Tuesday, August 13, 2013

The Good The Bad and the Ugly

BRITISH COMMANDERS

Field Marshal John Denton Pinkstone French, 1st Earl of Ypres (28 September 1885 – 22 May 1925)
Sir John French distinguished himself by commanding the Cavalry Division during the Second Bore War. He became Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS) in 1912, before serving for two years as the first Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force during World War I.
 Even thought promoted to field marshal on 3 June, 1913, French had neither staff experience nor had studied at Staff College in order to excel in his position. As CIGS he forced through some controversial changes to infantry battalions, first changing the composition of a battalion from eight small companies commanded by captains, to four large companies commanded by majors.[1] 

He also ensured that cavalry would continue to be trained to fight with sword and lance rather than fight dismounted with firearms. These changes caused concerns regarding French’s lack of intellect and knowledge for the position he held. [2]

Field Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig
(19 June 1861 – 29 January 1928)

Douglas Haig was a British senior officer during World War I, commanding the 1st Corps, until he replaced Sir John French as commander-in-chief of the BEF.
Some have criticized him for the number of British casualties that occurred during his command, and regarded him as representing class-based incompetent commanders unable to grasp modern tactics and technologies.[3]

General Sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien
(26 May 1858 – 12 August 1930)

Smith-Dorrien commanded the British II Corps during World War I and is best known for his successful defensive action in the Battle of Le Cateau. He commanded the British Second Army at the Second Battle of Ypres before being relieved of command by Sir John French.[4]

FRENCH GENERALS

Marshal Joseph Jacques Cesaire Joffre
(12 January 1852 – 3 January 1931)

Joseph Joffre was the French general and commander-in-chief of the Allied army during World War I, best known for regrouping the retreating allied armies in order to defeat the Germans at First Battle of the Marne in 1914.
Joffre was a career officer who saw active service in different theaters. While serving in the colonies he was asked to returned to France to be appointed commander-in-chief of the French Army in 1911.
He purged French officers who were “defensive-minded” and replaced them with those believing in the offensive “Plan XVII”.[5]
Like French, Joffre was selected to command despite the fact he never commanded an Army, and was labeled as “having no knowledge what so ever of how a General Staff works.”
Charles Lanrezac 
(July 31, 1852 – January 18, 1925)

Lanrezac was a French general, formerly a distinguished staff college lecturer, who commanded the French Fifth Army at the outbreak of World War I.
At the Battle of Charlerol he intended to strike the Germans on their western flank, but before he could act, the German 2nd Army struck first. After experiencing heavy casualties, he ordered the French Army to retreat. He recovered from his embarrassment at Chalerol by launching  a successful counterattack at the Battle of Guise. He was relieved of his command by Joffre before the Battle of the Marne.[6]

Ferdinand Foch was born in 1851. He fought in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71 and became an artillery specialist in 1907. When war broke out in 1914, Foch commanded the French Second Army until the Battle on the Marne, after which he headed the French Ninth Army.[7]




GERMAN GENERALS
Alexander Heinrich Rudolph von Kluck
(1846-1934)
Von Kluck was born in Munster on 20 May 1846. During the First World War he commanded the German First Army. He was known as an aggressive commander and grew impatient with his counterpart, Second Army commander von Bulow, who was unwilling to allow gaps between the two armies. This eventually led to failure of the infamous “Schlieffen Plan” when von Kluck advanced his army south and east of Paris instead of north and west as planned.[8]

FIELD MARSHAL KARL von BULOW
(1846-1921)
Karl von Bulow was born on 24 April, 1846. At the start of the First World War von Bulow was given the command of the German Second Army and to ensure that the German invasion of Belgium went according to the Schlieffen Plan, he was also given control over both the First and Third Armies. However, his control was rescinded when he and, the aggressive, von Kluck clashed over Bulow’s cautious nature.
Bulow’s greatest success was capturing the Belgian fortress of Namur and defeating the French General Lanrezac’s Firth Army at the Battle of Charleroi on 23-24 August, 1914.[9]




