bode well for those about to put to sea and eventually serve in active front-line duty. The banner related the following:

“HOLLAND IS INDIGNANT AT SINKING OF THE KATWYK”

…referring to a Dutch steamer that was travelling from Rotterdam to New York and sunk on April 15. In addition, four other Dutch vessels had been seized and detained by the German Navy at Cuxhaven.[ii] This was a stark reminder of the threat and risk of being sunk by submarine warfare.

Source: Halifax Herald. April 17 1915. Page 1.

Capt. Francis Whitechurch Townend. © IWM (HU 119217)

The Bond of Sacrifice, Vol. 2. © IWM (HU 119217)

Further, the front-page of the Herald related the “FINE HEROISM OF HALIFAX BOY AT FRONT” informing the readers of the Herald of the “Thrilling Story of Capt. Francis Whitechurch Townend[iii], Who, With Both Legs Shot Off, Said to “Attend to the Others First.”[iv] A reminder of what may befall some of the soldiers of the 18th as the move one step closer to active service.

Source: Halifax Herald. May 1. 1915. Page 15.

The Grampian was to transport the Battalion safely to England and it was reported in the Herald on May 1, 1915 according to “private dispatches”, most likely telegrams, from officers to their family in Canada but one suspects that one of the officers had family in Halifax as the story’s location is identified as Halifax. As the Battalion arrived on April 29, 1915 at Avonmouth only a telegram would have been able to convey this information in such a short time.

These consice articles give us some sense of the activities of the Grampian and that she was a dual-purpose ship not wholly dedicated to transporting military cargo and personnel. She also served as a passenger liner during this part of the war.

[i] Jones, Chris. “Sailing Down the Clyde: ‘Doon the Watter.’” Glasgow History Sailing Down the Clyde Doon the Watter Comments, 10 July 2010, www.glasgowhistory.com/sailing-down-the-clyde-“doon-the-watter”.html.

[ii] Sacramento Union, Volume 181, Number 47. April 16 1915. Page 1.

[iii] Captain Francis Whitchurch Townend, 35th Signal Coy., Royal Engineers, BEF. was born in Halifax on July 10, 1885 and joined the Royal Engineers in 1904 as a 2nd Lieutenant.

[iv] Captain Townend was wounded on March 28, 1915 and the following description from a motor-ambulance driver describes the incident in detail (source: “Captain Francis Whitchurch Townend.” Imperial War Museums, www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205389823. ):

“After dinner I commenced a letter, but was interrupted by a shell bursting somewhere in the vicinity and a man yelling for bandages. Of course I rushed to see if I could be of any use, and found that the shall had burst on the side of the road about forty yards away, right in the midst of a party of Indian Engineers who were inspecting the telegraph wires. I was late in starting owing to my letter, and all the Indians where being attended to when I arrived on the scene. However, I saw someone in the shell hole which was on the side of the road opposite from where then men had been hit, and so had escaped notice. In it was a man, the white officer of the Indians, who appeared to have half his legs buried in the debris of the hole He told us to attend to the other first; he was alright. And then as we moved him we saw that he was standing on the stumps of his legs! Both had been shot off at the knee. I’m telling you this story, horrible as it is, because of the extraordinary courage the man showed—such courage as I’ve never seen before and hardly imagined. It’s worth while bearing the horror of it to realize that we are officered by such men.

He was perfectly conscious and calm, and spoke as though he were a medical officers and some one else the victim. He looked at his legs as we moved him on to the stretcher and asked me quietly (he was nt in the least excited, and his handsome face showed no pain) to tie something tight around his thighs to stop the bleeding. I did what I could with my handkerchief, and another I requisitioned, and took him to our bilet. We had to move hurriedly, of course, as a second shell had followed, and we wanted cover in case any more arrived. There were two R.A.M.C. men with me, and they attended to the subsequent first aid. They discovered another horrible wound in his arm, and while they were dressing it he tole them that he thought he would give up football next year. We then took him to the nearest hospital: he was still conscious and perfectly collected, and laughed quietly and talked, apologizing for the trouble he was causing, while on the way to the hospital. And I came back thinking of the tag in some book or other—’ have seen a man.’ The poor fellow died in hospital”

According to the Halifax Herald: The S.S. Grampian On April 13, 1915 the 10,187[i] gross tonne Canadian Pacific Railway Line S.S. Grampian arrived in England.

