PRIVATE JAMES HENRY ALLEN.
1st/4th East Yorkshire Regiment.
Service Number: 30542.
Died: 11th November 1918.
Cemetery: Niederzweheren Military Cemetery, Germany.
James lived with his parents Arthur Thomas and Elizabeth Ann Allen at 59 Little Lane Pemberton, together with his two younger brothers Thomas aged 7, and Joseph aged 3, his older sisters Elizabeth Ann aged 22, Mary Edith aged 21, and younger sisters Lily aged 17, and Edith Annie aged 5. Prior to his enlistment James worked as a Window Cleaner.
He enlisted into the 1st/10th Manchester Regiment on the 6th August 1917, aged 18 years and 32 days of age, at Ashton Under Lyne. Following a period of training he left England bound for France, landing in Bolougne on the 4th April 1918, where he proceeded to the Infantry Base Depot at the infamous Etaples. The next day, James was transfered to the East Yorkshire Regiment. Due to the great German advance of 1918, the Regiment had suffered huge losses. Finally on the 13th April, James linked up with his new Battalion the 1st/4th East Yorkshire Regiment, just as they had suffered a particulary harrowing time. The 1st/4th were part of the150th Brigade, 50th Division. Over the next few weeks it was relativley quiet allowing the Battalion to conduct training, getting the new recruits like James up to speed, also for the Battalion to re equip.
Then in early May, news came, that they were about to go back in the front line, taking up positions, north of Rheims and the River Aisne. On the night of the 26th May 1918, the Battalion were in the front line when warnings were given that the enemy were about to launch another large scale attack. At 1am the front line lit up, with what is described in official records as the worst bombardment the Division had ever encountered. Amongst the high explosive shells launched were a mixture of various gas shells. During this huge attack the Divisional Artillery was virtually wiped out, and communications were lost. Then at about 3.30am out of the morning mist, the enemy emerged, behind a line of tanks was the attacking German Infantry. The sheer volume of the attack allowed the Infantry to break through in many parts of the British line. The 1st/4th had been outflanked on both sides. This attack by the Germans brought to the end the 1st/4th as a fighting unit. It was at some point during this attack James was taken prisoner.
James was reported missing on the 27th May 1918. When you consider the Divisional casualty figures of 227 Officers and 4879 men either killed, wounded or taken captive it gives an idea of the ferocity of the attack. James was taken prisoner and was eventually incarcerated in Langensalza POW camp, situated in what later became East Germany. The camp had a reputation of one of the harshest POW camps in Germany. There were about 12000 prisoners of different nationalities incarcerated in the camp. Survivors tell of stories of 700 men crammed into each of the wooden huts huddled together to keep warm, also stories of men reaching out through the fence, grabbing handfuls of grass to eat.
On the 11th November at 11am the exact same time as the Armistice was signed, James died from pneumonia and exhaustion. He was 19 years of age. James was originally buried in the prison cemetery, in 1923, the graves of 1500 British servicemen buried in Germany were reburied at Niederzwehren. This huge cemetery is situated in central Germany, 10 kilometres to the south of Kassel.
PRIVATE WILLIAM ANDERS
Royal Army Service Corps
Service Number: DM2/154896
Died: 22nd January 1919
Cemetery: Pemberton St John's, Wigan
William was a single man, who before enlisting lived with his parents William and Elizabeth Anders at 574 Ormskirk Road Pemberton. William was very well known around the area. He was a schoolteacher at Pemberton Colliery School. He was also known for his sporting prowess. The success of the Pemberton Colliery Schools Rugby Team was in no little degree to his efforts. Not content with his efforts for the school he was also on the Wigan Schools Athletic Association. William was also a founder member of the South West Lancashire Rugby Football Competition. A Rugby enthusiast as he was, his interests were not only confined to Rugby, he was also the captain of St Marks, Newtown, Cricket Club, where according to local papers was a batsman of no mean order and a bowler who many feared.
