Aylmer Haldane

Brigade of the Old Army 1914 Aylmer Haldane

The author of this book was a Brigadier-General in 1914, commanding the 10th Infantry Brigade (1st R Warwicks, 2nd Seaforth H, 1st R Irish Fusiliers and 2nd R Dublin Fusiliers) of the 4th Division; he ended up as a corps commander. The 4th Division formed the second wave of the BEF, arriving in France on 22nd August 1914 in time to join in the retreat from Mons. This account, though not published until after the war, was written at the front in the Spring of 1915 and the author has allowed it to stand practically as it was written at the time, thus providing a valuable and immediate contribution to the fighting in those early days. He covers Le Cateau, the retreat, the subsequent advance to the Aisne and the move to Flanders. In mid-November 1914 Haldane handed over command of 10th Brigade at 'Plugstreet' on promotion to command of the 3rd Division at Ypres, where its commander, Maj Gen E. Hamilton, had been killed. During the retreat from Mons the COs of 1st R Warwicks and 2nd RDF attempted to negotiate the surrender of their battalions at St Quentin, a move that was frustrated by the actions of Major Tom Bridges. Both COs were courtmartialled and cashiered, but Haldane makes no mention of the incident.