Monday, August 12, 2013

Introduction

Available on Kindle


INTRODUCTION


The date was 1887. Richard and Alice Coxen were adding a son, Frederick George, to the four children that already filled their house. Living in Battersea, Richard was a sail-maker whose trade was vanishing due to Britain’s Industrial Revolution. (Figure 3) The modern vessels were propelled by coal fired steam engines that bellowed out dark black smoke.
Little is known about Fred’s childhood, until he turned eighteen in 1905. That is when he enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery (RFA), assigned to the 55th Battery. His reasons for enlisting are unknown, but it could be argued that he did so in order to further his education. Even though the law of 1870 provided schooling for all children, it was common that children of working class parents were given only a rudimentary education at best; many never had an opportunity to attend school beyond the age of 12.
   When children turned the age of eighteen, the British military offered soldiers a basic education in return for six years of active and six years of reserve duty. In 1907 Fred earned both his third and second class education certificates in composition (Figure 4) – leading one to believe that his desire to obtain an education may have been a major inducement in his decision to enlist.
   Along with a classroom education, he was also trained in all aspects of operating artillery, yet he selected Signalling as his specialty. When new field telephones were introduced, Fred was sent to Ireland in 1909 for training (Figure 5). Communications between the artillery batteries and the forward observation post were extremely vital for shelling accuracy and target selection.
In 1911 he was awarded the “Assistant Signal Instructor” certificate, just prior to his departure from active duty to begin his RFA reserve obligation. (Figure 6)
 Serving in the RFA Reserves allowed Fred more time to pursue his training as an electrician. During this period of time he lived in Westminster, at 28 Berkley Street, an address which proved to be romantically significant. The attractive Lillian Turner, who lived with her parents at 32 Berkley Street, provided an alluring and convenient dating arrangement. It did not take long for Lillian to put a twinkle in Fred’s eyes. After a brief courtship, they were married on October 12th, 1912, at the Parish Church, in the Parish of St. Mary, Lambeth (Figure 7). By 1913 the young couple moved to 93 Rectory Lane, Tooting Bec Common, where Lillian gave birth to a baby girl they named Doris.
It could be assumed that Fred would have kept abreast of what was happening in Europe, after years of escalating turmoil. Rising political strife between Germany, France, and Russia, fuelled by the escalating tensions between Austria– Hungary and Serbia produced whispers of war.
Otto von Bismark, a German ambassador, predicted that “some damn foolish thing in the Balkans,” would ignite the next war[i]. On June 28, 1914, the assassination of the Austrian heir apparent, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, by Serbian nationals, brought his prediction to fruition. The house of cards, constructed of alliances between key countries in Europe, was beginning to collapse.
This descent into the abyss of war resembled the tumbling of a row of dominoes, when one falls the rest will follow.
It started when Austria–Hungary attacked Serbia in response to the assassination of the Archduke. Russia had an alliance with Serbia; therefore Russia declared war on Austria-Hungary. As Austria-Hungary was allied with Germany, Germany declared war on both Serbia and Russia. Russia and France had an alliance, so France slid into the abyss alongside the others. This cascading effect would continue as other countries entered the war, with the exception of Britain. 
Britian was not involved in alliances with other countries; however she did have a loose agreement with France, although not politically binding. It was an agreement that they would openly discuss providing mutual aid should either country be attacked. However, under the existing circumstances, this agreement took on deeper meaning and greater importance to Britain once she considered the consequences if France should lose the war. Parliament was debating this issue when the game changed.
Germany declared that they were going to use Belgium, a neutral country, as an avenue for attacking France. This outraged Britain since she had strong ties with Belgium. Britain sent an ultimatum; if Germany invaded Belgium, Britain would enter the war.[ii]
Germany’s Kaiser Welhelm was unconcerned by the threat, and ordered his army to invade Belgium on August 4, 1914. When the German Army crossed over the Belgian border the British Parliament signed the General Mobilization Decree; Britain was officially at war with Germany.
 Within a few hours after the decree was posted, Fred received his orders to report for duty on August 5th at Newcastle upon the Tyne. The forces that had been put in motion prior to this date would forever alter Fred’s life.

Fred’s first journal entry:

August 4th

“General Mobilization”, will it be declared? was the thought with me all day. My dear wife first gave me the news, but then I could not believe it, until, we walked to the post office and saw the Official Declaration. [iii]

And then I knew that, I should have to leave my home and dear ones — for “Where”, that was my one great thought. And until then I never realized what it all meant; with the conflicting thoughts, of my dear ones, and the fascination that I was going to participate in a real scrap. My mind was in a real whirl, and was so until I left home next day, for Newcastle-on-Tyne.[iv] And then — “Where?”

