War Diary of 1/RWF May 1940

[jerrymurland]

I am hoping someone may have the WD for the 1st Battalion RWF for May 1940. I'm particularly interested in the period the battalion was fighting in and around St Venant.

Jerry

[dcdl12976]

While you are waiting you may like to read the thread st venant farm boulet loads of info on events at St Venant in there

[ap1]

Hi Jerry, the war diary for the 1st Bn is within "The Vault". You need to be a donator to access it.

http://rwf-forum.co.uk/vBulletin/con...?149-The-Vault

Thanks

[ap1]

Thanks for the donation Jerry. Hope you find what your looking for. The official book covering that period is The Red Dragon, published in 1960 and out of print. However it is available via Abebooks: http://www.abebooks.co.uk/book-searc...kemp/sortby/3/

For an RWF personal account, The Memoirs of a Very Fortunate Man By Capt JC Bennet. A pre-war enlisted regular who was at Dunkirk with the battalion as an officer. This book is not widely circulated.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Memoirs-.../dp/0955210305

[jerrymurland]

Many thanks - The WD was useful as I am trying to piece together the action in and around St Venant 24-30 May 1940.

Jerry

[roy dadge]

Hi,

My father Frank Dadge was with "D" Company, Platoons 16,17 & 18,(he was in Platoon 18 with Dave Evans who had won a DCM on the River Dyle). When they were ambushed by the Germans on theevening of the 24^th, they were blocked from securing one of thebridges over the La Bassee Canal.
I put together the followingtimeline of the events just prior and leading up to the battle of St Venant fromvarious documents, books and my father’s stories etc. In order to betterunderstand my father’s experiences. Ialso visited the area in 2007 and took photographs of the position of where theambush is most likely to have taken place, from the information that I had. Istress that this is my timeline and is based on particular actions happening insequence, where I could identify a time I used that time, times in between wereguessed using logic.

