AIF Cemetery, Flers. Courtesy CWGC
On 12th October 1916, the 17th Battalion took part in a disastrous assault on German positions north of the village of Flers. Some advances were possible, but all progress was conceded in the face of relentless machine gun defences from the German Marines. Arthur Bell – who provides a large part of the narrative on this site – was wounded at Flers and in common with many of his peers, his active Service ended on this day. The anniversary also marks the end of the Battalion’s main action for the year. They want on to further significant deeds in 1917.
The majority of 17th Battalion’s casualties in the summer of 1916 had enlisted into the Manchester Regiment during 1914; or early 1915. The troops who were killed, wounded and captured in the assaults in July 1916 left very few ‘original’ Warehouseman and…
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17th Battalion Manchester Regiment on the Somme 