In January 1916, William enlisted into the Royal Army Service Corps as a driver in the Motor Transport Company. The RASC had a very difficult and dangerous job often not getting the recognition they deserved, delivering supplies of food, ammunition, clothes etc, to the front line. The biggest danger to the RASC was shellfire, the enemy were very keen on wanting to stop supplies getting to the frontline and convoys were frequentley targetted by the German Artillery. William spent two years doing this job, until the end of the war. Once the Armistice was signed William was returned to England awaiting demobilisation. According to William's obituary in the Wigan Observer it states " William's mother and his many friends await his return home with deep joy". In early January of 1919 the Wigan Education Comittee applied for his early release, he wrote home that due to this he had been granted early release and was proceeding to Glasgow to be demobilised. On the journey William became indisposed and on the journey home the illness was aggravated. He returned home to Pemberton in a state of collapse. Pneumonia supervening he died on Friday 21st January aged 33 years.
His funeral took place at St Matthews, and the service was conducted by Reverand J Woods, the cortege made its way to Pemberton St John's were William was laid to rest.
PRIVATE PHILLIP HAROLD GILLHAM ASHCROFT
8th Battalion South Lancashire Regiment
Service Number: 31438
Died: 21st October 1916
Commemorated: Thiepval Memorial, France
Not a lot of information is known about Harold before he enlisted. His full name is Phillip Harold Gillham Ashcroft, however it appears he referred to himself and was known as Harold. He was from Wigan but was living in Earlstown when he enlisted. He joined the 8th Battalion of the South Lancashire Regiment in early 1916. Harold most likely arrived in France during the summer of 1916, as the Battle of the Somme was taking place. The 8th Battalion South Lancashire Regiment were attatched to the 75th Brigade, 25th Division.
The 75th Brigade was involved in a number of battles during the Somme campaign, including their first major involvement during the first phase of the battle, where they made a costly and unsuccesful attack in one of the piecemeal efforts to hold onto the minor gains made on July 1st 1916 in the Thiepval area. Throughout the remaining summer months the Battalion was involved in a lot of small skirmishes. Then on the 21st October 1916, the 8th Battalion South Lancashire Regiment prepared to take part in what is known as the Battle of the Ancre Heights. Their objective was to take over Regina trench from the enemy. The attack was timed to commence at noon, although the weather was horrendous with the battlefield resembling a morass, the decision was taken to advance.
The distance of the objective from the British front line to the enemy varied from about 200 yards to about 500 yards. The Artillery support was carefully designed to ensure that the advance across no mans land was covered by a creeping Artillery barrage, and also all known hostile machine gun posts would be crashed at zero hour. At 12.06pm, the Battalion went forward with the 8th Border Regiment on its right, and the 2nd South Lancashire Regiment on its left. The start line was in Hessian trench. Owing to the careful Artillery preparation the objective was reached before the enemy could leave their dug outs, although some stiff fighting ensued before Regina trench was taken. The attack was deemed a success also taking about 250 prisoners. The casualty figures for the Battalion were 1 Officer and 25 men, one of which was Harold. The exact fate of the men has never been disclosed. Harold's body was never recovered, he is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial in France.
LANCE CORPORAL HAROLD ASCROFT
7th Battalion East Lancashire Regiment
Service Number: 36728
Died: 7th May 1917
Cemetery: Bailleul Communal Cemetery Extension (Nord)
Harold was a married man with two children, living with his wife Maria Ellen at Short Street Pemberton. He was the youngest son of the late William and Mary Ascroft of 50 Tunstall Lane Pemberton. Harold had three older brothers, Peter, Michael and William, and four older sisters Margaret, Mary, Harriot, and Ada. His father William was the Pemberton Quarry Manager and also they ran the family grocers shop at 50 Tunstall Lane. Harold was a former Wigan Grammar School boy.
It is not clear when Harold enlisted. He originally joined the Manchester Regiment but most likely during his training he transfered to the East Lancashire Regiment, joining the 7th Battalion. The 7th Battalion were part of 56 Brigade, 19th Western Regiment. It is most likely Harold joined the Battalion towards the end of 1916, as a replacement for the losses the Battalion suffered during the Battle of the Somme.
In April 1917 the Battalion was based in the Messines area, south east of Ypres preparing to take part in the upcoming Battle of Messines Ridge. Not a lot of information is available to the exact location Harold was in. What we do know is that Harold was on duty in a YMCA dug out, when an enemy shell hit it, burying Harold and two others. He was taken to hospital at Bailleul where on the 7th May 1917 Harold died of the wounds he recieved in the shell attack. He was 30 years of age. Harold is buried in Bailleul Communal Cemetery Extension (Nord).
