Private J. E. Robinson, Durham Light Infantry British War and Victory Medals (6216 Pte. J. E. Robinson. Durh. L.I.)
6216 Private James Edward Robinson, from Finsbury was born circa 1880, to Henry James Robinson (a packing case maker) and his wife Henrietta. James Edward was a goldsmith and jeweller in civilian life. He had three brothers and three sisters. He attested his willingness to serve at Woolwich on 7 December 1915, aged 35 years 4 months, and was posted to the Army Section B Reserve the following day. Whilst on Reserve he married Rose Eleanor Robinson (née Smith) in the Parish church of St-John-at-Hackney, London on 20 February 1916. By March he was a 'badged' worker, doing essential war work at the Royal Ordnance Factory, Woolwich, and living at 18, Ironmonger's Street, EC. For this reason his first call-up notice appears to have been withdrawn at the request of the Royal Ordnance Factories. However, on 9 June he was called up again. Reporting to the Central London Recruiting Depot Whitehall, he was medically examined and enlisted into the King's Royal Rifle Corps under the number R/26442, subsequently being posted to the KRRC depot at Winchester, and to the 24th (Reserve) battalion. Pursuant to the establishment of the Training Reserve, this battalion was aborbed into the 21st Reserve Brigade with effect from 1 September 1916. Accordingly, on 31 August, Pte Robinson was posted to 'A' Company, 88th Training Reserve Battalion (formerly the 19th (Reserve) Bn, the West Yorkshire Regiment), also part of the 21st Reserve Brigade, under the new regimental number TR/5/7[2]795. Save for one instance of overstating his pass, his conduct sheet was clean.
Pte Robinson's records show that he was posted overseas on 6 October 1916, to 35 Infantry Base Depot, presumably intended as a reinforcement for the 20th Durham Light Infantry. In the event, however, he was reposted to the 1/8th Durham Light Infantry, 151st Brigade, 50th (Northumbrian) Division on 20 October, possibly whilst still in base depot and potentially therefore without having spent any time with the 20th. The same day he was allotted the regimental number number 6216 (posthumously 301833).
This would have put him in line to have taken part in the 151st Brigade's attack on the Butte de Warlencourt (Warlencourt-Eaucourt Knoll), part of the Battle of the Ancre. The Butte, a white chalk mound close to the side of the Albert to Bapaume Road, offered very good views for the Germans and had been heavily mined, wired and fortified to form a formidable defensive position. As Roland Boys Bradford VC of the 9th DLI noted "The Butte itself would have been of little use to us for the purposes of observation. But the Butte de Warlencourt had become an obsession. Everybody wanted it. It loomed large in the minds of the soldiers in the forward area and they attributed many of their misfortunes to it. So it had to be taken." (Quoted in 'The Somme 1916 : The Strip of Murdered Nature')
The following account describes the attack in more detail:
"5 November
The 50th Division relieved the 9th Division from 24–25 October, in rain which had begun on 23 October and stopped around 3:00 p.m.the next day. The division took over the line east and south-east of Le Sars in the angle of the Martinpuich–Warlencourt, Eaucourt l'Abbaye and Martinpuich–Le Barque roads. The front line in Snag Trench was irregular and isolated posts on the left flank were joined, to make a continuous line. The German front line was still in Gird Trench and Gird Support Trench behind the butte. A British attack on 26 October, was postponed for two days and then postponed until 30 October, as preparations continued and trenches were repaired. Swampy conditions in no man's land were so bad, that no attack could take place until the ground dried. On 28 October, the ground had recovered slightly and the attack was scheduled for 1 November but then another downpour began in the night, followed by warmer weather, rain and gales from 30–31 October and the attack was again delayed, eventually being set for 9:10 a.m. on 5 November. The 149th Brigade and the 150th Brigade holding the line had become so exhausted that the 151st Brigade was moved up from reserve for the attack.
The 151st Brigade was to attack Gird Trench and Gird Support Trench, with the 1/8th, 1/6th and 1/9th battalions Durham Light Infantry (DLI); the 1/4th and 1/6th battalions Northumberland Fusiliers were attached from the 149th Brigade in support. The DLI battalions were to assemble in Snag and Snag Support trenches, Maxwell Trench and Tail Trench. As the 1/6th and 1/8th DLI took the Gird trenches, the 1/9th DLI was to capture the butte and the adjacent quarry and the Northumberland battalions were to support the attack from the flanks and the 1/5th Border Regiment was to stay in reserve in Prue and Starfish trenches; parts of the divisional machine-gun and trench mortar companies were to accompany the attack and a creeping barrage was to begin 200 yd (180 m) in front of the jumping-off line. Rain and high winds began again on night of 4/5 November and the attacking infantry floundered in mud, which was thigh-deep in places, as they advanced to the jumping-off points and several men drowned. The rain abated towards dawn, with the prospect of a fine cold day but the effect of the storm and a German counter-bombardment could be seen.
