Ypres 1914
The fight for Geluveld Château
31st October 1914
Memorial Cross at Geluveld
On the northern side of the Menin Road were the remaining company of the Royal Welch, the South Wales Borderers and what was left of the 1st Bn Scots Guards. Outnumbered almost four to one they held the line in front of the château, and its grounds.
As the morning wore on and things became more and more desperate on their right flank it was clear, that with the retirement of the main body of the Royal Welch and the trenches of the SWB being blown in by shelling, that a retirement into the grounds was going to be necessary. At least the walls offered some protection from fire.
It seemed certain that the village had been lost, the British line had been broken and that Germans were forcing their way into the gap. The two Divisional Commanders of 1st and 2nd Division (Major Generals Lomax and Munro) had both concluded earlier in the day that reinforcing the line with the 2nd Division’s reserves was pointless. The decision was taken that in the event of a complete breakthrough they would be better employed taking the Germans in the flank from the north as they advanced up the Menin Road.
That possibility had now come to reality.
Orders were sent out from Divisional Headquarters at Hooge Château for the available three companies of the 2nd Bn Worcestershire Regiment :
“…advance without delay and deliver a counter-attack with the utmost vigour against the enemy who was in possession of Gheluvelt, and to re-establish our line there”.
Hooge Château Shelled
At this critical moment of the battle Major General Monro was joined by Lomax at their joint headquarters in Hooge Château (which General Haig had vacated). They gathered their staffs together to further their plans for the defence of the line.
At 1315 hours German artillery started shelling the area of the château scoring a couple of direct hits, one of which was on the conference room.
Both generals were injured (Lomax dying a few months later) as were a number of important members of their staffs.
A number of them are buried in Ypres Town Cemetery Extension.
At his new headquarters at White Château, near Hellfire Corner (the main roundabout on the N8 as you leave Ieper) General Haig was visited by Field Marshal Sir John French. With the latest news arriving from Hooge the day appeared to have turned into a complete disaster.
The only reinforcements available (engineers from the field companies) had been sent up to the front. The French were on their way but it seemed doubtful that the British could hold until their arrival.