Read on Twitter
1/16 An 18 year old subaltern, 2/Lt Emmet Dalton, 9th Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers, was awarded a Military Cross for actions at Battle of Ginchy, 9th September 1916. Emmet Dalton had lied about his age in order to join the army. #GWG #FWW #WW1
2/16 The Battle of Guillemont (3-6/9/1916) saw units of 16th (Irish) Division fighting alongside XIV Corps colleagues in 5th and 20th Divisions. Neighbouring Ginchy was briefly taken by XV Corps’ 7th Division, but a German counter-attack retook the remains of the village.
3/16 The next push was on 9th September and the left attack of XIV Corps was delivered by 16th (Irish) Division. Major General Hickie tasked 48th Infantry Brigade, supported by two battalions of 49th Brigade, with the capture of Ginchy.
4/16 Guillemont and Ginchy were two unremarkable villages, other than that the loss of Ginchy would deprive the Germans of observation posts from which they could observe the battlefield and eliminate a salient, but Guillemont had to be secured first. Both were pounded to dust.
5/16 The German soldier and author Ernst Jünger (Storm and Steel ) described the remains of Guillemont being of a whiter colour by reason of the houses which had been ground to powder. Ginchy was not much different.
6/16 During the assault on Ginchy 2 companies of 9th Royal Dublin Fusiliers lost COs and 2/Lt Emmet Dalton took command of both. He was already second in command of A Company, following losses to heavy German shelling during the days leading up to Zero at 4.45 p.m. on 9/9/1916.
7/16 Following Zero, the COs of A & B Companies became casualties. B Company’s Lt Tom Kettle was a family friend of Dalton’s; an Irish Nationalist Member of Parliament, academic and writer. Dalton was following Kettle at the whistle to advance and was horrified to see him fall...
8/16 despite the fact that Kettle was wearing a protective steel waistcoat. The bullet had inflicted a mortal wound in the upper chest above the waistcoat. The Freeman’s Journal of 23rd October 1916 reported that Dalton stopped briefly to press a crucifix into Kettle’s hand.
9/16 Dalton led the two companies to their final objective and took prisoners. The citation in the supplement to the London Gazette of 20th October 1916 reads: “Temp. 2nd Lt. James Emmet Dalton, R. Dub. Fus. For conspicuous gallantry in action ...
10/16 He led forward to their final objective companies which had lost their officers. Later, while consolidating his position, he found himself, with one serjeant, confronted by 21 of the enemy, including an officer, who surrendered when he attacked them.”
11/16 The war diary for 9th Royal Dublin Fusiliers on 10th September 1916 refers to the reliefs that took place: ‘On their arrival about 5 a.m. the battalion marched back to CARNOY under the two remaining officers 2/Lt N. Hurst and 2/Lt E. Dalton”.
12/16 The 16th (Irish) Division paid a high price for the capture of two ruined villages of Guillemont and Ginchy. Figures vary from source to source, but the war diary for 16th (Irish) Division for September 1916 says ...
13/16 there were 859 missing i.e. in reality mostly killed, 643 killed, 2,851 wounded - 4,353 casualties out of nearly 11,000 officers and men who arrived on the Somme on September 1st.
14/16 Two Victoria Crosses were awarded to Irishmen of 16th (Irish) Division at Guillemont, Thomas Hughes of the Connaught Rangers and John Holland of the Leinsters.
15/16 Emmet Dalton was quite an extraordinary character who survived the war, living a long, colourful life, dying aged 80 in 1978.
16/16 Taken from @GreatWarGroup Facebook page. IWM photo references Q4208 and Q1306. Have you looked at the fantastic new website yet? You can even become a member! http://www.greatwargroup.com