At zero hour the creeping bombardment began and infantry crawled out of their trenches, the first men pulling the following troops over the parapet. The British began to follow the creeping barrage, a moderate German counter-barrage fell short of Snag Trench and massed machine-gun fire began from the flanks, causing many casualties as the British troops struggled through the mud at walking-pace. The remaining men of the 1/8th DLI got close to Butte Trench, where they were also hit by British artillery and Stokes mortar fire and then retired to Snag Trench, leaving wounded and stragglers in shell-holes. On the right flank, a supporting Australian attack failed when the Australian artillery barrage fell behind the front line and a machine-gun barrage was so inaccurate that bullets hit the DLI trenches. In the centre the 1/6th DLI was held up on the right and on the left managed to overrun Gird Trench and form a strong point. The attack of the 1/9th DLI on the left flank, took the quarry, overran the butte and established a machine-gun position, advanced to Gird Trench and dug in on the Albert–Bapaume road. By noon, the 1/6th DLI were held up in Maxwell Trench and the 1/9th DLI had consolidated at the quarry, Gird Trench, Gird Support Trench and Butte Alley.
At 3:00 p.m., German counter-attacks began on the Gird Trenches and fighting in the butte continued for a strong point on the north side. By 3:00 p.m. the British had been forced back from Gird Trench and by 7:15 p.m. the Germans had advanced to Butte Alley and reinforcements were requested to recapture Gird Trench. At 12:20 a.m. (6 November) the 1/9th and 1/6th DLI were driven back to Maxwell Trench by converging attacks from the flanks and a frontal attack, which also overran the butte, where the German garrison emerged and joined in the counter-attack. German troops managed to get behind the quarry and by 1:00 p.m. on 6 November the British were back to their start line in Snag, Maxwell and Tail trenches. Another attack was ordered but cancelled later. The attacking battalions lost 967 men and other casualties made a total of c. 1,000 losses. RFC aircraft flew in support of the Fourth Army attacks, despite high winds and a contact-patrol crew flew for 3 3⁄4 hours to observe the attack on the butte, reporting its capture and then loss to German counter-attacks.
On 5 November, the 1st Guard Reserve Division had been relieving the 24th Division and Infantry Regiment 179 recorded that the British "swarmed" over the butte and reached the Warlencourt trenches. During the battle, German artillery also managed to fire on both sides and parts of I Battalion, Infantry Regiment 179, I Battalion, Infantry Regiment 139 and I Battalion, Guard Reserve Regiment 1 conducted the converging attack at 10:50 p.m. On the British right flank, Guard Grenadier Regiment 5 and Guard Reserve Regiment 93 of the 4th Guard Division engaged the British. Early on 6 November, 73 soldiers stranded in no man's land surrendered to Infantry Regiment 179." (Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attacks_on_the_Butte_de_Warlencourt)
Although the Butte and part of Gird Trench (Gallwitz Riegel) by the Butte (1/6th DLI's objective), was partially secured, a failure to consolidate the position meant that 1/6th and 1/8th DLI had to withdraw, leaving 1/9th DLI on the other side of the Butte to face a series of German counterattacks which forced a withdrawal after dark. The Brigade suffered almost a thousand casualties in the attack. Having been first listed as 'Missing' on the War Office Casualty List of 25/12/1916, with effect from December 1917 Pte Robinson's death was presumed on or after 5 November 1916, having occurred at some point during the 151st Brigade's unsuccessful attack on the Butte de Warlencourt. He was possibly one of the stragglers or wounded left in no-man's land after the abortive attack on Butte Trench. His effects went to his widow, Rose, as did a weekly pension of 13/9 from 16 July 1917. Subsequently Rose appears to have emigrated to Australia, from where she wrote in July 1921 asking for information about her deceased husband, whose letters and identify disc had been sent to her in clean condition just prior to her leaving England. She took this as an indication that his body had been found; unfortunately the response to her query, although preserved, sheds no light.
For his service Pte Robinson was entitled to the British War Medal and Victory Medal. Having no known grave, he is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial.
Illustration: D/DLI 7/920/10(5) Drawing by Captain Robert Mauchlen of soldiers attacking the Butte de Warlencourt
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