The exact date John Minnery returned from his convalescence in Barrhead is unclear but it was some time in November (according to an article in the Barrhead News in 1915). What is clear is that he was definitely back with his friends and "brothers" in the 2nd A&SH by Christmas Eve, 1914. And when he returned to the Battalion he was promoted from Corporal to Sergeant. Records exist showing John taking part in the 1914 Christmas Truce - in this post I will describe the period running up to that event and the life the 2nd A&SH were experiencing in and around the trenches.
Trench Warfare for the 2nd A&SH
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| The Western Front (thick black line). Houplines (to the east of Armentieres) |
By the end of November 1914 the combatants were at a standstill, the Allies and the Germans facing each other from their respective trenches across "No Man's Land". The 2nd A&SH began moving into the trenches at the little French town of Houplines (some 3km to the east of Armentiere) at 5.30pm on the evening of November 17th, 1914. Two hours later the Battalion were fully in position.
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| Men of the 1st Battalion Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in Houplines trenches, December 1914 |
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| Soldiers in trenches at Houplines - I cant confirm which regiment, but they are kilted and wearing Glengarrys |
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| Soldiers in Houplines cleaning their gumboots |
According to the War Diary the Battalion were in the Pont Ballot section of the Houplines trenches. Pont Ballot is in fact a small country lane 400 metres to the east of the town of Houplines. To understand the topography better I have included the modern map of the Pont Ballot area of Houplines alongside the Trench Map of the Pont Ballot area. The area has changed little since - compare the roads marked in the trench map against the current map.
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| Pont Ballot, as it is today, looking towards where the German lines would have been |
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| Modern Map of Pont Ballot, Houplines |
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| Trench Map of Pont Ballot, Houplines. British trenches in blue, German in red |
Over the late November and into December period, the war diary records the men digging further trenches around Pont Ballot and coming under both sniper fire and shellfire. The weather had turned colder with snow showers and hard frosts. Any remaining farms around the trenches were deliberately being targeted by each side's artillery to prevent them from being used as cover for snipers. Surprisingly, civilians were still living in the nearby area. The diary records the death of eight civilians in a house shelled by German Artillery.
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| Two Australian soldiers of the 3rd Division viewing a shell-wrecked home in the village of Houplines |
To give the men some respite only three of the four companies of the 2nd A&SH would be in the trenches at any given time, the fourth remaining Company were left back in the billets behind the trenches to allow them a two day break.
At Billets in Armentieres
At 9pm on December, 11th the whole Battalion was relieved by another regiment. The 2nd A&SH marched off to Armentieres to be billeted. Ironically, the billets were in the Armentieres Asylum. |
| Armentieres Asylum Main Entrance- other buildings made up the asylum complex |
On the morning of the 12th men were sent to Erquinghem, a village some 3km to the southeast of Armentieres to baths. The baths here were run by the army to give the soldiers a long-needed wash as well as launder their clothes. In Denis Winter's book "Death's Men: Soldiers Of The Great War" describes how a typical military bath house processed 1000 men daily
"In a typical bath house the men would soak in a combination of bleaching vats and half beer barrels. Parties of fifty would be marched in in alphabetical order. They would leave outside their underclothes to be soaked for four hours in creosol, and their uniforms wrapped in their identity discs and handled by nubile young refugee girls from Belgium...A cold hosepipe would serve the dual purpose of driving out the men and washing off the suds ready for the fresh uniforms, theoretically deloused." [p. 146]
For the next few days the men paraded and relaxed.
What did Armentieres have to offer soldiers between those periods on the front line? The Darwin Times in 1920 published the letters of a local soldier, "Digger", and his memories of Armentieres :
"Armentieres was a pretty old town.
