WW1/Long Service GC 1914 casualty Old Contemptible medal group Loyal North Lancs

WW1 & LSGC Old Contemptible medal group to Carrington Militia/Special Reservist 1/Loyal North Lancashire Wounded 1914. Group consisting of a British War Medal and Victory Medal with a fair degree of patination and some surface wear, both impressed (different styles) to 508 PTE. H. CARRINGTON. L.N.LAN.R., on replacement ribbons, and a George V Army Long Service & Good Conduct Medal on Regular Army suspender, impressed to 3848969 PTE.H. CARRINGTON. LOYAL R., on period silk ribbon (the service number on the LSGC is impressed quite faintly, especially the initial '38') 508 Pte Herbert Carrington, 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, wounded in action October 1914. Later awarded the LSGC (Loyal Regiment) Herbert Carrington, an Old Contemptible, served with the 1st Battalion, the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment under the regimental number 508. It seems very likely that he was a former Militia man, enlisting some time between 1 August 1905[1] and 30 January 1907[2] who later transferred to the Special Reserve, (3rd Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment), keeping his old Militia number. He most probably enlisted in the Special Reserve on 26 July 1908 at Conway (Conwy), no doubt at the battalions annual training camp (the enlistment date and place of 352 Pte Joseph Boyd, 778 Pte Charles Bligh and 856 Pte Henry Carr[3], all three also ex-Militia) and probably re-engaged circa 1911/12. After attending his annual training obligation in successive years (a requirement for his Special Reservists pay), he would have been mobilised on 8 August 1914 and ordered to report to the barracks at Preston. After some further training he would have been posted to the 1st Battalion, entering the France theatre of war on 20 September 1914, and thus being entitled to the 1914 Star. This would probably have made him part of the 5th or 6th Reinforcement (the 3rd and 4th Reinforcements arrived whilst the battalion was in billets at Pargnan on the Aisne on the night of 20/21 September, which would have been too quick for Pte Carringtons Reinforcement draft to travel up to the front from the port of disembarkation). At the beginning of October the battalion was in the line at Troyon (where it has been since mid-September), alternating with time in bivouack. It received the 6th Reinforcement, of 152 NCOs and men, at 1.30am on 9 October 1914, Pte Carrington very probably among them. This brought the battalion strength up to 24 officers and 985 other ranks. The War Diary contains the following comments, which givi some interesting detail of the supply and replenishment of the battalion whilst in the trenches at Troyon. System of Supplies & Mails. Every night the cooker limbers & one wagon arrive from refilling point under QrMr with supplies & clothing and mails. They are offloaded and at once issued to Coys. If latter are in the trenches these are kept until about 3am & then taken up. The Transport move off roughly about one hour after arrival back to refilling point. All other 1st Line & Train are well back at BOURG & VILLIERS but usually change their place daily. The mails are sorted at once by the adjutant (Censor officer) & the mens distributed out to Companies. The Cookers ovens, Tool carts & Maltese cart remain up at H.Qrs. The mails have been most regular & the supplies both of food & clothing have been excellent. Equipment All old equipment & that found on the battlefield has been collected daily & sent down in the supply wagons for use I presume of the New Army. Life of the Battalion When in the trenches all the ranks live up there for 48 hours & food sent up to them; as already described. When relieved by the next Battalion, our Batt become [sic] into Reserve in small dugouts all along underneath the banks. Men have to keep in as much as possible & when enemy aeroplanes pass over not one man is seen. Signals are prepared. There is a difficulty with regard to sanitation the ground is so limited. We have a Sanitary Squad 1 NCO and 2 men per Company whose business was to dig Latrine & Refuse pits solely for the Battalion. The Companies are responsible for the cleanliness of their lines. The latter part of the battalions stay on the Aisne was presumably carried out along these lines, interspersed with daily bombardments, enemy aeroplane incursions and work improving the bivouacs and digging communication trenches, etc. The War Diary also comments on the STAR LIGHTS pistol cartridge with which the battalion had been issued (The[y] fire at 45 degrees and show up the enemys line or advance very satisfactorily) and the usefulness of the rifle grenade [Rifle Grenade No2 Mk I] has proved very valuable too. It ranges from 40x-170x & can be fired in any position. The battalions time on the Aisne, however, was coming to an end; after repulsing two further attacks and taking further casualties, at 9pm on 15 October the French arrived to take over the line. In view of the above and his subsequent wounding, Pte Carrington would have been entitled to the August-November 1914 clasp to the Star (for those who served under fire in the France and Flanders theatre between the qualifying dates) but there is no evidence that he ever applied for this. The day of 16 October was the first real rest from the noise of gunfire that the battalion had had since 23 August. The next several days were spent travelling via Fismes and Amiens to Etaples and then on the 18th via Boulogne and Calais to Cassel, arriving and detraining on the 19th. From there the 1st LNL marched as the leading battalion of the main body of the 1st Division towards Ypres, taking up role as I Corps Reserve at Boesinghe west of Ypres on the 21st. From there they were sent to St Jean on 22 October to support the 2nd Division and then committed to the attack at Pilckem on the 23rd, as narrated below. Pte Carrington was Listed as "Wounded" on the Casualty List issued by the War Office from the date 24th November 1914, thereby being subsequently entitled to wear a "Wound Stripe" as authorised under Army Order 204 of 6th July 1916 (the terms of this award being met by his naming in this list). Given a typical 1 month lag between a man being wounded and his name appearing on the relevant List, we can assume he was wounded at Ypres, some time in late October 1914. For example, 352 Pte Boyd, reported Missing in the War Office list for 23 November 1914, was later determined to have died on or about 31 October 1914. Pte Carrington may well have been wounded in the action at Bixschoote for which the following Special Order of 26 October 1914 (transcript as published in the Daily Telegraph) was given: In the action of Oct.23, 1914, the 2nd Infantry Brigade was allotted the task of reinforcing the 1st Infantry Brigade, and re-taking the trenches along the Bixsencote-Lange-march[sic] road, which had been occupied by the enemy. In spite of the stubborn resistance offered by the German troops, the object of the engagement was accomplished, but not without many casualties to the Brigade. By nightfall the trenches previously captured by the Germans had been reoccupied, about 500 prisoners captured, and fully 1,500 German dead were lying out in front of our trenches. The Brigadier-General congratulates the 1st L.N. Lancashire Regiment, Northamptonshire Regiment, and the 2nd Kings Royal Rifle Corps, but desires specially to commend the fine soldier-like spirit of the 1st L.N. Lancashire Regiment, which, advancing steadily under heavy shell and rifle fire, aided by its machine-guns, was enabled to form up within a comparatively short distance of the enemys trenches. Fixing bayonets, the Battalion then charged, carried the trenches and occupied them, and to them must be allotted the majority of the prisoners captured. The Brigadier-General congratulates himself on having in his Brigade a battalion which, after marching the whole of the previous night without rest or food, was able to maintain its splendid record in the past, by the determination and self-sacrifice displayed in the action. As 508 Pte Carrings he was recorded at the 3rd Casualty Clearing Station, newly moved to Hazebrouck[4], on 1 November 1914, having been admitted with a gun shot wound to the legs. Fellow Loyal North Lancs men Pte 2213 McMahon (GSW thigh) and Sgt 7927 Whittaker (GSW right leg) were similarly hospitalised, the admissions and discharge register seeming to suggest that the group or men listed on that page of the register was sent to base on 1 November, having been possibly admitted a few days beforehand (other men on the facing page of the register were recorded as having died on dates from 29 October onward, which may be indicative of the approximate date of admission). The Ypres salient in 1914 has been well-named the graveyard of the pre-War British Army and by 8 November 1914 the battalion had been reduced to 1 officer and 90 other ranks. It is not known when Pte Carrington rejoined his battalion, however there is no indication on his medal roll entry that he served overseas with any other unit. Clearly continuing in service after the war, as 3848969 Pte H Carrington, Loyal Regiment (as the Loyal North Lancashire was renamed), he was awarded the Regular Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in 1933. This post-1920 service number is relatively close to the start of the allocation of numbers made to The Loyal Regiment in 1920 under Army Order 388, which ran from 3846001 to 3902000, and would accord with his seniority as indicated by the issue of the LSGC. [1] Enlistment date of 352 Pte Joseph Boyd, 3rd LNL [2] Enlistment date of 778 Pte Charles Bligh, 3rd LNL [3] Enlistment date 28 May 1907 [4] 21 October 1914: moved to Bailleul and set up in cole St. Joseph 28 October 1914: moved by lorry to Ypres and set up in cole St. Aloysius, Bewar School (?), the School of Music, a theatre and a school 31 October 1914: moved by lorry to Hazebrouck and set up in cole St. Vincent and a nearby theatre

