102281, Private, 2/6th Notts & Derbys Regiment, (Formerly 5801 Hertfordshire Regiment).

Died Of Wounds on the 9^th May 1918 aged 27.

Jesse was the youngest son of George & Emma Parker of Totts Lane, Walkern. Before joining the Army he had been employed for 10 years as a Baker by C.E.Pearman in Walkern.

He enlisted in the Army in on the 10th November 1915 and initially served with the 1st Hertfordshire Regiment.He arrived in France on the 31st July 1916 and was transfered to the 3rd Entrenching Battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment on the 22nd August 1916. On the 5th September 1916 he was posted to the 6th Royal Berkshire Regiment and was wounded on the 3rd October 1916. He was taken to No.29 Casualty Clearing Station where was treated for a Gunshot wound to his back. He was moved to a hospital in Bolougne for further treatment and recovery and did not return to his unit until 21st November. Jesse was wounded again on the 12th March 1917, this time he received contusions to his face and neck and suffered from concussion. He was taken to the 2/1st West Riding Field Ambulance where his wounds were treated.

On the 6th July 1917, whilst undertaking physical training, Jesse sprained an ankle and fractured a fibula. He was taken to No.20 General Hospital and was sent back to Engalnd where he was admitted to the Birmingham War Hospital for recovery. After recovering from his injuries he was posted to the Ballybonare Camp in County Cork, Southern Ireland, where he remained until March 1918 when he was sent back to France, arriving at Cherbourg on the 25th March.

The Germans had commenced their Spring Offensive on the 21st March 1918 and many of the British Regiments had suffered greivous losses, with many men being taken prisoner. As a result a number of Regiments were seriously depleated and needed reinforcing and Jesse found himself transfered to the 2/6th Notts & Derbys Regiment. He arrived at the Headquarters of "C" Company on the 2nd April and two weeks later, on the 16th April, was again wounded in the face and hands. He was taken to No.13 General Hospital in Boulogne on the 19th April and was moved to No.83 General Hospital the following day. On the 23rd April he was taken to Sidcup for treatment where he developed Pneumonia to which he failed to respond to treatment and died on the 9th May.

Jesse is buried in the St.Mary Churchyard, Walkern.

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal

M/349525, Private, Royal Army Service Corps.

Died on the 25^th February 1919 aged 33.

Alfred was the son of Charles and Maria Savage and the husband of Rose Savage. He was born in Cottered and moved to Walkern when he was 11 years old where he worked as Bootmaker for John Cannon. He joined the Army in December 1917.

The exact circumstances of his death are not yet known.

Alfred is buried in the St.Mary Churchyard, Walkern. (Grave C6.)

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal

G/15595, Private, 12th Royal Sussex Regiment.

Killed In Action on the 17^th October 1916.

The Battalion were in an area of the Somme sector known as the Schwabern Redoubt from the 15^th to the 17^th October 1916, during the closing stages of the Battle of the Somme. They were involved in intense action over these two days and were attacked on several occasions with Flame-throwers and grenades as well as being shelled by artillery.  On the 17^th October as the Battalion were being relieved they were heavily shelled, resuting in a number of casualties including Walter Savage

He is buried in the Gommecourt British Cemetery No.2, Hebuterne, France. (6.B.1.)

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal

(Photo Courtesy of Simom Cawthorne)

G/15354, Lance Corporal, 2nd Queens Royal West Surrey Regiment.

Killed In Action on the 26^th October 1917 aged 26 .

Wilfred was the son of Reuben & Rosanna Smith of High Sreet, Walkern.

He was tolose his life in the closing stages of The Battle of  Passchendaele. The offensive had been launched on 31st July 1917 and continued until the fall of Passchendaele village on 6th November.  Although it resulted in gains for the Allies it was by no means the breakthrough General Haig intended, and such gains as were made came at great cost in human terms. The area had suffered the heaviest rains it had seen for 30 years and this, combined with intensive shelling from both sides, had turned the ground into a hellish morass.

On the 24^th October 1917 the Battalion relieved the 16^th & 17^th Sherwood Foresters at Bodmin Copse. The ground conditions were terrible and the Battalion moved into position at night using duckboard walkways. This made progress very slow and the relief was not completed until 1.30am due to the darkness, the fact it was raining and that they had to share the walkways with the outgoing troops.

