Remembering Private William Kenneth Hape—Killed in Action April 5, 1918

William Kenneth “Kenny” Hape was born at Ecum Secum, Guysborough County, on October 18, 1886, the oldest of Sarah Adeline (Pye) and John Henry Hape’s four children. Sometime prior to 1901, the family relocated to Six Mile Road, near Wallace, Cumberland County, where Henry established a farm and worked in the local fishery.

Pte. William Kenneth Hape (85th Battalion portrait)

On October 19, 1915, Kenny enlisted with the 85th Battalion at Halifax, NS. He spent the next 12 months training with the unit, commencing at Halifax Common during the winter of 1915-16. Throughout the late spring and summer of 1916, the unit underwent an intense program of instruction at Camp Aldershot, alongside three new battalions recruited to form the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade. In mid-October 1916, the four units crossed the North Atlantic to England, where their overseas arrival coincided with significant Canadian casualties incurred in fighting at the Somme, France, during the autumn months.

As a result, military authorities authorized a reinforcement draft of 800 soldiers—200 from each Highland Brigade battalion—destined for undermanned units at the front. Kenny was one of the 85th soldiers selected for immediate service in France. Assigned to the 13th Battalion (Royal Highlanders of Canada), he crossed the English Channel on December 5, 1916 and joined his new mates near Camblingneul, France, four days later.

The 13th Battalion was one of the Canadian Corps’ most experienced units, recruited by Montreal’s Royal Highlanders of Canada militia regiment, an affiliate of Scotland’s famous “Black Watch,” during the first weeks of the war. The battalion landed in France in early 1915 as part of the 1st Canadian Division, and served in Belgium for more than a year before relocating to the Somme in late summer 1916. Following Kenny’s arrival in early December 1916, the unit served in sectors near Arras throughout the winter of 1916-17, and took part in the Canadian Corps’ historic capture of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917.

Kenny, however, did not see action at Vimy. Admitted to hospital with laryngitis five days prior to the battle, he was evacuated to hospital at Étaples for medical treatment and finally rejoined his comrades near Château de la Haie, France, in mid-May. Kenny received his first major combat experience on the morning of August 15, 1917, when the 13th’s soldiers took part in the Canadian Corps’ successful attack on Hill 70, north of Lens, France. Shortly afterward, in a letter to his father, Kenny recalled the experience: “I never got a scratch on Hill 70…. Fritz tried to take it back, but we [gave] him too much [lead] and cold steel.”

Pte, Kenny Hape & his father Henry

In mid-October, the 13th broke camp and made its way northward, toward the Belgian frontier. Its soldiers arrived at Ypres, Belgium, on October 20 and marched to a nearby camp, where they completed final preparations to enter the line. In the early morning hours of October 26, the 13th’s personnel provided work parties in support of the first stage of the Canadian Corps’ attack on Passchendaele Ridge.

The unit retired from the line two days later, but returned for another brief tour early the following month. For several days, the soldiers assisted with preparations for the assault’s third stage before once again retiring to camp. In the aftermath of the November 6 attack, the 13th returned to the front trenches, where its members bore witness to the battle’s devastating effects:

“The ground was in terribly bad condition, shell holes, smashed up wire, etc., everywhere, and the mud in many cases was waist deep. A great number of dead bodies… were also lying around[,] there having been little chance of burying them on account of the heavy shelling.”

Once again, the battalion retired from the line prior to the launch of the assault’s final stage on November 10. As the 13th made its way back to France, its Passchendaele casualties were minimal, in comparison to the losses suffered by Canadian combat units—five Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs) and 23 “other ranks” (OR) were killed and eight OR later died of wounds, while two Officers, three NCOs and 43 OR were wounded during its three Belgian tours.

In mid-November, the 13th returned to sectors near Lens, France, where its soldiers spent the winter of 1917-18 on rotation. On February 28, 1918, Kenny found a few minutes to write another letter to his father Henry:

“I am in a dugout. I couldn’t go to sleep so I will try and drop a few lines…. I have been lucky since I struck France. There have been fellows wounded right along side of me and I never got a scratch. I had a bullet… cut my Puttee in two but it never brought blood—if I had… got it in the leg I would have been in Blighty [England] by this time…. There ain’t many of [my old colleagues] together now[,] they are leaving one by one[,] but I have an idea that I am going to see old Canada again.”

