The Barnsley Pals trench raid, December 1916

By 21st December 1916 the 13th Bn, York & Lancaster Regt. (1st Barnsley Pals) had been alternating between being in the line and in Reserve for some months.  As part of reserve duties trench raiding was carried out with the objectives of obtaining identifications, assessing unit strengths and inflicting casualties.   The raid scheduled for the night of the 21st was different only in its meticulous planning, and shows the experience of the officers and men of the pals in this type of operation.

Preparatory artillery fire began as early as three days before, clearing the enemy wire wire at six points along the divisional front, clearing paths through the wire.   For two days the guns fired three bursts of artillery fire onto the enemy trenches, training the Germans to expect each burst to start on the second and third lines and ended on the front line. 
On the 23rd the 31st Division artillery briefly bombarded the German lines first at 5:30 p.m. and then again at 6:45 p.m.   As this second bombardment drew to a close, 2 officers and 77 other ranks from "C" Company of the 13th
York & Lancasters formed up in the Orchard at Hebuterne and made their way down the Serheb road to the front line. 
By 8:30 p.m., the raiding party had moved into No Man's Land without being seen by the enemy, and had halted close by the German wire and waited for zero hour.   
A final bombardment began at 9:56 p.m. four minutes ahead of zero hour. After opening as usual on the enemy's 2nd and 3rd lines, the bombardment shifted not to the front line, but to form a protective barrage around the trenches being raided. Shortly afterwards, a machine gun barrage was opened over the enemy's 4th
line at Snuff Alley. 
At about 9:58 p.m. the raiding party was led into the attack.
Barnsley Pals: The 13th and 14th Battalions York and Lancaster Regiment By Jon Cooksey

German Trench Guard
Sentry, MG Team, NCO, Squad 6 Pte
1x Off-table Trench Mortar 
German Reinforcements (Turn 3)
Leutnant, Feldwebel, Unteroffizier, Squad 6 Pte.
German Mission Briefing
The English have been shelling our position for three days now, but only for a few minutes at a time. It's difficult to say for sure, but we believe a trench raid is imminent, either tonight or tomorrow night. We will fire flares periodically to ensure they do not enter No Man's Land without our knowledge. Our engineers have been digging a mine for the past month. Under no circumstance must the presence of this mine be revealed to the English. If you are attacked, fire a signal flare, and our mortar batteries will let them have it. Be sure to withdraw to the rear trench line for your own safety. 
Trench Raiders
British Covering Party
Captain 
2/Lt.
Scouts- 2 men 
Tape Men- 2 men 
Blanket Men- 2 men 
Ladder Men- 2 men 
British Blocking Party
Sgt. NCO 
Cpl. NCO
Bayonet Men- 2 men 
Lewis Gunner and assistance
Bombers- 2 men 
British Prisoner Escort Party
Lieutenant
Cpl NCO 
Riflemen- 4 men 
British Mission Briefing
Fall in for roll call and inspection. Remove all identification in case you are killed or captured.  We want to gain information, not give it away. Be sure to darken your faces and anything reflective; that includes luminous wristwatches. Once you hear our artillery, put on your gas masks! At 8:30, you are to move into No Man's Land and await zero hour. The artillery barrage is schedule to begin at 9:56. It will coincide with the release of two chlorine gas canisters. Once 
the bombardment lifts, the Covering Party will infiltrate the enemy trench along with the Prisoner Escort Party. The Blocking Party will move through the trench line inflicting as many casualties as possible. Be sure to check for mines. Good luck and God speed. 
Battlefield Conditions
The game is played with all night rules in effect. When a flare is fired, it will provide a +6 to all acquisition attempts out to a 50-yard radius. For every action a soldier spends moving, he has a 5% chance to activate a row of tin alarm. Two canisters of chlorine gas are released on turn one. 
The gas enters play from the south edge of the board. Use a 20-yard radius for each cloud. The wind is blowing 10 mph in a northeasterly direction. 
Deployment
The Germans begin in their own trench. The NCO, sentry and machine gun team are at their posts. First squad is in the dugout. They will enter play once the British are spotted and the alarm is raised. The German reinforcements enter the board from any of the northern communication lines. The British will start at the gap in the wire nearest the dug-out.
Victory 
The British have 8 turns to: kill and/or capture 4 enemy soldiers, bomb the dug-out, locate and destroy the mine with the Stokes bombs, then exit half the force (must accomplish all four to win). The Germans win by avoiding British victory conditions.

The Game

Still building my trench sections The Pals' raider party advances through the wire.

The Lewis from the raid party hammers the German trench.

The Barnsley Lieutenant is wounded by (British ) shell fire.

The British Captain jumps into the German trench, two Hun captured.

With the support artillery falling short the Captain calls the raid closed and the withdrawal begins.  Two prisoners means mission success.

But the Pals don't discover the German mine so this is not a complete victory.

Capt. Lionel Foers went through the gap in the enemy wire and into the front line where they immediately came across a large dug-out. No sooner had the party entered the trench than a shell exploded in their midst, wounding 2/Lt. Harry Midwood and 6 or 7 other ranks. 
Foers - having been knocked over and dazed by the shell-burst - struggled to his feet to give orders for the wounded to be taken back across No Man's Land. Of the wounded, only Midwood remained 
with the party. 

Foers then turned his attention to the dug-out. He later reported that on looking down one of the entrances he saw two of the enemy and heard a great deal of talking. He called out "Kommen Sie mit mir!" several times, but on receiving no response other than a rifle shot, he posted two men at the other entrance and threw Mills bombs down into the dug-out. As this failed to draw out the enemy, Foers then threw down phosphorous bombs which set the dug-out on fire. As 
fumes from the furiously burning dug-out filled the trench, the party withdrew, though not before throwing four phosphorous bombs through the other entrance. The danger was far from over, as 
the party struggled to bring the severely wounded Midwood back across No Man's Land through shell bursts and sweeping machine-gun fire. After a considerable time, the party regained the British lines with little or no addition to the casualty list. 

Aftermath 
The raid could scarcely have been regarded as a success; with no identification having been secured at the cost of 8 or 9 casualties. Nevertheless, in the early morning two Germans from the 
8th Bavarian Infantry Regt. came in from No Man's Land to surrender. Tragically, 2/Lt. Midwood died of his wounds at No. 3 Casualty Clearing Station, Puchevillers on Christmas Day. 
12/534 Pte. Colin Jackson, who died of wounds on Christmas Eve, was probably also a victim of the raid. 

Before departing for leave on the 24th, the battalion's commanding officer, Capt. C. H. Robin, wrote a report on the events of the previous night in which he brought to the attention of 94th
Infantry Brigade Headquarters "the excellent work done by Capt. Foers, 852 Sgt. F. Sagar, 39998, Cpl. W. Sayers, 389 Pte. J. Gough, 3/28713 Pte. W. Harker and 1011 Pte. C. Nurney."  For this 
action, the Military Cross was awarded to Capt. Foers, and the Military Medal to Sgt. Sagar. It was left to Capt. F. W. L. Hulk to write a letter of condolence to Midwood's mother. 

Top of Form