WW1 Pair impressed to 174921 Gnr W Bland RA, wounded in action at Ypres, 25 October 1917

WW1 Pair impressed to 174921 Gnr W Bland RA, wounded in action at Ypres, 25 October 1917

WW1 Pair impressed to 174921 Gnr W Bland RA, wounded in action at Ypres, 25 October 1917

William Bland was born on or about 20 September 1896 in Northwich, Cheshire to Herbert (formerly a drayman and collector for an aerated water works and later a labourer at an alkali plant) and Annie Bland. In 1911, aged 14, and known as ‘Willie’ he was a farm servant to Frederick Walmsley of Whitley Superior. By 1915, standing 5’ 8” tall and with a chest measurement of 35”. he was working as a teamsman and living at Fir Tree Grove, Higher Whitley, Cheshire, the same address as his father, Herbert (given as his next of kin on his descriptive report on enlistment) and mother, Annie. He attested his willingness to serve aged 18 years 2 months on 16 November 1915 at Warrington before 2/Lt J.S. Faith, acting for the Lt/Col Recruiting Officer for the 40th Recruiting Area. He was transferred to the Army Section ‘B’ Reserve the following day to await call-up, finally being transferred out of it, seemingly after an appeal to his local tribunal some time in 1916, on 3 April 1917. He was medical category A1 upon joining.

Destined to be a field artillery gunner (either on the 18-pounder field gun or 4.5” howitzer), he was appointed to the Royal Field Artillery on 5 April 1917, at No.2 Depot, Royal Field Artillery, Preston, being given the regimental number 228165 and posted-on the following day to the 7th Reserve Battery, and then on to 6c Reserve Brigade later in the month. However, presumably in light of a need for more gunners for the heavy guns of the Royal Garrison Artillery, he was transferred on 1 August 1917 to the RGA under authority of a War Office wire, and posted to No.1 Reinforcing Depot. He was subsequently given the regimental number 174921, seemingly by No.1 Reinforcing Depot on 17 September 1917, after going overseas and joining his unit. Going overseas after five months training, he first made his will, in which he left the whole of his property and effects to his mother. He embarked for France from No.1 Dept Siege Artillery on 4/5 September 1917, after three days confined to barracks for overstaying his B.E.F. leave from 10.30pm 25 August (?) 1917 to 12.30pm 27 August(?) 1917. Once in France he joined the 241st Siege Battery [possibly at this time with 1st Anzac Corps], joining them in the field on 16 September 1917. The Battery, raised at Portland, went to France, 10 January 1917 with a complement of 4 6” BL (breech loading) 26cwt howitzers under the command of Lieutenant (Temporary Captain, later Acting Major) SS Wenman, RGA.  

Having been in action at Arras since prior to the opening of the Battle of the Scarpe on 4 April 1917, on 4 September the right section of battery was sent to join II Corps at Ypres (the left section being left at Arras). After a few days at ASC Rest Camp the right section took over four 6” BL 26cwt howitzers from 297th Siege Battery at positions on Spoil Bank south-east of Ypres (map reference sheet 28, 33C 95 50). By the time Gnr Bland joined the battery a week and a half later the gun positions had been reconstructed and a rising number of rounds fired, from 28 rounds at minor targets on 6 September to 538 rounds (350 of which were on one map reference, J 23a 65 09) on the 13th. On the 15th 630 rounds were fired on Corps Concentration, and the left section arrived from Arras, having presumably left their guns behind there. On the 16th, the day of Gnr Bland’s arrival, a further 309 rounds were fired on Corps Concentrations. After firing 726 rounds on barrage tasks to support an attack on 20 September, over the next two days the battery moved up in two sections to positions on Observatory Ridge (I 24c 58 22), adjacent to Kennel Hill in the southern part of the Ypres Salient. 

Clearly more dangerously exposed to counter-battery fire, two men were wounded on the 22nd whilst preparing battery position and a further one man wounded on the 24th. The 24th also saw Gnrs Knox and Kinally killed in action, buried by hostile artillery fire. A further 5 men were wounded between the 25th and 30th, a significantly higher attrition rate than experienced in the fighting at Arras; meanwhile, the battery positions were completed and an attack east of Ypres was supported with 352 rounds fired ‘at many targets during day and night’. Further men were wounded in early October, eight on the 5th alone, one of whom (Bombardier Turner) died of wounds. On the 7th, in the midst of firing 788 rounds on unnamed targets, two men were wounded, Gunner Ledsham dying of wounds later that day. On the 12th the battery fired 710 rounds and on the 13th Gunner Clarke was killed by a shell at the battery positions. The following day gun no.762 was put out of action by a hostile shell and condemned. Between the 17th and 22nd October five men and two officers, including the commanding officer, now-Major Wenman, were wounded by gas shells.

