Page 99 - Mercian Eagle 2014

Shooting and stabbing, they charged across the lawn and came up into line with the gallant remnant of The South Wales Borderers.
All day, The South Wales Borderers had held their ground at the Château and were still stubbornly fighting although, almost surrounded, their resistance having delayed and diverted the German advance. The meeting of the two Battalions was unexpected as the 2nd Worcestershire had not known that any of The South Wales Borderers had been holding on.
The routed enemy were hunted out of the hedges and across the open fields beyond the Château. “C” and “D” Companies of the 2nd Worcestershire took up position in the sunken road which ran past the grounds. “B” Company was brought up and prolonged the line to the right but the village of Gheluvelt, on the slope above the right flank, was still in enemy hands. Most of the German troops
in the village had been drawn northwards by the fighting around
the Château but a number of Saxons in the 242nd Regiment had remained in the village, from where they opened fire on the sunken road. To silence that fire, fighting patrols were sent forward into the
village where they drove back the German snipers and took some prisoners.
It soon became clear that the position in the sunken road would be unsafe until the village was secured and “A” Company were ordered to advance from their defensive position and occupy the village. After some sharp fighting among burning buildings and bursting shells, “A” Company occupied a new line, with the left flank in touch with the right of the position in the sunken road and the right flank in the village holding the Church and Churchyard. Patrols were sent forward to clear the village and they worked from house to house until they reached the crossroads at the eastern end of Gheluvelt. It was not possible to occupy the centre of the village permanently for it was being bombarded by both the German and British artillery and, on all sides, houses were burning, roofs falling and walls collapsing, with the stubborn Saxons still holding some small posts in the scattered houses on the south-eastern outskirts. Nevertheless, the enemy’s main force had been driven out and the peril of a collapse of the British defence about the Menin Road had been averted.
Unveiling of Commemorative Stone – 31st October 2014
In 2012, preparations for the Centenary of the Great War were launched at the Guildhall, Worcester with a suggestion box for ideas. One which struck a chord with members of Worcester Branch WFRA was for a Regimental Memorial to All Ranks of
The Worcestershire Regiment, somewhere in the County of Worcestershire. Gheluvelt Park was chosen as an ideal site and a boulder of Malvern Granite was selected. In addition to St George’s Chapel in Worcester Cathedral, Relatives and Veterans alike
now have a site where the service of the Regiment, at home and overseas, is remembered. In tribute to Major Hankey’s leadership at the Battle of Gheluvelt, his Granddaughter, Mrs Julia Brotherton, was invited to unveil The Worcestershire Regiment Memorial Stone.
The day in Worcester started early with the installation of a number of marquees and stalls by many organisations with a military connection. Pte Derby XXX, the Colours of 1st and 4th Bns and
two Guards from 1st Battalion The Mercian Regiment were led onto parade by the Band of The Royal Logistic Corps. Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant of Worcestershire, Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Holcroft, accompanied by Colonel David Sneath, Representative Colonel
The Mercian Regiment, and the Mayor of Worcester, Councillor
Branch Standards and Members of WFRA on parade
The Lord Lieutenant inspects Pte Derby
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
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