LINTON & DISTRICT HISTORY SOCIETY 1 Version 1.1 published November 2014 2 INDEX Introduction …………………………………… Page 4-5 ASTON INGHAM …………………………………… Page 6-7 HOPE MANSELL …………………………………… Page 8-10 LEA ……………………………………. Page 12-13 LINTON ……………………………………. Page 14-18 UPTON BISHOP ……………………………………. Page 19-21 WESTON UNDER PENYARD …………………………………….. Page 22-29 Appendix: Photographs of various memorials and cemeteries maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) ……………………….. Page 30-38 3 INTRODUCTION All the church memorials created in this area to honour the sacrifice of those that fell in the First World War were funded by public subscription. We can only guess at the impact of the loss of so many young men locally, particularly in a mainly agricultural society, but it is clear that families were numb with grief at the scale of the calamity. For many, the memorials must have represented a place of quiet reflection for a lost son or husband. Each Armistice Day commemoration, the memorials were surely a source of sadness tinged with pride for the community at large? The outbreak of the Second World War must have been galling for this generation who had lost loved ones fighting in what they believed was the war to end all wars. The majority of memorials are specifically dedicated to those from the parish who were killed in action. However, this link could be by birth, home address or place of work. As memorials were paid for by donations from parishioners it appears some named are not local and simply have a family connection. Several names appear on more than one memorial in the area confirming that this was a closely knit community. The British government had decided at the outbreak of war in 1914 that soldiers would be buried where they fell. This was a decision based on cost as a casualty rate of 40% had been forecast for the BEF (British Expeditionary Force) despatched to France. This proved an under estimation. Eventually, 720,000 British fighting men would die in four years of fighting in a war of attrition. Many have no known grave and are remembered as a name on a memorial along with thousands of their comrades. Numerous WW1 gravestones are inscribed simply with the words of Rudyard Kipling, ‘Known unto God’. Men from this area of Herefordshire fought in all the main theatres of the war including the Western Front, Gallipoli and Palestine. Numerically, most served in our local regiments- the Herefords, Glosters and foremost, the King’s Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI) - which were all active recruiters in the county. I have attempted to identify all those named on the Ariconium memorials using the extensive Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) records and a number of other specialist website databases (eg Ancestry and Forces War Records). Herefordshire Council has also replicated the relevant CWGC records on its website. Whilst few difficulties have been experienced with the identification of the majority of individuals there are some that still remain elusive. 4 The local agricultural labour force in the 1910s was essentially itinerant moving from farm to farm especially at harvest time. In tracking down individuals in the 1911 census, it appears a question of luck in which parish the many farm labourers and their families ended up on the night of Sunday, 2nd April 1911 (census day). Many shared common surnames (eg Jones, Taylor) and a ‘Harry’ could also be a Henry, Herbert, Humphrey or Hubert! Many adults at this time would have been illiterate and army records can often relate to an initial not to a first name. To illustrate the problem, 487 ‘H Taylors’ died in the Great War! Sadly, WW1 army records are far from complete with much being lost in 1940 in the London blitz with yet more sent for pulp to aid the war effort. The official regimental diaries are a fine source of general material but very rarely name individuals below officer rank. The Ariconium war dead were, of course, primarily privates although a few from a far wealthier background were commissioned. Conscription was introduced in 1916 for those aged 18 to 41 as voluntary recruitment had gradually declined. From this date, new conscripts could be sent to join regiments anywhere in Britain and we lost the primary local connection with the KSLI and the Glosters. Each year, some 500,000 young men reached their 18th birthday and by 1918 nearly half the British infantry in the field was aged 19 and under following the horrendous casualties at the Somme and Passchendaele. We can but hope that in the near future all those named on the Ariconium war memorials will be accurately identified. It has been a humbling experience in tracking down these brave men. Their sacrifice fighting for King and Country should never be forgotten. Roger Davies, Linton, October 2014 5 ASTON INGHAM (Church of St John the Baptist) Private