There was a fine and very old Tower
on the Town Hall, and in the early
days of 1914 it was hit, the clock
registering the hit by stopping at half
past eleven, and so the square in which
it stood, called by the inhabitants "Le
Grand Place," became known to the soldiers as Half-past Eleven
Square. There were many fine old
buildings, the massive Gothic Tower of
Notre Dame Church, the top of which
had been knocked off by a shell,
and many other steeples of
churches and chapels....There were still some good shops
in Armentieres in those days. At the Lady from Lillee's shop in the Rue Nationale, could be purchased lace and hand-sewn linen, beautiful picture post- cards, while at the Expeditionary Force Canteen all kinds of luxuries could be obtained, at low rates, from a packet of Woodbines to a case of good whiskey. It was, however, difficult for a mere digger to get the whiskey. An officers signature (it was only meant for them) had to be obtained on a proper form. However this was over- come by finding a friendly officer or doing a little harmless forgery, and then picking out a guileless looking Digger to represent a batman to present it with 60 francs (about £2 5s), which purchased a dozen bottles of the best. There were shops well-stocked with all officer's clothing—Foxes' puttees, beautiful brown boots, gorgeous shaped breeches and swagger looking officer's caps, khaki shirts and ties, etc., all at very high prices, but the Digger wanted some of these things to wear on "leave" and he often bought, tho' it soon became known that the best place to buy tailor made uniforms, etc., was in London. All these shops and estaminets were within about 3 miles of the line. Looking back on those long years
(they seemed long then) there are
pleasant memories—the good comrades one
knew, the Estaminets with their
Madamoiselles and Bock beer
and vin blanc. Memories of glorious
feeds on "eggs and chips," which, if
it were still near pay day, might mean
as many as six eggs each, more especially if it was after a sparsely fed
time in the trenches. After the feed
perhaps some beer in a secluded farm-
house or other haunt where nice com-
pany might be found, or a game of
two-up or a gamble on the Crown and
Anchor board. Some of the merry
nights in the estaminets of Armentieres will be hard to forget and so
will be some of the madamoiselles.
There were good singers amongst the
diggers and when the wine got going
some rollicking chorus would break out,
perhaps one of Aussie's own make up,
and the noise from the trenches would
be drowned and we were as happy as
ever we could be, before or after. Who
has not heard of "Madamoiselle from
Armentieres." It was a favorite refrain
and had many editions and variations.
Two girls were at different times pointed out to me as the original Madamoisielle about which the song was composed, but I was never satisfied as to which, if either, was the original."
At 6pm on the 14th December bales of presents from HM Queen Alexandria arrived for the men - the festive season had arrived. Noone, however, had told the German Artillery it was the season of goodwill. On the evening of the 14th December, at 9pm, the men in billets found themselves under fire again. Overnight 700 shells were recorded in the diary as having gone over or landed on the Asylum...the officer completing the diary noted that half the shells failed to burst. By good fortune not one casualty was recorded.
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| Part of Armentieres Asylum by the end of the War |
I like the image of the rank and file in Armentieres Estaminets singing "Madamoiselle From Armentieres". Listen to a version of the song recorded in 1915 by clicking here Or watch a scene from "Oh What A Lovely War!" by clicking here
Mademoiselle from Armentieres
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres,
She hasn't been kissed in forty years,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She had the form like the back of a hack,
When she cried the tears ran down her back,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She never could hold the love of man
'Cause she took her baths in a talcum can,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She had four chins, her knees would knock,
And her face would stop a cuckoo clock,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She could beg a franc, a drink, a meal,
But it wasn't because of sex appeal,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She could guzzle a barrel of sour wine,
And eat a hog without peeling the rind,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
The MPS think they won the war, Parley-voo.
The MPS think they won the war, Parley-voo.
The MPS think they won the war,
Standing guard at the café door,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
The officers get the pie and cake, Parley-voo.
The officers get the pie and cake, Parley-voo.
The officers get the pie and cake,
And all we get is the bellyache,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
The sergeant ought to take a bath, Parley-voo.
The sergeant ought to take a bath, Parley-voo.
If he changes his underwear
The frogs will give him the Croix-de-Guerre,
Hinky-dinky, parley-voo.
You might forget the gas and shells, Parley-voo.
You might forget the gas and shells, Parley-voo.
You might forget the groans and yells
But you'll never forget the mademoiselles,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Just blow your nose, and dry your tears,
We'll all be back in a few short years,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres,
She hasn't been kissed in forty years,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She had the form like the back of a hack,
When she cried the tears ran down her back,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She never could hold the love of man
'Cause she took her baths in a talcum can,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She had four chins, her knees would knock,
And her face would stop a cuckoo clock,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She could beg a franc, a drink, a meal,
But it wasn't because of sex appeal,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
She could guzzle a barrel of sour wine,
And eat a hog without peeling the rind,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
The MPS think they won the war, Parley-voo.
