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91540 Gunner Andrew Moodie

Andrew Moodie was born on 26th February 1897, at Mid Myre in Cross parish, Sanday. He was the first child of farm servant James Moodie and Rachel Moodie (née Work). When Andrew left school, he started work as a ploughman.

Andrew attested under the Derby Scheme in December 1915, when he opted out of immediate service but stated that his preference was to serve in the Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA). Andrew received a day’s army pay and a grey armband with a red crown (to show that he had volunteered), before was posted into Section B Army Reserve to await his mobilization, or call up.

Andrew was called up for service on 29th May 1916 and reported to Fort George, near Inverness. His medical there on the 31st put him into Class A, so was sent to No. 3 Depot RGA in Plymouth to enrol as a gunner on 8th June. After Andrew completed his basic training, on 24th June he was posted to join No. 10 Company, RGA in Queenstown (now called Cobh), in county Cork, Ireland. Six other Orcadian RGA gunners arrived in Queenstown in the same draft as Andrew: George Bain, Andrew Harcus, John Harcus and Thomas Harcus from Westray, David Irvine from Papa Westray and William Groundwater from Sanday. An active Royal Navy patrol base, Queenstown had shore defence forts where the new gunners learned to load and fire heavy guns in an extended training spell. They posed together in Queenstown for a group photo taken on 19th September.

Although all seven of the Orcadian gunners crossed to France on 16th November, when they had passed through the RGA Base Depot in Le Havre only John, Thomas and Andrew Harcus stayed together to join the same front line unit a week later: 95 Siege Battery, RGA. William Groundwater was posted to 121 Heavy Battery, RGA. The other three gunners were all posted to Fourth Army Pool, Andrew Moodie and David Irvine on 22nd November, George Bain a week later. When they arrived in Fourth Army at the end of the 1916 Battles of the Somme, the British Army’s first major Great War offensive had showed that it needed many more heavy guns and the gunners for them.

On 9th February 1917 George Bain was posted to First Army Pool, while Andrew and David Irvine were posted to Third Army Pool. David left it to join 227 Siege Battery, RGA on the 27th, while Andrew joined 210 Siege Battery, RGA on 23rd March.

210 Siege Battery, RGA was equipped with four 6-inch (26 cwt) howitzers, which could fire a 100 pound (45 kg) shell (gas or high explosive) over 5 miles. Each howitzer had a crew of 10 gunners, in a battery establishment of 136 personnel, and was usually towed by a 4 wheel drive 3 ton lorry. When Andrew joined 210 Siege Battery, it was in position at Boisleux, 6 miles south of the city of Arras. Third Army there, and to the north the right wing of First Army, mainly the Canadian Corps, were preparing to launch the first major British offensive of 1917, the Battle of Arras.

Supporting British artillery for the opening attack at Arras comprised 1,854 field guns/howitzers and 962 heavy guns/howitzers, total 2,817 pieces, opposed by respectively 777 and 237 German, total 1,014 pieces. The 2-day intensive British preliminary barrage and heavy opening support fire on 9th April were relatively successful in clearing the German wire and subduing their artillery, allowing the infantry to advance several miles that day (maximum of 3½). The onset of bitterly cold and wet weather, along with difficulties in repairing the ploughed up ground taken, slowed attempts to get the guns forward to continue effective support fire, while the Germans were able to strengthen their defences with reserves of guns and infantry. 210 Battery moved forward 2 miles east to Hénin-sur-Cojeul, but the battle turned into a 2-month grim struggle with limited gains. British casualties totalled about 150,000 and included John Harcus, who was wounded by gun shot on 7th May and spent two months in Cambridge Hospital. Andrew was not physically hurt, but the experiences of his first major battle must have come as a shock to a 20-year old farm labourer.

The offensive at Arras was prolonged to divert German attention from mutinies and morale collapse in the French Army. While it slowly recovered, the British Army continued attacks on the Western Front in the difficult terrain at Ypres in Flanders. The opening phase in June captured Messines Ridge, thanks to the explosion of 19 huge mines and effective counter-battery support by most of 756 heavy guns that joined the massive artillery barrage. No Orcadian gunners died there, but significant infantry casualties to artillery “friendly fire” included several Anzac Orcadian dead.

The main Flanders offensive, officially the Third Battle of Ypres but now known as Passchendaele, lasted from 31st July to 10th November. Probably all seven of the Orcadian North Isles RGA gunner group saw action there and two were killed. Thomas and Andrew Harcus and five other gunners died when their 9.2-inch howitzer was destroyed on 3rd August, most likely hit by a German shell, but possibly by premature explosion of one of its own. When Andrew’s unit, 210 Siege Battery, provided artillery support at Poelcappelle in September and October, he again escaped injury.

210 Battery returned to Third Army and spent a couple of weeks near Peronne, before moving north to join a well concealed artillery and tank concentration for the last British Army offensive of 1917. The surprise unregistered artillery bombardment and tank attack at Cambrai on 20th November had good early gains, but within a week progress had “fizzled out”. A strong German counter-offensive on the 30th captured all four 210 Battery 6-inch howitzers at Villers Guislain, in a total of 58 guns that was the most Britain had ever lost in a single day. Andrew was one of the few in his battery to survive the disastrous action alive and not be captured. David Irvine of Papa Westray was killed in action near Peronne on 10th December, by continued heavy German artillery fire on Third Army.

210 Battery was rebuilt and the British Army spent the winter fortifying its lines against major German attacks expected in early1918, following the surrender of Russia and before significant American troops arrived in France to offset the German troops transferred west from Russia. Andrew was awarded two weeks leave to the UK in February, extended by three days, when he probably returned home to visit his family in Orkney. On 2nd March he rejoined 210 Battery, in position with III Corps on the extreme right of Fifth Army’s extended front.

The German Spring Offensive opened on 21st March, supported by the fire of 3,965 field and 2,508 heavy guns, total of 6,473, and 3,532 trench mortars along a 50 mile front held by British Third and Fifth Armies. While trench mortars bombarded the front lines, guns deluged the battle lines and rear areas with high explosive and gas shells. Andrew was one of the many gas victims and was admitted to hospital that day. He was lucky to again escape death or capture, as 210 Siege Battery lost two of its four guns destroyed in a fighting retreat back through the 1916 Somme battlefield.

Andrew’s recovery took several weeks, but on 15th April he joined another unit, 456 Siege Battery, RGA. Its 9.2-inch howitzers had a range of nearly 8 miles for HE 290 lb (130 kg) shells. When the Allies started the series of offensives in September that finished the war in 100 days, 456 Siege Battery was in Flanders with Second Army. When the Armistice took effect in November it was advancing with Fifth Army near the French-Belgian border. It had moved to Coulogne in Germany, when Andrew was granted leave on 31st December. His leave was extended for several months, so Andrew could help with the spring ploughing on Sanday.

On 14th May 1919 Andrew travelled to Kinross, where he was demobilized into the Army Reserve on 11th June.

From left: Andrew Moodie, William Groundwater, Thomas Harcus,

David Irvine, John Harcus, Andrew Harcus and George Bain.

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