Hello

[ir63]

Hello, I am a young student from Italy who is carrying out a research on the 63rd Prussian Infantry Regiment that fought against the 17th and 18th Manchesters on the Somme from October 1915 until the end of the year

I ask politely if there is a Regimental magazine interested in an article on the both sides night raids at Maricourt

Greetings

Matteo D.

[Tim Bell]

Morning Matteo,

Welcome to the forum.

The 17th & 18th Bns (and 16th & 19th) arrived in France in November 1915 and entered the trenches near Maricourt in January 1916.  In the previous summer 2nd Bn had been at Maricourt for a period.

There's no magazine I can refer you too but War Diaries can be uploaded for free at the The National Archive when you sign up as a member - again free.  Here's a link to 17th Bn. https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C7353657

Use the search function to find the other diaries.  Just change '17' to '18' etc.

My Grandfather served with 17th Bn in the Maricourt / Vaux sector in this period.  If you have any German records for the period / place, it would be wonderful to see.  Similar comparisons have been made for other places in the front and the stories often seem to be very different.

Tim

[pete th]

Hi Matteo, thank you for your interest in the Manchester Regiment and please accept our apologies for the slow response to your query.

We haven't got any direct information, however, you can download the War Diaries of the 17th and 18th Battalions from the UK National Archives (£3.50 each). These provide a day by day account of the activities throughout the war, including the dates you are interested in. You can find them in the following links:

17th Battalion
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C7353657

18th Battalion
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C7353658

I am sure you will find these interesting and hopefully it will open up a new area of research for you.

All the very best wishes for your endeavours.

The Manchester Regiment Forum


Unfortunately there is not a magazine.