The 47th Division's attack at High Wood, 15 September 1916 In late July 1916 THE 1/6th marched south to begin training to enter the ongoing Somme offensive. The battalion practised on positions marked out by flags, and adopted identification stripes on their arms: A Company blue, B Co green, C Co red and D Co yellow.[37][38] On 15 September, 47th Division attacked High Wood to cover the left flank of the tank-led attack of the adjacent divisions on Flers. The first objective for 140 Bde was a line clear of High Wood (the Switch Line), the second was the Starfish Line on the forward slope, after which 1/6th Londons would pass through to take the Flers Line. The leading waves were engaged in heavy fighting and the brigade got to the Starfish Line, after which 1/6th pressed on. The battalion suffered badly from enfilade machine-gun fire from the direction of High Wood (which had still not been cleared), when 'whole waves of men were mown down in line'. Although a few men reached the Flers Line it could not be held, and the remaining two officers and 100 men (including 50 who came up from the transport lines) consolidated a position known as the Cough Drop, a group of German trenches in a valley west of Flers, though their position was unknown to headquarters. The following day a follow-up attack linked up with the 1/6th holding out in the Cough Drop, and at dawn on 18 September the battalion contributed to a mixed force that succeeded in occupying the Flers Line.

Michael Healey