Nine Brave Men
On 28 July 1916, 82nd Field Company Royal Engineers received orders to march to Mametz Wood. They were to take over from the 94th Field Company Royal Engineer who had just completed the construction of a 300 yard communication trench to the 57th Brigade who at the time had been cut off for 24 hours in the village of Bazentin-le-Petit.
Bazentin-le-Petit
On 14 July 1916 at 03.25 twenty thousand men of the 3rd and 7th Divisions moved forward up Caterpillar Valley to attack Delville Wood, whilst the 21st Division advanced on and captured Bazentin-le-Petit Wood.
Sites to see around Martinpuich, Bazentin, High Wood and Longueval
Martinpuich British Cemetery
Martinpuich British Cemetery was begun in November 1916 and used by fighting units and Field Ambulances until June 1917, and again at the end of August 1918.
Gordon Cemetery, Mametz
The Gordon Cemetery contains a total of 97 graves of which 94 are of men of the 2nd Battalion, Gordon Highlanders, of the 7th Division. They were killed on 1 July 1916 and buried in their own support trench in a double semi-circle around the Cross of Sacrifice.
Devonshire Cemetery, Mametz
The Devonshire Cemetery, Mametz was started by the 8th and 9th Battalions of the Devonshire Regiment on July 4, 1916 when following their offensive on July 1 they buried their dead in a portion of what had been their own front line.
Dantzig Alley British Cemetery, Mametz
Dantzig Alley British Cemetery was begun in July 1916. It was used by Field Ambulances and fighting units until the following November. At the Armistice the cemetery consisted of 183 graves, but it was then increased by the concentration of 1,782 additional graves to bring it to its final total of 1,965 graves.
38th (Welsh) Division Memorial, Mametz
On July 1, 1987 the South Wales Branch of the Western Front Association unveiled the magnificent memorial to the 38th (Welsh) Division near Mametz Wood.
Brothers killed in action
There are three pairs of brothers buried in Flatiron Copse Cemetery, Mametz. In all three cases, the brothers were serving with the same unit and were killed on the same day.
Captain Charles Edward Piercy Henderson, MC
The grave of Captain Charles Edward Piercy Henderson, MC, Royal Field Artillery, is located in Flatiron Copse Cemetery, Mametz.