The letter was Henry’s last communication with his eldest son.

Throughout the following month, the 13th served a regular rotation in the line. The launch of a major German spring offensive near St. Quentin, France, on March 21, 1918 prompted military commanders to relocate all available units to the forward area, in anticipation of an attack on the Canadian sector. In the early hours of March 29, the 13th entered Brigade Support near Arras, its soldiers quartered in an extensive network of caves located beneath the town.

Throughout the following week, the soldiers “stood to” each morning in preparation for a German attack, but none materialized. On the morning of April 5, as personnel once again awaited orders to enter the line, “there was considerable shelling during the day around the tunnel entrances. Five casualties were sustained by the Battalion.” Later in the day, the unit received instructions to march out to Brigade Reserve that evening.

As the soldiers prepared to depart, “in the process of relief, while just outside the cave entrance, a large shell landed among a party of ‘C’ Company—killing [an Officer] and nine other ranks—and wounding 21 other ranks.” Private William Kenneth Hape was one of the nine OR killed in the explosion. He was laid to rest in Duisans British Cemetery, Étrun, eight kilometres north of Arras, France.

Pte. Kenny Hape's Memorial Plaque

Kenny’s story is one of 64 profiles contained in Bantry Publishing’s First World War Honour Roll of Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, Volume II: 1918 - 1937, available for purchase online at bantrypublishing.ca .

Remembering Private Benjamin Wallace Swaine—Accidentally Killed March 24, 1918

Benjamin Wallace “Ben” Swaine was born at Canso, NS on December 11, 1897, the fifth of Samuel Isaiah and Emily Myra “Emma” (McLellan) Swaine’s six children. All three of Ben’s older brothers enlisted for service with the Canadian Expeditionary Force. Edward (DOB March 29, 1894) was closest in age to Ben and joined the 85th Battalion at Halifax on November 3, 1915. Discharged as “medically unfit” on March 14, 1916, he returned home to Canso.

Pte. Benjamin Wallace Swaine

At the time of Edward’s enlistment, Ben’s two oldest brothers were already in uniform. Roland Judson “Jud” (DOB February 6, 1893) joined the 40th Battalion at Camp Aldershot, NS on August 10, 1915. Four days later, Arthur (DOB May 10, 1891), the oldest of the Swaine boys, enlisted with the same unit.

Following the 40th’s dissolution in England, the Swaine brothers parted ways. Jud was transferred to the 25th Battalion (Nova Scotia) and was killed in action on April 14, 1916 near St. Eloi, Belgium. Arthur was assigned to the 43rd Battalion (Cameron Highlanders of Canada) and was killed in action near Courcelette, France on September 21, 1916.

 

Arthur Swaine

Determined to follow in his older brothers’ footsteps, Ben enlisted with the 193rd Battalion at Canso, NS on March 31, 1916—only two weeks prior to Jud’s death. Two months later, Ben travelled to Camp Aldershot, where the 193rd and its Highland Brigade comrades—the 85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders), 185th (Cape Breton Highlanders) and 219th (Halifax, South Shore & Annapolis Valley) Battalions—underwent several months of intense military drill.

Pte. Roland Judson Swaine

During Ben’s final month of training at Aldershot, the Swaine family received word of Arthur’s death during the Battle of the Somme. On October 12, 1916, Ben departed Halifax with the Highland Brigade aboard SS Olympic and arrived at Liverpool, England six days later. The Brigade’s days, however, were numbered. Significant casualties incurred during the Canadian Corps’ autumn 1916 service at the Somme created a pressing need for reinforcements in the field. In response, military authorities assembled a draft of 800 reinforcements—200 from each Brigade unit—and dissolved two of its four battalions—the 193rd and 219th—before year’s end.

