WORLD WAR ONE NORTHAMPTON INDEPENDENT SOLDIER NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
SAPPER R. POULTNEY of the Royal Engineers, Jan, 1915
Sapper R. Poultney of the Royal Engineers who is now in hospital at Ashton-under-Lyne,
suffering from wounds, tells his story,
“I was wounded at Ypres, on Nov 11th. The Prussian Guards were ordered to take Ypres
at all costs, but, like the rest of the German plans, it didn’t come off. We were on the edge of
a wood, with three in our dug out. Just as it was getting light the Artillery commenced and
developed into the most terrific cannonade we had yet experienced. We thought at first that we
were going to advance, or at least hoped so, as we had been in the same position for a whole
month, and had not gained a step. As a matter of fact we had pushed on beyond the village of
Chelnvelt, but the Germans took it back. It is now once more in our possession, though there
is not much to possess, as it is simply a mass of ruins. But soon we observed a retirement.
The Germans had broken through between us and the 5th Brigade. We went along the narrow
road through the wood, and found them working round on the left. All headquarters were in
the firing line. We opened fire at about 400 yards, and worked round to the edge of another
wood, which was really a continuation of the same one. Close by was a farmhouse, a mass of
flames, a very common sight. We gradually got to the edge of the wood – just a handful of us.
In front was a big open space. A German lay just in front, and when he lifted his head we could
see that he was wounded, and two of the Black Watch went out and brought him back. The wood
jutted out on our left, and out came a German, about 30 yards away, but he had not advanced many
yards before either I, or a chap close to me, brought him down. The fellow on my left for into a hole,
made by a shell, just as I was about to get into it. He had only been there about a couple of minutes
when he was shot in the jaw with a rifle bullet. A Q.M.S. of the Black Watch told us to hold the wood
and not retire or we should be cut to pieces. Just then a shell came. The fellow on my right and another
one were hit, and I received a scorching blow on the forehead by the concussion. That left four of us.
Just then the Q.M.S. came back. He was an awfully nice fellow. He told us to stick to it as reinforcements
were coming up on the left. He knelt down and chatted to us for a little while. Suddenly another shell
came and killed him, and I was struck by one of the bullets, and another man was also hit.”
