The Liberation of Le Quesnoy: The New Zealand War Memorial Museum
A former Whanganui boy who was at the front line of the liberation of Le Quesnoy exactly 100 years ago is helping bring light to the significant moment in New Zealand's military history.
On November 4, 1918, in the last week of World War I, Kiwi soldiers freed the small French town from German occupation.
Colonel Leonard Handforth Jardine -- from Whanganui to the front line in World War I
And Colonel Leonard Handforth Jardine - a former Wanganui Collegiate School student - was one of the first soldiers to set foot in the town.
Le Quesnoy, pronounced Ken-Waah and situated in Northern France, had been occupied by the Germans for more than four years and life had been miserable for the inhabitants.
The New Zealand Division made it their mission to return the town to French control and oust the Germans.
In the early hours of November 4, Jardine was on the border of Le Quesnoy, waiting for the order to attack, when there was artillery fire.
Whanganui residents attend the blessing of the NZ Rifle Brigade memorial seat
Whanganui's New Zealand Rifle Brigade memorial seat located on Virginia Rd and Great North Rd. Photo / supplied
A sheet of flame rushed skywards behind Jardine and his troops, leaving the New Zealand squad considerably under strength.
Jardine's NZ Rifle Brigade had been given the stiff task to attack the left side of Le Quesnoy, where they had to clear up a strongly held railway triangle intersection.
The railway had an "evil reputation" and was defended by Germans with numerous machine-guns.
Jardine and his men made the advance, only to be confronted with the machine-guns opening fire on the leading line. Within the first few minutes, the New Zealanders lost a third of their strength.
A section of the remaining force, which included Jardine, took out two troublesome machine-gun posts.
New Zealand Rifle Brigade. Photo / supplied
This short advance for Jardine's men was accomplished with great difficulty and many casualties.
But the stage was set for the opening of the second phase of the battle which was to get into Le Quesnoy and deal with German resistance.
By 9.30am, four hours after the opening of the battle, Le Quesnoy was surrounded by New Zealand troops.
Winiata Tapsell was recorded getting across using a timber plank and shooting one of the defenders but was forced back. Photo / supplied
However, attempts to get close was met with heavy machine-gun and sniper fire coming from the ramparts they faced.
Lieutenant Leslie Denniston managed to get a four-man patrol briefly across the town's moat before being driven back.
He tried again with a stronger force but these riflemen were pinned down and unable to move for the rest of the day.
Another section of Jardine's men managed to seize a road bridge over the railway line and their engineers quickly cleared it of mines placed by the enemy. But German machine-gun fire again stopped any further advances.
A separate section secured the crossroads and edged forward across the causeway leading to the Valenciennes Gate - one of three possible gates that could be used for entry into the town.
The beautifully kept war cemetery at Le Quesnoy where Kiwi troops who fell in the battle now lie.
A German captured by New Zealand troops was sent into the town by Jardine with a demand for surrender, but this was refused.
By this time Jardine considered it possible to rush the Valenciennes Gate because the bridge leading to it was found to be intact.
Jardine got his men to concentrate on the crossroads in front of the gate for a attack but the enemy anticipated this and blew up the nearest span to the gate.
About 2pm, Maori soldier Winiata Tapsell was recorded as the first man across the bridge using a timber plank, but then was forced back.
After this attempt, the German machine-guns were fired from around the Valenciennes Gate but New Zealand continued to fight back and their guns began to become more accurate.
Jardine's men worked their way closer towards where the plank was left, before he gave the order to attack - and his riflemen finally set foot within the walls of Le Quesnoy.
Despite this, the first man recorded to go over the wall via the one and only ladder at Le Quesnoy was Leslie Averill, and his story has become the stuff of legend. Armed with his revolver, Averill was believed to have climbed to the top, fired pistol shots at some retreating Germans, and the rest of the New Zealand squad followed.
But the fact Averill felt safe enough to head up the ladder indicated there was no hand-to-hand combat to be expected.
As Averill's men made their way up the ladder, Le Quesnoy was already secured by Jardine's men via the Valenciennes Gate.
The day-long battle cost the New Zealand Rifle Brigade the lives of six officers and 37 soldiers. Another 13 officers and 238 soldiers were wounded. Jardine's men accounted for 44 per cent of those causalities.
The French town of Le Quesnoy, liberated by NZ soldiers exactly 100 years ago
He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) medal for conspicuous gallantry and resource.
The former Whanganui boy also fought at Gallipoli, where he was wounded three times and survived the tragic battle of Chunuk Bair. He served again in World War II, and later his sons and grandsons went on to Collegiate.
Relatives of Jardine are in Le Quesnoy this weekend for the 100-year anniversary celebrations of the town's liberation.