Young Ben Swaine was among the soldiers selected for the reinforcement draft. On December 5, 1916, he was assigned to the 42nd Battalion (Royal Highlanders of Canada) and crossed the English Channel to France the following day. After several weeks’s wait at the Canadian Base Depot, Le Havre, Ben was temporarily assigned to the 3rd Entrenching Battalion and arrived in its camp near Arras, France, on January 2, 1917.

For almost two months, Ben worked at various tasks in the forward area—laying communication cable, repairing roads, installing water lines, and constructing a prisoner of war compound. On February 25, he received a second transfer to the 85th Battalion (Nova Scotia Highlanders), which had arrived in France two weeks previously. Once again, a temporary assignment postponed his arrival. Ben spent one week with 4th Entrenching Battalion at Villers au Bois before finally reporting to the 85th’s camp at Château de la Haie on March 5.

A newly arrived unit with no combat experience, the 85th was attached to the 4th Division’s 11th Brigade as a “working unit” during the Canadian Corps’ impending attack on Vimy Ridge, France. As the April 9, 1917 assault unfolded, however, the Brigade’s two attacking battalions failed to dislodge German forces from the western slopes of Hill 145. Before day’s end, two of the 85th’s Companies—“C” (Halifax, South Shore & Annapolis Valley) and “D” (Cape Breton)—entered the jumping off trenches and advanced up the ridge’s western slope in the early evening, securing the strategic location before nightfall.

Before month’s end, military authorities assigned the 85th to the 4th Division’s 12th Brigade, where it served alongside the 38th (Ottawa), 72nd (Seaforth Highlanders of Canada) and 78th (Winnipeg Grenadiers) Battalions for the war’s duration. In mid-June, Ben was gassed during a series of attacks on a section of the German line known as “The Triangle” and was evacuated to hospital at Wimereux for treatment. Invalided to England on June 22, he spent almost one month at Southern General Hospital, Dudley Road, Birmingham, before he was discharged to the Canadian Convalescent Home, Wokingham on July 19. Early the following month, he reported to the Canadian Corps Depot, Bramshott, and awaited orders to return to the front.

Temporarily assigned to the 17th Reserve Battalion, Ben spent several months in its ranks before crossing to France on November 10. Two weeks later, he rejoining the 85th’s camp at Raimbert, northwest of Arras, as part of a reinforcement draft of 21 Officers and 221 “other rank” (OR) reinforcements. The battalion had recently returned from Belgium, having suffered its heaviest combat losses of the war during its Passchendaele tour. Over the ensuing weeks, the unit reorganized and rebuilt its strength, finally returning to the Avion Sector on December 18.

For almost two months, Ben and his comrades served a regular rotation in the line, enduring uncomfortable winter conditions but experiencing little in the way of combat. On February 10, 1918, the unit retired to billets at Petit Servins, where its soldiers enjoyed a lengthy break from the trenches. Four weeks later, the 85th marched to Bully Grenay and returned to support positions in the St. Émile sector on the evening of March 13.

The soldiers occupied support positions and provided work parties for several days before advancing to the front trenches, where trench maintenance tasks continued. Relieved after 10 days in the line, personnel briefly marched out to support positions before making their way into Divisional Reserve at Cité Colonne on March 24.

No doubt exhausted after their first tour in a month, the men immediately retired to billets. Ben found accommodations in the cellar of the Opera House at nearby Cité St. Pierre, and two other soldiers later joined him. While Ben had laid down to rest, his colleagues occupied their time with other tasks. According to a later report, at 10:50 a.m. March 24, Private John Rankin (878060) was cleaning the bolt of his rifle when the weapon “discharged in the direction of… Pte. Swaine.” Pte. Rankin later stated that he “did not know [Ben] was in the cellar until I found he had been shot by the bullet from my rifle.”

A second soldier, Private Ralph Autton [Aulton] (877268), was eating dinner in the cellar at the time. Pte. Autton later recalled: “We were lying down and… Private Rankin… was cleaning his gun about 20 feet away. I heard his bolt work and the shot fired immediately afterwards. Pte. Swaine tried to get up but fell back. I ran for assistance.”

