- 5th Division Signal Coy RE during the Great War -
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5th Division Signal Coy RE
21st of August 1913 Lecture
9th of August 1914 At Southampton
13th of August 1914 Landing in France
13th of August 1914 Landing in France
14th of August 1914 Advance Party Leave
15th of August 1914 Arriving Busigny
16th of August 1914 Billets Organised
22nd of August 1914 On the March
23rd of August 1914 Holding the Line
23rd Aug 1914 Into Position
26th of August 1914 Holding Position
27th of August 1914 Retirement in the Dark
28th of August 1914 An Exhausting March
29th of August 1914 Sleeping in the Streets
31st of August 1914 Pursued by Germans
1st of September 1914 A Delayed March
2nd of September 1914 An Early March
3rd of September 1914 Across the Marne
4th of September 1914 An Easier March
5th of September 1914 March Finished
6th of September 1914 Army Advances
7th of September 1914 Another March
8th of September 1914 An Early March
9th of September 1914 On the Move
10th of September 1914 Marching
11th of September 1914 Marching
12th of September 1914 A Wet March
13th of September 1914 A Showery March
14th of September 1914 Broken Bridges
15th of September 1914 An Attack Falters
16th of September 1914 Bad Roads
17th of September 1914 Artillery Reinforced
18th of September 1914 Some Enemy Firing
19th of September 1914 Trenches Fired Constantly
20th of September 1914 Sappers Make a Bridge
21st of September 1914 Missy on Fire
22nd of September 1914 Enemy Retiring?
23rd of September 1914 Heavy Shelling
25th of September 1914 Very Quiet
26th of September 1914 Moves Successful
27th of September 1914 A False Alarm
28th of September 1914 Shelling
29th of September 1914 Quiet
30th of September 1914 Astride the Aisne
1st of October 1914 A Withdrawal
2nd of October 1914 Moonlit Relief
3rd of October 1914 On the March
4th of October 1914 On the March
5th of October 1914 A New HQ
6th of October 1914 Orders to Move
7th of October 1914 A Train Ride
11th of October 1914 New Billets
12th of October 1914 Orders to Advance
13th of October 1914 Advance Resumed
14th of October 1914 Supporting the French
15th of October 1914 Advance Ordered to Continue
16th of October 1914 Empty German Trenches
17th of October 1914 An Advance
18th of October 1914 Advance Resumed
19th of October 1914 Slow Progress
20th of October 1914 A Fluid Front
22nd of October 1914 Our Line Attacked
23rd of October 1914 Withdrawing to a New Line
24th of October 1914 Germans Attack
25th of October 1914 More Attacks
26th of October 1914 Germans Repulsed
27th of October 1914 A Counter Attack
28th of October 1914 Counter Attack Falters
29th of October 1914 Determined German Attack
30th of October 1914 German Attack Fades
31st of October 1914 A Counter Attack
2nd of November 1914 Three Groups Organised
3rd of November 1914 Situation Report
5th of November 1914 French Attack Falters
7th of November 1914 Messines Attack Slow
8th of November 1914 Half-hearted Attacks
15th of November 1914 2nd Corps Reorganise
18th of November 1914 Shell Fire
23rd of November 1914 Germans Digging In
24th of November 1914 Our Artillery Effective
25th of November 1914 Royal Scots Shelled
26th of November 1914 Quiet and Misty
28th of November 1914 On the Move
29th of November 1914 Infantry Distribution
1st of December 1914 Quiet Time
2nd of December 1914 A Moonlit Night
3rd of December 1914 Instructions
4th of December 1914 Reliefs
4th of December 1914 Relief
5th of December 1914 Relief Complete
6th of December 1914 Frosty Night
8th of December 1914 Poor Conditions
10th of December 1914 Naval Victory Cheered
14th of December 1914 French on the Offensive
16th of December 1914 Instruction
18th of December 1914 No Progress
21st of December 1914 Howitzers Silenced
26th of December 1914 Messines Square Targetted
31st of December 1914 Message
4th of January 1915 Trench Work
7th of January 1915 Very Wet Weather
8th of January 1915 Trenches Damaged
10th of January 1915 Flooding and Baling
15th of January 1915 Germans Fire Slowly
16th of January 1915 Squally Weather
18th of January 1915 Artillery Active
19th of January 1915 Thaw Sets In
21st of January 1915 Wulverghem Shelled
22nd of January 1915 Aeroplane-Aided Shelling
4th of February 1915 Chicken Sentries
5th of February 1915 Firing for Effect
13th of February 1915 Trenches Maintained
14th of February 1915 Germans Plan an Attack?
