L/8893 Pte Sidney Richard Patch, 1st Bn, East Surrey Regt

L/8893 Private Sidney Richard Patch of the 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment, died of wounds on the 7th December 1914. He was 24 years old and the son Robert and Mary Patch of 114 Courthill Road, Lewisham, London.

Sidney Patch has a small entry in De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour which, however, adds nothing to the information above other than that he died at Bailleul. He is buried at Bailleul Communal Cemetery (Nord); grave reference A.17.

Far more information, of course, can be gleaned from Sidney's service record which survives as a burn document in the WO 363 series. He joined the East Surrey Regiment on 17th August 1906 aged 18 years and three months old, giving his trade as carpenter's mate. He was nearly five feet six inches tall, had a fresh complexion, brown eyes and brown hair. Tattoos of a flag and apple are noted on his left forearm.

Sidney certainly spent time overseas. Having served with the 1st Battalion in England for just over two years, he sailed for India. and service with the 2nd Battalion. On 19th October 1908 he was inoculated against typhoid at Mhow in India, and then given a second jab - still at Mhow - two months later. He'd arrived in the country on the 10th October and would do the bulk of his soldiering in India and Burma. He was treated for malaria in 1911 and during the course of his seven years with the Colours, paid several visits to hospitals for a variety of ailments which also included bronchitis. He left India in late November 1913.

Typically, for soldiers' service records of the time, Sidney's regimental defaulter sheet has a number of entries containing mostly - from today's perspective - trivial misdemeanours: being absent from rifle sentry, making an improper reply in the ranks, stating a falsehood to an NCO, not complying with an order and finally, being absent from the bungalow when section orderly. These entries probably explain why, on his discharge to the Reserve, he only had one Good Conduct badge and not the two to which he could have been entitled.

Having served his obligatory seven years with the Colours, Sidney was discharged to the Reserve on 1st December 1913 with one Good Conduct badge, a 3rd class certificate of education, and training in mounted infantry duties. He had also qualified as a marksman and had served 12 months with the regimental and garrison police. His conduct and character during his time with the Colours are described as Good.

Additional details - infrequently seen on surviving service papers - are included in Sidney's file. At the time of his transfer to the reserve his chest measurement was 39 inches, his waist was 32 inches and he had grown in stature. His height is recorded as five feet, 10 and a quarter inches. His helmet size is recorded as 21 and a half and his boot size as 8-4. He had also acquired more tattoos, described as "small figures, flags, heads etc, both forearms".

Sidney's service record is badly faded / water-damaged in places but he wasrecalled to the Colours on the outbreak of war and by 16th August 1914 he was in France. He was reported missing on 12th September 1914 and admitted to the 14th Field Ambulance with a gunshot wound to the head in November 1914 (the exact date is unclear). He died of his wounds at the 2nd Casualty Clearing Station at Bailleul.

On 29th March 1915, the Infantry Record Office at Hounslow returned Sidney Patch's last effects to his father in Lewisham. These are recorded as: 1 diary, 1 bundle of letters, 1 post card, 1 identity disc, 1 clasp knife, 1 pipe, 1 belt, 1 watch and chain, 2 Indian coins. These were acknowledged by Robert Patch on the 3rd April 1915.

At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.

Sources:

Ancestry.co.uk (MIC, WO 363)
Army Ancestry
Army Service Numbers 1881-1918
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour
Soldiers Died in The Great War