Regina Trench
Encyclopedia
The Regina Trench was a German
trench
dug into the top of the slope of a valley running from northwest of the village of Le Sars
in a southwest direction almost to the German fortifications at Thiepval
on the Somme Battlefield. It was the longest such trench on the German front during World War I
.
Attacked several times during the Battle of the Ancre Heights
, the 5th Canadian Brigade briefly controlled a section of the tench on October 1, 1916 but were repelled by counter attacks. The 1st and 3rd Canadian Divisions
again attacked Regina Trench on October 8, 1916 but saw no success. On October 21, 1916, the 4th and 18th Canadian Divisions again briefly captured sections of Regina Trench but were again pushed out by German counter-attacks. After a total of two months of attacks and constant shelling the trench was taken on November 11, 1916 by the 4th Canadian Division. However, its surrender may have been a fait accompli
; as in places the heavy, sustained artillery barrage that had been directed at it had reduced the trench to a shallow ditch in the chalky soil.http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=memorials/ww1mem/courcelette
The attacks on Regina Trench had a heavy cost for Canadians, and account for the lion's share of the 24,000 casualties the Canadian divisions sustained on the Somme
cemetery situated astride the location of the infamous trench and contains 2,279 burials and commemorations of men killed at or near the trenchline during the First World War. 1680 of the men are identified as British, 564 as Canadian, 35 Australian, one American airman and 1,077 of the burials are of unknown soldiers, with special memorials to 14 casualties believed to be buried among them.
Most of the men buried at Regina Trench fell in battle between October 1916 and February 1917 and the original portion of the cemetery (now Plot II, Rows A to D) was established during the winter of 1916-1917. After the armistice in 1918 the Regina Trench location was selected as a 'concentration cemetery' with graves brought in from scattered graves and small battlefield cemeteries surrounding the nearby villages of Courcelette, Grandcourt and Miraumont. Unlike many CWGC cemeteries where men are laid one-to-a-grave, many of the graves contain more than one burial and where two names are shown on the one headstone, it is necessary to count the individual names in order to find the correct grave location. http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=23000&mode=1
The CWGC's website states Regina Trench Cemetery is located in Grandcourt, but this is somewhat misleading because while it is located between Grandcourt
and Courcelette
it is most easily accessed by a rough road that runs approximately 1.5 kilometres northwest out of Courcelette village.http://wikimapia.org/8416662/Regina-Trench-Cemetery
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
trench
Trench
A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground. Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide , and by being narrow compared to their length ....
dug into the top of the slope of a valley running from northwest of the village of Le Sars
Le Sars
Le Sars is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Le Sars is situated south of Arras, at the junction of the D11 and the D929 roads.-Population:-Places of interest:...
in a southwest direction almost to the German fortifications at Thiepval
Thiepval
The Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme is a major war memorial to 72,191 missing British and South African men who died in the Battles of the Somme of the First World War between 1915 and 1918 who have no known grave...
on the Somme Battlefield. It was the longest such trench on the German front during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Attacked several times during the Battle of the Ancre Heights
Battle of the Ancre Heights
The Battle of the Ancre Heights was a prolonged battle of attrition in October 1916 during the Battle of the Somme. Lieutenant General Hubert Gough's Reserve Army had finally managed to break out of the positions it had occupied since the start of the Somme fighting and Gough intended to maintain...
, the 5th Canadian Brigade briefly controlled a section of the tench on October 1, 1916 but were repelled by counter attacks. The 1st and 3rd Canadian Divisions
Canadian Corps
The Canadian Corps was a World War I corps formed from the Canadian Expeditionary Force in September 1915 after the arrival of the 2nd Canadian Division in France. The corps was expanded by the addition of the 3rd Canadian Division in December 1915 and the 4th Canadian Division in August 1916...
again attacked Regina Trench on October 8, 1916 but saw no success. On October 21, 1916, the 4th and 18th Canadian Divisions again briefly captured sections of Regina Trench but were again pushed out by German counter-attacks. After a total of two months of attacks and constant shelling the trench was taken on November 11, 1916 by the 4th Canadian Division. However, its surrender may have been a fait accompli
Fait Accompli
Fait accompli is a French phrase which means literally "an accomplished deed". It is commonly used to describe an action which is completed before those affected by it are in a position to query or reverse it...
; as in places the heavy, sustained artillery barrage that had been directed at it had reduced the trench to a shallow ditch in the chalky soil.http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=memorials/ww1mem/courcelette
The attacks on Regina Trench had a heavy cost for Canadians, and account for the lion's share of the 24,000 casualties the Canadian divisions sustained on the Somme
Regina Trench Cemetery
Regina Trench Cemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves CommissionCommonwealth War Graves Commission
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves, and places of commemoration, of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars...
cemetery situated astride the location of the infamous trench and contains 2,279 burials and commemorations of men killed at or near the trenchline during the First World War. 1680 of the men are identified as British, 564 as Canadian, 35 Australian, one American airman and 1,077 of the burials are of unknown soldiers, with special memorials to 14 casualties believed to be buried among them.
Most of the men buried at Regina Trench fell in battle between October 1916 and February 1917 and the original portion of the cemetery (now Plot II, Rows A to D) was established during the winter of 1916-1917. After the armistice in 1918 the Regina Trench location was selected as a 'concentration cemetery' with graves brought in from scattered graves and small battlefield cemeteries surrounding the nearby villages of Courcelette, Grandcourt and Miraumont. Unlike many CWGC cemeteries where men are laid one-to-a-grave, many of the graves contain more than one burial and where two names are shown on the one headstone, it is necessary to count the individual names in order to find the correct grave location. http://www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=23000&mode=1
The CWGC's website states Regina Trench Cemetery is located in Grandcourt, but this is somewhat misleading because while it is located between Grandcourt
Grandcourt
Grandcourt is the name of the following communes in France:* Grandcourt, Seine-Maritime, in the Seine-Maritime department* Grandcourt, Somme, in the Somme department...
and Courcelette
Courcelette
Courcelette is a commune in the Somme department in Picardie in northern France.-Geography:Courcelette is situated on the D929 and D107 crossroads, some northeast of Amiens.-History:...
it is most easily accessed by a rough road that runs approximately 1.5 kilometres northwest out of Courcelette village.http://wikimapia.org/8416662/Regina-Trench-Cemetery