Kyle Tallett - Gavrelle Arras (Battleground Europe)

Battleground Europe

GAVRELLE

Other guides in the Battleground Europe Series:

Walking the Salientby Paul Reed

Ypres Sanctuary Wood and Hoogeby Nigel Cave

Ypres Hill 60by Nigel Cave

Ypres Messines Ridgeby Peter Oldham

Ypres Polygon Woodby Nigel Cave

Ypres Passchendaeleby Nigel Cave

Walking the Sommeby Paul Reed

Ypres Airfields and Airmenby Michael OConnor

Somme Gommecourtby Nigel Cave

Somme Serreby Jack Horsfall & Nigel Cave

Somme Beaumont Hamelby Nigel Cave

Somme Thiepvalby Michael Stedman

Somme La Boisselleby Michael Stedman

Somme Fricourtby Michael Stedman

Somme Carnoy-Montaubanby Graham Maddocks

Somme Pozieresby Graham Keech

Somme Courceletteby Paul Reed

Somme Boom Ravineby Trevor Pidgeon

Somme Mametz Woodby Michael Renshaw

Somme Delville Woodby Nigel Cave

Somme Advance to Victory (North) 1918by Michael Stedman

Arras Vimy Ridgeby Nigel Cave

Arras Bullecourtby Graham Keech

Arras Monchy le Preuxby Colin Fox

Hindenburg Lineby Peter Oldham

Hindenburg Line Epehyby Bill Mitchinson Hindenburg Line Riquevalby Bill Mitchinson

Hindenburg Line Villers-Plouichby Bill Mitchinson

Hindenburg Line Cambraiby Jack Horsfall & Nigel Cave

Hindenburg Line Saint Quentinby Helen McPhail and Philip Guest

La Basse Neuve Chapelleby Geoffrey Bridger

Monsby Jack Horsfall and Nigel Cave

Accrington Pals Trailby William Turner

Poets at War: Wilfred Owenby Helen McPhail and Philip Guest

Poets at War: Edmund Blundenby Helen McPhail and Philip Guest

Gallipoliby Nigel Steel

Italy Asiagoby Francis Mackay

Boer War The Relief of Ladysmith, Colenso, Spion Kopby Lewis Childs

Boer War The Siege of Ladysmithby Lewis Childs

Boer War Kimberleyby Lewis Childs

Isandhlwanaby Ian Knight and Ian Castle

Rorkes Driftby Ian Knight and Ian Castle

WW2 Pegasus Bridge/Merville Batteryby Carl Shilleto

WW2 Gold Beachby Christopher Dunphie & Garry Johnson

WW2 Omaha Beachby Tim Kilvert-Jones

WW2 Battle of the Bulge St Vithby Michael Tolhurst

WW2 Dunkirkby Patrick Wilson

WW2 Calaisby John Cooksey

WW2 March of Das Reich to Normandyby Philip Vickers

WW2 Hill 112by Tim Saunders

Battleground Europe Series guides under contract for future release:

Somme High Woodby Terry Carter

Somme Ginchyby Michael Stedman

Somme Comblesby Paul Reed

Somme Beaucourtby Michael Renshaw

Walking Arrasby Paul Reed

Hougoumontby Julian Paget and Derek Saunders

With the continued expansion of the Battleground series a Battleground Europe Club has been formed to benefit the reader The purpose of the Club is to keep members informed of new titles and key developments by way of a quarterly newsletter, and to offer many other reader-benefits. Membership is free and by registering an interest you can help us predict print runs and thus maintain prices at their present levels. Please call the office 01226 734555, or send your name and address along with a request for more information to:

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Battleground Europe

GAVRELLE

TREVOR TASKER & KYLE TALLETT

Series editor

Nigel Cave

First published in 2000 by
LEO COOPER
an imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Limited
47 Church Street, Bamsley, South Yorkshire S70 2AS

Copyright Trevor Tasker and Kyle Tallett, 2000

ISBN 0 85052 688 4

A CIP catalogue of this book is available
from the British Library

Printed by Redwood Books Limited
Trowbridge, Wiltshire

For up-to-date information on other titles produced under the Leo Cooper imprint,
please telephone or write to:
Pen & Sword Books Ltd, FREEPOST, 47 Church Street
Barnsley, South Yorkshire S70 2AS
Telephone 01226 734222

CONTENTS

The Windmill at Gavrelle. More Royal Marines fell around this mill than any other battlefield in the Corps history. The mill was destroyed in 1917 and never rebuilt. Capron Family, Gavrelle

To be frank, the battlefield around Gavrelle is not situated in the most beautiful countryside on the Western Front it is dominated by large, rather characterless fields and by a surfeit of high-speed roads and railway lines. Yet first impressions, in this case, are most certainly misleading. Kyle Tallett and Trevor Tasker have combined to make this neglected part of the Arras battlefield accessible to all those with an interest in the events of spring 1917 and of 1918.

Gavrelle is an important place in the history of that strangely British formation, the 63rd (Royal Naval) Division in part because of the heavy fighting and casualties that they endured, in part because of the two Victoria Crosses that were won by the Division here. It is only fitting that such a fine memorial to these sailors-turned-soldiers should be positioned on the western edge of Gavrelle. Even at home interest in the RND has been such that soon it is hoped that the Divisional memorial will be restored to its original site on Horse Guards Parade.

A detailed study of Gavrelle should also illustrate to students of the Great War how much fighting methods on both sides, German and British, had evolved even since the fighting on the Somme the previous year. Yet the stories of the small unit action and of the individual have not been lost, illustrated as they are by frequent use of personal reminiscences. Trevor Tasker has also been able to illustrate the complex story of the cemeteries that relate to the campaign and traced how particular people have found their final resting place in particular cemeteries.

The result of tremendous hard work, of relating trench maps to the ground today and of ferreting out information from a wide variety of British and French sources is a fascinating read. In addition, short chapters on the Second World War fighting and of individuals from that later fighting add a further dimension to the work.