303rd Siege Battery (303rd SB) was a heavy howitzer unit of Britain's Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) in World War I. Formed in November 1916, it served on the Western Front at the battles of Messines, Ypres and Cambrai, in the 'Great Retreat' during the German Spring Offensive and it supported the Canadian Corps in the final Allied Hundred Days Offensive. After the Armistice with Germany the battery served in the Allied occupation of the Rhineland until it was disbanded in 1920.
Mobilisation and training Once the fighting on the Western Front had bogged down into Trench warfare in 1914, there was an urgent need for siege artillery, and a large number of new RGA units were hurriedly formed over the following years.Farndale, Annex E. The Army Council instructed that 303rd Siege Battery was to be formed at Plymouth with effect from 17 November 1916, conforming to the establishment laid down for 6-inch breechloading howitzer batteries.Army Council Instruction No 2223, 29 November 1916. The battery was accordingly formed at Crownhill Fort, Plymouth, where drafts of men were sent from various RGA batteries, companies and training schools. On 10 January 1917 the battery moved to Ewshot in north Hampshire to continue its training. After a succession of junior officers had acted as officer commanding (OC), Captain W.T. Saidler, a Territorial Force officer, arrived as acting OC; he later served as battery captain. On 2 February the battery marched to Aldershot, where the men were accommodated in Tournay Barracks and trained on the modern BL 6-inch 26 cwt howitzer. There was an outbreak of measles in the barracks, and one officer and 38 other ranks (ORs) were removed from the battery and did not return. On 26 February the battery went by train to Hut Camp at Lydd, where it carried out shooting practice on the ranges. It began its final training at No 27 Camp at Larkhill from 15 March. Here it was joined on 29 March by Major H.W. Lockhart, a regular officer, who became its first permanent OC.Delap, pp. 6–7.Frederick, pp. 704–7.
Western Front The battery mobilised for overseas service at Larkhill, and after an advance party left on 1 April 1917 the main body marched next day to Amesbury station, where it entrained for Southampton Docks to embark on the SS Londonderry. The battery disembarked the following morning at Le Havre; 301st SB from Larkhill crossed to France at the same time. On 8 April 303rd SB entrained its four 6-inch howitzers and personnel, and arrived at Bailleul next day, together with 301st SB. Both new batteries then marched to join 41st Heavy Artillery Group (HAG) at Dranoutre behind the southern part of the Ypres Salient held by Second Army.'Allocation of Siege Batteries RGA', The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 95/5494/4.RGA Siege Btys at Long, Long Trail.Allocations of 301st–320th Siege Btys at Long, Long Trail.303rd Siege Bty War Diary April–October 1917, TNA file WO 95/219/11.Delap, pp. 8–9.41st HAG War Diary March 1917–March 1918, TNA file WO 95/472/2.
Messines On arrival 303rd SB began working on its gun emplacements, shell and cartridge recesses, and shelter trenches, coming under shellfire for the first time on 13 April. By 19 April it had three of its four howitzers in position, and next day began firing a few shots to calibrate its guns and register targets. For the rest of April it fired on various targets, including its first shoots with aircraft and balloon observation, and retaliation shoots for incoming enemy shellfire, the battery suffering its first casualties in early May. 41st HAG supporting IX Corps was mainly employed for counter-battery (CB) fire, but on one occasion 303rd SB fired 400 rounds on the Dammstrasse, a notable defensive position behind the German lines. The observation post (OP) on Kemmel Hill had good observation of the Dammstrasse and other targets on and over the Messines–Wytschaete Ridge in front. One of the guns now developed a mechanical fault and had to be taken out of action for repair. This was the first of many such cases, with the battery constantly having to send one or more guns to the workshops. The problems became more acute as the volume of fire increased, and by 7 May the whole battery was taken out of action. While their guns were repaired, the gunners were employed to lay light railways for bringing up ammunition. Second Army was preparing for an attack on the Messines–Wytschaete Ridge, and after the battery returned to action on 12 May the volume of firing increased. 303rd SB sometimes received 1000 rounds of ammunition in a single night, and by 25 May it had accumulated a dump of 4000 rounds in preparation for the attack. The main bombardment for the attack began on 3 June with a special bombardment of Wytschaete village on IX Corps' front, which was expected to be strongly defended. However, 303rd SB's guns were still giving trouble, and by 3 June only 'B' gun was serviceable: it fired continuously up to the time of the attack on Z Day. In reply the battery received occasional harassing fire, sometimes with gas shell.Delap, pp. 9–10.Delap, pp. 75–8.Edmonds, 1917, Vol II, pp. 41–6.Farndale, pp. 184–8.