The MPS think they won the war, Parley-voo.
The MPS think they won the war,
Standing guard at the café door,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
The officers get the pie and cake, Parley-voo.
The officers get the pie and cake, Parley-voo.
The officers get the pie and cake,
And all we get is the bellyache,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
The sergeant ought to take a bath, Parley-voo.
The sergeant ought to take a bath, Parley-voo.
If he changes his underwear
The frogs will give him the Croix-de-Guerre,
Hinky-dinky, parley-voo.
You might forget the gas and shells, Parley-voo.
You might forget the gas and shells, Parley-voo.
You might forget the groans and yells
But you'll never forget the mademoiselles,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Mademoiselle from Armentieres, Parley-voo?
Just blow your nose, and dry your tears,
We'll all be back in a few short years,
Hinky, dinky, parley-voo.
Going back to the Front for Christmas
At 8am on December 19th orders were received to return to the trenches and relieve the 1st Middlesex Regiment.
The following day, December 20th, at 4.15 pm the Battalion were on the march back to the trenches at Houplines arriving there at 5pm. The Battalion had orders now for "increased activity" and at 8am on 21st December the men started sniping at the Germans.
On the 24th the men worked on a communication trench and hosted a visit from Brigadier General Walter Congreve to the trenches.
Captain John Aidan Liddell of the 2nd A&SH kept a diary for 1914-15 and recorded that on the evening of December 24th they could hear the Germans having a concert. He recorded that "Sgt Minnery went out in response to an invitation from the German lines and had a chat with a soldier who knew Glasgow well. Beautiful night".
A separate account comes from Dr Frederick George Chandler. Chandler was a doctor with the RAMC but on Christmas Eve he was attached to the 2nd A&SH as Acting Medical Officer. Whilst in the trenches at Houplines, Chandler, in a letter home to his sister Alethea on December 25 1914, wrote :
"Last night
was Christmas Eve. It was a bright starry moonlit night and it froze hard.
Opposite our trenches was perfect quiet and soon we began to hear the shouts of
our men to the Germans and their replies. Then various musical instruments
began, and song and ribald mirth. One of our sergeants got out of the trench
and met one of the Germans halfway. He lived in Scotland and spoke English with
a Scotch accent! They shook hands and exchanged hats, the German declaring they
had no wish to be fighting the English."
The last witness to this is, of course, Sgt John Minnery himself. Not long after Christmas Truce, John sent home a letter and a box to friends in Barrhead. Prior to the Truce mail home was uncensored - numerous accounts of the Truce made it back to Britain. John's story of his part in the Christmas Truce was told in the local newspaper, The Barrhead News, on 15th Jan 1915
"In a letter to his friends in Barrhead Serg. Minnery of the 2nd Argyll and Sutherland highlanders, gives an interesting account of the unofficial truce fixed up between Soldiers and the Germans on Christmas day. 'On Christmas Eve' he says 'the Germans were shouting and singing in their trenches, which were only about 50 Yards or 60 yards from ours, Our Chaps sung and shouted back to them, and about midnight one of the Germans called out “Will one of yours come and meet me?” “Yes” we replied, “If there is no shooting.”There is to be no shooting” he answered, and I went out to meet him after our sentries got orders not to fire. We kept shouting to one another in the dark, till we got close together and then I got a scare when I saw that there was two of them. I asked if it was all right. “On my word of honour it is all right,” One of them said, and then we shook hands and he wished me “a merry Christmas” in good English. The other said something in German, which I understood to be a Christmas greeting. The one who spoke English said he had been in Glasgow for two years, and knew Barrhead. We chatted for about 15 minutes and he exchanged his cap for my woollen helmet. The other gave me a box of chocolate and I gave them both my photo. At which they seemed very pleased, and he said it was a great pity we had to fight each other. Next day the Germans exposed them self over their trench and some of ours did the same, and then it was a rush to meet each other between the trenches. There was no firing that day, and we arranged a football match for the following day, but that night orders came from headquarters to “Resume the war at once” so that finished the truce'.
