TRENCH RAIDING
By Dr. Gavin Hughes
Painting: EVM. Scenary: ESLO. Miniatures: RENEGADE
“Psychologically, going out into
No Man’s Land in the dark,
especially if you are alone, is a
distinctly eerie business.”
Major H. Hesketh-Pritchard, D.S,O., M.C.,
Army School of Scouting, Observation and Sniping
One of the most infamous localised tactics of the Great War was the
implementation of dangerous (and frequently costly) trench raids and
patrol parties. These were both greatly admired by High Command and
dreaded by the ‘poor bloody infantry’ who had to carry them out. Yet,
regardless of their worth, or otherwise, soldiers on either side of the wire
frequently had to undergo these severe tests of nerves. Whether their
objectives were to capture prisoners, observe the enemy, or simply to
‘rattle’ the other side, trench raids and patrols were a common feature
of the First World War. As such, the following article hopes to give a
brief historical background and provide a suggested scenario (based on
raids conducted by the East Lancashire Regiment in winter 1915/1916)
for recreating raids on the tabletop.
As the Germans ‘dug-in’ along the Aisne
river line in early September 1914, the
ragged trench lines took form and became
all-but immovable. As such, the war for
these entrenchments and lines developed
too, albeit with only slight variations.
The all-out assault was certainly the most
dramatic strategy, whereby Divisions,
Corps and Armies were flung at a sector
in an attempt to break through an enemy
trench line. Such offensives ran the risk
of being little more than vast co-ordinated
slaughters, especially when they met with
stiffer than expected resistance (such
as the Somme) or hard-won gains were
quickly lost (such as Passchendaele).
Consequently, the armies of the Entente
and Central Powers also initiated less
costly smaller actions ~ trench raids~
which were designed to keep their own
side ‘active’ whilst sapping the enemy’s
morale and resources.
In practice, however, these raids
sometimes became synonymous
with dangerous and risky skirmishes,
especially when they seemed to be
Whilst raids could be complicated
combined operations, by far the most
normal local offensive tactic was the
patrol. The objective of patrols was
more limited than raids but, as they
required a higher level of fieldcraft
skills, the numbers involved were
often smaller. Indeed, the maximum
number of a patrol could be as high as
30 but this was almost unheard of, the
standard number being a ten man squad
or below. Unlike raids, patrols were a
regular trench routine and could be sent
out on an almost nightly basis, often to
observe the enemy’s working parties and
to determine the nature of suspicious
features (likely to be observation posts)
in No Man’s Land. However, a British
Army Order demanded that no officer
above the rank of Company Commander
should lead a patrol - due to the danger
of wastage on an already stretched
resource - and, consequently, junior
officers and senior NCOs normally
commanded these groups. Despite
this, many senior field officers did lead
patrols out personally even though they
were threatened with court-martial if
they did so. On these occasions it was
generally as a result of their experience
being needed to rectify a failed raid or
that their specific military expertise
was required.
In particular, observation patrol
missions sent out into No Man’s Land
were especially dangerous as, naturally,
the best conditions for observing an
enemy position was in daylight. The
drawback, of course, was the greater
chance of being seen by an enemy.
Although all manner of cunning and
ingenious devices were constructed for
this purpose, the best solution was to
employ trained No Man’s Land scouts
who could traverse the dangerous
terrain. Two such scouts came from
the 4th Royal Berkshire Regiment
who volunteered to reconnoitre Hill
63 at Messines Ridge shortly before
the planned assault of June 1917. One,
a very ‘Biggles-like’ character called
Captain Gaythorne-Hardy, had been
a Big-Game hunter prior to the war
and was skilled in camouflage and
concealed movement. Both he and his
corporal crawled up to the German
wire, in broad daylight, and successfully
recorded a full plan of the ground and
entanglements. All the time, they were
under the watch of the entire German
line but, amazingly, both soldiers
returned to British trenches unscathed
and - more importantly - unseen. For
this valuable work, Gaythorne-Hardy
was awarded the Military Cross, whilst
his corporal was promoted to sergeant
and awarded the Distinguished Conduct
Medal. Another example can be shown
by Major R.T. Rees of the Loyal
North Lancashire Regiment, who felt
compelled to undertake an observation
patrol himself. It had followed a failed
(but not costly) raid, which the Major
had ordered and planned but, not being
allowed to lead it, had lost direction and
ended in confusion. Consequently, the
next day, Major Rees crept out into No
Man’s Land (in daylight) to make notes
of the enemy’s position, accompanied
by Sgt-Major Pasquill. Whilst crouching
in a shell-hole, he turned around to find
Sgt-Major Pasquill gone - only to see
him crawling back from the German
position moments later. The Sgt-Major
had discovered a German dugout close
by and tried to enthusiastically motivate
the Major that, between the two of
them, they could capture it. The Major’s
response was apparently to remind the
Sgt-Major that “...he was too old and
too valuable to be such a fire-eater, I
recommended a speedy and careful
return to our own lines.” [Major R.T.