ABLE SEAMAN GEORGE ATHERTON
Royal Navy
Service Number: SS/5985
Died: 26th October 1916
Commemorated: Portsmouth Naval Memorial
George was a single man, who lived with his parents George and Susannah Atherton at 1 Enfield Street Pemberton. Before enlisting into the Royal Navy George was employed as a Labourer at Pemberton Colliery. George enlisted into the Royal Navy on the 5th June 1915, aged 18. Following a period of training George joined his first ship HMS Flirt.
HMS Flirt was a small Destroyer, with a maximum speed of about 30 knots, with a crew of 80 officers and men. On the night of October 23rd 1916, the Admiralty became aware that the German Naval Command was preparing a sortie, with the aim of a raid on the defences on the Straits of Dover. It was known that Captain A Michelson commanding the Destroyer flotillas of the German high seas fleet was leading the 3rd and 9th flotilla a total of 24 Destroyers in all, sailing down the Dutch coast towards Zebrugge.
Vice Admiral Sir Richard Bacon the Commander of the Dover Patrol, disposed the forces under his command to meet the threatened attack, which came on the night of the 26th October 1916. HMS Flirt under the command of Lt R Kellet, left Dover at about 8pm that night. Two hours into the patrol, gunfire was heard from a line of drifters. Upon hearing the gunfire HMS Flirt headed towards it. Here she found the drifter Wayeney II on fire, and at once lowered a boat to go to her assistance. At the same time a line of German Destroyers came into view, but it gave no real cause for concern as it was presumed that they were French. Shortly afterwards the Destroyers opened fire on HMS Flirt and sank her almost immediately, with every man on board. George was one of those men. The only survivors were the men who had been lowered into the boat sent to assist the Wayeney II.
George, it appears, was deeply committed to the Royal Navy. His service record states that he was promoted to Able Seaman after just 12 months, when the average time was two years. He also had already passed all the examinations for Petty Officer. It certainly looked like George was planning a long career in the Royal Navy. George's body was never recovered from the English Channel. He is commemorated on the Portsmouth Naval Memorial, and he is also listed in the Dover book of rememberance. George was 19 years of age.
RIFLEMAN SAMUEL BALL MM
16th Battalion Kings Royal Rifle Corps
Service Number: 410
Died: 24th March 1918
Cemetery Ypres Resevoir Cemetery, Belgium
Samuel who along with his brother William who we cover next, was born in New Springs but lived in The Blundells Arms Public House on Foundry Lane where his parents Thomas and Elizabeth Ball were the proprietors. Before enlisting, Samuel worked as a Shop Assistant. Samuel and his brother enlisted the same day shortly after the outbreak of the war on the 17th September 1914. They chose to join the 16th KRRC otherwise known as the Church Lads Battalion. The Church Lads Battalion was open to serving or past members of the Church Lads Brigade, an organization akin to the Boys Brigade but strictly Anglican.
Following substantial training, and equipping, the Battalion arrived in France on the 15th November 1915, where they formed part of 100th Brigade, 33rd Division. The first major action the Church Lads were involved with was The Battle of High Wood. This must have been traumatising for Samuel as his younger brother was killed in this battle. However during this battle Samuel showed an exceptional piece of bravery, for which he was to be awarded the Military Medal. Samuel kept a machine gun in action, after attending to the wounded he succeeded in bringing the gun safely out of action.
Following the bloody battle of High Wood, the Battalion went to take part in other major battles. April 1917 they took part in the Arras campaign, and from June 1917 they took part in the Third Battle of Ypres. It was in the Ypres area that the Battalion were to stay for a long time yet. On the 18th March 1918, the Battalion moved up to the reserve trenches around Zonnebeke, a small district to the east of Ypres. It is reported in the Battalion's war diary that it was a quiet relief with no casualties. Then over the next few days the area was subjected to heavy shelling both high explosive and gas. The 22nd March saw the Battalion move up to relieve the 9th Battalion, The Highland Light Infantry, in the front line trenches. The 23rd March was reported as being a quiet day.
Then the following day, the war diary states that at 4am the area came under a heavy bombardment of gas, which lasted until 8am. Then throughout the day the hostile high explosive shells became more active, resulting in two other ranks killed. One of those killed in the bombardment was Samuel. He was 25 years of age, when he was killed by the shell. Samuel is buried in Ypres Resevoir Cemetery in Belgium.