August 5th

I do not dwell on the thought of leaving my dear little wife, my mother, and baby — the journey up north was one of enthusiasm, for the train was packed with reservists, rejoining the Colours, as I, and all seemed absolutely mad to go and obliterate Germany!

August 6–7th

Drawing kit, passing Doctors, etc: - was detailed to join the 39th Bde R.F.A Surplus Details, as acting Q. M Sergt, at Borden Camp, [I] was very disappointed, for this meant that I should, not go to the front yet.

As I was informed that we should form the nucleus of a Reserve Brigade at Shorncliffe.[v]

 August 8th – 14th

Arrived at Borden, gave great satisfaction to C.O. - and volunteered for immediate Service.

After a little trouble and help of Brigadier Clark, I was detailed to join 43rd Bde RFA. At Deepcut[vi] – I joined them late on night of 14th, and was glad to meet a couple of chums in the Battery. I joined – 40th Btty RFA.

August 15th

Getting ready to embark – “Where”, that was the burning question for all orders were secret. [vii]

August 16th

Embarked at Southampton on the SS City of Chester - uneventful trip – disembarked at Boulogne next morning - I knew well that I was in France, grand reception.



[i] Tuchman, Barbara W. The Guns of August pp 85

[ii] Marshall, S.L.A. World War 1  pp 50-53

[iii] Coxen, Fred G. World War Journal 1914-1915

[iv] By the time of the First World War, existing coastal batteries on the east coast, most of which had been built during the nineteenth century against the perceived threat of France, had been adapted or new batteries created to take the new breech-loading guns. At the outbreak of hostilities, it was the Admiralty that was responsible for overseeing the home shore defences, as the Army was overstretched providing men and equipment in France, Belgium and the Middle East. Because of the concentration of strategic factories and installations (in Tyne and Wear for example, twelve armaments factories) the North-East coast was one of the most heavily defended areas in the country; the perceived threat was initially against bombardment or invasion from the sea, but by 1916, when the Army took over command of the home defence, the aerial threat from Zeppelins and, in southern Britain, heavy bombers, was the most pressing concern, fuelled by panic among the civilian population, who were under attack from the enemy for the first time. In 1916 a network of searchlights was established 25 miles inland from Sussex to
Northumberland.

[v] Shorncliffe is located on the coastal plain where the North Downs meet the Straits of Dover. The British government purchased a large piece of land at Shorncliffe in 1794 and fortified it in preparation for the expected French invasion. The Shorncliffe Redoubt is significant as the birthplace of modern infantry tactics.

[vi] Deepcut: Military barracks were started in the late 19th century near Surrey Heath village Deepcut.

[vii] Coxen, Fred G.

Sunday, August 11, 2013

World War 1 - An Unkept Promise

This is a very important book, containing a historical document which throws a new light on the events of 1914 and 1915. The book is essentially in three parts: the journal of Frederick Coxen (the author's grandfather and namesake), an explanation of the events taking place as the journal was written and the author's quest to find the relatives of his grandfather's friends.

The journal is important for two reasons. It details the work of the men who kept the lines of communication open to direct bombardments at a time when the war had not yet settled into trench warfare. This is unusual if not unique. Additionally it touches on an important historical controversy - that of the crucified soldier. There has been debate about whether or not the Germans crucified a soldier. Frederick Coxen was an eye-witness to the retaliation the Canadians took - crucifying a German and pinning a notice to him saying "Canada does not forget." It seems to me unreasonable that such an action would take place without some provocation. For this reason alone, students of the period should read this book or, indeed, the diary itself, which the author intends to present to the Imperial War Museum in London.

The quest for the relatives of Coxen's dead friends is also worth reading if only to show how difficult it is to find information even today. We had a similar experience looking for my father-in-law who received his fatal wound at Dunkirk and died from it over twenty years later. The Middlesex Regiment has no record of him although we have all his badges, buttons and medals. The author did very well to find out as much as he did.

Now available on Kindle

This is a book for serious historians and also for those who want to know more about this period of history or to work through the bureaucracy of searching any database for relatives.

Saturday, August 10, 2013

New & Improved

I have just posted "World War 1 - An Unkept Promise" on Kindle for the ridicules low price of $2.99. So what do you get for this insignificant amount of money? More family history, whole chapter on the Royal Field Artillery, a dedicated chapter on the political maneuvering that went on in Britten in order to create the British Expeditionary Force. For those that wondered what happened in Fred's military career after his last journal entry, the answer is in the book. Also there are updates on the three chums as well as changes in the Epilogue. The author listened to the reviewers and included over twenty digital images, which include photographs and 100 year old military documents.