#Capt. Francis Whitechurch Townend #Halifax Nova Scotia #S.S. Katwyk

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k2kid · 5 years ago

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With thanks to Patrick Dennis, Colonel (RET’D), OMM, CD who reached out to me and pointed me in the right direction. His work to inform us about the role of conscription can be best appreciated by his book, “Reluctant Warriors: Canadian Conscripts in the Great War” Without his help and his work my interest and understanding about this important, and often overlooked, part of our military history and heritage would not be as rich.

A newspaper clipping from Allsop’s home newspaper in Woodstock outlining some news about conscription. Source: Daily Sentinel Review. January 3, 1918. Page 1.

On June 10, 1918 the 18th Battalion was engaged in the Arras sector. On that date the War Diary relates its activities, but that entry does not reflect what may be a singular historical moment in Canadian military history: the death of one of the first, if not the first, Canadian conscript who was conscripted under the Military Service Act, 1917[i].

The event marked a new phase in the war for Canada and its military policy that would have effects and reverberations in Canadian politics and history that are still contentious to this day.

Undated photograph attributed to George Allsop.

Private George Henry Allsop was born in Belper, Derbyshire, England, a textile and hosiery center during the late 1800 and 1900s. He emigrated to Canada and was a “machine operator” with the Oxford Knitting Company residing at 209 Graham Street in Woodstock, Ontario with his father, George Senior and his mother, Netta[ii].

Private Allsop also worked at the Linderman Machine Company (Woodstock, Ontario). This is a shot of the interior of the plant involved in war production Circa 1914-1918. Source: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/566890671825174467/?nic_v2=1a3qFOTgq

January 4, 1918 found George Allsop called up to register for active service. Prior to that date he, under the terms of the Military Service Act, would have registered in Woodstock and be classified for active service. When called up he traveled to London, Ontario and in short order his form, “Particulars for a Recruit Drafted Under Military Service Act, 1917” was completed and, as part of the recruitment process, signed his will. This document, perhaps, being the most jarring reminder to Allsop of one of the outcomes to an infantry man. Almost all conscripts were to be slated for this role during the war. George Allsop was not averse to military service as his form indicates that he had one year of militia service with the Oxford Rifles. Passing his medical exam Private Allsop moved on to the next stage of his military service.

Military will of Private Allsop.

In short order he was in England, arriving on February 16, 1918 aboard, like so many other 18th Battalion soldiers the S.S. Grampian and assigned to the 4th Reserve Battalion in Bramshott the very next day. There he trained and learned the skills of his trade until he was transferred to the 18th Battalion effective May 10, 1918. He arrived at Etaples, France at the Canadian Infantry Base Depot the next day where, 11-days later he moved closer to the front at the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp. After more training, familiarization, and confirmation that his “kit” for war fighting was fully issued and in good order he left this post after 8-days. He was now in the fight having arrived at the Neuville Vitasse Sector on May 30, 1918 and joined the Battalion in Brigade reserve.

The next day, while the Battalion was in Brigade Reserve the War Diary records that 2 other ranks and Lieutenant Harold Leo Scully[iii] were wounded, probably by long-range shellfire. Even in Brigade Reserve, up to 9 kilometers behind the front line, Private Allsop must have realized fully he was in the war now for even being in reserve did not mean you were not exposed to danger from enemy activity.[iv]

The Battalion moved forward from Brigade Reserve to Brigade Support and then moved to Bretencourt after being relieved by the 26th Canadian Battalion on June 4, 1918 and it was involved from June 5 to 9 in Battalion in martial and recreational training with “…games such as Baseball, Football etc. indulged in each afternoon.” Even at Bretencourt the men were not safe as Lieutenant C.S. Woodrow[v], arriving on June 5 with 18 reinforcements, was hit in the head by an enemy shell fragment that “…burst near Battalion Orderly Room…” and was evacuated to hospital that day.