Finally, Gnr Bland himself was wounded in action, suffering a Gunshot wound to the face and mouth on or around 25/10/1917. Along with fellow 241st Siege Battery Gunners Blythman & Seward*, both of whom had also suffered GSWs to the face (although only two men are reported in the war diary as wounded for the day) he was admitted as Walking wounded for the period from 9am 25/10/1917 to 9am 26/10/1917 to 14th Field Ambulance, and then sent off to Remy Siding, a major casualty clearing complex in the Ypres salient. The record indicates that, as for practically all men admitted that day, Gnr Bland had 500 units of anti-tetanus serum administered, implying that the wound was considered a ‘dirty’ one, possibly contaminated with the well-manured Flanders soil. He was accordingly reported as wounded in War Office Daily List No.5429, Report Date 29/11/1917. This gave his next of kin address as Higher Whitley.

Fortunately his recovery seems to have been fairly speedy, and by 24 November 1917 he had been discharged to base depot, there to await posting onwards to an active service unit. He did not have to wait long for this, as his Casualty Form – Active Service (Army Form B. 103) records that on 7 November 1917 (presumably a mistake for 7 December) he joined 174th Siege Battery (raised Weymouth, 13 June 1916), another 6” howitzer battery, with which he appears to have spent the rest of the war. The battery remained in the Ypres salient, moving between Heavy Artillery Groups. On 27 January 1918 Gnr Bland began a two-month attachment to ‘B’ Siege Park, which ended on 24 March, possibly connected with the effect of the German Spring Offensive 1918. He would therefore have taken part in the Battle of the Lys, which fell on Second Army in April 1918 and placed heavy demands on the RGA as the fighting pressed the British lines back. As noted in the battery’s Wikipedia entry “79th Brigade had shifted to First Army by 1 May, and on 28 June it supported XI Corps in Operation Borderland, a limited counter-attack on La Becque and other fortified farms in front of the Forest of Nieppe, in what was described as 'a model operation' for artillery cooperation.” On 29 July Bland was admitted to no.51 Casualty Clearing station with defective vision – it is not clear when he returned to his unit, which had (re)joined 79th Heavy Artillery Group at the end of February 1918, the Group then being renamed 79th (Mixed) Brigade, RGA. Gnr Bland’s later service would have included supporting IX Corps’ attack on the St Quentin Canal on 29 September, in which the Corps heavy artillery maintained fire on the canal banks as the 137th (Staffordshire) Brigade of 46th Division took the outpost line and crossed the canal. Similar fire support was given to the attack on the Beaurevoir Line on 8 October and in the days leading up to it, accompanied by follow-up counter-battery and harassing fire. 

Taking 14 days’ leave to the UK in mid to late October 1918, Gnr Bland would have missed the immediate preparation for the Battle of the Selle and the renewed advance on 23 October, however he would have been with the battery to take part of the Battle of the Sambre, in which IX Corps crossed the Sambre Canal on 4 November. Post-war he served as an Acting Paid Lance-Bombardier, reverting to his previous rank of Gunner in June 1919. Following a further period of leave he was sent home for demobilisation in September 1919. He did not claim any disability due to military service.

In 1919 he was recorded as living in parish of Whitley Superior near Fir Tree Farm, described as "Willie" Bland, Pte, RGA. The Absent Voters List also includes 60759 Percy Bland, a Pte in the RWF, presumably his younger brother. Gnr Bland passed through No.1 Dispersal Unit, Prees Heath on 25 September 1919 and was transferred to the Army Class ‘Z’ Reserve on demobilisation on 25 October.

For his service Gnr Bland was entitled to the British War Medal and Victory Medal. By 1922 he was living at Arley House, Antrobus, Northwich, Cheshire.

*117511 Gnr J W Blythman, 321190 Gnr A Seward

Pte F Friend, 1/8th and 10th West Yorkshire Regiment, wounded in action circa December 1917-January 1918

Pte F Friend, 1/8th and 10th Bns, West Yorkshire Regiment, wounded in action

Frederick Friend served in the British Army as a Private under the regimental number 42845. He is probably identified with Frederick Friend, son of Frederick George and Annie Friend, born in Beaford, Devon, circa 1894, and in 1911 was a farmer’s son working on the farm at Ruxford Barton, Sandford, Crediton. From the 1911 Census record it appears that he was the middle child of five.  Possibly, like 42862 Pte Edward John Moore, who also served with the Leeds Rifles, he was posted to the West Yorkshire Regiment after a period of infantry training at home in mid-1917, going overseas around the end of July or beginning of August 1917. (By comparison Pte Moore passed through the Army Service Corps as a trainee driver and then the 83rd Training Reserve Battalion to train as an infantryman before he was transferred to the West Yorkshire Regiment and posted to the 1/8th Battalion with effect from 1 August 1917.  

Pte Friend served with the 1/8th (Leeds Rifles) and 10th (Service) Battalions, the West Yorkshire Regiment. He very possibly went overseas in time to take part in the Third Battle of Ypres, like the similarly-numbered 42847 Pte Edward Forrest and 42848 Pte William Hogg, who were both killed in action with the 1/8th on 9 October 1917, the Battle of Poelcapelle. The war diary of 146th Brigade, 49th Division (of which the 1/8th was a part) comments on the poor state of the ground, the thin British barrage and limited effectiveness of the localised explosions of the HE ammunition fired by the British artillery caused by the ground conditions, the very deadly sniping of the two Jaeger battalions opposite, and the success of the battalion in taking 30 prisoners notwithstanding the conditions. 

Not long after this, as F Friend, next of kin address Crediton, Pte Friend was Listed as Wounded in War Office Daily List No. 5484, report date 05/02/1918, suggesting he was wounded in December 1917 or January 1918. In November the 1/8th battalion was initially in billets at Steenvorde and later in the line before going into reserve at Walker Camp. 

It is possible that he was wounded at the same time as 3042/305880 Pte Frederick Vollans, also of the 1/8th, who appears on the same fragmentary report as suffering an SW to the back (recorded as ‘chest’ in some other records), although Pte Vollans appeared on an earlier War Office Daily List, No. 5456 Report Date 03/01/1918. Having been wounded on 29 November 1917, probably whilst in one of the working parties for which the battalion furnished 400 men whilst in divisional support, Pte Vollans passed through 2/1 East Lancashire Field Ambulance, 3 Canadian Casualty Clearing Station and 1 Canadian Stationary Hospital, and was posted home from France to the 91st Territorial Force Depot on 11 January 1918.  

Alternatively, Pte Friend may have been wounded somewhat later. A similar pattern of activity to November’s was observed by the 1/8th in December 1917, 19 other ranks being wounded in the month. In January 1918, the battalion went back into the line in the Zonnebeke sector on 8 January, in relief of the 1/7th Battalion. The brigade war diary comments on the activity of enemy artillery in the next three days and it is possibly in the course of this that Pte Friend was wounded.  

