Friday 25th September marks the anniversary of the Battle of Loos. Although later eclipsed in scale by the Battle of the Somme in 1915, at the time it was the largest attack launched by the British Expeditionary Force of the War. Loos is also significant as it was in this battle that the British Army used poisoned gas for the first time.
Four battalions of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) were involved in the Battle, representing the regular army (1st Battalion), the Territorial Force (1/5th Battalion), and the recently formed service battalions of the New Army (9th and 10th Battalions).
Map showing the positions of the Battalions of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) involved in the Battle
Loos was a mining town, and the surrounding landscape was covered in mine workings, pit heads, and slag heaps, and would have no doubt felt quite familiar to the hundreds of men from Lanarkshire who would take part in the Battle, many of whom were miners in civilian life. Even today, the slag heaps of the famous ‘Double Crassier’ dominate the skyline south of Loos.
Double Crassier, as viewed from Dud Corner Cemetery
The attack commenced at 6:30am on the morning of Saturday 25th September. Gas was released in front of the 15th Division’s position 40 minutes ahead of the attack. Unfortunately the windy conditions resulted in some of the gas drifting back towards the British front, gassing their own men.
Many of the objectives of the attacking force were met that day, but a failure to bring up reinforcements in time to take advantage of gains made saw the advance falter. The 10th Battalion in particular had made steady gains, battling their way through Loos itself and on to the secondary objective of Hill 70. There the British forces encountered heavy resistance from the German defenders and it was found impossible to maintain hold of the hill.
The 9th Battalion attacked in support of the 10th Battalion Highland Light Infantry, who had suffered heavy casualites in the initial attack. A second attack by the 9th Scottish Rifles just after noon on 25 September was repulsed with heavy casualties.
The 1st and 1/5th Battalions were the Support and Reserve battalions of the 19th Brigade in its attack. When the initial attack by the leading battalions had been halted; orders were received by the 1st Battalion to prepare for a fresh advance. Thankfully the order was later cancelled when it was pointed out by the Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion that the chances of success of any further attack was unlikely.
One of the casualties of the Battle was Private Jack Allen of the 10th Battalion who died of wounds on 27th September. Likely wounded on 25th, Private Allen was taken to the brewery at Philosophe where a Field Ambulance of the Royal Army Medical Corps had been established, and here he succumbed to his wounds. He was buried nearby in what is now Philosophe Cemetery. Sadly, the exact whereabouts of Private Allen’s grave were either never fully recorded, or were later lost; he is now commemorated on the Loos Memorial at Dud Corner Cemetery. A letter in the museum collection does however record that he had been buried at Philosophe.
Letter relating to burial of Private Jack Allen
It is difficult to establish exactly how many soldiers of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) became casualties in the Battle of Loos. Initial reports in Battalion war diaries often record those who had been killed as ‘Missing’, and it would be some time before these men were confirmed to have died. The publication Soldiers Died in the Great War records that 413 soldiers from the The Cameronian battalions at Loos died on 25th September 1915. Many of the soldiers who died have no known grave, and are recorded on the Loos Memorial at Dud Corner Cemetery. This cemetery occupies the site of the Lens Road Redoubt, one of the German strongholds taken by the 15th (Scottish) Division on the first day of the Battle.
Dud Corner Cemetery. The panels on the outer wall record the names of those whose graves are unknown.
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Douglas Graham Moncrieff Wright was born in Rangoon, Burma on 7th June 1893. He was the only child of Lena (née Graham) and John Moncrieff Wright of Kinmonth, Bridge of Earn, Perthshire. He was educated at Glenalmond College, Perth and then in 1912, attended the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. After graduation in 1913, he was gazetted to The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) and joined the 1st Battalion at Maryhill Barracks.
With the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, Moncrieff Wright was deployed to France with The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) 1st Battalion. He received the Military Cross and bar for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty and was mentioned in dispatches twice. On 19 June 1916, The London Gazette, it was noted that, ‘He commanded a bombing attack on the enemy trenches. He led this attack with great skill and determination, his fine example inspiring those under his command.’ In 1916 he was promoted to Captain at the age of just 23.
Writing home
Douglas Graham Moncrieff Wright wrote home to his parents almost every day of the war. His letters are often short and give little hint of the hardships of life at the front. They usually contain a brief weather report and requests for items such as food, socks and writing paper. In a letter to his parents dated 16th January 1918, he wrote,
My darling Mother & Father,
Thanks very much for your letters, the kippers & butter. The butter is very good. I like it so much.
It came in very handy. I have got a nice billet & am very comfortable.
The weather is very changeable.
With much love from,
Douglas
The British Government was acutely aware of the importance of communication with home to boost the soldiers’ morale but also to maintain support from the home front. Over 12 million letters and 1 million parcels were sent to soldiers at the front every week for the duration of the First World War. A letter from home reached the front within 2 days of being sent, meaning that it was possible to send perishable foodstuffs such as kippers!
Souvenirs
By 1918 Moncrieff Wright was serving on the staff of the 33rd Division. In January 1918 he sent home German shoulder straps or epaulettes (schulterklappen in German) to his mother in Perth as souvenirs. Epaulettes, cap badges and letters could all betray the identification of a regiment or unit therefore such items were removed from the dead or prisoners of war. Collecting such items as souvenirs was commonplace amongst many soldiers, both British and German. It is most likely that these insignia were sent to the 33rd Division’s HQ for identification and once their purpose was served Moncrieff Wright kept them as mementoes.
The epaulette with the red ‘A’ and crown is from a soldier who served with the 117th Grand Ducal Hessian Life Infantry, “Grand Duchess Alice,” 25th Division. The ‘468’ is from the Infanterie-Regiment 468 and the ‘99’ is a 1915-pattern for the 2nd Oberrheinisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr.99.
Life after the First World War
After the First World War Moncrieff Wright served with the 2nd Battalion in India and retired in 1930 with the rank of Major. In April 1928 he married Henrietta Doreen St. John in Bombay, India. They had four children; John Graham Wright, Charles St. John Graham Wright, Alice Rosemary Graham Wright and Dora Heather Graham Wright. John and Charles would both go on to have successful careers in the military.
With the Second World War approaching, Moncrieff Wright returned to The Cameronians and in June 1939 was gazetted to Lieutenant Colonel with the 6th Battalion. He then commanded the 10th Battalion from 1939 until 1942, and thereafter held positions on the staff of the Home Guard until his retirement in 1945.
Life Outwith the Army
Lt. Col Moncrieff Wright led a full and active life. He became a J.P. for Perthshire in 1933 and was appointed as the Deputy Lieutenant of Sutherland in 1946 (a Lord Lieutenant is appointed by the Crown to act as one of the monarch’s representatives in Scotland). He was a renowned hunter and took part in big-game shoots while in India. He was also experienced in salmon fishing and deer stalking. As a result of his expertise he was elected as a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society in 1926. He was also Chairman of the Scottish branch of the British Field Sports Society from 1952 to 1960.
He died on 1st May 1983, aged 89.
Acknowledgments
I am greatly indebted to members of the Great War Forum for their valuable information and identification of German regiments.
The epaulettes currently feature as our ‘Curator’s Choice’ and can be seen on display at Low Parks Museum, Hamilton. They will be displayed at Hamilton Townhouse Library, Rutherglen Library and Lanark Library over the next few months.
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