2nd Grenadier Guards - 11th October 1915

One hundred years ago today, the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards lost 17 men killed in action or died of wounds. Their names are:

15856 SGT ARTHUR CHARLES BAILEY
17463 PTE ARTHUR BAMFORD
14344 L-CPL EDWARD BLAKEMAN
19014 PTE HERBERT BREARLEY
17179 PTE ALBERT THOMAS BRINKMAN
16250 PTE ERNEST CRIPPS
12388 PTE BEN LEONARD
18630 PTE WILLIAM EDGAR MEECH
18491 L-CPL WALTER MONTAGUE
15520 PTE SAMUEL MORRIS
18739 PTE RICHARD ERNEST ROBERTS
20678 PTE WILFRED ROGERS
18509 PTE GEORGE SHERLOCK
10950 PTE WILLIAM SHIPP
17793 PTE CLEMENT STYLES
12933 PTE FLORENCE SULLIVAN
15023 PTE ERNEST W WARREN

The battalion was in the old German lines at Vermelles, having relieved the 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards on the afternoon of the 9th. The following day, the battalion had been bombed by aerial torpedoes all day but later that evening, No 1 Company had successfully captured 150 yards of German trenches and then held their newly won ground against three German counter-attacks. The war diary for the 11th states:

"A quiet day until 5pm when the trenches were bombarded heavily for two hours and were badly knocked about. Battalion worked hard all night to repair damage..."

Looking at the men's regimental numbers I see that eight of the casualties that day were men who had joined before August 1914 whilst nine had joined in August or later. Wilfred Rogers, joining in the second half of November 1914 was the most inexperienced man killed that day, whilst William Shipp was an old hand who had joined the regiment in 1903 but may have been on the reserve since 1906. 

The majority of the men are buried in St Mary's Advanced Dressing Station cemetery at Haisnes; a cemetery established after the Armistice as a result of remains brought in from the Loos battlefield. There are nearly 2000 casualties in the cemetery and only 218 of these identified.

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

21877 Gdsmn William D Matson, 3rd Bn, Grenadier Guards

21877 Guardsman William Dunn Matson of the 3rd Battalion, Grenadier Guards was killed in action on the 29th March 1916. He was born in Brotten, Yorkshire and enlisted at Whitby in the second week of January 1915. William was 21 years old, the son of John and Margaret Matson of Brotton. He is buried in Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery in Belgium.

William was one of our Grenadier Guardsman to die on the 29th March 1916. The other three men, all of whom died of wounds, were:

14250 Gdsmn Arthur Edwin Hine, 1st Bn, enlisted Feb/Mar 1909
18420 Gdsmn Arthur John Lane, 2nd Bn, enlisted Sep 1914
17106 Gdsmn James Frederick Parker, 2nd Bn, enlisted Aug 1914

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

Sources:

Ancestry (MIC)
Soldiers Died in The Great War
Army Service Numbers
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

20933 Gdsmn Hubert J Oldring, Grenadier Guards

20933 Guardsman Hubert John Oldring of No 1 Company, the 4th Battalion, Grenadier Guards was killed in action on the 16th October 1915. He was born in Hemel Hempstead and enlisted in London.

John Oldring was 21 years old when he died. He was the son of George and Ellen Oldring, of "Hammerfield", Hemel Hempstead, Herts, and he is commemorated on the Loos Memorial.

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

Sources:

Ancestry (MIC)
Soldiers Died in The Great War
Army Service Numbers
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Loos - Day 3 - 21545 Pte Walter Godman, 4th Bn, Grenadier Guards

21545 Private Walter Godman of the 4th Battalion, Grenadier Guards was killed in action on the 27th September 1915; less than six weeks after he'd arrived in France. He was born in Islington and enlisted in London in January 1915. He was the son of Charles and Ellen Godman of 44 Etherley Road, West Green, London and was just 19 years old at the time of his death. Like so many Loos casualties, Walter has no known grave and is commemorated on the Loos Memorial.

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

Sources:

Ancestry (MIC)
Soldiers Died in The Great War
Army Service Numbers
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

13463 Gdmn Percy Unsworth Battle, 2nd Bn, Grenadier Guards

13463 Guardsman Percy Unsworth Battle of the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards, was killed in action on the 4th September 1914. He was born in Wickham Market, Suffolk, and enlisted at Colchester in November 1907. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission notes that he was the husband of R E Battle of 36 Weald Road, Brentwood.

The 1911 census records that Percy, by then on the Army Reserve, was working as a twenty-one year old police constable at Brentwood police station. When war was declared however, he was called up when war was declared, arriving in France on the 13th August. He is buried in the Guards Grave, Villers Cotteret Forest, France.