RIFLEMAN WILLIAM BALL
16th Battalion Kings Royal Rifle Corps
Service Number: C/256
Died: 15th July 1916
Commemorated: Thiepval Memorial, France
William, as mentioned previously, enlisted into the 16th Battalion Kings Royal Rifle Corps otherwise known as the Church Lads Battalion, the same day as his older brother Samuel. The Church Lads Brigade were formed in 1914, following the nation's call to arms. After the Battalion had been in and out of the front line, the forthcoming Battle of the Somme was to give them their first major action, in one of the most infamous and bloody battles, The Battle of High Wood.
High Wood lies a couple of miles to the east of the village of Bazentin le Petit. Tactically High Wood was important to both sides. It was always going to be a costly and bloody battle. The Church Lads were informed on the 6th July 1916, that they were on 30 minutes notice to move, so it can be assumed that they were aware that action was not far away. Over the following week the Battalion were moved from place to place. Finally on the 14th July 1916,the Battalion marched to Fricourt where they made their final preparations for the battle.
'A' company were sent up to assist the 9th Highland Light Infantry, who were digging in along the west side of High Wood. The remaining 3 companies were to support the initial attack by the 1st Queens Battalion and the 9th Highland Light Infantry. On the 15th July at 8am, everybody was lined up in position ready for the attack, then at 08.30 an enourmous Artillery barrage was launched on High Wood. When half an hour later the barrage was lifted, B and C company were ordered to advance in a line, B company on the right, C company on the left. Almost immediately C company came under hostile fire from machine guns hidden in the wood, and they lost heavily. Eventually the remainder of the company made it to the old line vacated by the 1st Queens.
B company advanced on the right of C company, the objective was the north west corner of the wood, both lines of advance passed over a line, where the enemy had previously been dug in. When they reached the top of the hill they came in touch with the Highland Light Infantry, most of whom were lying dead or injured. Here they encountered the enemies lethal machine gun fire. The enemy had built concrete blockhouses in the wood, each containing at least two machine guns giving lethal cover. D company were eventually sent up to reinforce what was left of the Highland Light Infantry. The remainder of A company also joined up with D company. Throughout the remainder of the day , the enemy counter attacked with Infantry and Artillery. Finally the next day at 02.30am, the Battalion was relieved. Out of a strength of 904, the Church Lads suffered 550 casualties.
William was one of those casualties. We do not know what company he was in or how he was killed. The battle for High Wood was to rage on for a further 3 months, with huge casualty figures on both sides. Like many thousand others Williams body was never recovered. He is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial in France.
STOKER FIRST CLASS ALBERT NORMAN BANKS
Royal Navy
Service Number: K/33288
Died: 20th September 1918
Cemetery: Pemberton St John's, Wigan
Albert was a single man. He was born in Pemberton, living at 257 Billinge Road with his parents Thomas and Mary Jane. Before Albert joined the Royal Navy, he worked as a stoker at May Mill. On the 23rd May 1916 he left home to undergo his training at HMS Victory training base in Portsmouth On completion of his initial training he joined his first ship HMS Prince of Wales, a formidable type Battleship, based in the Adriatic. Under treaty obligations to Italy, Great Britain and France sent ships to the Adriatic to maintain superiority over the Austro Hungarian empire.
Albert would have endured a reasonably quiet time aboard the Prince of Wales, as the Austro Hungarian Navy did not come out much. In January 1917, Albert was then posted to HMS Duncan. Once again he would not have seen a lot of action as HMS Duncan was also based in the Adriatic. He also would not have been aboard the ship for long, as it returned to Britain to be part of the reserve fleet, enabling the Admiralty to release the crew to serve on newer more modern ships.
Following promotion to Stoker First Class, Albert joined his new ship HMS Tristram, the ship was part of the Grand fleet and Harwich force. He served on the Tristram from the 1st July 1917 to the 30th June 1918. Unfortunatley not long after this date Albert was struck by illness, and was admitted to the Royal Naval hospital at Haslar at Gosport, were he died of pneumonia on the 20th September 1918 aged 21.
PRIVATE JOHN BARTON
2nd Battalion Grenadier Guards
Service Number: 19650
Died: 1st October 1916
Cemetery: St Sever Cemetery, Rouen, France
John was born in Hindley, but moved with his parents John and Rachel Ann Barton to 61 Tunstall Lane Pemberton. John attended St Cuthberts Catholic Church. Prior to his enlistment in October 1914 he worked at Pemberton Collieries as a Labourer. John joined the Grenadier Guards one of the most prestigous and elite units in the British Army. Following his training John left these shores bound for France in late May 1915 to join the 2nd Battalion Grenadier Guards. His first major involvement happened in the Battle of Loos, most notable for the first time the British had used poison gas against the enemy. Unfortunatley this act gained notoriety, as the wind blew the gas back towards the British lines causing an untold amount of casualties.
