An exceptional Great ‘War Western’ Front M.C. group of four awarded to Second Lieutenant W. D. Lauder, Leinster Regiment, later Royal Flying Corps, who commanded a company of men during the first daylight trench raid of the Great War

Military Cross, G.V.R., reverse inscribed ‘W. D. Lauder’; British War and Victory Medals, with M.I.D. oak leaf (2/Lieut., R.F.C.); French Croix de Guerre, nearly extremely fine (4) £500-700

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Michael McGoona Collection to the Leinster Regiment.

View
Collection

M.C. London Gazette 3 March 1917 ‘For conspicuous gallantry in action. He succeeded in establishing a strong post in the enemy’s front line. He held this post against enemy bomb attacks and captured several prisoners. He displayed great courage and initiative throughout.’

M.I.D. and Croix de Guerre unconfirmed.

Lieutenant William Delavedre Lauder, M.C. was commissioned into the 2nd Battalion, Leinster Regiment on 12 August 1915, transferring to the Royal Flying Corps as a Flying Officer on 27 March 1917. His M.C. was awarded for his part in the trench raid on Triangle Crater. The following detail is extracted from the regimental history ‘Early in January 1917, the 2nd Battalion was detailed to carry out a raid on a certain position of its front known as the Triangle Crater. These minor operations were particularly useful to the General Staff who as a result of the identifications made could follow the course of the enemy’s Divisions and in some cases divine his intentions.

As was usual when men were required for any affair more dangerous than daily routine, the volunteers were in excess of the requirements. From these a selection was made and special training started at Les Brebis, where a replica of the area to be raided had been constructed. Time and again the assault was practised. The enemy’s line in the part chosen for our attention resembled the apex of a triangle with its point in our direction. The plan was for two parties to seize and consolidate so much of each side which formed the apex and the work in and towards each other, destroying mine heads, trench mortars, bombing dug-outs and generally causing chaos in the enemy’s lines. An innovation of this raid was that it was to take place in daylight, an entirely new departure as hitherto, one of the raiding axioms was to attack at night.

The commander of the raid was Captain Frank Hitchcock, the party consisting of two platoons from “A” Company under Second Lieutenants McReady and Lauder and two platoons from “D” Company under Lieutenant Hemming and Second Lieutenant Hall. On the 10th January the raiders were in position according to time and without having been discovered. The advance started to schedule, zero hour being 4:30pm.

As the raid was to be a complete surprise, no artillery from our side joined in, although the guns fired heavily on other parts of the line and aeroplanes dropped smoke bombs right and left to bluff the Germans. This plan succeeded and practically the whole raiding party got over no man’s land without a shot being fired against it. A German trench was entered at once; but one platoon of “D” Company experienced great difficulty as the wire had not been properly cut. The platoons from “A” Company had now quite a good scrap for a time in which Corporal McNamara and Private O’Leary showed great dash. By 5:10pm a total of eight prisoners had been bagged, and Captain Hitchcock now gave the orders to withdraw, the raiders arriving back safely with their prisoners under an intense barrage from our guns. A huge bonfire had been lit behind our lines to serve as a beacon to guide the party on its return.

The whole affair was a tremendous success and the Divisional Commander was very complimentary in his remarks to the battalion. The casualties amounted to one officer and nineteen other ranks wounded, with two men missing and one killed. For their gallant performance Captain F.C. Hitchcock and Second Lieutenants W.D. Lauder and McReady were awarded the Military Cross, and the Military Medal was conferred upon Corporals McDermott and McNamara and Privates English and O’Leary.

Lauder is also mentioned a number of times in Stand To, A Diary of The Trenches, By Captain F.C. Hitchcock, M.C., this book includes a couple of photographs in which Lauder is present.