A fragmentary report indicates that Pte Friend’s wound was a SW  (possibly shrapnel wound) to the buttocks. The record confirms that he was serving with the 1/8th at the time. As such he was entitled to wear a "Wound Stripe" as authorised under Army Order 204 of 6th July 1916, the terms of this award being met by being named in this list. At some point Pte Friend was admitted to the 14th Convalescent Depot (presumably the one at Trouville, opened September 1917). He clearly subsequently returned to the front, as at the Armistice, Pte Friend was with the 10th Battalion in 62nd Division. With them he caught Influenza and was admitted with two other men of the battalion circa 10 November 1918 directly to No.34 Casualty Clearing Station, then to No.8 Ambulance Train and presumably from there to a base or stationary hospital near the French coast. He was one of 14 men admitted to the CCS that day with influenza. At this time his regimental number was mis-recorded as 42843. This record gave his religion as Wesleyan (Methodist). 

Pte Friend was discharged to the Army Class ‘Z’ Reserve on 16 March 1919. He would have received the British War Medal and Victory Medal, being his full entitlement, some time after the end of April 1920.

The marriage of Frederick Friend to Frances A Lambert Growyn was registered in the last quarter of 1931 in Crediton, Devon. In 1939 Frederick Friend, born 7 July 1893, was living at Eastacott, Crediton with Frances A Friend, his occupation in the census register being recorded as Farmer. Frederick Friend of Eastacott Farm died at Crediton on 21 December 1972, leaving an estate of £9584.

Plaque & pair to 340485 Pte G H Booth, 1st Northumberland Fusiliers, killed in action 7 May 1918 at La Bassee

George Henry Booth was born circa 1896, in Woodseats just south of Sheffield, to John Booth and Hannah Maria Booth, of 18, Coldstream Place, Woodseats. In 1911 George Henry was a grocer’s errand boy, aged circa 15, whilst his father, John, by now aged 59, was a general labourer with the corporation highways department. George Henry appears to have been the youngest of six children, five of whom were still living in the family home, Ethel, Edith and Annie being servants and John Arthur, nine years George’s senior, being an engineer’s toolmaker in a steelworks (Annie, the third eldest, does not have an occupation recorded and possibly assisted her mother around the house).

Judging from the records of 340497 Charles Henry Moxon, Pte Booth may have been a ‘Derby Scheme’ recruit and spent some time on the Army Reserve before being mobilised – possibly around June 1916 – and then posted to the Northumberland Fusiliers. He may have had a 4-digit Territorial Force number (now unrecorded) before receiving the new 6-digit number with which he went overseas upon the renumbering of the Territorial Force Infantry in March 11917. His six-digit number is in the range for the 36th Battalion, a Territorial unit formed in January 1917. After enlistment, at some point George passed through the 1/4th Northumberland Fusiliers. This was possibly a paper posting; as 340485 Pte George Henry Booth by May 1918 he had been posted-on to the 1st Northumberland Fusiliers, a Regular battalion serving with the 9th Brigade of 3rd Division. Judging by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Soldiers Died in the Great War entries of comrades with adjacent numbers, this may have taken place some time prior to mid-April 1918, thus putting him in line to fight in the Battle of the Lys.

The 3rd Division had taken part in the battles of the German Spring Offensive around St Quentin in the previous month (March 1918) and when the German Lys offensive (Operation Georgette) broke on 9 April 1918 was in reserve. The division was brought forward and deployed as part of the defence of Estaires on the Lys in the southern part of the battle sector and then dispersed, the 9th Brigade, of which the 1st Northumberlands was a part, being sent to assist the 55th Division in XI Corps successfully defending Bethune against attacks from the southern divisions of the German Sixth Army. Following this the latter half of April was spent slightly more quietly in and out of the line at La Lawe Canal. In early May the battalion moved from billets in Choques, where it had been reorganising, undergoing inspection, using the baths, practising on the rifle ranges, assimilating a draft of 100 other ranks and trench digging, to once more take up the line around the canal on the night of the 4/5th May. The battalion marched out at 7,30pm, ‘Y’, ‘X’, ‘Z’ and ‘W’ Companies and HQ proceeding to the Left Front, Right Front, Support and reserve positions, respectively. As narrated in the War Diary “The B[attalio]n had some difficulty in getting into position. In the first place there was a small concentration of gas at the guides rendezvous, and secondly the enemy was barraging the Canal bridges, which hostile liveliness developed into an attack at about 3.5am 5/5/18…” The next day had poor weather and quieter conditions except towards evening when there was a call for retaliatory fire on a German post, establishment of new posts and taking of German prisoners from the 25th Hessen Division (“friendly people” according to the War Diary). The 6th saw enemy aircraft more active, one flying low over the new outposts established by ‘Y’ Company on the east side of the canal, and concentration ‘crashes’ fired by Corps artillery in the late morning. Improving visibility in the afternoon led to both sides’ artillery becoming more active. Orders were also given for an inter-company relief, ‘Z’ Company to replace ‘Y’ in the Left Front, east of the Canal.

It seems likely that Pte Booth was a victim of German artillery fire, killed in the attempts to relieve ‘Y’ Company as the front-line company for the battalion’s Left Front on the nights of 6/7th or 7/8th May. As indicated earlier, German artillery appears to have had the Canal bridges well-covered, the war diary for the 6th commenting “some blue cross  gas shells on vicinity of only crossing with result that only 1 platoon of Y was relieved”. Then, on the 7th it noted “Artilleries fairly active during early afternoon increasing in volume until night when enemy maintained a harassing fire for the whole night, all calibres being employed, gas and H.E. being utilized, only 1 more platoon of Y was able to be relieved.” 5963 Sgt W Coates, also of the 1st Northumberland Fusiliers, was killed on the same day and lies next to him in Choques Military Cemetery. Pte Booth was one of 25 men of the battalion killed during the month. His financial effects of £9 13s 4d, and War Gratuity of £8 10s, were paid to his father John in October 1918 and December 1919 respectively. A dependant’s pension was also claimed for his mother Hannah Maria, although the outcome of this does not appear to have been recorded. 