The Battalion then moved in and out of the line awaiting their next major involvement, which was to come in late September 1916, in the latter stages of the Battle of the Somme. On the 24th September the Battalion moved up to the front line from their positions in Bernafy Wood. According to the Battalions war diary the trenches were very narrow, men were standing shoulder to shoulder, unable to sit down. The objective of the Guards Division was the village of Lesbouefs.
The British Artillery opened up at 1235pm, which was zero hour. It appears that the enemy were taken by surprise as the Guards advanced under cover from a creeping barrage. The 2nd Battalion Grenadier Guards were at the front of the advance with the 1st Battalion Irish Guards. Quick progress was made by the Guardsmen who stormed the enemy trenches with bayonet. Considerable slaughter resulted from this encounter in the confines of the enemy trenches. The southern part of the village was secured by the 1st Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment and the remainder by the Guardsmen.
We do not know at what stage of the battle or what John's wounds were caused by, but we know he was evacuated to the Casualty Clearing Centre, where his wounds were assessed and treated. John's wounds required further treatment, so he was sent to the large general hospital used by the allies in the town of Rouen. Unfortunately John was never to recover from his wounds, he died on the 1st October 1916 in the hospital. He was laid to rest in St Sever Cemetery Rouen, he was 21 years of age.
ORDINARY SEAMAN HENRY BADEN BAYMAN
Royal Navy
Service Number: SS/8770
Died: 7th July 1918
Cemetery: Pemberton St John's, Wigan
Henry was a single man, who lived with his mother Catherine at 7 Tunstall Lane Pemberton. Before his enlistment into the Royal Navy, Henry worked as a coke ovens labourer at Pemberton Collieries. Shortly after his 18th birthday Henry enlisted into the Royal Navy, arriving at HMS Victory in Portsmouth on the 18th June 1918. HMS Victory was also the name of the Naval training establishment, not only its more illustrious namesake Admiral Nelson's flagship. Unfortunately Henry became ill shortly after arriving, and was taken to the Royal Naval Hospital Haslar in Gosport where he died from pneaumonia on the 7th July 1918, aged just 18 years of age. Henry was laid to rest in Pemberton St John's.
PRIVATE THOMAS BILSBOROUGH
1st Battalion Seaforth Highlanders
Service Number: S/22437
Died: 21st June 1918
Cemetery: Ramleh War Cemetery, Israel
Thomas was a single man, who lived with his parents at 3 Tunstall Lane Pemberton. Not a lot more is known about Thomas prior to his enlistment. He enlisted into the Seaforth Highlanders a famous old Scottish Regiment, most likely sometime in late 1916. Following his training he joined the 1st Battalion Seaforth Highlanders sometime in 1917. The Battalions theatre of operations at this time was in Messopatamia which is now known as Iraq. This is a largely forgotten theatre of the First World War, but was crucially important, fighting against the Ottoman Turk empire who were a close ally of Germany. Thomas possibly might have joined his Battalion in time for the fall of Baghdad. The 1st Battalion Seaforth Highlanders were part of the 19th Infantry Brigade, 7th Indian Division.
In January 1918 the Battalion arrived in Suez, to advance into Palestine. In March 1918 they took up positions in the front line in the coastal sectos between Tel el Mukhamar and Arsuf. large quantity of small skirmishes and counter attacks would have been occuring. The conditions were appalling, during this campaign the biggest cause of death was illness. This was due to the unbearable heat flies and vermin all of which were factors contributing to the levels of sickness and death. Medical arrangements were quite shocking with wounded men sometimes having to spend two weeks on boats before reaching any kind of hospital.
Unfortunately Thomas was one of these men, who succumbed to illness, and on the 21st June Thomas died, aged 23 years. He was laid to rest in the Ramleh War Cemetery in Israel.
