Silver War Badge, number 407289 issued to Pte Charles William Henry Andrews, 1/6th and 1/5th Royal Warwickshire Regiment, wounded in action 1 July 1916
Silver War Badge, remains of old enamelling and conversion from brooch fastening to stickpin.
Private Andrews served in the 1/6th and 5th Battalions, Royal Warwickshire Regiment. These were Territorial Force formations. Pte Andrews was a pre-war Territorial, having attested for the Territorial Force at Birmingham on 20 February 1914 and been given the regimental number 2199 upon appointment to the 6th Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment. His 'apparent age' on attestation was 18 years 5 months and he stood 5' 10" tall with a 36" chest measurement and physical development described as 'good'. Upon the outbreak of war he was embodied for service with the 1/6th Battalion on 5 August 1914. He gave his address as 9 Clark Street, Ladywood, Birmingham.
He entered the France and Flanders theatre on 22 March 1915 and was accordingly entitled to the 1914-15 Star. The 1/6th battalion was in Brigadier-General B.C. Dent’s 143rd Brigade of the 48th (south Midland) Division. Pte Andrews served with his battalion on the Somme, when on 1 July 1916 the battalion (along with the sister 1/8th) was attached to the 4th Division for the attack on the German front line, including the position known as the Heidenkopf Redoubt or Quadrilateral. In this action the battalion was a support battalion, following up behind the attack of the 1/8th Royal Warwickshires.
The 4th, 29th, 31st, and 48th Divisions formed part of VIII Corps under Lt-General Hunter-Weston and occupied the stretch of the British line towards the northern end of the Somme fighting front. The northern end of the corps sector was roughly opposite the German fortified village of Serre, the centre being opposite Beaumont-Hamel (also heavily fortified), and the southern end being roughly opposite the village of Beaucourt. The Corps had the task of forming a defensive flank at and including Serre (the job of 31st Division at the northern end of the attacking front), whilst the 4th and 29th Divisions (in the centre and south respectively) would cross the Beaumont-Hamel valley and Beaucourt spur, take the German intermediate line (Munich trench) and then press on to their portion of the German second line, Puisieux trench, which ran from Grandcourt to Puisieux. The 4th Division, being in the centre of the attacking front, deployed the loaned units of 143rd (the 1/8th Royal Warwickshire leading the assault) to their left front, with units of the 11th Brigade to the centre (1st Rifle Brigade) and right (1st East Lancashire Regiment) of the divisional front.
The assaulting battalions immediately ahead of the 1/6th Royal Warwickshire (1/8th Royal Warwickshire, and to their right, the 1st Rifle Brigade) advanced promptly at 7.30am, but were immediately met by machine gun and artillery fire. This was slightly reduced in intensity by the effect of the swell of the Redan Ridge in relation to the right company of the 1/8th Warwickshires and the left company of the 1st Rifle Brigade, and these units were able to penetrate into the Heidenkopf/Quadrilateral (a German defensive position on the Serre-Mailly road forming a salient in the German line and which had been partially blown by the German at the outset of the attack) , cross the German front line and take part of the support trench. The left company of the 1/8th was not so fortunate, however, being exposed to heavy machine-gun fire from the direction of Serre, and after overrunning the front-line trench only managed to get small parties as far as the support trench.
At 7.40am the 1/6th Royal Warwickshires left the assembly trenches, ten minutes behind the 1/8th Royal Warwickshires. Passing over the Quadrilateral, which had been overrun by the 1/8th, it pressed on to the German front line and made touch on the right with the 1st Rifle Brigade and 1st Somerset Light Infantry, although the left companies, again coming under heavy fire from machine guns in front of Serre, were unable to make progress. The battalion therefore assisted the 1/8th in consolidating the position. The war diary comments “...heavy casualties – about 80 before crossing our own lines- mingled with 1/8th R War R immediately on reaching German lines – worked up as far as third line – first and second wave battalions on the right had advanced no further – 31st Division on left also hung up - certain units reaching SERRE – enemy's opposition a well-distributed barrage and very severe cross machine gun fire – 12th Inf Bde followed but were unable to advance further than line held by 11th Inf Bde.
The one officer unhit (2/LT J.G. Cooper) returned with a message to Brigade H.Q. between 11 and 12 a.m. The line, which was being consolidated, was severely pressed on the flanks and forced to withdraw to the Quadrilateral from where the few remaining men were sent back to our lines about 7 p.m. All that could be collected were taken back to MAILLY at midnight.”
In this action the battalion suffered an estimated 436 casualties, 120 killed and missing and 316 wounded, including the commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel W.H. Franklin. The Heidenkopf/Quadrilateral position was largely given up before dawn the following morning in consideration of the absence of reserves to consolidate the position, given the 4th Division's 4,700 casualties.
Pte Andrews was shown on his service record as being wounded in action on 2 July 1916, however this is almost certainly a mistake for 1 July, as on 2 July the battalion is stated by the war diary to have been in billets at Mailly, “gradually assembling – until total of 176 reached”. Subsequently the battalion was sent to Couin. He suffered a gun shot wound (army term for any penetrating wound) to his left leg (thigh) and arm, his leg later being amputated. He was evacuated home from the France and Flanders theatre on 4/5 July 1916.
Record MH106/1533 from the MH106 series (probably, going by the attribution of the records immediately following and proceeding, and the wider sequence 1525-1584 within which it fits, from the County of Middlesex War Hospital at Napsbury) confirms that 20 year-old 2199 Pte W.H. Andrews of the 1/6th Royal Warwickshire Regiment was under their care for a Gunshot wound IX (1) chest, non-penetrating, from 5 July until transferred to furlough on 29 August 1916. The record confirms that at the time of admission he had accrued 2 years 5 months service, of which he had spent 1 year 3 months with the Field Force. The record also confirmed that he was a member of the Church of England.
As Private 2199 Andrews, C W H, Royal Warwickshire Regiment, he was Listed as "Wounded" on the Casualty List issued by the War Office from 21st August 1916. He was thereby entitled to wear a "Wound Stripe" as authorised under Army Order 204 of 6th July 1916, the terms of this award being met by naming in this list. This list also gave his Resided Place as 'Birmingham'. He was later placed on the strength of the 2/5th Royal Warwickshire Regiment.
Subsequently, in March 1917 he was issued the new six-digit regimental number 203476, and it was under this number that his Silver War Badge, number 407289, was issued; he received his Badge on 20 April 1918.
He was discharged, aged 21, on 20 March 1918 under paragraph 392 xvi of King's Regulations and Paragraph 2(b) of Army Order 265/17. The Silver War Badge roll confirms that his discharge was due to wounds. He was pensioned at 27/6 weekly for two months in the first instance. His address at the time was 9 Clark Street, Ladywood, Birmingham (the same as his address on attestation - also the address of his next of kin, his father C Andrews). He also received the King's Certificate (no.860), confirming receipt on 6 June 1918.
He received his 1914-15 Star on 22 May 1921, and his British War Medal and Victory Medal some time after August 1920.
