No

Date Died

Surname

Forenames

Rank

Decs

Age

Cause

Country

Location/Sector

Cemetery/Memorial

Notes

1917

1

24th April

HAMMOND

William Cecil

Capt

-

19

KIA

Salonika

Near Jumeaux Ravine, Lake Doiran

Doiran Military Cemetery (I.C.9)

(p332)

1918

2

18th September

BREE

Edward Russell Stapylton

Lt

-

21

KIA

Salonika

"Flat Iron Hill", Dova Tepe

Doiran Memorial

(p441)

3

18th September

RENDALL

Robert Alexander

Capt

MC

26

KIA

Salonika

"Flat Iron Hill", Dova Tepe

Karasouli Military Cemetery (F.1317)

(441)

4

2nd October

PATERSON

Arthur Stanley

Lt

-

29

DOW

Salonika

CCS at Karasouli

Karasouli Military Cemetery (D.838)

(p441)  (1)

 Notes:   (The numbers marked with a "p" in the Notes column refers to the page in "The History of the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry", by Everard Wyrall, where the death of the officer is mentioned or indicated).

1.   PATERSON was wounded at "Flat Iron Hill", Dova Tepe on 18th September 1918

The 8th (Service) Battalion was formed at Bodmin on 26th September 1914 as part of "K3", and assembled later at Codford, near Warminster, and allocated to 79th Brigade of 26th Division.   In November 1914 the Battalion was moved to the Bath area and continued training for combat operations in the BEF.   The Battalion remained there until May 1915 when it was moved to Sutton Veney, near Warminster to complete combat training.   The Battalion was returned to Bath in November 1914 and remained there until May 1915 when it was moved to Sutton Veney, near Warminster to complete combat training.   The Battalion embarked at Folkestone for Boulogne landing there in the late evening of 22nd September 1915.   From here, the Battalion was moved to the Cachy area of Villers-Bretonneux, arriving on 26th September.   The Battalion remained at Cachy until 14th October when it was moved north east to Albert for instruction in trench warfare and work on the town's defences.   On the 31st October instructions were received for the Battalion to move to Marseilles arriving there on 13th November, embarking for Salonika.   The Battalion, with the Division, remained in Salonika up to the Armistice with Bulgarians on 28th September 1918.   After hostilities with Bulgaria ceased the he Division advanced towards Adrianople (as the war with Turkey was still underway) but this also was soon halted. 26th Division successively became part of the Army of the Danube and then of the Occupation of Bulgaria. Demobilisation began in February 1919, with Italian troops arriving to replace the dwindling British presence, and by 10th May 1919, the Division ceased to exist.   The Battalion were stationed in Turkey, and then at Tiflis in the Black Sea area on 16th May 1919, before being disbanded on 2nd October 1919.

Full details of the Battalion's actions and movements throughout the Great War can be viewed in the Battalion War Diary, which can be seen at the National Archives in Catalogues WO 95/2253/12 and WO 95/4895/.

Fatal casualties of DCLI personnel of the 8th Battalion :   Officers 4 - men 98.

The DCLI was formed on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms which saw the amalgamation of the 32nd (Cornwall Light Infantry) Regiment of Foot and the 46th (South Devonshire) Regiment of Foot.   These two units became respectively the Regular 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Regiment, with the Regimental Depot based at Victoria Barracks, Bodmin. 

The 1881 reforms also redesignated the Militia and Rifle Volunteer Corps (RVC) units within the Regimental District of Cornwall as Battalions of the DCLI  - the Royal Cornwall Rangers forming the 3rd (Militia) Battalion, the 1st Cornwall Battalion RVC forming the 1st Volunteer Battalion and the 2nd Cornwall Battalion RVC forming the 2nd Volunteer Battalion. 

In 1908, as part of the Haldane Reforms, the Militia Battalion was reorganised and restructured forming the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion and the two Volunteer Battalions formed the 4th Battalion and 5th Battalion of the Regimental Territorial Force (TF).   After the Declaration of War on 4th August 1914 and at various stages up to 1st June 1918, the order of battle of the DCLI was made up of 16 Regular, Territorial Force, Service, Labour and Reserve Battalions.   The two Volunteer Battalions, raised in 1916 for Local Home and Coastal Defence duties, were later transferred to the Royal Defence Corps.

A detailed history of the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry can be viewed here.