Illustrious Old Boys

Linda Parker, a History teacher recently retired from her post at KAGS, has an abiding interest in the two World Wars, as a result of which she has compiled this list of those Old Alfredians killed during the conflicts.

Indeed, those events were made more tangible to her pupils with school trips to the scenes of World War 1 battles and cemeteries, during which actual graves and memorials of Old Alfredians were visited.

The following list of Old Alfredians that paid the ultimate price is a result of her painstaking research; contributions that extend this information are welcome:

Attride, R G, Captain, 1/4 Berkshire Regiment
Killed in action, Somme, August 1916, aged 26.
Remembered on the Thiepval Memorial. Wounded in the arm attacking Sky trench, but carried on and was shot dead. Prominent in the Old Alfredians before The War.

Nichols, R W, Captain, 102nd Canadians
Killed in action, Somme, October 1916.

Poole, O C, 1st Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade
Died of wounds, Somme, October 1916.

 

 

The Anglo-French Memorial at Thiepval, inscribed with more than 72,000 names ..... more

 


 

 

 

 

Barton, C P, 2nd Lt., 3/6 Surrey Regiment
Killed in action, Somme, August 1916, near Mouquet Farm; aged 23.
Remembered on the Thiepval Memorial.

After the battle, Mouquet Farm (shown above before the battle) was reduced to the small pile of bricks and timbers shown left in the midst of a wasteland pockmarked by shell-holes. The cost - 11,000 lives .....more


 

Bell, Norman, 2nd Lt., 2nd Hampshire Regiment.
Killed in action, Beaumont Hamel, July 1916.
Remembered on the Thiepval Memorial. Died near the Sunken Road.

Shown right is the Sunken Road, early on 1st July, 1916 - is Norman Bell among them? Many of the men pictured were killed when they advanced at 7:30 a.m.; they could not be buried till November - half of them were buried unidentified .....more

 

 

 


 

 

Picture from the Battle of St Julien

 

 

Brooke-Smith, E C, Private, British Columbia Regiment.
Wounded April 1915; died December 1916. Was recovering, but died suddely after a corrective operation.

The British Columbia Regiment's 7th Battalion first major action was at Ypres, in the battle of St Julien on 22nd April, 1915. They suffered heavy casualties; by the end of the war, of the 6,000 men that had served in the 7th Batallion, only 134 men had not been killed or wounded .....more


 

Catford, C H B, 2nd Lt., Durham Light Infantry.
Killed in action on the Somme, 5th October 1916, aged 26.

Buried in the Dernancourt Communal Cemetery Extension; Plot III. 3. 31. .....more

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

Cobden, F P, Lt., 8th Royal Berkshire Regiment, later Royal Flying Corps.
Killed in action, Germany, 7th July 1918, aged 21. Shot down over Germany.

Buried in the Niederzwehren Cemetery, Kassel, Germany; Plot IV. M. 14. .....more


 

Cowie, G J H, 2nd Lt., Royal Fusiliers.
Killed in action, Arras, April 1917, aged 23.

Awarded the Military Cross at Arras. Remembered on the Arras Memorial .....more

Evezard, G, Captain, Warwick Regiment.
Kill in action, Arras, May, 1917.

Buried in the Aubigny Communal Cemetery Extension, Plot VI. G. 7.

 

 

Clearance work in Arras town square continues in February 1919.


 

 

 

 

Crabb, L G B, 2nd Lt., East Surrey Regiment .
Killed in action, Neuve Chapelle, March 1915, aged 20.

Buried in the Messines Military Cemetery.

The picture shows the aftermath of an English attack at Neuve Chapelle.


 

Dandridge, R, Trooper, Berkshire Yeomanry.
Killed in action in the attack on Chocolate Hill at Suvla Bay, August 1915, aged 16.

Eady, N, Berkshire Yeomanry.
Killed in action in the attack on Chocolate Hill at Suvla Bay, August 1915.

Jenkins, J T P, Sgt., Berkshire Yeomanry.
Killed in action in the attack on Chocolate Hill at Suvla Bay, August 1915, aged 23.

Remembered on the Helles Memorial, Gallipoli. His father farmed at White Horse Hill, Uffington.

Lovegrove, R N, Trooper, Berkshire Yeomanry.
Killed in action in the attack on Chocolate Hill at Suvla Bay, August 1915, aged 21.

Buried in the Green Hill Cemetery, Gallipoli.

The Berkshire Yeomanry were part of a force that attacked Chocolate Hill (shown right) on 21 August. All of their officers were hit; 60% of the total force was killed or wounded. Private Fred Potts of Reading was awarded the Victoria Cross .....more

Andrew French has a database containing information on the Berkshire Yeomanry; information on individuals may be obtainable from this link .....visit

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

Eccles, A J T, Lt., East Surrey Regiment.
Died on active service, 26 November 1918 (flu), aged 21.

Awarded the Military Cross. Buried in the Solesmes Military Cemetery. Son of Mr. G. Tolcher Eccles, M.B. Cantab., and Emmeline Eccles, of 63 Sackville Rd., Hove, Sussex.


 

Hardy, G, 2nd Lt., Irish Fusiliers.
Wounded and taken prisoner, March 1918. Died of wounds in Germany, aged 19.

Buried in Kortrijk Communal Cemetery, Belgium.....more

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

Pearson, D, Engineer-Lt., Royal Navy.
Sunk on HMS Marmion, October 1917.

Marmion, a destroyer, was on convoy duty when she collided with HMS Tirade off Lerwick, the Shetland Isles.


 

Rice, G, Brigadier-General.
Mesopotamia, 1915.

The expedition was originally to protect the oil wells in the Persian Gulf from the Turks .....more

Watson, R C O, Captain, Middlesex Regiment.
Killed in action, First Battle of Gaza, March 1917 - just before the First Battle of Gaza .....more

Proctor, J, Berkshire Yeomanry.
Killed in action, Palestine, November 1917 - probably in one of the three battles leading up to the capture of Jerusalem .....more

Turkish troops, right, await the next Allied advance.

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

Roscoe, A, 2nd Lt., Royal West Kent Regiment.
Killed in action, Somme, 5 September 1916, aged 26.

Buried in Corbie Communal Cemetery Extension, Plot 2, Row B, Grave 5.


 

Smith, P M, Trooper, Sherwood Forest Yeomanry.
Killed in action, Salonika, October 1916.

Thousands of captured Bulgarians arriving at a prisoner-of-war camp, right.

Eye witness accounts of the Salonika campaign.....visit

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

Harvey, H R, Lance Corporal, Civil Service Rifles.
Killed in action, Thiepval, 7th October 1916, aged 21.

Buried in Warlencourt Cemetery, Plot VI. E. 1. .....more

Shown left is a section of Thiepval village after the battle.


 

Heading, F, Private, 7th Battalion, Canadian Infantry .
Killed in action, France, 1918.

Remembered on the Vimy Memorial, a massively impressive monument inscribed with the names of 11,285 Canadians. The surrounding park, still pockmarked with shell-holes and full of unexploded mines and shells, is planted with 11,285 Canadian pine trees.

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

Wheeler, G M, Private, Seaforth Highlanders.
Killed in action, France, May 1915.

Wheeler, D M, Rifleman, East Surrey Rifles.
Killed in action, France, December 1917.

Brothers.

Cooper, E H, Private, Warwickshire Regiment.
Died of flu, November 1918.

Sandberg, J H C.
DIed on active service, December 1918.