Sidney Ralph BALDWIN 2nd Battalion South Lancashire Regiment Service number: 50311 Died: 22 March 1918 Age: 19 Sidney, who stayed in Gorsley with his aunt Leonora Gibbs pre-war, died on the second day of Operation Michael, the big German ‘push’ in the Spring of 1918. The church memorial states ‘RWF’ (Royal Welch Fusiliers) but this appears to be incorrect. Memorial location: Pozieres Memorial (commemorating over 14,000 UK casualties who died on the Somme from March to August 1918 and have no known grave). Son of Richard and Matilda Baldwin. Private Frank GOOCH 2nd Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers Service number: 4426 Died: 1 July 1916 Age: 20 Tragically, this was the first day of the Battle of the Somme. Frank was one of the 57,000 casualties in what proved to be the most costly single day in British military history. Frank was born and resided in Manchester. Memorial location: Thiepval Memorial (bearing the names of more than 72,000 officers and men of UK and South African forces who died in the Somme sector predominantly in 1916 and have no known grave). Son of Mrs. F. Gooch, of Chapmans Place, Kilcot, Glos. 6 CSM Thomas McCAIN Royal Engineers 50th Field Searchlight Company (Company Sergeant Major) Service number: 28347 Died: 14 July 1917 Age: 39 A career soldier and recorded as an army engine driver in the 1911 census. Cemetery location: La Chapelette British and Indian Cemetery, Peronne (the 34th Casualty Clearing Station was at La Chapelette, east of Amiens, in July 1917). Son of Christopher and Sarah McCain. Private George William PAUL 6th Battalion Australian Infantry Service number: 2281 Died: 15 August 1916 Age: 22 The CWGC grave records reveal no next of kin but George fought with the Australian Imperial Forces on the Western Front. Memorial location: Villers-Bretonneux Memorial (This is the Australian National Memorial erected to commemorate all Australian soldiers who fought in France and Belgium during the WW1 and especially to those with no named grave. The memorial was designed by Lutyens and unveiled by King George VI on 22 July 1938). Nephew of James Pearce of Ashton Ingham. Driver Francis Humpidge WHEELER 2nd Brigade Royal Field Artillery (53rd Battery) Service number: 187179 Died: 5 October 1918 Age:20 Francis is also remembered on the memorials at Christ Church, Gorsley and Clifford’s Mesne. CWGC records state ‘died of wounds’ some 5 weeks before the Armistice. Memorial location: St. Sever Cemetery Extension, Rouen (Rouen had eight general, five stationary and one British Red Cross hospital for the duration of WW1. Most who died in these hospitals were taken to the city cemetery of St. Sever. The cemetery extension was created in 1916 and contains 8,348 Commonwealth burials. These include Francis but also Albert Drinkwater age 19 (Linton) and Henry Jones age 22 (Gorsley Baptist Church). Son of Mr. WH and Mrs. LH Wheeler, of Ivy-dene Cottage, May Hill, Longhope, Glos. 7 HOPE MANSELL (Church of St Michael) Private Charles Henry CORBETT 4th Battalion Worcestershire Regiment Service number: 48044 Died: 30 November 1917 Age: 19 Memorial location: Cambrai Memorial, Louverval (The Cambrai Memorial commemorates more than 7,000 UK and South African servicemen who died in the Battle of Cambrai in November and December 1917 and have no known grave. James Mayo (Upton Bishop) died on the same day and is also named on this memorial). Son of Bertha Mutlow (formerly Corbett), of Perlieu Cottage, Star Beach, Ruardean Sapper David Albert CORBETT Royal Engineers Service number: 21434 Died 1 March 1920 Age: 27 Elder brother of Charles above and succumbed to his war time service in 1920. We have no other details in the CWGC records. Son of Bertha Mutlow (formerly Corbett), of Perlieu Cottage, Star Beach, Ruardean Private Allen GARDINER 3rd Battalion King's Shropshire Light Infantry Service number: 11161 Died: 22 June 1916 Age: 20 The 3rd battalion was specifically a training battalion for new recruits before they moved on to front-line units. CWGC records from May 2009 state: ‘This casualty has recently been accepted for commemoration by the Commission’. Allen’s gravestone is St Michael’s churchyard near the main gate. Son of Joseph Gardiner. Private Allen Gardiner’s gravestone in September 2014. 8 Private Alfred JONES ALFRED JONES HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED BUT RESEARCH UNDERTAKEN FOR HEREFORDSHIRE COUNCIL SUGGESTS HIS CHRISTIAN NAME WAS IN FACT ALBERT. IF CORRECT:- Private Albert JONES 118th Company, Labour Corps [transferred from 29th Battalion Middlesex Regiment (78351)] Service number: 70419 Died: 30 November 1917 Age: 43 Formed in January 1917, the Labour Corps grew to some 389,900 men by the Armistice. The Corps was manned by officers and other ranks who had been medically rated below the ‘A1’ condition needed for front line service. Many were returned wounded.