The 25^th October was described as “relatively quiet” with the Battalion preparing for an assault the following day on a position known as Lewis House. The attack began at 5.40 am and quickly became disorganised due to the fact that most of the Officers and NCO’s had become casualties. It also appears that two lines of troops converged on each other as they reached the objective, increasing the confusion and possibly resulting on troops firing on each other. In total the Battalion suffered 101 casualties during this disastrous attack, one of whom was Wilfred Smith.

Wilfred is buried in the Perth Cemetery (China Wall), Zillebeke, Belgium. 

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal

266937, Private, No.4 Company. 1 Hertfordshire Regiment.

Killed In Action on the 31^st July 1917 aged 22.

Charles was the son of Samuel & Louisa Spicer of 2 Beecroft Cottages, Walkern and was to lose his life on the first day of a major British offensive, The Battle of  Passchendaele.

He had joined the Army on the 10th November 1915 and was initally recruited into the Hertfordhsire Regiment. Charles was posted to France on the 4th July 1916, just three days after the Battle of the Somme had begun, and served continuously on the Western Front until his death. He was posted to the Regiments Entrenching Battalion on the 22nd July and moved to No.4 Company on the 24th August 1916.

On the 15th May 1917 Charles was admitted to the 133rd Field Ambulance suffering with Cellulitis of the Right Leg. His leg became ulcerated and he was transfered to the 132nd Field Ambulance on the 22nd May. He remained there until 22nd June when he was returned to duty. At this time the Regiment was preparing for the Passchendaele offensive and every man was desperately needed.

The offensive was launched on 31 July 1917 and continued until the fall of Passchendaele village on 6 November.  Although it resulted in gains for the Allies it was by no means the breakthrough General Haig intended, and such gains as were made came at great cost in human terms. The village of St. Juliaan lies on the Hanebeek, one of the small streams that drains the fields in this area. On the 18^th July 1917 a heavy preliminary artillery bombardment began which lasted for the ten days prior to the launch of the attack. The bombardment was made by 3,000 guns which expended four and a quarter million shells into the surrounding ground.  Given such an onslaught the German Fourth Army fully expected the attack and the element of surprise was entirely lost. Added to this was the fact that the area was suffering the heaviest rains it had seen for 30 years and this, combined with the shelling, turned the ground into a hellish morass.

On the 31st July the Battalion were in support of an attack on the Langemarck Line and at 03.45am the planned assault began. It had three objectives to achieve known as Blue, Black & Green and units of the 116th Brigade easily captured the first two objectives, preparing the way for the forward companies of the Hertfordshire battalion, to take the third objective.

At 05.00am they left their assembly positions to attack their objective, which lay over the crest of a ridge. As they made their way forward they came under heavy fire from both German machine guns and snipers but after eliminating a German strongpoint moved up towards St.Julian, which was only lightly held. The battalion crossed the Steenbeek with some difficulty and two of its supporting Tanks became bogged down in the mud. Things then went from bad to worse. A pre-arranged artillery barrage never materialised due to the guns being unable to move forward over the muddy terrain and the German barbed wire defences, which were fifteen feet deep in some places, were found to still be intact.

It was soon realised that ground could only be won by section " rushes" supported by the unit’s own fire. The Cheshire Regiment were on the right of the battalion but the Black Watch, who were due to cover the left flank, had been seriously delayed. This left the Hertfordshire's seriously exposed and the Germans exploited this by bringing a hurricane of fire down upon the stricken troops. This was followed by a German counter-attack and by 10.30 am it was clear that the objective could not be achieved. Casualties were very heavy with 459 men being killed or wounded.

Charles body was not recovered until February 1918 and is buried in the Tyne Cot Cemetery, Zonnebeke, Belgium. (10.G.4.) 

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal

3207, Private, 1st Hertfordshire Regiment.

Missing In Action on the18th May 1915 aged 19.

Allan was the son of Thomas & Mary Stockbridge of Victoria House, Walkern. He was posted to France on the 23^rd January 1915 and was killed on the same day as his younger brother, Cedric, whilst serving with the same Battalion.