The evening of June 9/10 required the Battalion to relieve the 27th Canadian Battalion in the front line in positions adjacent and part of the village of Henin-sur-Cojeul, a 15-km march from their billet. Leaving Bretencourt at 8:30 p.m. Private Allsop was finally marching off to war with his comrades. Fresh from training and familiarization in England and France he now had to integrate himself with his new comrades, they were certain to be interested in him, their first exposure to a conscript. The relief was completed at 1:35 a.m. the morning of June 10, 1918 and two patrols were sent out to cover the Battalion frontage. It is almost certain a raw soldier, such as Private Allsop, would not be assigned to such a patrol.

Battalion disposition map, dated June 10, 1918. Note the Cojeul River south of the Battalion’s position.

Later that day, a scouting patrol under Lieutenant McRae was dispatched to reconnoiter during daylight, a highly risky endeavour. The patrol pushed from their front lines to the bank of the Cojeul River and returned, after dark, at 10.45 p.m. having left at 4.30 p.m. that afternoon. They observed three Germans leaving a hedge and disappearing.

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Sometime during that day, the Battalion suffered one other ranked killed in action and one other rank wounded, though the War Diary only acknowledges the wounded soldier. But a soldier did die that day.

Private Allsop was the soldier killed in action. The circumstances, according to his service record and the Circumstances of Death Card do not relate the event in any manner so we cannot know the manner of his passing. He is buried at the Wailly Orchard Cemetery, an estimated 8-kilometers from the location of his death near the French town of Henin-sur-Cojeul.

For all intents and purposes, Private Allsop died the very day he engaged in combat. From his movements from the moment of his conscription to his death he moved to that moment in time where he would perish, and his family would every more reflect on his sacrifice and offer to those that pass by his grave the epitaph “THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH”. His front-line service with the Battalion was only 11 days. It must have added to the shock of the family when it was informed of his death, so soon after arriving on the Continent.

His death also signalled the beginning of a new stage of the war. The manpower needs of the C.E.F. no longer could be counted on to be replenished by volunteers and the battalions of the Canadian Corps would find that they needed the conscripts to carry on their role as part of the Imperial Forces engaged on the Western Front. Such contributions and sacrifices would be the norm for the volunteers and their new combat brethren, the conscripts, as the war continued to its bloody end.

Private Allsop is buried at the Wailly Orchard Cemetery, along with 7 other comrades of the 18th Battalion. They all were buried between the months of April and June as the Battalion served in the sector.

NOTE

I strongly recommend reading Patrick M. Dennis’ prior work referring to this soldier: Dennis, Patrick (2009) “A Canadian Conscript Goes to War—August 1918: Old Myths Re-examined,” Canadian Military History: Vol. 18: Iss. 1, Article 4. He further expands upon the important role on conscripts in his book: Reluctant Warriors: Canadian Conscripts in the Great War available via Amazon and other outlets.

[i] Source: “…Private George Henry Allsop, a conscript from Woodstock, Ontario, who had joined in London, Ontario just days before Dennis. It is likely that Private Allsop, serving with the 18th Battalion, was the first Canadian conscript to be killed in action when he fell in battle near Neuville-Vitasse on 10 June 1918 – a full two months before it is generally thought that Canadian conscripts first saw action.” Source: Dennis, Patrick (2009) “A Canadian Conscript Goes to War—August 1918: Old Myths Re-examined,” Canadian Military History: Vol. 18: Iss. 1, Article 4. Pg. 6. Note no. 20 of this work indicates that a Private Frederick Broom of the 20th Battalion was likely the first conscript to be die in France. He perished from nephritis and pneumonia. The claim of Private Allsop being the “first” conscript killed in action was made in Sandy Antal and Kevin R. Shackleton, Duty Nobly Done: The Official History of the Essex and Kent Scottish Regiment (Windsor, Ontario: Walkerville Publishing, 2006), p.647.

[ii] Vernon’s Woodstock Directory, 1916. The 1914 directory had the family living at 289 Admiral Street with another family member, probably a brother, Horace Allsop.

[iii] Lieutenant Scully was to later perish from his wounds on June 7, 1918.

[iv] See the blog post, “…because life in the trenches was less irksome and monotonous and no more beastly than in places like Bouvigny Huts” for an incident in July 1917 where the Battalion suffered significant casualties due to German artillery while in Brigade Reserve.

[v] Later, Captain Charles Sydney Woodrow.

The First to Die

#Conscription #consript #Henin-sur-Cojeul France #Wailly Orchard Cemetery #Woodstock Ontario

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