Q.6.a and Other places: Recollections of 1916, 1917 and 1918

In Short

This book serves as a grounded, technical, and deeply personal chronicle of a British officer’s service in the 7th Northumberland Fusiliers between 1916 and 1918. Rather than focusing on grand strategic movements, the narrative dwells on the granular reality of life on the Western Front: the training of "grenadiers," the maintenance of trench bomb stores, the persistent threat of mortar fire, and the small, human moments of respite. It is a quiet, steady record of survival and duty, written by a man who valued the competence of his comrades above all else.

The Story

The narrative begins in the training camps of Northern England, where the author, an officer in the 7th Northumberland Fusiliers, prepares for deployment. His early days are defined by a rapid immersion into the specialized, often primitive, world of trench warfare. As a "grenadier officer," he focuses on the instruction of men in the use of hand grenades and trench mortars, a role that dictates his movements and responsibilities throughout the conflict.

The arc of the story follows the battalion through various sectors of the front, from the relatively quiet initial postings to the devastation of the Somme. He describes a life governed by the cycle of trench rotations, where long periods of tedious preparation are punctuated by sudden, violent encounters. The author provides vivid accounts of the changing nature of the conflict—the evolution of weaponry, the shifting tactics of raids, and the introduction of chemical warfare. He details the logistical struggle of maintaining supplies and the constant, crushing burden of casualties, noting with somber precision the decimation of his own specialized bombing units.

As the war progresses into 1917 and 1918, the narrative moves through major campaigns and the grueling demands of the Hindenburg Line. The author captures the transition from static trench warfare to the more fluid, yet equally dangerous, movements of the final year. He records the physical toll of the environment—the mud, the lice, and the perpetual shelling—alongside the mundane details of daily survival, such as the effort to establish observation posts or the search for relatively safe billets.

The story does not shy away from the end of the war; it tracks the battalion’s movement into Belgium following the armistice. The final chapters detail the bureaucratic reality of "disembodiment" and demobilization. The author concludes his service not with a flourish of triumph, but with a quiet return to civilian life in February 1919, having fulfilled his duty. The journey is one of endurance, marked by the loss of friends and the persistent, methodical effort to manage the lethal machinery of modern war.

How It Unfolds

The training grounds The narrative opens with the author’s early experiences in Alnwick and Tynemouth, where he learns the rudimentary skills of grenade instruction. These initial chapters establish the technical focus of his wartime career, emphasizing the primitive nature of early trench equipment.

The Salient and the Somme The midsection chronicles the author’s deployment to the front, detailing the harsh realities of the Salient and the heavy losses sustained during the Somme. He describes the grueling routine of visiting trenches to inspect bomb stores and the constant threat posed by enemy trench mortars.

The Arras offensive The focus shifts to the spring of 1917, where the author documents the tactical preparations for the Battle of Arras. He provides specific, observations on the use of dummies and gas to deceive the enemy, highlighting the ingenuity required to execute small-scale raids.

The final pursuit The closing chapters cover the movement toward the Hindenburg Line in 1918 and the chaotic, shifting nature of the war’s end. The author reflects on the exhaustion of the troops and the final, logistical scramble of demobilization in Belgium before his eventual return home.

The People

The author, Francis Buckley, presents himself as a meticulous, duty-bound officer who finds purpose in the technical demands of his role as a grenadier and, later, an observer. He is deeply pragmatic, concerned primarily with the safety and training of his men. His primary mentor is Sergt. W. Moffat, a "withered" but "cheery" veteran of the South African War, whose expertise and steady character earn the author’s profound respect and lasting grief upon his death. The company commanders, such as Capt. J. Welch, provide the social glue for the author’s existence, offering a "cheery" respite in the officers' mess. Brigadier-General Ovens emerges as a genial, if sometimes misunderstood, figure, while the intellectual Lieut.-Col. G.R.B. Spain serves as an important companion, sharing the author’s interest in archaeology and stone implements. These figures are not rendered as archetypes but as companions in a shared, grinding ordeal, each struggling to maintain a sense of normalcy and professional competence amidst the relentless pressures of the front.

In Its Own Voice

"Sergt. Moffat was a short withered man with sandy hair, a quiet manner, but a cheery twinkle in his eye."

The author describes the veteran sergeant who taught him the essential routines of trench warfare.

"The bombers of the 7th N.F. went into action on September 15, 1916, about eighty strong--ten N.C.O.s and seventy men."

The author provides a stark, factual tally of the heavy losses suffered by his unit during the Somme.

"The Germans were burying dead all day in the neighbourhood of St. Roharts Factory, which is some distance from Cherisy."

The author notes the impact of a successful gas raid on enemy lines.

What It's Really About

At its core, this book is an exploration of professional identity under extreme duress. The author is less interested in the politics of the war than in the mechanics of survival and the ethics of command. He constantly interrogates the gap between the orders issued by higher commands and the gritty, often wasteful, reality of execution in the field—particularly regarding the training of rifle-grenadiers and the supply of munitions. The work serves as a testament to the "New Armies," highlighting the quiet heroism of ordinary men and the burden placed upon those responsible for their lives. It asks how one maintains discipline, technical proficiency, and human decency when the environment demands constant, calculated lethality.

Why Read It Today

This book is for the reader who values the texture of history over the drama of fiction. It possesses a distinct, matter-of-fact tone that feels remarkably honest, devoid of the sentimental gloss that often characterizes later reflections on the war. Readers will appreciate the vivid, ground-level details—the sound of a pheasant in a hedge near the front, the frustration with inefficient supplies, or the strange, unspoken truces that occurred in the trenches.

The prose is precise and unadorned, reflecting the author’s background and temperament. However, the modern reader should be prepared for the technical density of the text; the author spends considerable time discussing bombing techniques, ordnance, and defensive logistics, which may feel repetitive to those unfamiliar with the period. Additionally, the book is a product of its time, reflecting the rigid social hierarchies and attitudes of the British Army in 1916. Because it is a personal recollection, it does not provide a comprehensive history of the war, but rather a narrow, deep tunnel into one man’s experience. What stays with the reader is the persistent, haunting contrast between the author’s professional, analytical focus and the senseless, crushing scale of the destruction he records.