Battle of Ginchy

The Battle of Ginchy was part of the 1916 Somme Offensive, which was the second greatest a military engagement of the Great War. It was fought between the 16th Irish Division, under General Hickie, and the German Imperial Army’s 19th Bavarian Infantry Division, led by Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria, in northern France.

The British attack on the town of Ginchy began at 16:50 hours on September 9, 1916. It had been preceded by artillery barrage, but, as most of it fell short, some German fortifications were left intact. Although many Irish got mowed down by enemy artillery and machine gun fire, they fought ferociously as they attacked the German positions. After two hours of vicious fighting, the troops of the 16th Division succeeded in driving the Bavarian Division out of Ginchy.

Weapons used by opposing forces

British: Lee-Enfield bolt-action rifle; Mill bomb hand grenade; Vickers machine gun; QF 18-pounder and BL 60-punder field guns.
Germans: Gewehr 98 bolt-action rifle; stick hand grenade; MG 08 machine gun; 7.78 cm Leichter Minenwerfer trench mortar; 7.7 cm FK 96/16 and 10cm K 14 field guns, Krupp 10.5 cm FH howitzer.