Further medals researched - Baldwin, Ball, Finch, Leyden, Thompson

95633 Spr/Acting Corporal W Baldwin 131st Field Company, RE, Salonika

William Baldwin was born circa 1878. He served under the regimental number 95633 as a Sapper with 131st Field Company, Royal Engineers, part of 26th Division, the Field Company joining the division on or by 25 April 1915, and then, after assembling in the Salisbury area, landing in France in late September 1915. Spr Baldwin’s 1914-15 Star roll entry shows that he first went to France, landing on 23 September 1915, and was therefore entitled to the 1914-1915 Star. After a short period in the French theatre of war, the Company travelled to Salonika via Marseilles, landing on 23 November 1915. Its battle honours included Doiran 1917 and Doiran 1918. Field Companies undertook a variety of field engineering roles for their divisions including creating and maintaining trench systems, building concrete emplacements and divisional facilities, bridging, and wiring; for example the 131st Company was in action during the capture of Horseshoe Hill on 17 August 1916 using wiring material. Whilst in Salonika, at around the time of the Battle of Horseshoe Hill, William Baldwin was hospitalised with Dysentery. By this time he was a Lance Corporal with 1 year 3 months’ service (suggesting that he enlisted around May 1915) and 11 months service with the Field Force. He was admitted to No. 31 Casualty Clearing Station (presumably to the Isolation ward) with Dysentery on 10/08/1916, being transferred to Sick Convoy (Ambulance Train) on the following day, 11/08/1916. His medical record from this admission gives his Religion as Church of England and confirmed his unit as the 131st Field Company. Presumably recovering, Acting Corporal Baldwin was Discharged to the Army ‘Z’ Reserve on 11 December 1919. For his service he was entitled to the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.

 

44454 Pte A A R Ball Northumberland Fusiliers, wounded, 3rd Ypres or Cherisy sector, and Battle of Epehy

Arthur Alfred Romain (or Romaine) Ball was born circa 1882 (or 1884; records vary) in Newington, London to Jessie J Ball. By the 1911 census, aged 19 he was living with his widowed mother in Lambeth, and working as a carman. Arthur A R Ball married Katie Elsie Richardson on 15 February 1914 at Colchester, St. Giles, Essex. They subsequently had a child, Vincent Ramaine [Romaine] Ball.

Possibly a ‘Derby’ or ‘Groups’ Scheme volunteer, as 44454 Private Arthur A R Ball he served with the 10th, 26th, 1st and 12/13th Battalions, Northumberland Fusiliers. Probably, like 44434 Pte Arthur Burwood, he was mobilised in June 1916 and, after training, posted overseas to the British Expeditionary Force in early November 1916. This posting would have been ostensibly to join the 10th Battalion but whilst at base depot in Etaples Burwood was posted to the 26th (3rd Tyneside Irish) Battalion, joining them in the field on or around 21 November 1916; the same probably applies to Pte Ball. Of the seven men (including himself) identifiable as having numbers within the 44450-44459 bloc, six were killed in action or died on the Western Front. Pte Ball was Listed as Wounded in War Office Daily List No.5437, Report Date 08/12/1917. Considering the casualty records of the men in his bloc, this was most probably with the 26th Northumberland Fusiliers. The date would indicate that he was most probably wounded in late October or early November 1917, either in the line near Poelcappelle in the course of the Third Battle of Ypres (one of 68 men wounded during a tour of operations in flooded country between 17 and 22 October), or in early November in an otherwise quiet sector of the line at Fontaine/Cherisy, near Arras. Pte Ball 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 being named in this list. The List confirmed his Next of Kin Address as Colchester. It was probably after recovering from his wound, and possibly returning overseas again from England, that he was posted to the 1st Battalion; again, this may have been a paper posting with him spending little or no time with the battalion, instead being posted-on (this time to the 12/13th Battalion) fairly rapidly. He was again Listed as Wounded under the name “A Bell”, but with the same regimental details and next of kin address, in War Office Daily List No. 5696, Report Date, 15/10/1918, indicating that he was probably wounded again in September 1918 during the Allied Hundred Days Offensive; this was probably with the 12/13th Battalion, possibly he was one of 87 other rank casualties incurred in the battalion’s attack on 18 September on the Brown and Green lines at Epehy, the battalion being in the centre of the 62nd Brigade attack. The attack was launched at 5:20am and completed by 7:10am, and although taking place in a downpour, resulted in both objectives being taken plus 2 officer and 183 other rank prisoners plus war materiel.

Pte Ball was discharged under paragraph 392 xxviii of King’s Regulations (Discharge on demobilization), thus indicating that he was serving on a ‘duration of war’ engagement. This was presumably some time in 1919. For his service, his full entitlement was the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

Ancestry.co.uk - UK, World War I War Diaries (France, Belgium and Germany), 1914-1920

44450 Morris or Maurice Isaac Wright killed in action 9 June 1917, 26th Northumberland Fusiliers

44452 Edwin Hope died 28 August 1918, 12/13th Northumberland Fusiliers

44453 John tom Burbridge died of wounds, 26th Northumberland Fusiliers 6 February 1917

44455 John Nussey killed in action 9 April 1917, 25th Northumberland Fusiliers

44457 Harry William Batchelor killed in action 28 April 1917, 25th Northumberland Fusiliers

44459 James Arthur Beckwith killed in action 13 April 1918 12/13th NF

 

54581 Pte J Finch, Royal Fusiliers and Labour Corps (61372), wounded circa December 1917

John Finch, a labourer from Bromley, Middlesex, was born circa 1895. Standing 5’ 6 ½” tall, and bearing a tattoo of a sailor’s head on the right forearm, he enlisted at Stratford on 19 June 1916. He served with the Royal Fusiliers as a Private under the regimental number 54581, and then the Labour Corps, also as a Private, under the regimental number 61372. The latter number is in the range associated with the 103rd Labour Company, which (along with the 104th) was formed in 1917 from the 35th (Labour) Battalion, Royal Fusiliers, itself formed at Falmer, near Brighton. He may have gone overseas as a Royal Fusilier between June and December 1916, probably with the 35th (Labour) Battalion, which went overseas on 8 June 1916 and moved to Rouen where it was engaged in unloading from ships docked at the port. However at some point in his service career he appears to have passed through the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, absenting himself from their Labour depot at Purfleet on 23 December 1916 whilst still seemingly (from the regimental number given) on the strength of the Royal Fusiliers. In January 1917 (30/01/1917) he was reported as a Deserter or Absentee from His Majesty's Service (see: Police Gazette, Volume XXXIII No.3292) but clearly returned (or was apprehended) in time to undertake active service as a Private in the Labour Corps, to which he transferred in April 1917, most probably serving (at least initially) in the 103rd Company. The 450-man Labour Companies were employed all along the forward areas running behind the front lines on a range of labouring and other tasks ranging from road mending and ammunition loading to drainage, ditching and sanitation. Being constantly within shelling range at the very least, the job was often dangerous, 2300 men of the Corps being killed in action or dying of wounds between May 1917 and the end of the war. Men of the Corps also received nearly 500 decorations for gallantry during the First World War. As 61372 Private J Finch, Labour Corps, he was Listed as Wounded in War Office Daily List No. 5457, Report Date 04/01/1918, suggesting that he was wounded in late November or early December 1917. As such, he was entitled to wear a "Wound Stripe" as authorised under Army Order 204 of 6th July 1916, the terms of this award being met by being named in this list. The List confirmed his place of enlistment as Stratford, E.