Rees, in A. Simpson, Hot Blood & Cold
Steel, pp65-66 BCA 1993]
World War I
1914-1918
ordered for any other reason than
to simply ‘keep busy’. A raid was
frequently made at dusk or in the dark
and, usually, turned out to be a bloody
and swift hand-to-hand combat in a
forward trench line. This, of course, is a
great simplification of the grand concept
behind trench raiding which had many
local motives. Even their frequency
varied greatly from sector to sector and
from commander to commander. With
the British in particular, some battalion
commanders believed the trench raid to
be an important method of keeping their
men out of mischief and ‘battle-keen’;
although it is certainly believed that with
the latter it had the reverse effect. Having
said this, raids frequently had a direct
military purpose. The aim was usually to
capture prisoners and assess the quality
of the enemy’s front line troops, whilst
also testing their capability to mount an
adequate defence. Such raids could be
undertaken by any number of men from
a dozen to a battalion (although this was
rare) and platoon or company raids were
more commonplace. During larger, more
organised and co-ordinated, raids the
attackers had access to support artillery.
Although patrols were normally
information gathering missions, they
were sometimes sent out to disrupt
enemy working parties that were out
to repair wire or rebuild their parapets
under the cover of darkness. In this case,
a subaltern and senior NCO would be
briefed on the overall objective of the
mission and be sent ‘over the
top’ to strike at the enemy quickly
and decisively.
For example, by winter 1915, the
volunteer battalion of the 8th (Service)
East Lancashire Regiment was holding
the front line trenches along the
Foncquevillers-Monchy au Bois Line.
This area of line, defended by the 37th
Division, was near to Gommecourt and
the trenches here were in an abysmal
condition. In fact, by December the
trenches were so waterlogged by the
wintry rain and sleet that movement
along them was severely limited. It got so
bad by the last few weeks of the month
that platoon reliefs of the front line were
rotated every twenty-four hours. Warfare
too was hampered by the weather and
most British offensive engagements
were restricted to disruptive bombing
raids, regular nightly patrols and wirecutting missions.
On the night of 21st December, a
patrol party of the 8th Lancs, advanced
cautiously towards positions at ‘Little Z’
(east of Foncquevillers) and came under
accurate German gunfire. There followed
an exchange of fire, where patrol Sergeant
Allan was wounded in the thigh and, in
the murk and mud, left for dead in No
Man’s Land. The next morning, Private
William Young (a Scot living in Preston)
saw his Sergeant lying out in front of the
wire and resolved to bring him back to
the British lines. Under enemy fire, he
climbed over the parapet and, despite
being urged to go back by Sgt. Allan, Pvt.
Young was hit twice by machine-gun fire
as he assisted the NCO. By now another
comrade, Private Green, had followed
Young and, helping him, they dragged
Allan back to safety. Having been hit
in the chest by one bullet and with
his jaw shattered by another, William
Young then walked back to the village of
Foncquevillers for medical treatment.
As domination of No Man’s Land
became a particular priority in the
years of 1915-1917, patrols of either
side went out at night to establish their
authority over an area. As German
tactical practices advanced (with the
creation of stormtrooper units) the Allied
response had to be equally forceful.
The Canadians, for example, developed
a counter raiding tactic known as the
‘Silent Death’, which became as much of
a psychological weapon as anything else.