23rd	04.00	Arrived Bachy, two miles to the left of Mouchin, on the French Frontier.
	06.00	Colonel and Company Commanders toured the area to work out where to establish a defence plan.
	10.00	Carrier Platoon arrived.
	10.15	“D” Company on the left experienced difficulty making a junction with the Royal Norfolks.
	12.00	French Regiment materialises at the battalion position.
	14.00	Orders came to relieve the Battalion, which was to go into rest as GHQ reserve in the neighbourhood of La Bassee.
	17.00	“B” Company and Headquarters Company moved out with the troop-carrying lorries
	20.00	Battalion moved out a mile to the south to await the return of the lorries that were due at 23.00 hrs.
	23.00	Transport fails to return.
24th	05.00	Lorries finally return A, C and D Companies climb aboard and start their journey to Vieulle Chapelle.
	08.00	First party starts to arrive at Vieulle Chapelle after their overnight journey from Bachy.
	11.00	Meanwhile on the La Basse Canal, a French unit holding that sector had been withdrawn before the arrival of the British force that was to take over defense of the sector.
	11.30	The Verfugungsdivision took advantage of the gap on the La Basse Canal to make an unopposed crossing of the canal, its forward elements advancing to St.Venant. The British quickly sent a small force to hold the flank of the salient but the canal line had been breached.
	11.45	Following up on their success the Verfugungsdivision sent across a strong reconnaissance platoon. The patrol of thirty-two men in armored cars penetrated as far as Merville-some five miles beyond the La Basse Canel and over the Lys Canal.
	12.00	The last of the Battalion arrives at Vieulle Chapelle.
	14.00	The Commanding Officer called to Brigade Headquarters for a conference.
	16.00	The C.O. Lieutenant-Colonel Harrison returned to the Battalion with orders to move westwards immediately, as part of 6th Brigade, to carry out an attack to re-establish the position on the La Basse Canal. The objectives were to take four bridges over the La Basse canal near Robecq.
	18.00	The Battalion moved out towards its objective. They travelled a route from to Vieulle Chapelle, via La Fosse, Merville, Calonne-Sur-Lys, St Floris and then to deploy before the brides on the La Basse Canal.
	20.00	The Battalion arrived in Calonne-Sur-Lys, left the lorries and assembled. Their targets were now two miles away.
	20.30	“A” and “D” Companies headed out towards St Floris. “D” Company under Lt Boyle decided to take the direct route to Robecq instead of following “A” Company through St Floris to join up with “C” Company.
	20.45	“D” Company cautiously felt they way forward with 16 Platoon as advance guard. The two other Platoons searching the roadside houses and buildings.
	21.00	The Verfugungsdivision reconnaissance platoon were now at Merville five miles behind St Venant where they were engaged by British Tanks and cut off. However, they were still in radio contact, throughout the night and early morning, with headquarters on the La Basse Canal.
	21.30	After two miles, the failing light indicated that progress was to slow if the objective was going to be reached in daylight.
	21.40	An enemy armoured car was sighted laying road mines but retired after firing a few shots.
	21.45	On a straight stretch, 300 yards down the road, two enemy machineguns opened up. Two hayricks were set on fire by the first shots, brightly illuminating the scene. “D” company were caught in the open. Cover was taken in the deep ditches on either side of the road. Lieutenant Boyle was killed almost immediately. Franks friend, Sergeant Dave Evans DCM was caught in the open crossing the road, by a 3” mortar round, and severely wounded his right leg. He was last seen being wheeled away in a wheelbarrow.
	22.00	2/Lieutenant Kemp came back from, 16 Platoon, the advanced guard to take over as Company Commander. In view of the bright conditions, wire obstacles, hostile MG fire and casualties he decided to withdraw. This was executed by each of the Platoons in succession taking their wounded with them.
	22.30	The Company returned, back up the road to Calonne where they were ordered to take up a temporary position and set up a roadblock.
	23.00	The remnants of “D” Company were then ordered to take up a position to the east of St Floris.
25th	02.00	Small parties of Germans, seeking out the weak points in the regiments defence, contributed to a lively night.
	08.00	“D” Company were held in reserve with Headquarters Company in St Floris dealing with troublesome sniper which had persisted since dawn from the village and woods nearby.
	08.30	Meanwhile on the German side, the Leibstandarte and the Verfugungsdivision had bridgeheads to defend. The Verfugungsdivision had gained a good bit of territory on the north bank of the canal line, including St. Venant, through which passed one of the British withdrawal routes to Dunkirk. The British wanted the town back. And on May 25 the RWF mounted an attack which threw the SS out of St Venant. They then rebuilt the bridge across the Lys. and the withdrawal continued behind a screen of outnumbered but determined infantrymen. Although St. Venant remained in British hands for only two days, this was the first time in the campaign an SS unit had been forced to give up a major holding.
	09.00	Advance Battalion Headquarters set up at the Fork Roads between St Floris and St Venant.
	09.30	The Verfugungsdivision reconnaissance platoon was still in touch with its division by radio the next day on the 25th May, the patrol reported that only eight of its members were still unwounded. Since their situation was hopeless, the survivors were ordered to destroy their equipment and attempt to break out on foot during the night. None of the thirty-two SS men returned. Meanwhile enemy tanks and infantry passed between Robecq and St Venant to attack Merville. They made repeated attempts to capture the southern bridge leading into the town, but the 6th King's Own (a pioneer battalion) with the help of a single field gun defeated all their efforts, captured twenty prisoners, and destroyed two armoured cars and three tanks. During the night the garrison was reinforced by a troop of the 10th Field Regiment and two guns of the 115th Army Field Regiment.
	10.00	Advance Headquarters was now in the front line. To provide support both Headquarters and “D” Company were ordered forward.
	10.15	Headquarters and “D” Company were delayed when the Germans put down a blitz barrage on the level crossing at the eastern end of the railway embankment as the companies were crossing. P.S.M. Buck Evans Evan and Corporal were killed and many wounded. The wounded were successfully evacuated. The level crossing became exceptionally dangerous, while the square formed by the roads between St Floris and St Venant was only less so.
	10.30	“D” Company concentrated from the level crossing east of St Venant Railway Station to the Crossroads east of the town. This line faced almost due south and covered the bridge behind it, across which ran the road ran northwards to Dunkirk.
	11.00	The Battalion began to quickly dig in which continue for the rest of the day.
	18.00	The Commanding Officer went to Brigade for a conference.

Key to the Map of the Battle of St Venant
No	Action
1	“D” Company Bridge 1 over the La Basse Canal
2	Bridge 2 over the La Basse Canal to be covered by “D” Company
3	“B” Company Bridge 3 over the La Basse Canal
4	“C” Company Bridge 4 over the La Basse Canal
5	The ambush site of “D” Company on the evening of 24th May
6	Furthest advance of “C” Company on the evening of the 24th May
7	St Venant Water Tower
8	St Venant Railway Station
9	les Amuzoires Farm
10	Railway Line embankment
11	Royal Welch Fusiliers headquarters at St Venant Cemetary
12	Durham Light Infantry Headquarters in Farm Yard
13	Bridge over the Bourne Canal for the escape to the Coast
14	Bridge E over the Bourne Canal the escape route to the Coast
15	Cottages
16	Escape route to the coast and Dunkirk
17	La Paradis the site of the massacre of The Royal Norfolks
18	Verfugungsdivision 32 man reconnaissance platoon in Armored Cars reached Merville

[ap1]

Excellent stuff Roy.