113989 SPR .H.SALISBURY R.E. - British War and Victory Medal
Herbert Salisbury, born 1897, was from Burnley. Formerly of Burnley Technical School, he was living at the time of his enlistment at 17 Holbeck Street in the town. Presumably driven by an interest in the new science of radio communications, he had gained a 2nd Class qualification in Chemistry and 1st Class qualifications in Electricity & Magnetism and Mathematics at the school and armed with these and warm letters of recommendation from his headmaster and a justice of the peace, he applied to join the Wireless and Telegraph Section of the Royal Engineers. After having been medically examined at Burnley on 1 September he attested with his mother's permission on 2 September 1915 at Great Scotland Yard, London, aged 17 years 9 months. He was employed as a cotton twiner/cloth bundler and gave as his next of kin William Edward Salisbury, his father. He joined up to be a Wireless Operator - Learner and was mustered as a Pioneer. After some time in one of the RE Depot Companies he was transferred to the RE Signals Depot at Biggleswade with effect from 10 February or 23 March 1916 (information varies in his record), presumably for technical training, and then again to the Wireless Training Centre at Worcester on 12 July 1916, accumulating several Regimental Conduct Sheet entries for absence on parade (punished first by Saturday fatigues at 'Holmsfree' [or 'Holmefield?] and then by confinement to barracks) and talking in the ranks (Saturday fatigues at 'Holmefield'). By November 1916 he was based at Norton where he accumulated entries for lateness on parade, overstaying his leave pass and absence on parade. All were fairly minor offences punished by varying lengths of confinement to barracks. He spent Christmas and New Year 1916/17 under treatment at the Military hospital, Worcester, with eczema. On 20 August 1917 he tested (seemingly at Diglis Interception Station) as a Wireless Operator - Proficient and was remustered as a Sapper, receiving the appropriate 1 Shilling per day Engineer Pay. Passing through the RE Signals Depot at Fenny Stratford, on 24 August he embarked from the UK, being posted to signal base depot France on 27 August, awaiting drafting to a unit. He was just short of 19 years 9 months old. He served with 51st Divisional Signal Company. This Company, in common with the other DSCs had been augmented with a Wireless Section upon the abolition of the Army Wireless Companies and Motor Wireless Sections attached to armies in June 1917, as part of a wider amalgamation of wireless operations into the activity of the Signals service. He joined the unit in the field on 18 November. At this point the Wireless Section was with divisional HQ at Little Wood, Ytres, all wireless and amplifiers reported as being in position by 7.06pm on the 19th.
The standard 1918 establishment for a divisional signals company (15 officers and 385 other ranks) was an HQ (including wireless and visual signalling section), a Royal Artillery Section (HQ and 2 RA Brigade subsections), No1 Section (four cable detachments and an MG Signal Section), and Sections 2-4, one per infantry brigade in the division). As a trained wireless operator he probably served with the HQ section. Divisions operated BF trench sets for their wireless communications supplemented by Power Buzzers forward of Brigade HQs. Spr Salisbury joined 12 days before the opening of Battle of Cambrai, for which the Company received the appropriate unofficial RE battle honour. This was the first battle in which wireless was used as a primary method of communication and on a wide scale (previously the preferred methods were telephony - relying on buried cable - despatch riders, pigeons and runners). The Company handled 80 messages in three days' operation. After the operations, the division as part of Harper's IV Corps, Third Army, remained in the Cambrai area (Harper being the former GoC of the 51st Division.)
The Division's allotted place in the line was a poorly-placed and -sited section of the front line in the Lechelle area, opposite the Hindenburg Line. To help remedy this situation, General Harper laid down principles for the construction of a new defensive system, maintained and developed by infantry under the direction of Sappers in the associated Field Companies. This took up the winter and early spring of 1918. For their good work, all ranks and arms were congratulated by General Byng, GOC 3rd Army.
The 51st Division was in the line at the eastern edge of the Artois plateau when the German attack fell on 21 March 1918. The attack was heralded by a severe four-hour bombardment which interrupted all communications within the first quarter of an hour. Once the Germans had gained a foothold in the British line, companies between the Bapaume — Cambrai road and the Louverval valley were forced back into Boursies. Here the divisional artillery came into play, and the 401st Field Company with units of 152nd Brigade held a wired communications trench, specially sited as a switch line, which played a crucial role in delaying the enemy's advance through Boursies.
On this day Spr Salisbury was wounded in action, suffering a gun shot wound back and leg (right), indicating a penetrating wound of some type. This wound was possibly incurred whilst at divisional HQ at Fremicourt, the divisional front at this time running roughly between Hermies and Louveral. A later post-mortem on the battle noted that during the Battle of St Quentin, wireless sets were often placed too far forward and overrun, jammed by German field stations or destroyed by shell-fire. When added to buried telephone cables being cut by the fierce, carefully-targeted bombardment, fog hampering visual and pigeon communications and runners being caught by gas and shell-fire, this was a recipe for communication failure. Nonetheless, for their part in the action the Company received the unofficial RE battle honour St Quentin.
Meanwhile, Spr Salisbury was admitted to 1/3rd Highland Field Ambulance on 22 March, and then via 7th Canadian General Hospital at Etaples was evacuated to England on the 25th. He featured on War Office Daily List No.5556 of 3 May 1918, as wounded.
Once home, he was hospitalised at Stoke-on-Trent Military Hospital, Newcastle, Staffordshire from 26 March to 26 April. Subsequently he appears to have been posted to Bedford again and later Hitchin Signals Depot (from which he had one episode of Absent Without Leave from 23:59 on 2 January until ordered to return to his unit by Military Police at the Great Northern Railway Station at 9am on 3 January.) At Hitchin he was medically examined and, presumably fully recovered, was sent to Heaton Park Dispersal Station (No.1 Dispersal Unit). He was subsequently demobilized by transfer to the Army Class 'Z' Reserve on 20 February 1919.