The book is non-fiction and each battle narrative has been approved by a WW1 historian. After further research I included more insight on the crucifixion of the Canadian soldier.

Go to the Kindle Store to purchase your copy of "World War 1 - An Unkept Promise" NOW!    

Friday, August 2, 2013

THE BUILD UP 1914



When war was declared, the Regular Army comprised 247,432 men (all ranks), of which 79,000 were in India. The ‘Special Reserve’ and the Territorial Force totalled 270,859 men. It was intended that the defence of the homeland would be carried out by the fourteen divisions of the Territorial Force, which was created in 1908 by then Secretary of State for War, Richard Haldane.
      “County Associations were established, to organise and administer the Territorial Force, the infantry battalions being established at 29 officers and 980 non-commissioned officers and men.  The Force establishment was 312,000 men, but this target was never reached and recruitment peaked, probably, in June 1909 at 270,000.  By the beginning of that year, each Territorial unit had been assigned a specific role, either in coastal defence or as part of a central force.  Much of the Territorial Force’s equipment was obsolete and the Force never fulfilled Richard Haldane’s intention of being immediately available for service overseas. In 1910, members of it had been invited to accept a liability to serve abroad in the event of mobilisation, but barely seven per cent had made the ‘Imperial Service’ pledge, by September 1913.
      Prior to Britain declaring war, her small, all-regular, professional army was designed to police the Empire, therefore at the outset only capable of fielding, in Europe, only six infantry and one cavalry divisions, totaling 162,000 men. Virtually all of the Regular Army available in Britain, in 1914, numbered about 160,000 men, of whom a little over 100,000 were front-line troops. 
Each infantry division numbered three brigades of four infantry battalions with supporting artillery formations. The entire British Army, worldwide, did not amount to more than eleven Regular divisions.
     There was an ongoing debate around the decision to send all six divisions to France and Belgium, or hold back one or more to protect the homeland until the Territorials had additional time to train. In attendance at the August 5th meeting of the War Council, was Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith, Sir Edward Grey; who served as Foreign Secretary from 1905-1916, Winston Churchill; First Lord of the Admiralty, and Lord Richard Haldane; War Minister, and served as Lord Chancellor from 1912 until he left office in 1915.
     Also present were eleven Army general officers, including Field Marshal Sir John French and two of his corps commanders, Sir Douglas Haig and Sir James Grierson, among others.
    At the last minute there was an invasion scare that altered the War Council’s decision to send only four of the six divisions, along with one cavalry division. This was to take place immediately – embarkation was to begin August 9.
      Field Marshall Lord Kitchener had reluctantly accepted his appointment as Secretary of State for War. He passionately wanted to protect Britain’s Regular Army. He believed that Britain’s professional army, especially the officers, should be used for training new recruits instead of throwing them away fighting battles.
He wasn’t involved in the original planning process for fighting a war in Europe, which offered him a different perspective on the impact six divisions of the Expeditionary Force would have on the outcome of the war, especially in contrast to Germany and France’s seventy divisions each. 
     Lord Kitchener disapproved of the French offensive strategy, he ordered Sir John French, if he was asked to participate in any “forward movements” in which the French army wasn’t present in large numbers, and in which the British might be “unduly exposed to attack,” to consult his government first
That Sir John must “distinctly understand that his command would be an entirely independent one and that he will in no case be under the orders of any Allied general.”
     In this one stroke, Kitchener negated the principle of unity of command. His motive was the preservation of the British Army. Given Sir John’s temperament, the order practically nullified the order to “support” and “cooperate” with the French. This was to haunt the Allied war effort long after Sir John was replaced and Kitchener himself was dead.
       Lord Kitchener wanted the BEF’s staging area to be Amiens, which offered a safe distance from the advancing German Army. However, at the last minute it was changed to Maubeuge, where the BEF would experience the full weight of the German forces.
     On August 6-10, 80,000 troops of the BEF with 30,000 horses, 315 field guns, and 125 machine guns, were gathered at the Southampton and Portsmouth embarkation ports.