Canadian raiders would stealthily work
their way into No Man’s Land once it got
dark and lie there waiting for German
patrols. When one stumbled across them,
the Canadians would kill them one by
one, with bare hands and trench daggers,
making absolutely no sound as they did
so. It is easy to imagine the terrifying
effect on enemy morale this had, as
whole German patrols disappeared in the
darkness. Consequently, the Germans
opposite the Canadian sector began to get
extremely nervous at sending any patrol
off into No Man’s Land at night.
In conclusion, across the war fronts,
trench raids and the need for endless
patrols were a constant feature of the
Great War. Yet nowhere were they more
apparent - and dreaded - than on the
Western Front. Trench-raiding may have
been one way of keeping battle spirit
‘keen’ but it always came at a price, be
it to nerves or lives. For example, many
months following the ‘Little Z’ raid, Pvt.
William Young of the 8th Lancs was
gazetted for the Victoria Cross (on the
30th March 1916). Yet, by this time, he
had been invalided home for hospital
operations as a result of the wounds
received on the 22nd December 1915.
He was heralded as national hero back
in Preston and was shown genuine relief
when he appeared to be recovering by
April 1916. In July, Pvt. William Young
V.C. returned to Aldershot for a routine
final operation - from which he never
regained consciousness. His wife, Mary,
was at his bedside when he died. Whilst
Young’s courage was exemplary, the
costly nature of that December patrol
and its ultimate consequences were
all-too familiar for many soldiers on the
Western Front.
Suggested further reading
S. Bull & A. Hook, World War One Trench
Warfare (1) (Osprey, Elite 78, 2002)
F. Davies & G. Maddocks, Bloody Red
Tabs (Leo Cooper, 1995)
J. Laffin, A Western Front Companion,
1914- 1918 (Sutton, 1994)
D. Nash, German Infantry, 1914-1918
(Almark, 1970)
R. Prior & Prof. T. Wilson,
Command on the Western Front
P. Haythornthwaite, World War One
Sourcebook (BCA, London, 1992)
H. Hesketh-Pritchard, Sniping in France
(London, 1994)
D. Richter, Chemical Soldiers
(Leo Cooper, 1994)
Dr. G. Sheffield, Forgotten Victory - the
First World War: myths and realities
(Headline, 2002)
A. Simpson, Hot Blood and Cold Steel
(BCA, London, 1993)
Wargaming Raids
and Patrols
The suggested scenario is based on a composite number of historical events
and can easily be used to recreate a typical patrol or raid of the general period.
The wargame follows Chris Peers’ Contemptible Little Armies rules system
and will hopefully give a balanced, accurate and short game. The scenario
should be considered as a ‘Meeting Engagement’ and, although it is written
with an unusual ‘daylight raid’ in mind, if desired, players may opt for a nighttime version using the night fighting optional rules ( CLA p.33).
The scenario is set in early 1916, near Gommecourt, and focuses on two
opposing patrols, in this case British and German (although any nationality
could be used) and ends when one side concedes defeat or loses more than
half its initial strength. Alternatively, the game can continue (at both players’
discretion) until one side has no further troops to fight with. The tabletop
should have two baseline areas representing the static trench lines, one
German and one British. The middle of the tabletop should be termed a ‘crater
field’ to indicate No Man’s Land.
The players may then roll a D6 to determine who may set up first and deploy
their forces accordingly. The player who gains the initiative becomes the
attacker and may choose whether they wish to make a ‘prisoner raid’ (see
Special Rules below) or ‘offensive patrol’.
The forces used in the scenario may seem limited but reflect the small number
of troops involved and the specific objective of the scenario. Of course, they
can be enlarged to re-fight a larger raid or patrol, in which case supportive
machine-guns (1 HMG for every 3 British units and 1 HMG for every 2
German units) can also be used.
One unit, 8th (Service) Battalion East Lancashire Regiment: New Army
Volunteers. Tactical 3, Morale 5, armed with bombs (8 points).
They may be accompanied by 1 Lewis gun at 12 points.
One unit, German Line Infantry Regiment : Regulars. Tactical 4, Morale 4,
armed with bombs (8 points). They may be accompanied by a captured Lewis
gun (or equivalent) at 12 points.
Off-table Artillery: Each side may have one off-table artillery battery (p.37)
if desired.