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

Sources:

Ancestry (MIC)
Soldiers Died in The Great War
Army Service Numbers
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission

1596 Pte John Beirne, 2nd Bn, Irish Guards

1596 Private John Beirne of the 2nd Battalion, Irish Guards died on the 2nd November 1914 in England. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) notes that he was the son of Patrick and Catherine Beirne, of Kilmore, Co. Roscommon and that he "served with Grenadier Guards in the South African War." He was 41 years old when he died.

Soldiers Died in The Great War notes that he was born in Kilmore, County Roscommon and enlisted in Dublin. His number with the Irish Guards dates to between January and April 1903. and so by the time Britain went to war with Germany in 1914, unless he'd extended his terms of service, John Beirne may well have been coming to the end of his period of service on the Reserve. Nevertheless, his medal index card reveals that by the 13th August 1914 he had disembarked in France.

John Beirne is buried in Great Warley (Christ Church) Cemetery in Essex. The CWGC states that "the cemetery was opened in 1860, and belongs to the Christ Church Great Warley Joint Burial Committee (representing three Parish Councils. There is also a cemetery in Woodman Road, opened in 1927.) It contains over 40 scattered War Graves; the graves of men of the Irish Guards recall the time spent by their Reserve Battalion at Warley Barracks. A War Cross is erected at the entrance."

Unusually, John's cause of death, tuberculosis of the lungs, is noted on his medal index card and so presumably he fell sick in France or Belgium, was returned to the 3rd Battalion in Essex and subsequently died.

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

Sources:

Ancestry.co.uk (MIC)
Army Ancestry
Army Service Numbers 1881-1918
Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Lt Arthur Anson, 3rd Bn, Grenadier Guards

According to Officers Died in The Great War, Lt Arthur Anson of the 3rd Battalion, Grenadier Guards was killed in action on the 8th October 1915. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission, however, records his date of death as the 11th October 1915, whilst his medal index card held at the National Archives notes that he was killed in action on the 27th September 1915.

Of the three dates, the CWGC one is probably the most accurate and an examionation of his file at the NA, and the battalion war diary might categorically determine when Arthur was actually killed.

Arthur was the son of the Honourable F W Anson and is buried at Phalempin Communal Cemetery in France. He had arrived in France on 26th July 1915. The address on the reverse of his medal index card (that is, the address to which his medals would have been sent) is E F Cape Esq, c/o Hon Mr F Anson, Glemtards [probably an incorrect transcription on my part], Veredam Road, St Albans.

Arthur appears on the 1901 census as a five year old living at Cell Barnes in St Albans with his parents, his uncle (a 42 year old major with the Highland Light Infantry) and ten servants. His father is described on the census as a Justice of the Peace.

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

Sources:

Ancestry.co.uk (MIC)
Army Ancestry
Army Service Numbers 1881-1918

13312 L/Cpl George Arthur Burch, 1st Bn, Grenadier Guards

13312 L/Cpl George Arthur Burch of the 1st Bn, Grenadier Guards, was killed in action 21st July 1917; 92 years ago today. He was a native of Ipswich in Suffolk and, according to Soldiers Died in The Great War (SDGW) also enlisted there. SDGW records his full name (above) but The Commonwealth War Graves Commission simply records his name as George Burch.

George's service record does not appear to have survived, however his medal index card notes that he arrived in France on 6th October 1914 and his number indicates that he must have joined the Grenadier Guards in June 1907.

George was born in 1883, his birth registered in Suffolk in the March quarter of that year. He appears on the 1891 census, aged eight, the son of George Arthur and Emma Burch living at 20 Mount Street in Ipswich. George senior (aged 30) is recorded as a boot and shoe rivetter. Also living at the same address were George's siblings: Henry Burch (aged six), Emma Burch (aged four) and Nelly Burch (aged 2).

By the time the 1901 census was taken, George Burch senior had died in 1899 and Emma Burch (aged 37) is listed as a widow and the head of the family; a cardboard box maker by trade. The family was now living at 20 Tanner's Lane, Ipswich and apart from Emma comprised George (aged 18, a grocer's porter), Henry (aged 16, a leather slipper maker, recorded as Harry on the 1901 census), Emma (aged 14, a factory hand), Nellie (spelled Nellie this time, aged 12) and a more recent arrival, Ethel Burch (aged six). It must have been a hard life and it may have been one of the reasons why, a few years later, George decided to sign up for a career in the British Army.

George Arthur Burch is buried in Canada Farm Cemetery; grave reference I.F.4.

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

Sources:

Ancestry.co.uk (MIC, BMD, 1891 and 1901 census)
Army Service Numbers 1881-1918
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Soldiers Died in the Great War