PRIVATE JOSEPH BURGOYNE
6th Battalion Loyal North Lancashire Regiment
Service Number: 11880
Died: 9th August 1915
Commemorated: Helles Memorial, Gallipoli, Turkey
Joseph was married to Ellen. They lived in New Row Lamberhead Green in Pemberton. Before his marriage he lived with his parents Thomas and Mary Ellen Burgoyne at 61 Enfield Street. His mother Mary Ellen had moved to Castleford in Yorkshire following the death of his father. Joseph enlisted shortly following the outbreak of war. He joined the 6th Battalion Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. The Battalion was formed in Preston in August 1914, and was part of the 38th Brigade, 13th (Western) Division.
All the units of the 13th (Western) Division arrived on the Greek island of Mudros, to prepare themselves for landings at Gallipoli. The allies wanted to take over the narrow straits, allowing a free passage to Russia and allowing Russian ships a free passage to the Mediterrean delivering vital grain supplies, also allowing the allied ships to deliver much needed munitions to Russia. However the allies greatly underestimated the strength and resolve of the Turkish defenders.
On the 4th August, the Battalion landed at Anzac Cove on the Gallipoli peninsula, in readiness to take their part in the Battle of Sari Bair. On the 9th August, the 6th Loyal North Lancashire as part of the 13th Division, attacked Chunuk Bair. The advance was extremely difficult and was slowed down by inadequate reconnaissance over difficult terrain. It is reported that fierce fighting with desperate hand to hand combat took place. Then finally at nightfall, the Battalion finally managed to relieve the battered New Zealanders who had desperately been holding on to their positions on Chunuk Bair. The next day the Turks counter attacked, regaining their former positions at a cost of approximately 5000 men. These figures show how important Chunuk Bair was to the Turkish.
Joseph died sometime on the 9th August 1915. He was 20 years of age. The Divisional casualty figures for the battle were, out of 10500 men, they lost 6000. Joseph's body was never recovered. He is commemorated on the Helles Memorial Gallipoli Turkey.
DRIVER RICHARD BURTON
103rd Brigade Royal Field Artillery
Service Number: 56757
Died: 27th May 1917
Cemetery: Vlamertinghe Military Cemetery, Belgium
Richard was married to Ada. He lived at 1 Back Bedford Street along with his 3 children. He married Ada at St Catherine's church Wigan in 1912. Before his marriage Richard lived with his parents Thomas and Mary Burton at 4 Howard Street Pemberton. Before Richard enlisted into the Royal Field Artillery he was working as a collier in the Pemberton Collieries. He joined the 103rd Brigade who were part of the 23rd Division, a newly formed Division of volunteers who had answered Kitchener's call to arms. The Divisional Artillery started to form in November 1914 at Mytchett Camp. The Royal Field Artillery were responsible for the medium calibre guns, which would be positioned reasonably close to the front line. They also had to be reasonably mobile. Richard being a Driver would have to drive the guns into position. This was mainly achieved on horseback. It would have been exhausting work, trying to move the heavy guns into position over the battle scarred terrain.
Richard landed in Bolougne on the 25th August 1915, In September the Brigade were initially attatched to the 8th Division to assist with operations connected with the Battle of Loos. In 1916 The Brigade was also involved in the Battle of the Somme. Then in May 1917 they moved into position to await their orders to take their part in the Battle of Messines. The guns of the 103rd Brigade were put into place around the Zillebeke area, a small village a few miles to the east of Ypres.
Overlooking the positions of the 23rd Division was the notorious Hill 60, which the enemy had control of. Hill 60 was an important geographical feature with commanding views over the battlefield. During May the Brigade were busy with what they termed " cutting wire", The German guns were also extremly active. Very few positions were flash proof from the German Artillery, because of the observers positioned on Hill 60, also numerous kite balloons. It was clear from the Artillery map boards that were subsequently captured, that the majorityof British gun positions were known by the enemy.
Battery after Battery were singled out by the enemy for deliberate and destructive bombardment. It was reported that in one day alone some 600 shells were fired at 'A' Battery alone, and similar treatment was meted out in turn to the other Batteries. The loss of life and guns was becoming a serious matter, whilst the immense labour invoved getting up replacement guns and ammunition was crippling. We can be sure that it was one of these bombardments that took Richard's life. He was 30 years of age. In a letter sent by his commanding officer to his widow Ada he wrote " He died as he lived, doing his duty and his loss is deeply regretted by every Officer, NCO and man in the battery. He was such a general favourite with every one that we all feel his loss very much. Richard was laid to rest in Vlamertinghe Military Cemetery in Belgium.