He was demobilised on 1 December 1919.  A subsequent request for a pension was rejected. His full medal entitlement was the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

 

8190 Pte John Leyden, 11th Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), died of Dysentery, Salonika

John Leyden served as a Private under the regimental number 8190 in the Scottish Rifles. He was born circa 1874 to William Leyden and came from Greenock, Renfrewshire. He was a Presbyterian and brother to Mrs McBride of 17 Baker Street, Greenock. In civil life he was a moulder with Messrs Houston & Kerr, mechanical engineers and ironfounders, of Greenock.  Enlisting around September 1914, he may have been an early recruit to the 11th (Service) Battalion, The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), which was formed in October 1914 at Hamilton. He first proceeded overseas to France roughly 11 months later, on 20 September 1915, with the 11th, as part of the 77th Brigade of the 26th Division. After landing at Boulogne-sur-Mer and spending a short period on the Western Front, he was subsequently posted, with his battalion, to the Macedonian Theatre. After having concentrated at Flesselles, the Division entrained for Marseilles from 9 December 1915 onwards, embarking for Salonika two days afterwards and beginning to arrive on the 23rd. The following month units moved from Lembet (north of Salonika) to Happy Valley Camp, completing concentration by early February at Happy Valley and joining XII Corps.

Pte Leyden would have probably taken part in the Battle of Horseshoe Hill, South West of Dojran, on 10/08/1916, Horseshoe Hill being one of a series of crests overlooking Doiran. Having been taken ill on or before 29 August, he was transferred to hospital (No. 28 Casualty Clearing Station) on 29/08/1916, and placed in ward MY1. At the time he was serving with the 1st Company of the 11th Scottish Rifles, He died of Dysentery at No.28 CCS, Salonika at 11:15pm on 2 September 1916, aged 42. At the time of his death he had 2 years’ service, including one year with the Field Force.

Pte Leyden was buried, and is commemorated, in Salonika Anglo-French Military Cemetery, (Lembet Road, Salonika). His financial effects of £4 11 2 and War Gratuity of £9 were split between his sisters Ellen/Helen, Sarah and Mary, his 1914-15 Star being issued in the latter half of 1919 (reissued, with a correction to the regimental number impressed, in 1920), whilst his British War Medal and Victory Medal issued some time in 1921.

 

44798 Pte W G Thompson, Manchester Regiment and East Lancashire Regiment, wounded 13 October 1918

William Graham Thompson was born circa 1885 (1883 according to some records) and married Isabella Walton on 10 July 1912 at the Parish Church Lamesly, County Durham. The couple had a son, George Graham Thompson, born in May 1915. A master butcher from Gateshead (in 1915 living at 3 Essex Gardens, Gateshead), and standing 5’ 7 ½” tall, William first attested his willingness to serve under the ‘Derby’ Scheme on 12 December 1915. After a period on the Army Reserve, he was approved and appointed for general service with the 21st (Local Reserve) Battalion, Durham Light Infantry in July 1916, under the regimental number 37272, joining at Newcastle. He also passed through the 4th (Reserve) Battalion, Durham Light Infantry, being posted there on 1 September 1916. Here he gained 1st Class proficiency pay as a 1st Class Shot; he was qualified as a stretcher bearer. After a period in Brighton Grove Military Hospital, Newcastle, he was initially posted to the BEF (11th Durham Light Infantry) via Folkestone on 2 June 1917. However, on 22 June 1917 whilst still at infantry base depot he was transferred to the Manchester Regiment and then posted to the 2/9th Battalion, the Manchester Regiment, joining the battalion in the field on the same day. After a couple of periods in hospital for a skin infection to his thumb in November 1917 and a sprained ankle and concussion in March 1918, upon his recovery in June 1918 he was transferred again to the East Lancashire Regiment under the regimental number 31773 and posted to the 2nd Battalion. After a period of UK leave in late August, he was wounded with the East Lancashire Regiment (Gun Shot Wound to the thigh) on 13 October 1918 and admitted to 23 Casualty Clearing Station, his wound being recorded in War Office Daily List No.5739, Report Date 04/12/1918. This was in the course of the final advance in Artois. This List gave his Next Of Kin Address as Gateshead. He was accordingly entitled to wear a "Wound Stripe" as authorised under Army Order 204 of 6th July 1916, the terms of this award being met by being named in this list. After being medically examined at Enghien, he was sent to the UK for demobilisation on 7 February 1919 (having been selected for early dispersal by reason of having a guarantee letter – presumably of employment in his trade of master butcher), and transferred to the Army Class ‘Z’ Reserve 1 month later.

For his service he was entitled to the British War Medal and Victory Medal, receiving them in April 1922.

UK, British Army World War I Service Records, 1914-1920 - Ancestry.co.uk

Plaque, War Medal and Victory Medal to M2/101899 A-Cpl W. Innes A.S.C. (717 MT Coy) attached 153rd Siege Bty RGA, DoW at No.2 CCS of bomb wounds incurred at Locre

FIRST WORLD WAR PAIR AND MEMORIAL PLAQUE TO THE A.S.C./HEAVY ARTILLERY. A Great War pair comprising War Medal and Victory Medal named to M2/101899 A-Cpl W. Innes A.S.C. The plaque to William Innes, cast at the Woolwich Ordnance Factory by Worker 91 some time after December 1920. 

Acting Corporal Innes was born circa 1888, the son of Joseph and Mary Innes of Colwall, Herefordshire and husband to Cicely/Cecily Mary Innes (later of 182 Norwood Road, West Norwood, London). A former coachman, he served in the Army Service Corps as a motor transport driver. Probably, like M2/101894 Pte Sydney John Heath  from Folkestone, a motor driver, he enlisted on or about 31 May 1915, with his enlistment being approved at the MT Reserve Depot, Grove Park, between 3 and 5 June 1915. Unlike Pte Heath, however, there is no evidence to suggest that he went overseas in 1915; possibly he was retained at home for training purposes, or due to sickness. By October 1917 he was attached to X [possibly a mistake in CWGC records for IX] Corps Heavy Artillery (153rd Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery). This battery went overseas to France via Avonmouth and Southampton on 29 August 1916 (the mechanical transport, of which Cpl Innes may have been a part, proceeding from Aldershot and joining the advance party and guns of the battery at Stockcross on 26 August) and was subsequently equipped with 6" howitzers. Possibly he was with 717 MT Company, ASC, formed 20 June 1916 and by September 1917 the Corps Siege Park for IX Corps, Second Army (the 153rd Siege Battery, as part of 9 Heavy Artillery Group [later 9 Brigade], was with IX Corps at this time). In late May 1917, the 153rd battery moved up to the Ypres sector* and by June/July was emplaced near Hollebeke. By late September it was engaged in supporting attacks, undertaking counter-battery fire (including concentration fires), and responding to S.O.S. calls, principally on the Zandvoorde and Tenbrielem areas. Meanwhile, 717 Company HQ was at Mont Rouge with lorries standing at various locations including Locre, near Mont Kemmel, south of Ypres (about ten miles distant from Hollebeke). The 717th Company's war diary for 30/9/1917 notes '[Night of 30th September] German plane drops bomb on [9th] Brigade Lorry Park, killing 12, injuring another 17, some of whom died of wounds later". Cpl Innes received a bomb wound to the face at Locre on or about 1 October, almost certainly,  given the location and circumstances, in this incident. 