BRITISH COMMANDERS

Field Marshal John Denton Pinkstone French, 1st Earl of Ypres (28 September 1885 – 22 May 1925)
He distinguished himself by commanding the Cavalry Division during the Second Bore War. Sir John French became Chief of the Imperial General Staff in 1912, before serving for two years as the first Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force during World War I.
      After being promoted to Chief of the Imperial General Staff (‘CIGS’) on 15 March 1912, then promoted to field marshal on 3 June 1913. French had neither staff experience nor studied at Staff College in order to excel in his position. As CIGS he forced through some controversial changes to infantry battalions, first changing the composition of a battalion from eight small companies commanded by captains, to four large companies commanded by majors.  
He also ensured that cavalry would continue to be trained to fight with sward and lance rather than fight dismounted with firearms. These changes caused concerns that French lack of intellect and knowledge for the position he held. 

Field Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig (19 June 1861 – 29 January 1928) was a British senior officer during World War I commanding the 1st Corps until he replaced Sir John French as commander-in-chief of the BEF.
     Some have criticized him for the number of British casualties that occurred during his command, and regarded him as representing class-based incompetent commanders unable to grasp modern tactics and technologies.

General Sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien (26 May 1858 – 12 August 1930)
Smith-Dorrien commanded the British II Corps during World War I and is best known for his successful defensive action in the Battle of Le Cateau. He commanded the British Second Army at the Second Battle of Ypres before being relieved of command by Sir John French.[9]

FRENCH GENERALS
Marshal Joseph Jacques Cesaire Joffre 12 January 1852 – 3 January 1931 was a French general and commander-in-chief of the Allied army during World War I best known for regrouping the retreating allied armies in order to defeat the Germans at First Battle of the Marne in 1914.
     Joffre was a career officer and saw active service in different theaters and was serving in the colonies when he was asked to returned to France to be appointed commander-in-chief of the French Army in 1911.
     He purged French officers which were, “defensive-minded” and replaced them with those believing in the offensive “Plan XVII”.
     Like French, Joffre was selected to command despite the fact he never commanded an Army, and “having no knowledge what so ever of how a General Staff works.”
Charles Lanrezac (July 31, 1852 – January 18, 1925) was a French general, formerly a distinguished staff college lecturer, who commanded the French Fifth Army at the outbreak of World War I.
At the Battle of Charlerol he intended to strike the Germans on their western flank, but before he could act, the German 2nd Army struck first. After experiencing heavy casualties, he ordered the French Army to retreat. He recovered from his embarrassment at Chalerol by launching  a successful counterattack at the Battle of Guise. He was relieved of his command by Joffre before the Battle of the Marne.

Ferdinand Foch Was born in 1851. He fought in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71 and became an artillery specialist in 1907. When war broke out in 1914, Foch commanded the French Second Army until the Battle on the Marne when he headed the French Ninth Army.





Monday, July 29, 2013

ROYAL FIELD ARTILLERY

During World War One the British Army used two mobile artillery units, The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA). Both units used horse-drawn gun limbers; however the RHA limbers were navigated by two drivers, each riding one of the six light-draughts horses, whereas the RFA drivers sat on the limber while handling the horses.
     Since the RHA used smaller caliber guns they were mobile and served with Cavalry brigades, whereas the RFA used heavier calibre weapons and served with Infantry Divisions.
     When supporting infantry divisions, the RFA batteries would position their guns behind the infantry to support either their advancement or protection if under attack. If the infantry were attacked, the guns would continue their support until the very last minute, before being withdrawn.

Fred was assigned to the RFA 43rd Brigade, which was formed prior to the British Expeditionary Force’s deployment to France. The 43rd included the 30th, 40th and 57th (Howitzer) Batteries, which were equipped with 4.5 inch Howitzers[i] Upon formation, it was attached to the 1st Infantry Division, I Corps; which was commanded by General Haig. [ii]
    The 1st Infantry Division was under the command of Major-General S.H. Lomax, and comprised of a number of brigades, each containing multiple infantry regiments. The following list displays the brigade’s number, then the quantity and name of the regiments, such as, 2nd Brigade: 2/ Royal Sussex Regiments, denotes that two Royal Sussex Regiments served in the 2nd Brigade:
1st (Guards) Brigade : 1/Coldstream Guards; 1/Scots Guards; 1/Black Watch; 2/Royal Munster Fusiliers
2 nd Brigade: 2/Royal Sussex Regiment; 1/Loyal North Lancashire Regiment; 1/Northamptonshire Regiment; 2/King Rifle Corps
3rd Brigade: 1/Queen’s (Royal West Surrey Regiment); 1/South Wales Borderers; 1/Gloucester Regiment; “A” Squadron, 15th Hussars
5th Brigade: 2/Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry; 2/Worcester Regiment; 2/Highland Light Infantry; 2/Connaught Rangers
6th Brigade: 1/King’s (Liverpool Regiment); 2/South Staffordshire Regiment; 1/Royal Berkshire Regiment; 1/King’s Royal Rifle Corps; “B” Squadron, 15th Hussars