15th of February 1915 Heavy Rain
16th of February 1915 Baling All Night
20th of February 1915 A Violent Explosion
21st of February 1915 8th Howitzers Leave
22nd of February 1915 Cheering and Rockets
24th of February 1915 Snipers Checked
27th Feb 1915 Signal Message
16th March 1915 Information
18th of March 1915 Trench Mortars
21st of March 1915 Intelligence
2nd of April 1915 Quiet Day
17th April 1915 5th Division Attack
23rd of July 1915 3rd Div Take Over
10th of October 1915 30 Whizzbangs
16th Oct 1915 The Derby Scheme
27th of October 1915 German Work Destroyed
1st Dec 1915 Derby Scheme Armlets
11th Sep 1915 Last day of Derby Scheme Recruitment
10th Jan 1916 Group System Reopens
9th February 1916 Call Ups
8th of March 1916 Dummy Battery Hit
22nd of March 1916 Local Relief
24th of March 1916 Camouflet Exploded
27th of March 1916 Quiet Night
2nd of May 1916 Reliefs
28th Jun 1916 Working Parties
29th Jun 1916 Working Parties
30th Jun 1916 Working Parties
1st Jul 1916 Working Parties
2nd of August 1916 A Relief and a Move
21st of August 1916 Training
31st of August 1916 Warning Order Issued
22nd of September 1916 Dispositions
23rd of September 1916 Reliefs
23rd September 1916 Operational Order No. 50.
24th September 1916 Operational Order No.51.
24th September 1916 Reliefs
25th Sep 1916 Attack Made
25th of September 1916 Instructions for Tanks
25th September 1916 Attack Made
27th of September 1916 Division Moves
8th of March 1917 Divisional Relief
20th of March 1917 Composite Division Formed
27th of March 1917 In Corps Reserve
4th of April 1917 Orders for Moves
12th of April 1917 Orders and Reliefs
13th of April 1917 A Push Forward
14th of April 1917 Orders to Move
21st of April 1917 Operations Postponed
25th of April 1917 Canadians Take Over Front
28th of April 1917 Rest and Training
12th of May 1917 Bailleul Shelled
26th of May 1917 Quiet Day
26th of June 1917 Quiet Day
6th of July 1917 A Brigade Relief
18th of July 1917 Direct Hits Made
19th of July 1917 Situation Quiet
21st of July 1917 Back Areas Shelled
23rd of July 1917 Minenwerfer Active
26th of July 1917 Very Quiet
27th of July 1917 Gas Attack
29th of July 1917 Brigade Relief
10th of August 1917 Mostly Quiet
22nd of August 1917 Railway Shelled
28th of September 1917 On the Move
10th of October 1917 "Intense Barrage" Endured
17th of October 1917 Training
19th of October 1917 Relief Ordered
8th of November 1917 Fairly Quiet
16th of November 1917 15th Brigade Entrain
19th of November 1917 Pioneers Move
28th of November 1917 Entraining for Italy
9th of April 1918 Orders
10th of April 1918 Relief Postponed
11th of April 1918 Movement Details
23rd of April 1918 Constant Shelling
17th of May 1918 Active Artillery
22nd of May 1918 Enemy Active
15th of June 1918 Operation Proposed
7th of July 1918 Gas Shelling
12th of July 1918 Back Areas Bombed
28th of July 1918 Quiet
31st of July 1918 Relief Completed
9th of August 1918 Training
10th of August 1918 Training
13th of August 1918 Entraining Commenced
15th of August 1918 Training
23rd of August 1918 Division Attacks
24th of August 1918 5th Division Co-operates
25th of August 1918 Brigades Move
26th of August 1918 Enemy Retreats
27th of August 1918 Quiet
28th of August 1918 Situation Unchanged
30th of August 1918 Advance Continues
31st of August 1918 Counter-Attack
1st of September 1918 Attack Sucessful
2nd of September 1918 Strongly Defended
3rd of September 1918 Enemy Withdraws
4th of September 1918 Divisional Relief
5th of September 1918 Rest and Training
13th of September 1918 On the Move
17th of September 1918 Back Areas Bombed
18th of September 1918 Attack Commences
19th of September 1918 Enemy Guns Quiet
20th of September 1918 Quiet Time
22nd of September 1918 Field Guns Active
13th of November 1918 Resting
10th of January 1919 Locations
24th of January 1919 5th Signals RejoiningIf you can provide any additional information, please add it here.
