A FINE & EARLY 1914 STAR & BAR
"BATTLE OF MESSINESS" CASUALTY TRIO.

To: 6044. Pte. H. BENNETT. 11th HUSSARS.
(KILLED IN ACTION, 1st NOV 1914)

Herbert was from FOLKSTONE in Kent and enlisted in Ramsgate

The 11th HUSSARS were one of the earliest units into the field in France at the start of The Great War. Herbert Bennett entered theatre with "B" Squadron 11th HRS on 15th August 1914. This was only 11 days after the declaration of war on 4th August.

[HISTORY]
THE BATTLE OF MESSINESS. The region right in the north of France near Lille and the Belgian border was where the 11th fought their next historic battle. It was part of the BEFs struggle to hold the line at Ypres. Between October 19th and 23rd 1914 the 11th Hussars fought successfully in the Ploegsteert area, helping to stop the advance of 3 German cavalry divisions. Then Allenby ordered them to a small Belgian village called Messines which stood at the southern end of a ridge 2 miles south-east of Wystschaete. The Messines Ridge offered a good vantage point over the surrounding flat countryside and it was a barrier to the Germans wishing to pass south of Ypres.

The 11th were no longer mounted. They fought in the trenches just like the infantry. At the end of October the Germans brought in 6 new divisions to make an all-out assault on the British line between Messines and Gheluvelt. The British were heavily outnumbered. On the 30th Oct a heavy German bombardment of Messines stared at 8am. Capt Halliday (The Commanding Officer of Herbert Bennett) staggered into the HQ shelter to report the destruction of 'B' Squadron's trench and that half of them had been buried.
Sergeant T Frane had managed to rally the remainder, earning himself a DCM.

At 5pm the 11th were relieved by the 9th Lancers. The big German attack came the next day, Oct 31st at 4.30am. They drove back the 57th Rifles, an Indian regiment, but a counter-attack by the 57th, 5DG and 'C' Squadron under Captain Lakin regained lost ground. The town came under attack from infantry as well as artillery fire. One of the 11th's machine-guns proved very effective from a top window in one of the buildings. This was a dangerous place to be as houses all around were being destroyed. The shelling devastated regimental HQ where most of the senior officers, including Col Pitman were wounded.

The town was now a place where every man fought with rifle and bayonet. The streets were barricaded and holes hacked in walls to shoot through. Luckily the 11th Hussars prided themselves on more than it's fair share of marksmen, so their firing with the new Mark III Lee Enfield rifle was deadly. The battle lasted for two days until Nov 1st when the Germans succeeded in capturing Messines, but they had paid a heavy price. Herbert Bennett died when the Germans captured the town.

A fine & early Great War cavalry casualty to a man in the same unit which took part in the famous 'Charge of The Light Brigade' during the Crimean War on 25th October 1854.
£695