As transcribed and shared by Great War Forum user 'Dai Bach y Sowldiwr', the IX Corps Senior Motor Transport Officer's War Diary provides further detail on this incident, as follows:

"Mont Noir 30/09/17,

A/Captain S.W.BURDITT ASC, was killed by a bomb dropped by hostile aircraft at Headquarters Heavy Artillery. Large number of enemy aeroplanes over IX Corps area from 8.0pm until about 2.0am. Siege park standings on the Bailleul-Locre road at M.28.b.6.3 bombed. One bomb dropped at 8.0pm parade, 12 killed, 5 wounded. 4 lorries set on fire and completely gutted, 1 car destroyed. Office and mess blown up. Owing to prompt evacuation of the standing, the fire did not spread.

 

E.H.Blamey Lt.Col

SMTO IX Corps"

Cpl Innes died of wounds at No.2 Casualty Clearing Station on 30 September or 1 October 1917 (records vary) and is buried at the Outtersteene Communal Cemetery Extension, Bailleul near the border with Belgium. Outtersteene is a village about 5 kilometres south-west of Bailleul, and about seven miles south west of Locre. In August 1917, during the Third Battle of Ypres, the 2nd, 53rd and 1st Australian Casualty Clearing Stations came to Outtersteene, and the first and last of these remained until March 1918. His headstone reads R.I.P., the inscription being chosen by his wife. He was 29 years old. His financial effects, in two instalments of £6 6d and £9 16s 11d, went to his widow, as did his War Gratuity of £11 10s.

*Ypres 036.9.7 sheet 28

M2/101893 Pte William Henry Shearing from Oxford, enlisted 28 May 1915. Overseas to Egypt March 1916.

M2/101894 Pte Sydney John Heath  from Folkestone, a motor driver. Enlisted 31 May 1915, enlistment approved at the MT Reserve Depot, Grove Park, on 5 June 1915. Overseas circa July 1915.

M2/101896 Pte Arthur Frederick Ince, a motor driver, from Camberwell. Enlisted 31 May 1915. Overseas to France 20 July 1915.

M2/101897 John Russell Thomas, a chauffeur, from Worcester. Enlisted 29 May 1915, approved at Reserve MT Depot, Grove Park 3 June 1915

WW1 medal pair 4405 Pte Henry James Hicks 5th London Regiment (London Rifle Brigade), Wounded in action, Somme, circa 8 October 1916

WW1 medal pair 4405 Pte Henry James Hicks 5th London Regiment (London Rifle Brigade), Wounded in action, Somme, circa 8 October 1916

Henry James Hicks was from East Finchley. Probably a volunteer under the 'Derby' scheme of deferred enlistment, he served with the 5th London Regiment (London Rifle Brigade) under the Regimental Numbers 4405 and, later, 302628. The former number, within the London Rifle Brigade sequence would suggest (per Paul Nixon's Army Service Numbers blog) that Pte Hicks joined the 5th battalion between mid-March and late April 1916; at this time the 3/5th Londons (5th (Reserve) Battalion) was at Fovant, on Salisbury Plain. By comparison, 4402/302625 Reginald Frank Gordon attested his willingness to serve on 1 February 1916 at Folkestone; after forty days in the Army Reserve his Attestation was approved by the Approving Officer at 130 Bunhill Row on 23 March 1916; he was appointed to the 5th City of London Regiment that day and posted to the 3/5th Battalion. He was recorded as sent overseas on 13 July 1916, subsequently to be attached to 169 Trench Mortar Battery. By contrast, 4427/302638 Henry James White attested on 8 December 1915 at Hackney and after just under 4 months in the Army Reserve was mobilised and joined on 27 March 1916; a sprained ankle on the obstacle course at No.4 Camp, Fovant whilst with the 3rd London Rifle Brigade (3/5th Londons) on 14 June probably prevented him going overseas in July 1916 with his fellows.

Hicks' highest rank was Acting Lance Corporal. He served with the 1/5th (City of London) Battalion (London Rifle Brigade) in the France & Flanders theatre from 14 July to 13 October 1916. The battalion (often known as the 1st London Rifle Brigade) served with the 169th Brigade of the 56th (London) Division. Pte Hicks was most probably sent out on 13 July as part of a draft to make good the 569 casualties reported as a result of the 56th Division's failed diversionary attack at Gommecourt on 1 July 1916. Possibly joining the battalion whilst it was alternating time in billets out of the line at Bienvillers or in a rear part of the line at Hannescamps, between approximately 17 July and 21 August, this would have put him in line to hear a bayonet-fighting lecture from the famous bayonet instructor Major Campbell and practice working with tanks. Subsequently he would have been able to fight with the 1st London Rifle Brigade on the Somme, at Ginchy on 9 September 1916, at Bouleaux and Leuze Woods on 15 and 18 September and at Combles on 26 September.

On 1 October 1916 the 1st London Rifle Brigade/1/5th Londons was in the trenches near Guillemont, supplying working and burying parties, prior to relieving the Queen Victoria Rifles and Queen's Westminster Rifles in the trenches opposite Lesboeufs the following day. After occupying an enemy trench (subsequently named 'German Trench') 100 yards to the battalion's right front at dusk on 3 October, the battalion was in turn relieved by the London Scottish that night, spending the next three days in trenches between Bernafay and Trones Woods.

Meanwhile, as 4405 Private H J Hicks, London Regiment, he was Listed as "Wounded" on the Casualty List issued by the War Office, Report Date 27/11/1916. He was therefore entitled to wear a "Wound Stripe" as authorised under Army Order 204 of 6th July 1916, the terms of this award being met by his naming in this list. The List gave his Resided Town [upon enlistment] as East Finchley, London N.

Given the date of the List and the dates given for his overseas service on the London Regiment medal roll, he was most probably wounded in early October 1916, possibly on 8 October 1916 at Lesboeufs during the Battle of le Transloy, and rapidly evacuated to the United Kingdom for treatment. In support of this inference, the battalion was relieved in the front line on 9 October and remained out of the line for most of the rest of the month. Between 28 October and 3 November it was in the line at Richebourg L'Avoue; no casualties were recorded in the war diary for this period.

