#OnThisDay 1915 The 16th Bn Royal Irish Rifles left camp at Bordon for war. It was not quite the well oiled military journey they expected. They arrived at Southampton where nobody was expecting them so no ship was in port. There was no accommodation so the 1000 men had to sleep rough on the docks and eat their rations. The 600 man ship Empress Queen arrived and they were crammed on board. They arrived at Le Havre were once again, nobody was expecting them. There was no accommodation and they’d to sleep in tents. They were expected to move on but understandably argued about getting a hot meal first.
They eventually got a train to outside Amiens where once again, they were not expected and nobody had any information for them.
They were finally met by somebody with some relevant information and they at Villars Bocage on Amiens-Doullens Road for a few days.
Hardly the military precision one would expect from the army!
The Irish at War 