Wellington Remembers 1914–1918

102 52425 Private John Wesley Lloyd Cheshire Regiment Born on 20 January 1897 in Old Park, , Lived in Church Road West, Dawley and 2 Victoria Avenue, Wellington Died of wounds on 9 June 1917 aged 20 in France Buried in the Longuenesse (St Omer) Souvenir Cemetery; grave IV.C.22

His story

John Wesley Lloyd was the elder son of Thomas Wesley Lloyd and Mary Elizabeth Blanche Millman. John and Mary married early in 1886 in the Wellington registration district. The couple began their married life living next door to Mary’s widowed father on Ketley Bank. Thomas was working as an engine fitter’s labourer. By 1891 they had three small daughters, a fourth having died in infancy. Two more daughters were born before their first son, John, was born on 20 January 1897, by which time Thomas was working as a bundler in the ironworks. John was taken to the parish church in Malinslee for baptism on 28 February 1897. By 1901 the family had moved to Church Road West in Dawley; Thomas was working as a bundler and stocktaker in the ironworks. The job of bundling involved collecting all of the scraps and bundling them together for reuse; it was a job often given to junior staff, so the fact that Thomas was stocktaking as well indicates that he held a more responsible position. There were five children at home, John, his three older sisters and one younger sister. Eldest daughter Violet worked as a draper’s assistant to supplement the family income. Mary’s father was also living with the family by this time. Another son, Thomas, was born later the same year. In 1911 the family lived at 2 Victoria Avenue Wellington. John, at 15 years of age had left school and was working as a refreshment boy for the Great Western Railway. Four of his five siblings remained living at home, but another three had died in infancy. His maternal grandfather was also still living with the family. It is unclear how long John worked for the railway, but at some point he changed jobs and, according to the Wellington Journal, was employed by Messrs J Morgan, grocers, in The Square, Wellington, when he enlisted. During the later part of 1915, he presented himself at the recruiting office in to join the Shropshire Yeomanry, which formed part of the Welsh Border Mounted Brigade. He was given the service number 2786.

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At some point after his initial training, John was attached to 10th (Service) Battalion Cheshire Regiment. As his service records have not survived, it is impossible to say when this was. The medal award rolls show that several men with closely linked service numbers transferred to this battalion from the Shropshire Yeomanry; perhaps they moved as a group to form a draft of reinforcements. John’s name appears on the daily casualty list dated 11 October 1916 as wounded, along with twelve of his comrades. The men were all serving with the Shropshire Yeomanry attached to the Cheshire Regiment. It appears that he served in D Company. It usually took at least four weeks from the incident before it was reported in the daily casualty list. At the beginning of September 1916 the 10th Battalion Cheshire Regiment was serving in trenches at Bouzincourt on the Somme battlefield. The trenches were heavily shelled leaving them badly damaged. On 3 September the battalion took over trenches east of Authville. The war diary reports that the trench system they took over had suffered very‘ severely from shell fire leaving many completely obliterated’ leaving a gap of 250 yards in the trench system. The following day there was a report of a new type of gas shell being used by the Germans. One soldier was killed within 15 minutes and another within 45 minutes of exposure. The battalion was relieved on 7 September and returned to billets at Brusincourt, some casualties occurring during to shrapnel. It was likely that John was wounded some time during this period. After he recovered from his wounds, John re-joined his battalion. On 18 January 1917, after being relieved in the line, the battalion moved into billets near Nieppe for a period of training which lasted until the end of the month. The battalion moved to Regina Camp on 2 February and then went back into the front line on 6 February. This routine continued through the spring, and it was in early June that the men of the battalion experienced their first major battle of 1917. Planning for what became known as the Battle of Messines had been underway for many months; roads, water supply, dressing stations, and machine gun emplacements had all been built, as had several miles of communication and assembly trenches. In one piece of construction on the night of 30–31 May, the battalion worked on a front line assembly trench only 150 yards away from the enemy. They dug down more than four feet in only three hours. The men continued digging trenches through the first days of June 1917 and after a rest day on 6 June they moved off to the assembly trench (Martin Trench) in the evening. Despite being subjected to enemy shelling there were no casualties, and the battalion was reported in position soon after midnight. The war diary entry for 7 June began: ‘At 2 15am. tea and rum were issued to all ranks . At 3.10am the Battalion left the trenches and advanced to the attack, they got away very well the arrangements being made by R .E . (Royal Engineers) for paths being excellent.’

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The regimental history records that ‘A grim struggle ensued, in which our men gradually gained the upper hand, and killed or captured all the German defenders of the wood and farm ’. The fighting was intense through the day, by the end of which the casualty list comprised one officer died of wounds, seven officers wounded; 26 men killed, 141 wounded and seven missing. The battle continued but there are no further casualties recorded in the war diary before John died. It would seem likely, then, that it was on 7 June that Private John Wesley Lloyd was wounded. The Wellington Journal reported that ‘In a sharp engagement he was seriously wounded, and his injuries had a fatal termination in hospital ’. His Men enjoying a brew during a lull in the Battle of Messines 1917 death was also reported in the daily list of casualties published on 1 July 1917. John was buried in the Longuenesse Souvenir Cemetery at St Omer. His father paid for an additional inscription to be added to his headstone: ‘Allendale King Street Wellington Shropshire ’. We have no evidence to say in which hospital John died, but both 7th General and 10th Stationary were based close to St Omer at that time. The Wellington Journal went on to say that John ‘had the utmost confidence of his employers, who predicted for him a successful career, and he was also esteemed by his personal friends . As a soldier his comrades speak of him in terms of admiration, and testify to his ability and bravery ’. For his service to his country John earned the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. His war gratuity payment of £6/10 was made to his father. John’s parents both died in Wellington, his mother in 1922 and his father in 1939. His only brother, Thomas, was living in Urban Terrace, Regent Street when the 1939 register was taken, and worked as a grocer’s assistant. He died in Cross Houses Hospital in Shrewsbury in 1960.

Acknowledgements: Image of the Battle of Messines from Imperial War Museum under their non-commercial licence. © IWM (Q 2315). Thanks to the Lloyd family for permission to use the image of John.

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