Frank Crawshaw

Timeline

August 1914 to February 1915: Frank Crawshaw’s journey from Belfast to the Western Front.

Embarkation

14–16 August 1914 Belfast to Le Havre aboard SS Antony
  1. A frank update
  2. The Dorsets set sail for war
  3. Bound for Le Havre
  4. Rest Camp No. 8

Deployment

17–22 August 1914 By train to Le Cateau, then north on foot towards Mons
  1. Gare to Guerre
  2. D'Ors set
  3. House of Fraser
  4. Ready to march but where?
  5. An excellent penny cigar
  6. Dour by name

Mons and the Retreat

23 August to 4 September 1914 Mons to the Marne: 150 miles south on foot
  1. No longer playing games
  2. Nobody calls me Cecil
  3. Quelle fromage
  4. Splendid work with machine guns
  5. St-Quentin, you've been living hell to me
  6. Luckily untouched by a Scottish accent
  7. Postcard from the edge
  8. A wash and a shave
  9. Speechless with thirst
  10. Can't get any cold tea
  11. A stout peasant
  12. A horrible little house
  13. The usual answer, "Eggs"

The Turn

5 September 1914 Orders received 9pm: tomorrow they march north
  1. Last hors d'oeuvres

The Advance

September to October 1914 North through France to the Aisne
  1. You are in a twisty maze of passageways, all alike
  2. Super-excellent "William" pears
  3. Witness to an unnecessary death
  4. The abandoned battery on Hill 189
  5. Everlasting bully beef
  6. Everything of the smallest value stolen
  7. A bottle of Harvey sauce and a ham-bone
  8. Black Marias and Cow-Guns
  9. The elderly chicken and other murders
  10. A locality of great interest
  11. The Jury is out
  12. The squat pen(cil) rests; snug as a gun.
  13. I haven't found any Thomases yet
  14. Tuppence a quarter
  15. D.I.V.O.R.C.E.
  16. Nun the wiser
  17. On the (Ed.)
  18. These Missy nights
  19. Howitzer that!
  20. A cellar full of excellent wine
  21. Steam punk engineers
  22. KV and other posh expressions
  23. Memories
  24. Meet Mister Sniper
  25. Sharp shooting Frank
  26. For Love and Courage
  27. Fog on the Aisne
  28. Let's camp here for the night
  29. Unmentionable crimes
  30. New Bols please
  31. Post rest aunt
  32. A train journey without a destination
  33. Do the Oakley-Kokey
  34. Dial M for Muff
  35. I demand to have some booze
  36. A move towards hot water

North by Omnibus

October 1914 Soissons to Belgium on requisitioned London buses
  1. The beginning of the end
  2. Overwhelmed
  3. A Bols from the blue
  4. Relief but for how long?
  5. Unlucky Dorsets join the 13th
  6. Cuthbert, seedy
  7. We're on the rue to nowhere
  8. Bring up the bodies
  9. Sacks and Violaines

The Trenches

October 1914 to February 1915 Ploegsteert Wood, Wulverghem, Dranoutre
  1. Straightening the line
  2. Dorset's finest and finings
  3. A respite of sorts
  4. Men at work
  5. Trenchant views
  6. Gorre blimey
  7. We're going to Neuve Chapelle
  8. Partridge captures geese
  9. 5th Division's band aid
  10. Au revoir to all that
  11. Promises promises
  12. Busman's holiday
  13. Plugging the gap
  14. If it wasn't for those bosky kids
  15. Le Battle Royale
  16. Mabel and her John Willie
  17. Mysterious mishaps in the mist
  18. Suits you sir
  19. Rhyme nor reason
  20. Four Marks war memorial
  21. Down the Ploeg 'ole
  22. They're shelling the bathroom!
  23. The mysterious Brixton Bill
  24. Postcards from the edge (of a wood)
  25. The Dorsets' Achilles heel
  26. Letters Like Buses
  27. They have no fear in them
  28. Cold kidneys on brown bread
  29. Knock off wood
  30. Snow rest for the wicked
  31. The tattered 15th
  32. Woollens for your Walloon Warriors
  33. A General morale boost
  34. British to the Backbone
  35. Baaah!
  36. Situation quiet – snipers very active
  37. Ten dud thuds
  38. Deadlock holiday
  39. Quite Quiet
  40. Peppermints and perfumed soap
  41. Say cheese
  42. Super furry animaux
  43. Post cartography
  44. Me nerves are all shattered
  45. Dreaming of cold tea
  46. Stopping a Jack Johnson
  47. Merry and bright
  48. The Wytschaete line man
  49. Conditions very trying
  50. That patrol emotion
  51. Heavy weather
  52. Having to turn out for a German
  53. Short stop
  54. Dolly mixture
  55. Brew ha ha
  56. The Wasp Factory
  57. Brixton - the flower garden of London
  58. The ballad of Frank's censor
  59. A salient point
  60. Blazin' squad
  61. A Twiss in the tale
  62. Mad men & English togs
  63. Have yourself a Verey merry Christmas
  64. Tram Blam thank you ma'am
  65. Do the Heuvelland shuffle
  66. A white lie Christmas?
  67. Not so Stille Nacht
  68. Cat amongst the turkeys
  69. All quiet on the Western Front
  70. Mary Christmas from Frank
  71. Storm in a tea cup
  72. Out with the Auld
  73. A shot in the arm
  74. How many bombs would a bomb chucker chuck?
  75. Dig for victory
  76. Not feeling fab from the jab
  77. Sandbags and wet rags
  78. Rain and Abel
  79. Water, water, everywhere
  80. Billet minion
  81. Loaf letters
  82. Wish you weren't here
  83. What a bastard
  84. Up periscope
  85. I never had the slightest idea of what was going on
  86. Waiting for Spring
  87. Ransome notes
  88. Bailleul diversity
  89. Asylum streakers
  90. Top spin lob, smash and POW!
  91. Resting by Musket and Saxon
  92. Reboot
  93. A dot ball for the Dorsets
  94. Don't rain on my parade
  95. A nasty accident at sea
  96. My name is Blücher
  97. Trench fervour
  98. Night raiders
  99. Humdrum day
  100. Stuck with the Peacemakers and the Holy Boys
  101. A bad moon rising
  102. Lamp batteries
  103. Incessant
  104. Tommies, Cooper
  105. Dirty rotten scoundrels
  106. An example of
  107. Poulet the other one
  108. I would be so glad to receive these things
  109. Bomb boy duck
  110. Albert square bashing
  111. Belgian chocs away
  112. A Shephard joins the flock
  113. He seemed to like getting shot at

The End

11 February 1915 Wulverghem support lines
  1. A Frank farewell