In this attack, the battalion, as part of 169th Brigade, was given the task of capturing Hazy Trench after the failed effort of the 167th and 168th Brigades to take it and the associated systems the previous day. This was part of a general effort (along with the 20th Division and the French) to establish a line on the forward slope of the le Transloy ridges to allow observation of the le Transloy trench system and (in the 20th Division's sector) provide a jumping-off point for a further assault. Attacking at 3.30pm on the 8th, the London Rifle Brigade reached Hazy Trench but was forced to withdraw due to a lack of support on its flanks that night, being taken out of the line the following day.

The following extract from The History of the London Rifle Brigade 1859 -1919, shared on the Great War Forum by user chrrip, gives an account of the action:

"Section 25 : 1st Battalion - Les Boeufs 6 – 9 October 1916

The respite from the fighting was all too brief as the Battalion was ordered to occupy old German trenches at Talus Bois near Guillemont which it did on 29 September in pouring rain. Little was known about the whereabouts of friendly troops let alone the enemy as no maps or aerial photographs were available. For two days both the LRB [London Rifle Brigade] and Q.W.R. [Queen's Westminster Rifles] pushed out patrols to find the French and German positions and they, along with working parties that were fired upon, eventually discovered the enemy positions. The Germans were manning a line of shell holes, trenches and old gun pits well protected by their artillery which was particularly effective, inflicting heavy casualties on the working parties.

On 2 October the Battalion took over the portion of the line which ran in front (east) of the village of Les Boeufs. The appalling weather made any troop movements extremely difficult and even simple reliefs were a nightmare. The incessant rain, the few tracks and paths deep in mud and heavily cratered, led to the cancellation of several attacks. On 7 October the London Scottish were ordered to capture Hazy Trench and were nearly wiped out. At 11 p.m. the Battalion was ordered to relieve them. The state of the ground, the congestion on the few passable tracks, and the continuing appalling weather delayed the relief into full daylight so that the troops were clearly visible to the enemy who held their fire, choosing to wait for the forthcoming attack.

‘A’ Company occupied Aeroplane Trench, ‘B’ and ‘C’ Shamrock Trench and ‘D’, in reserve, eventually occupied Fluffy Trench. ‘A’ and ‘B’ were ordered to attack Hazy Trench which was about 600 yards from them, ‘C’ was to follow closely with ‘D’ in support. ‘D’ Company was instructed to use every officer and man to bring up tools, ammunition and equipment to the front line presenting a target the German gunners could not resist, inflicting heavy casualties. The preparations for the attack on the forward slopes in front of the village were in full view of the enemy so that the inevitable occurred; the first waves were met by a murderous barrage as soon as they left their trenches. The shell fire was so heavy that the troops could not see the British creeping barrage. The first two Companies pressed on nevertheless and came under heavy machine gun fire from the disused gun pits. These machine guns were the same ones which had inflicted heavy casualties on the London Scottish and had not been destroyed by the British barrage as expected. A few men from [text missing?] may have reached the German lines where they died fighting, but both ‘A’ and ‘B’ were wiped out.

‘D’ Company moved up as planned but as soon as it appeared on the ridge it ran into an even heavier barrage. The men advanced to a line of shell holes passing all the officers of the other three Companies lying dead or wounded. Here they dug in along with a few survivors from ‘C’ company. The Company Commander Capt. Crews, one of the two officers left in action, sent out patrols to find the French on the right and the Q.V.R. [Queen Victoria's Rifles] on the left. One patrol only encountered parties of Germans, the other did not return. Lewis gun teams beat off several enemy counter attacks and prisoners were taken, including the machine gunners who had caused so many deaths. By 9.30 p.m. it was clear that the French were not in touch and that the Q.V.R. had been pinned down in their trenches for the whole day. The 80 or so LRB survivors fell back in small parties, taking many of their wounded with them, covered by the Lewis gun teams. By 10.30 they were back in their jumping off trench.

11 officers were dead – the highest number killed in a single day in the war and another 9 were wounded. One young officer, disabled by MG bullets in both legs, was callously shot dead by a German soldier as he lay helpless in a shell hole. In contrast a German prisoner, a stretcher bearer, undoubtedly saved several LRB lives by carrying many wounded men to safety. The casualties in the ranks had been very heavy. On 9 October stretcher bearers stayed behind and spent all day looking for the wounded despite the heavy shelling directed at them, and brought in many London Scottish men who had been lying out since the 7th. Only two stretcher bearers and Capt. Crews survived out of all the parties."

After treatment and convalescence Pte Hicks does not appear (from the evidence of the medal rolls) to have gone overseas again, but the fact that he also has a six-digit Territorial regimental number (302628) within the number bloc allocated to the 5th Battalion would suggest that he remained on the strength of the London Regiment until after March 1917.

Presumably being discharged some time in 1919, he would have received his British War Medal and Victory Medal, being his full entitlement, some time after October 1920. The Regimental Code given on the medal roll also confirms that the 5th Londons represents the unit he last served with (and through whose record office - in this case London - his medals were issued). 

There also seems to have been an application made for a pension for him, however the details are no longer recorded.

1/5th (City of London) Battalion (Rifles)

04.08.1914 Stationed at Bunhill as part of the 2nd London Brigade of the 1st London Division and then moved to Bisley and then Crowborough.

Nov 1914 Mobilised for war and embarked for France leaving the 1st London Division arriving at Havre.

17.11.1914 Joined the 11th Brigade of the 4th Division and engaged in various actions on the Western Front including;

1914

The Battle of Le Cateau, The Battle of the Marne, The Battle of the Aisne, The Battle of Messines 1914.

1915

The Second Battle of Ypres.

19.05.1915 Transferred to the G.H.Q. Troops forming a composite battalion with the 1/12th & 1/13th Battalions.

11.08.1915 Resumed its identity.

25.10.1915 Transferred to the 8th Brigade of the 3rd Division.

10.02.1916 Transferred to the 169th Brigade of the 56th Division;

1916

The diversionary attack at Gommecourt, The Battle of Ginchy, The Battle of Flers-Courcelette, The Battle of Morval, The Battle of the Transloy Ridges.

(Transferred to the corps of the Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) on 7 July 1916)

2/5th (City of London) Battalion (London Rifle Brigade)

Sept 1914 Formed London and then moved to Haywards Heath to join the 174th Brigade of the 58th Division.

May 1915 Moved to Norwich and then Ipswich.

April 1916 moved to Foxhall Heath, near Ipswich and then Sutton Veny.

3/5th Battalion

26.11.1914 Formed at Bunhill Row.

April 1915 Moved to Tadworth and then Sutton.

Jan 1916 Moved to Fovant.

08.04.1916 Became the 5th (Reserve) Battalion.

01.09.1916 Joined the 1st London Reserve Brigade.

Image: Troops of the 1/5th Battalion (London Rifle Brigade), London Regiment, in a reserve trench in Chimpanzee Valley between Hardecourt and Guillemont, 6 September 1916.