Private Harold Philip Eady (700218), a stretcher bearer with “D” Company, responded to Autton’s call for help. Upon entering the cellar, he found Ben “with a bullet wound in his head. I saw I could be of no use, so I went for the Medical Officer. When we returned, Pte. Swaine was dead.” A subsequent Court of Inquiry concluded that Private Benjamin Wallace Swaine died “through careless handling, causing discharge of a rifle in the hands of… Pte. Rankin,” and recommended that he appear before a Field Court Martial.

Canso's First World War Monument

Ben was laid to rest in Aix-Noulette Communal Cemetery Extension, Pas de Calais, France. In the years following the war, Canadian communities erected monuments to the memory of their fallen First World War soldiers. The Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire (I.O.D.E.) spearheaded a campaign to erect such a structure in Canso. When the monument was officially unveiled on September 7, 1925, Emma Swaine, the mother of three soldiers whose names were inscribed on the monument’s plaque, “performed the unveiling ceremony.”

Ben’s story is one of 64 profiles contained in Bantry Publishing’s "First World War Honour Roll of Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, Volume II: 1918 - 1937," available for purchase online at bantrypublishing.ca .

Remembering Private William Robertson Spears—KIA March 18, 1918

William Robertson Spears was born at Spanish Ship Bay, Guysborough County on May 18, 1898, the fifth of Nelson and Mary Ann “Annie” (Howlett) Spears’ eight children. William went to work at sea at an early age, an occupation that likely took him on occasion to Halifax. As the bustling city very much involved in the overseas war effort, William may have been caught up in the excitement. On August 2, 1915, he commenced training with the 63rd Regiment (Halifax Rifles), a local militia unit, on McNab’s Island and formally attested for overseas service with the Canadian Expeditionary Force on October 28.

Pte. William Robertson Spears' Headstone

Within months of his attestation, however, health problems led to William’s admission to military hospital, where doctors initially diagnosed him with “tuberculosis, chest walls.” A closer examination  detected a “deformity of [the] chest wall” that, in the opinion of military officials, prevented William from “carry[ing] anything on [his] shoulder.” As a result, on April 15, 1916, William was discharged as “medically unfit.”

While William briefly returned to civilian life, he was determined to serve overseas. On October 3, 1916, he joined the 246th Battalion’s ranks and spent the winter of 1916-17 training in Halifax. On May 31, 1917, he departed for overseas as part of a reinforcement draft of 13 Officers and  230 “other ranks” (OR). Upon arriving in England, William was assigned to the 17th Reserve Battalion, the unit tasked with providing reinforcements for Nova Scotia’s 25th and 85th Battalions. On August 27, William proceed to France for service with the 85th Battalion.

While William joined his new unit in the forward area in mid-September, for unexplained reasons, he returned to the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Centre (CCRC) before month’s end. During his absence, the 85th followed the Canadian Corps to Belgium, where it participated in the second stage of the attack on Passchendaele Ridge. On November 7, William rejoined the 85th’s ranks near Caëstre, France, as the battalion rebuilt its ranks following significant combat losses during its Passchendaele tour.

William spent the winter of 1917-18 with the 85th in sectors near Lens, enduring conditions that varied from “snowing and strong wind” to “thawing fast and… becoming very muddy.” During late February and early March 1918, the unit enjoyed a lengthy break from the line before returning to support positions near St. Émile on the night of March 13. For several days, the situation in the sector was quiet as soldiers provided work parties for trench maintenance.

The 85th’s war diary entry for March 18, 1918 makes no reference to loss of personnel: “Fine Relieved 38th CI [Canadian Infantry] Battalion in front line left sub-sector St. Émile sector.” A monthly casualty list included in the diary’s appendix, however, tells a different story. According to its contents, four OR were wounded by artillery fire, while a fifth was “injured in the back by falling brick” when a shell struck a section of the 85th’s trench. The document also reported one March 18 fatality—Private William Robertson Spears, most likely killed in the same artillery barrage that wounded his comrades. William was laid to rest in Loos British Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France.

Loos British Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France

William’s story is one of 64 profiles contained in Bantry Publishing’s First World War Honour Roll of Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, Volume II: 1918 - 1937, available for purchase online at bantrypublishing.ca .