Second Army's artillery plan emphasised CB fire, and simulated attacks were made to induce the enemy to reveal his hidden guns: over 200 hostile battery positions were intensively shelled during two days of concentrated CB fire prior to Z Day. British artillery fire died away about 02.40 on the morning of 7 June (Z Day). Before dawn, at 03.10, the surprise element of the plan was revealed: the simultaneous explosion of 19 huge mines dug under the ridge, which blew the German front line system to bits before the infantry went over the top. IX Corps' objectives were the line from the Spanbroekmolen salient to the 'Nag's Nose' salient at Hollandscheschuur, including the village of Wytschaete, while X Corps was to take the ridge further north, including the Dammstrasse and the woods beyond. The British guns opened fire immediately after the mine explosions at Zero, and 41st Bde's batteries were soon switched to their second tasks as the infantry overran the German positions. The results of the limited attack were spectacular, with the whole ridge being captured. In the IX Corps' area, the 36th (Ulster) Division found that 'the ground about the strongpoints had been literally ploughed up by the bursts of the high explosive (HE) shells during the bombardment; the barbed wire entanglements which had protected this area below the crest lay piled in twisted heaps, and everywhere was the wreckage of once solidly built dugouts and shelters'. Similarly, the Dammstrasse was successfully captured by X Corps. 303rd SB's 'B' gun, manned by two detachments, one relieving the other, fired 350 rounds during the day.Delap, pp. 10–1.Edmonds, 1917, Vol II, pp. 47–9, 54–69, Sketches 3 & 5.Farndale, pp. 188–91, Map 24.
Ypres The day after the battle 303rd SB was posted to 23rd HAG with Fifth Army, in the northern part of the Ypres Salient. That evening the battery marched to Vlamertinge with two guns (the other two being in the workshops), which it was ordered to hand over to 168th SB, and the men were then taken by lorry to the siege park. Next day they went to a rest camp at Houtkerque. On 12 June an advance party went to Ypres to prepare gun positions, the rest of the battery following three days later and going into billets at Vlamertinge. The new battery position was in Ypres itself, close to the ruins of the Cloth Hall. 303d SB's two guns were returned from the workshops and it was loaned two other guns by 279th SB. The battery had these guns in action on 22 June. Fifth Army was preparing for the Ypres Offensive, and fresh batteries were constantly arriving. 23rd HAG was part of XIV Corps Heavy Artillery (HA), but 303rd SB positioned further south came under 90th HAG when that group arrived at Vlamertinge and joined XIX Corps HA on 20 June. Four days later 303rd SB transferred to 70th HAG, then to 62nd HAG when that HQ arrived at Vlamertinge on 5 July. Ypres was under constant enemy bombardment and the billets at Vlamertinge were also shelled, the battery suffering a number of casualties, while much of the ammunition brought up each night was destroyed before it could be used. The battery continued to suffer from poor serviceability of its guns, all of which were out of action by the end of June.Delap, pp. 11–3.23rd HAG War Diary, November 1915; September 1916–September 1917, TNA file WO 95/469/2.90th HAG War Diary April 1917–May 1919, TNA file WO 95/397/1.70th Bde War Diary August 1916–February 1919, TNA file WO 95/323/1.62nd HAG War Diary September 1916–November 1918, TNA file WO 95/394/3.
From 29 June to 7 July 303rd SB's gunners worked on new gun positions outside the city near the Yser Canal. Moving its last repaired gun in on the night of 6 July a single enemy shell killed one corporal and wounded 19 other men. Following the trickle of casualties while in the city, 303rd SB only had enough gunners to man three of its guns. It had been planned to increase the battery's establishment to six guns, and on 8 July a section of 1 officer and 57 ORs joined from the recently-arrived 371st SB, but this reinforcement only brought the battery back up to its four-gun establishment. On 10 July the battery was targeted by a destructive hostile CB shoot, next day the battery office and quartermaster's stores were wrecked, and on 12/13 July the whole Ypres area was subjected to an all-night gas bombardment, these events causing further casualties, particularly among the reinforcements. 303rd SB's forward observation officers (FOOs) occasionally used 'Haslar House' in Sint-Jan as their OP: this was the concrete-filled shell of a large house, which was gradually chipped away by enemy shellfire to reveal the concrete core. On 20 July Maj Lockhart was promoted to command 51st HAG and Acting-Maj E.H. Huxford arrived from 49th SB to take over the battery. However, he was already suffering from the effects of gas, and was sent to hospital after three days. Acting-Capt E.G. Silverton took over temporary command, but he was killed when a shell hit the battery command post on 26 July, also wounding another officer and mortally wounding the battery command assistant. Captain A.J. Steward from 27th SB was appointed temporary OC, and as the dugouts in the canal bank were now under fire from super-heavy guns the command post was moved.Delap, pp. 13–6.Delap, Appendix.
Since 7 July the battery had been carrying out registration and aeroplane shoots and on 16 July the preliminary bombardment for the Ypres offensive had begun. This bombardment reached high intensity from 29 July, and 303rd SB's four guns fired 988 rounds on 30 July. The first phase of the offensive (the Battle of Pilckem Ridge) was launched at 03.50 on 31 July with a heavy barrage. The infantry went forward and by the time dawn broke at 04.40 they had broken through the German outpost line and advanced about up the shell-pitted slope of Pilckem Ridge. At 05.05 fresh companies leapfrogged through to continue the advance against the belt of fortified farms that protected the German second line. On XIX Corps' front some of these held out for up to 3 hours, but soon after 09.00 the British infantry had, as planned, gained a foothold across the Steenbeek stream. However, the advance of the reserve brigades to the third objective was badly coordinated and towards evening the Germans counter-attacked, pushing XIX Corps back to the Steenbeek and recapturing 'Wurst Farm'. That evening heavy rain set in and continued for three days, preventing air observation and turning the battlefield into a sea of mud. This made the forward movement of reinforcements, supplies, guns and ammunition extremely difficult and delayed further operations.Edmonds, 1917, Vol II, pp.133–9, 150–1, 157–8, 166–74, 183–4, Sketches 10, 15.Farndale, pp. 199–204, Maps 25–6.