Along with this letter Sergeant Minnery sends a box containing a number of interesting war souvenirs including the cap given to him by one of the Germans and the box of Chocolate by the other. This latter had evidently just been received by the German Soldier form friends at home for it was still in a pasteboard box with post-marks, and with the names (Enna Schneider) and particulars of his company and brigade."
There is a lovely scene in the 2006 film "Joyeux Noel" that shows the Royal Scots Fusiliers in trenches on Christmas Eve singing "I'm Dreaming Of Home" that, perhaps, captures the spirit of the moment. Click here to watch
Christmas Day
On Christmas Day 1914 the war diary records"Very quiet day. Germans came out of their trenches unarmed in afternoon and were seen to belong to the 133rd and 134th Regiments. The position was reconnoitered by Lieut ANDERSON. The Germans asked for leave to bury 10 dead. This was granted"
The German 133rd and 134th Regiments were the 9th and 10th Royal Saxon Regiments respectively. Their Germans also recorded the fraternisation that occurred on Christmas Eve and Christmas day.
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| Saxon Infantry Regiment Nr 134 in front of Frelinghien on Christmas Eve 1914. Frelinghien is 3km north from Pont Ballot, Houplines |
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| British Troops in line, Houplines, Christmas 1914 |
This extract is from a letter written by Leutnant Johannes Niemann of the 133rd Royal Saxon Regiment who were positioned from Houplines to Frelinghien. Whilst this is a section slightly north of the 2nd A&SH's position at Houplines it describes in detail what was going on all along the line in this section of the Western Front.
He says:
"We came up to take over the trenches on the front between Frelinghien and Houplines, where our Regiment and the Scottish Seaforth Highlanders were face to face. It was a cold, starry night and the Scots were a hundred or so metres in front of us in their trenches where, as we discovered, like us they were up to their knees in mud. My Company Commander and I, savouring the unaccustomed calm, sat with our orderlies round a Christmas tree we had put up in our dugout.
Suddenly, for no apparent reason, our enemies began to fire on our lines. Our soldiers had hung little Christmas trees covered with candles above the trenches and our enemies, seeing the lights, thought we were about to launch a surprise attack. But, by midnight it was calm once more.
Next morning the mist was slow to clear and suddenly my orderly threw himself into my dugout to say that both the German and Scottish soldiers had come out of their trenches and were fraternising along the front. I grabbed my binoculars and looking cautiously over the parapet saw the incredible sight of our soldiers exchanging cigarettes, schnapps and chocolate with the enemy. Later a Scottish soldier appeared with a football which seemed to come from nowhere and a few minutes later a real football match got underway. The Scots marked their goal mouth with their strange caps and we did the same with ours. It was far from easy to play on the frozen ground, but we continued, keeping rigorously to the rules, despite the fact that it only lasted an hour and that we had no referee. A great many of the passes went wide, but all the amateur footballers, although they must have been very tired, played with huge enthusiasm.
Us Germans really roared when a gust of wind revealed that the Scots wore no drawers under their kilts - and hooted and whistled every time they caught an impudent glimpse of one posterior belonging to one of "yesterday's enemies." But after an hour's play, when our Commanding Officer heard about it, he sent an order that we must put a stop to it. A little later we drifted back to our trenches and the fraternisation ended.
The game finished with a score of three goals to two in favour of Fritz against Tommy."
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| Various pictures of British and German troops together on Christmas Day 1914 |
Back to Billets
On December 26th the Battalion returned to their Armentieres billets at 8.35pm. For the next three days they exercised by carrying out route marches.
On New Year's Eve 1914 a hand grenade throwing class was given to the men. By way of a contrast, at 5.30pm that evening a concert for the troops was held in the gymnasium.
New Year's Day 1915 was celebrated in billets with the men "given new year's dinners from gifts sent out by various friends of the regiment". At 5pm that evening orders were received that the Battalion were to relieve the Kings Shropshire Light Infantry. This time the trenches were not in Houplines but Bois Grenier. A New Year, a new trench.
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