I am from New Zealand but currently traveling in Europe and thought I'd take this opportunity to visit the sites my great grandfather fought in WWI. But so far I am struggling to understand the jargon and what the forms mean.
Any info on how to find out more or just to understand his records would be so appreciated.
Here is where I find the most interesting info. Its his Casualty Form. I assume its where he was injured and where he fought. This means it was in the area south of Dunkirk (Staple, Rauen, Buchy). Is this correct?
I have his full service records with a link here.
Thanks!
Looking at the previous page in his service record, we can see that he was wounded in the field some time in early April 1918 - the last entry on that page reads 'evacuated to hospital'. At the time, his unit, the 2nd Battalion, Wellington Infantry Regiment, was operating in the 1st New Zealand Brigade of the New Zealand Division. This was fighting to hold off the German Spring Offensive as part of the British 3rd Army. The New Zealand troops were fighting to defend the major logistics hub of Amiens, and in early April, were defending the village of Colincamps and the surrounding area.
Following his receiving the wound, he would be evacuated to an aid post - the first entry on the sheet. Here, he would receive first aid. He was then sent to a Casualty Clearing Station (2nd entry), a forward field hospital. He then seems to have been evacuated further back, implying a relatively serious wound. Buchy and Rouen are towns in Normandy, far from the front line. Hospitals were established in quiet towns like this, where risks were low and ports (and hence supplies) were close by. Once he was out of hospital, he was sent to the major British training and transit camp at Etaples. This was a massive conglomeration of base depots and convalescent camps, and most British or Commonwealth infantry fighting in France would pass through it at least once. Here, he would receive refresher training before returning to a unit in the field. He first returned to a Garrison Battalion, before rejoining 2nd Battalion W.I.R on the 31st August 1918. At the time, the 2nd WIR, and the rest of the New Zealand Division, had just claimed victory in the Battle for Bapaume, having driven the Germans back from the eponymous town. In the following months, the New Zealand Division would participate in the Hundred Days Offensive, before fighting the Battle of Le Quesnoy in November 1918. During this time, your great-grandfather would be promoted to Lance-Corporal, and then, in January 1919, he would be promoted to Corporal. At the end of May 1919, he would board a ship in Plymouth to return him to New Zealand.
