The Carmarthen Pals - Hardcover

Steven John

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1848840772 ISBN 13: 9781848840775

Publisher: Pen & Sword Military, 2009

Synopsis

The Carmarthenshire Battalion was one of the early units raised in 1914 as a result of Lord Kitchener's expansion of the regular army by 500,000 men for the duration of the Great War. Lloyd George, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, had a vision of a Welsh Army Group and massive efforts were made to recruit and form Welsh fighting units.The first 200 recruits for the Carmarthen Pals came from Bolton, strangely enough, but later they were mainly drawn from the County and wider Wales. Initial training was at Rhyl.In April 1915 the Battalion became part of 114 Brigade, 38 (Welsh) Division and after completing training and equipping it crossed to France in December 1915.From early 1916 until the Armistice the Carmathen Pals fought with distinction. Initially at Givency, it moved to the Somme in May 1916 and attacked Mametz Wood in the early days of that most terrible July offensive. Thereafter the Battalion moved to the Ypres Salient and in July 1917 attacked Pilckem Ridge. Moves south to Armentieres district, then the Albert Sector followed.In the closing months of the War alone the Pals suffered 40 officer and 900 other rank killed and wounded as they pushed the Germans back capturing Ancre and crossing the Canal du Nord and Selle rivers.

About this title

Product Description:

As a leading member of the Government on the outbreak of the Great War, David Lloyd George was anxious that his native land should play its part in the struggle. He initiated a recruitment drive for a specifically Welsh fighting force, of which the Carmarthen Pals were a component part. Trained at Rhyl on the North Wales coast, in April 1915 the Pals joined 114 Brigade of the 38th (Welsh) Division and crossed to France in December. The Pals went into the trenches at Givenchy, moving to the Somme in May 1916 in preparation for the Big Push . The battalion was part of the Welsh attack on Mametz Wood when the battle of the Somme opened in July, and later moved to the Ypres salient where in July 1917 it attacked Pilckem ridge as part of the Passchendaele battle. Later in the war, the Pals fought at Armentieres and the Albert sectors. In the closing months of the war the battalion suffered grevious casualties - losing 40 officers and 900 other ranks as it took part in the victorious counter-offensive that drove the Germans across the Ancre on the Somme to the Canal du Nord.

Review:

The history of a Welsh unit, initially raised on the initiative of David Lloyd George in 1914. The Carmarthen Pals fought at Givenchy, attacked Mametz Wood on the Somme, and Pilckem ridge near Passchendaele and ended the war with casualties of 40 officers and 900 men killed as it drove the Germans back to the Canal du Nord. --Chris Buckland

About this edition

• Publisher: Pen & Sword Military
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1848840772
• ISBN 13: 9781848840775
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 272