Great War history
Although Audruicq had been in an area occupied by the British Expeditionary Force since its move to Flanders in October 1914, it only began to assume a significant role in early 1916. The vast increases in ammunition supply to the much-expanding BEF led to the establishment of several new ammunition depots, with those at Quevilly (near Rouen) and Audruicq being set up at that time. A temporary Royal Engineers materials depot had already been in use at Audruicq, when a decision was taken to develop the site in December 1915.
The plan was for Audruicq to have capacity for 20,000 tons of ammunition and to be the “main issuing depot (North)”: that is, it would relieve pressure on Boulogne, for Audruicq would be capable of loading ammunition supply trains which would go on to the divisional railheads, a task which had hitherto fallen on Boulogne. It would be able to despatch 250 loaded railway trucks daily, amounting to 2,500 tons per day going to the fighting units. It was envisaged that the new depot would normally be manned by 14 officers, 150 men of the Army Ordnance Corps and 500 men of the Army Service Corps Labour Companies. At times of peak workload this could be expanded by another 10 officers and 800 men of the Army Service Corps Labour Companies. It was decided that as no anti-aircraft guns were available it would be pointless asking for any of that protection, and it was assumed that the Royal Flying Corps would assume air defence of the depot.
Once it was operational, the Audruicq depot was continually expanded and its capacity increased. It became known as Number 10 Ordnance Depot.
On 4 February 1916, a Railway Troops Depot was established at Audruicq for collecting and distributing personnel for four new Railway Construction Companies that had recently been authorised. It remained working at the site until relocating to Saint-Omer on 20 July 1916.
In March 1916, an Army Service Corps workshop unit was established at Audruicq as part of the Railway Store Park. It would repair lorries, cars and cycles belonging to the Directorate of Railways.
The depot had its fair share of incident:
25 April 1916: major accident
Accidental deaths in Audruicq explosion 25 April 1916
19-20 July 1916: air raid
An enemy air raid during the night 19-20 July 1916, despite being carried out by just four aircraft, dropping a total 1700 pounds of bombs, virtually obliterated the depot. The bomb explosions triggered more, and caused enormous destruction by fire. Corrugated iron sheds which were the principal storage areas were all destroyed, save for a few containing heavy ammunition, which had been provided with additional overhead cover.
Considering the extent of the damage, the loss of life was mercifully small. A number of men of 118th Railway Company of the Royal Engineers were taken to 35th General Hospital at Calais. Sapper George Wilkinson was dead on arrival and his comrades Sappers 138558 Adams, Baldwin, Ford, Giles, and Lucas all succumbed to their wounds. They are buried together in Calais Southern Cemetery (Plot E row 2 except Lucas who lies in Row 3).
An enquiry into the destruction and particularly how fire had spread led to a recommendation for a more dispersed re-layout of the area when it was reconstructed, and a general recommendation that such a depot should have a maximum capacity of 35,000 tons of ammunition. Reconstruction on an expended site began right away, and the perimeter of the new site extended to 4.5 miles in length. The manpower on site was also increased, to 11 officers, 317 skilled ornance men and about 1000 labourers. The site was more or less completed by November 1916.
On 9 April 1917 an enemy aircraft dropped two bombs onto the site, but their fragments were stopped by sandbag traverses.
3-4 September 1917: air raid
9 September 1917: air raid
During this raid, personnel of 9th Ambulance Train, which was garaged at Audruicq for a few days of repairs, were called upon to act as stretcher bearers and to collect the dead. During the days, they had been helping to erect Nissen huts.
The depot continued to expand (in September 1917, for example, it added four sheds (each 100 x 30 feet) for storing 4.5-inch howitzer shells) but its standard capacity was set at 16,000 tons of boxed ammunition, 3,500 tons of trench munitions, 12,000 tons of heavy ammunition, 1,500 tons of small arms ammunition, and 2,000 tons of miscellaneous other munitions. It did exceed this standard during the winter 1917-18 and at one time 42,000 tons were present. It handled four incoming and six outgoing trainloads per day.
A camp was also established in the area, housing men who were employed at the depot but also, it appears, other units that were on the move. A large number of units, many of the Railway Operating Division of the Royal Engineers and of the Labour Corps, were based at Audruicq at some point in their history.
Visiting Audruicq today
Audruicq is an unremarkable but pleasant little place today, with all the shops, banks, post office, cafes and bars that are typical of northern France. Of the ammunition depot in the fields south and southeast of the centre, or the camps nearby, there is, as far as I can tell, no trace at all. There are housing estates along the road to Ostove.
Audruicq Churchyard and Extension contains the graves of six officers and men of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps killed on 23 May 1940, and a single Great War grave, that of Chaplain 4th Class, Rev. Timothy Carey. He was a Jesuit priest, born in Mitchelstown in County Cork and aged 41 when he died of broncho-pneumonia on 27 February 1919. Carey had been serving with the army since 1916.
Audruicq’s own war memorial is situated on Place du General de Gaulle (formerly the Place des Maronniers). It was inaugurated in 1921 and lists 113 local inhabitants who lost their lives in the Great War.