 In 1914 each RFA brigade contained three artillery batteries. Each battery included two gun sections with six guns. There were a total of 198 men, who included a battery commander, who held the rank of Major (or Captain), a second-in-command with a rank of Captain. Others who served within a battery included: a Battery Sergeant-Major, Battery Quartermaster, who held the rank of Sergeant, a Farrier-Sergeant, 4 Shoeing Smiths, 2 Saddlers, 2 Wheelers, 2 Trumpeters, 7 Sergeants, 7 Corporals, 11 Bombardiers, 75 Gunners, 70 Drivers and 10 Gunners acting as Batmen[iii]. Each battery section had 3 Lieutenants (or 2nd Lieutenants) in charge. [iv]
      A battery also had a small contingent of men trained as signalers / telephonists, which were responsible for maintaining open phone lines between forward observation posts and the battery, which was critical for reporting fire accuracy or target locations. Lines were repeatedly severed by shellfire, forcing signallers to crawl along the wire in order to locate and repair the break, usually while under shell and or rifle fire. Their lives were often placed in jeopardy in order ensure the battery’s ability to continue firing. As a signaler, Fred’s journal accurately describes the hazards faced by this small contingent of men.
     Howitzer brigades used a 4.5 inch gun, which were manned by a six man crew and could fire 4 rounds per minute; with a maximum range of around 7,000 yards.
     Loading a shell required the shell to be loaded first and rammed home with a short wooden rammer, then cartridge case was placed into the chamber and the breech closed then the gun fired. 
     Mounted on the inside of the gun shield near the top was a slide-rule- like fuse indicator. The indicator was used for setting the time on shrapnel shell fuses made them burst at the ideal point for greatest effect. Each shell contained 480 lead alloy balls, which would be released when the shell exploded.

SIGNALLERS

When a battery arrived at a battle position, the signallers were responsible for immediately running wire to a forward observation post, each battery section, and to headquarters. When messages from the forward post were received at headquarters, assessments were made before sending firing instructions to the gun batteries.
    Two signallers were always on duty serving as operators Inside the Battery Telephone dug-out.
     The most commonly used field phone was the Fullerphone called the D3 (pronounced Don 3) telephone, as well as the Fuller Four-plus-three exchange[v].  Both of these phones were invented by Captain Fuller.[vi]

The lines to each station would be tested by sending a Morse code ‘OK’;  if a station didn’t respond it meant that the line was broken – termed ‘Dis’. A break in a line required two signallers to be sent out immediately to find and repair the break. During a battle this task was extremely dangerous for signallers were exposed to both artillery and rifle fire.

During a battle, and contrary to their training, signallers would run phone lines over open ground, hang them in trees or bury them.
 
 Because weather impacted the flight of shells, a weather reports would be sent to each battery twice a daily; then artillery officers would use various calculations and adjustments before ordering the guns to fire.
    
When the batteries were firing, observers in forward observation post would watch where the shells landed and report back to the Battery the range, and degrees left or right[vii] of the intended target.
    



[i] a cannon with a bore diameter greater than 30 mm and a maximum elevation of 60 degrees
    that fires projectiles in a curved trajectory

[ii] The Long, Long Trail, The British artillery of 1914-1918 http://www.1914-1918.net/whatartbrig.htm

[iii] [iii] Batman: A soldier that takes care of everyday life so that an officer could concentrate on    commanding.

[iv] The Long, Long Trail, What was an artillery brigade http://www.1914-1918.net/whatartbrig.htm

[v] This portable field telephone exchange created in miniature the same service rendered by an ordinary permanent exchange. The exchange could take four incoming lines, all of which could be connected to each other by the exchange operator, who could also send and receive calls on each of the four lines

[vi] Hanson, Ivor J., Plough & Scatter Haynes Publishing, Sparkford, Yeovil, Somerset, UK pp 175-176   

[vii] Hanson, Ivor J., pp 175-176