Want to know more about the Royal Engineers?
There are:8880 items tagged Royal Engineers available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Great War.
Those known to have served with
5th Division Signal Coy RE
during the Great War 1914-1918.
- Atkins John Charles. 2nd Cpl.
- Atkins John Charles. Cpl
- Martin MM. Guy Stanislaus . A/2nd.Cpl. (d.25th August 1918)
- Nettleship Thomas. Spr.
All names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed, please Add a Name to this List
Records of 5th Division Signal Coy RE from other sources.
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245850A/2nd.Cpl. Guy Stanislaus Martin MM 5th Dvn. Sig. Coy. Royal Engineers (d.25th August 1918)
Acting Second Corporal Guy Stanislaus Martin, born 28th June 1895 in Singapore, son of William & Sarah Elizabeth Martin, Maydencroft, Ampthill, Bedfordshire, educated at Bedford Modern School 1908–1912, living in Ampthill, Bedfordshire. Served with the 5th Division Signal Company, Royal Engineers (service no.25002). He was awarded the Military Medal.He was killed in action on 25th August 1918 in Pas de Calais, France and is buried in Achiet-le-Grand Communal Cemetery Extension, France. He is remembered on the Singapore Cenotaph and both The War Memorial and The Alamada, St. Andrews Church, Ampthill.
Information courtesy of www.roll-of-honour.com
Caroline Hunt
213744Cpl John Charles Atkins 5th Divisional Signals Company Royal Engineers
My grandfather, 2nd Corporal Jack Atkins, was a Londoner, a career soldier and an "Old Contemptible"; he was born in the City of London although his family subsequently moved to Lambeth. He served for seven years in the infantry before transferring to 5 Signals Company in 1913. The Company provided communications for 5 Divisional HQ and for each of the three infantry brigades of the division.In August 1914 the Division left Carlow in Ireland to join the BEF in France, and Jack experienced the rigours of the Retreat from Mons. Next came the hard-fought Battle of Le Cateau on 26th August, the engagement which famously saved the BEF and fatally slowed the German advance into France. Jack is believed to have been part of the HQ Section Signallers based at the village of Reumont, and during the morning was sent to lay a cable between 5 Div HQ and the 19th Brigade to their north. The unit War Diary says "Sgt Holmes and his cable det. were detailed to lay a cable line to the 19th Brigade, but were evidently captured by the Germans for his party (men, horses and wagon) has not been heard of since. The cable line was last seen running through a line of German infantry."
He spent the rest of the war as a POW in Germany and then, in 1918, Holland to which neutral country he was repatriated as suffering from "barbed-wire fever". On his return to Britain at the end of the war he learned that two of his three younger brothers had been killed in May 1915 (coincidentally both on the same day - 26th - although one, Herbert, was at Gallipoli with 2nd Royal Fusiliers and the other, William, in France with 1/23rd London Regiment).
Jack reenlisted and served with the Royal Signals as it became until the end of his enlistment in 1927 by which time he was a Quartermaster Sergeant. He settled in Brighton with his wife and young family, returning briefly to the Colours in the next war as a Company Sergeant Major. A quiet man, he never spoke of his brothers or of the Great War except to say that they'd been kept very hungry in captivity. He died in Brighton in 1955, just two weeks after the death of his wife.
Paul Atkins
2128072nd Cpl. John Charles Atkins 5th Divisional Signals Company Royal Engineers
A Londoner, my grandfather, John Charles Atkins joined the South Lancashire Regiment in 1906, transferring to the Royal Engineers in 1913. He was a member of 5th Divisional Signals Company, and went to France with the Division in August 1914 - part of the famous "Contemptible Little Army" of the BEF. After the retreat from Mons, he took part in the Battle of Le Cateau on 26th August where he was taken prisoner in the fierce fighting which stemmed the German advance. His only mention of the btn.'s later years was to say he was captured by Uhlans, the German lancers. Two of his younger brothers, William and Herbert, were killed in May 1915; his youngest brother Percy joined the Royal Engineers and survived the war.John also survived the war but was a POW until repatriation in 1918, when he returned to the Royal Engineers and later the Royal Corps of Signals. At the end of his period of service in 1927 he settled in Brighton, Sussex, having reached the rank of Quartermaster Sergeant. In 1939 he was recalled to the colours to train mobilised troops for the Second World war, being discharged on completion of this role in 1940 as a Company Sergeant Major. Three of his sons fought in this war, one in each of the Services.
Pat Atkins
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