Chapter VI: Demobilisation

The latter half of November and the first week of December was a period of suspense. No one quite knew what was to happen, nor did the first circulars on the subject, even the famous one beginning, “And Joshua bade the people disperse every man to his own place,” clear up the situation very much. It was not, in fact, until Mr. Churchill had been appointed Secretary of State for War and Air, and had laid down the broad principle that men over thirty-five and those who had enlisted before January 1, 1916, were to be allowed to go and that the rest must stay, that we knew where we were at all. It was difficult, also, to find employment from day to day for the men. Association football, however, was always popular, concerts and boxing contests were frequently held, while horses and dogs were borrowed and hare-hunting was attempted.

One form of hare-hunting became very popular: the idea--which originated with Louis Strange, then commanding a wing--was to proceed as follows: All officers and men in the wing who wished to take part assembled, to the number of two or three hundred, at “the meet,” and filed away in opposite directions, the leaders of each file turning gradually inwards until a circle nearly a mile in diameter was enclosed by men about twenty yards apart. The circle being completed, they began to walk towards the centre. Usually three or four hares, and sometimes many more, got up within the cordon and ran frantically round until they either broke through or were knocked over with sticks. The shouting and noise arising during the proceedings testified to the popularity of this form of sport. Despite these diversions, time hung rather heavily on their hands until, at last, by the end of February 1919, all the demobilisable officers and men had gone, and those who remained were sent up by train as reinforcements to the R.A.F. with the Army of the Rhine. On a bitterly cold evening this remnant entrained in covered trucks, under sad skies with snow falling heavily, to commence their eastward journey, in typically military fashion, by travelling due west to Etaples. After this nothing remained but to dispatch the cadre with the records back to England, and the two officers and ten men remaining accordingly departed on February 28, bound for Sedgeford, in Norfolk.

The squadron remained dormant for a time, but was re-formed towards the end of the year, and is now equipped with De Havilland 10s, large twin-engined machines, and is stationed in India.

8^{TH} AUG. TO 11^{TH} NOV.

The following diary will help to elucidate the map, which shows
the ground gained by the British Allied Armies, and the series of
battles from July to November, 1918.

THE BATTLES AND THEIR EFFECTS.

[Sidenote: _8th Aug.--12th Aug._ 13 Inf. and 3 Cav. Divs. defeated
20 German Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF AMIENS disengaged Amiens, until then in range of the
German guns, and freed the Paris-Amiens railway. Our attack was
then transferred to the north in

[Sidenote: _21st Aug.-31st Aug._ 23 Divs. defeated 35 German Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF BAPAUME which, turning the flank of the German
positions on the Somme, compelled the enemy to withdraw to the east
bank of the river. His new positions were then turned from the
north by

[Sidenote: _26th Aug.-3rd Sept._ 7 Divs. defeated 13 German Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF ARRAS by which the Drocourt-Quéant line was broken
and the enemy was forced to fall back on the outer defences of the
Hindenburg line. As the direct result of these battles

The LYS Salient was evacuated by the enemy and we regained
Lens-Merville-Bailleul-Kemmel Hill and freed Hazebrouck and the
important railways there. Then came

[Sidenote: _18th Sept.-19th Sept._ 14 Divs. defeated 15 German
Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF EPEHY which broke through the outer Hindenburg
defences and brought us into position for attack on the main line in

[Sidenote: _27th Sept.-10th Oct._ 35 Inf., 3 Cav. and 2 American
Divs. defeated 45 German Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF CAMBRAI-ST. QUENTIN which in ten days of victorious
fighting broke through the last and strongest of the enemy’s fully
prepared positions, opening the way to a war of movement and an
advance on the German main lines of communication. These great
assaults fell into three main phases:--

1. The storming of the Canal du Nord on the left of our attack and
the advance on Cambrai, followed immediately by

2. THE GREAT BLOW WHICH SHATTERED THE HINDENBURG LINE AND TURNED
THE DEFENCES OF ST. QUENTIN.

3. The development of these successes by a general attack on the
whole front which broke through the last of the German defences
in the rear of the Hindenburg Line, forcing the enemy to evacuate
Cambrai and St. Quentin and fall back on the line of the River
Selle. These battles, striking at vital enemy communications,
created a huge salient in his lines. Meanwhile further north in

[Sidenote: _28th Sept.-29th Sept._ 9 Divs. defeated 5 German Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF YPRES British and Belgians forced the enemy back
from Ypres and drove a salient into his lines which endangered his
positions on the Belgian Coast. This success was extended by

[Sidenote: _14th Oct.-31st Oct._ 7 British Divs. defeated 6 German
Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF COURTRAI which widened and deepened this salient and
resulted in the capture of Halluin, Menin and Courtrai. This series
of battles north and south had as their immediate result, in the
south,

THE EVACUATION OF LAON and the retreat of the enemy to the line of
the Aisne, and, in the centre,

THE WITHDRAWAL TO THE SCHELDT in which Lille and the great
industrial district of France were freed there, and in the north.

THE CLEARING OF THE BELGIAN COAST, whereby the enemy was deprived
of his important submarine bases at Ostend, Zeebrugge and Bruges.
The enemy was now back on the line of the Selle and Scheldt rivers.

[Sidenote: _17th Oct.-25th Oct._ 26 British Divs. defeated 31
German Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF THE SELLE forced him from the line of that river and
drove still another salient into his defences. It was followed by
the final blow--

[Sidenote: _1st Nov.-11th Nov._ 26 British Divs. defeated 32 German
Divs.]

THE BATTLE OF MAUBEUGE, which struck at and broke the enemy’s
last important lateral communications, turned his positions on
the Scheldt and forced him to retreat rapidly from Courtrai. This
victory completed the great strategical aim of the whole series of
battles by dividing, in effect, the enemy’s forces into two parts,
one on each side of the great natural barrier of the Ardennes. The
pursuit of the beaten enemy all along the Allied line was only
stopped by the Armistice.
]

Most of the officers and men are new, but such veterans as are available will be drafted back when circumstances allow, and there is no old member of the squadron who is not confident that the new formation will add to that high reputation which 60 has enjoyed from the day of its birth, and which we, who served in it, have helped to build, or, at all events, have tried our hardest not to damage.

Though the records, owing to a fire in the squadron office in November 1916, may perhaps be not quite complete, yet the destruction of 274 enemy aircraft can be traced.

The honours gained by officers or men, whilst serving in the squadron, are:

1 V.C.
5 D.S.O.s.
1 Bar to D.S.O.
37 Military Crosses.
5 Distinguished Flying Crosses.

The map which will be found at the end of this chapter is published by permission of Field-Marshal Earl Haig, and shows very clearly the ground gained and the prisoners taken by the victorious British armies during the last three months of the war.