They were in support of an attack by the Irish Guards on German positions East of L’Pinette. near Festubert. The No.1 Company supported an attack by the Irish Guards but had only gone 200 yards when they were held up by heavy machine gun and rifle fire, suffering a number of casualties, including the Stockbridge brothers.

Allan has no known grave and his name is recorded on the Le Touret Memorial, France. (Panel 47.)

Medal Entitlement:  1915 Star, British War Medal & Victory Medal

Private, 1st Hertfordshire Regiment.

Missing In Action on the18th May 1915 aged 18.

Cedric was the son of Thomas & Mary Stockbridge of Victoria House, Walkern. He was posted to France on the 6^th November 1914 and was killed on the same day as his older brother, Allan, whilst serving with the same Battalion.

They were in support of an attack by the Irish Guards on German positions East of L’Pinette. near Festubert. The No.1 Company supported an attack by the Irish Guards but had only gone 200 yards when they were held up by heavy machine gun and rifle fire, suffering a number of casualties, including the Stockbridge brothers.

Cedric has no known grave and his name is recorded on the Le Touret Memorial, France. (Panel 47.)

Medal Entitlement:  1914 Star, British War Medal & Victory Medal

M/320272, Private, 1019th Motor Transport Company. Royal Army Service Corps.

Died on the 23^rd March 1919 aged 27.

Harold was the son of E Warner of Walkern and the husband of E Warner of North Hykeham, Lincolnshire.

The Company, initially 6 Officers and 80 Other Ranks, had been posted to serve in Iraq and left Southampton on the 7^th January 1918. The journey took them by train through France and Italy and then by ship, the SS Karoa, to Alexandria, which they reached on the 29^th January. The following day they moved to Port Suez where they boarded the SS Karagola bound for Karachi. On arriving in Karachi they joined the SS Aronda to their final destination, Basrah.

In Iraq the company swelled to 6 Officers, 143 British Other Ranks, 75 Indian Other Ranks and 11 Camp Followers. The Company vehicles were 130 Ford vans, 2 ambulances, 20 Talbots and 5 Star Lorries. They served both the military and political services n the area through to 1920.

It is not yet known what happened to Harold Warner. He is buried in the Lodge Hill Cemetery, Birmingham. (B10.9.661F.) 

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal

2/Lieutenant, 8th Bedfordshire Regiment, ( Formerly PS/8241 19th Royal Fusiliers ).

Died Of Wounds on the 25^th April 1917 aged 21.

Second Lieutenant Donald Samuel Wright

Donald Wright was born on the 25^th June 1895 the son of Samuel Eustace Wright, a local mineral drinks manufacturer. He was educated at Caldicott school and later at Bishop Stortford college.

He enlisted in the Army on the 13^th July 1915 just a few weeks after his 20^th birthday and served as Private 8241 in No.14 Platoon, “D” Company of the 19^th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers.  He was posted to France on the 8^th  January 1916 and joined his Battalion in the field on the 17^th January. He then served on the Western Front for exactly four months and on the 18^th May 1916 was posted England to undertake a cadetship at No.6 Officer Cadet Battalion. The Battalion was located at Balliol College, Oxford and he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant on the 25^th September 1916.

Donald was posted to the Bedfordshire Regiment on the 20^th October 1916 and embarked for France on the 10^th November. He joined the 8^th Battalion on the 27^th November 1916 and served with them on the Western Front throughout the winter of 1916/17. On the 16^th April 1917 the Battalion moved into Front Line positions at Loos. A few days later, on the 19^th, they were involved in bitter fighting in the area and were subjected to heavy artillery barrages and grenade attacks. Donald Wright received serious shell wounds to his right eye, face and chest and was evacuated to No.18 Field Ambulance. Later that day he was moved to No.33 Casualty Clearing station at Bethune, where he remained for six days. The nature of injuries must have been quite serious as he was moved to No.35 General Field Hospital in Calais on the 25^th April where he died at 11pm that night.

Donald is buried in the Calais Southern Cemetery, France.

Headstone Inscription: "Greater Love Hath No Man Than This"

Medal Entitlement:  British War Medal & Victory Medal