Fallen Officers of the Great War   |   Gloucestershire Regiment

No

Date Died

Surname

Forenames

Rank

Decs

Age

Cause

Country

Location/Sector

Cemetery/Memorial

Notes

Died in 1916   (3 officers)

1

30th June

MILES

Allan Oswald

2Lt

-

27

KIA

France

"Boar's Head", southeast of Richebourg L'Avoue

Loos Memorial   (Panel 60 to 64)

-

2

3rd September

BENNETT

Reginald

2Lt

-

27

KIA

France

Near St Pierre Divion, northeast of Thiepval

Thiepval Memorial (Pier/Face 5A and 5B)

-

3

13th October

DRAKE

Percy Albert

2Lt

-

26

KIA

France

Schwaben Redoubt, north of Thiepval

Lonsdale Cemetery, Authuile   (VII.A.4)

-

Died in 1917   (2 officers)

4

3rd July

FRAMPTON

John Reginald

2Lt

-

21

KIA

Belgium

Near St Jean, north east of Ypres

Vlamertinghe New Military Cemetery   (IV.B.9)

-

5

31st July

EATON

Harold

2Lt

-

30

KIA

Belgium

Near St Julien, north east of Ypres

DuHallow ADS Cemetery, N of Ypres   (I.A.35)

-

Died in 1918   (8 officers)

6

23rd March

BURTON

Charles Harold

2Lt

-

22

KIA

France

Near Herbecourt, west of Peronne, Somme

Pozieres Memorial   (Panel 40 and 41)

-

7

30th March

CALCUTT

Albert Birch

2Lt

-

23

KIA

France

Near Aubercourt,  southeast of Villers-Bretonneux

Pozieres Memorial   (Panel 40 and 41)

-

8

30th March

DANNE

Arthur William Brian

Lt

-

20

KIA

France

Near Aubercourt,  southeast of Villers-Bretonneux

Pozieres Memorial   (Panel 40 and 41)

-

9

30th March

HARVEY

Henry Burnett

2Lt

-

23

KIA

France

Near Aubercourt,  southeast of Villers-Bretonneux

Pozieres Memorial   (Panel 40 and 41)

-

10

30th March

HILLIER

Geoffrey Stuart Drummond

Capt

MiD

23

KIA

France

Near Aubercourt,  southeast of Villers-Bretonneux

Pozieres Memorial   (Panel 40 and 41)

-

11

26th April

HAGUE

Leonard

2Lt

-

32

KIA

Belgium

"The Bluff", west of Battle Wood, south east of Ypres

Tyne Cot Memorial   (Panel 72 to 75)

-

12

26th April

HOMER

William Howard Claude

Lt

MC

31

KIA

Belgium

"The Bluff", west of Battle Wood, south east of Ypres

Tyne Cot Memorial   (Panel 72 to 75)

-

13

26th April

HOWMAN

Henry Roger

Major

MiD

40

KIA

Belgium

"The Bluff", west of Battle Wood, south east of Ypres

Perth Cemetery (China Wall) E of Ypres  (I.G.25)

-

The 13th Battalion was raised in December 1914 at Malvern by Sir Henry Webb MP and recruited from the miners of the Forest of Dean, South Wales and the Durham coalfields.  In July 1915, the Battalion was taken over by the War Office and was moved to Witley Camp, Surrey to continue its intensive training for combat operations.   In August 1915 the Battalion was placed under command of 39th Division as the Divisional Pioneer unit. .    

On 3rd March 1916 the Battalion departed Witley Camp and entrained for Southampton Docks.   It embarked on SS Marguerette and SS Maiden, arriving at Le Havre on 4th March.   After an overnight stay the Battalion was moved by train to Thiennes, near Hazebrouck and marched to camp at Steenbecque, arriving on 6th March under temporary command of HQ III Corps.  For the next two days the Battalion was put to work repairing roads and other infrastructure at the camp.   On 9th March the Battalion was temporarily split up, Companies going to La Mottee, Sailly, Laventie and Estaires undertaking various pioneer and engineering tasks in those areas.   On 26th March the Battalion concentrated near Bethune and Companies were placed under command of various Divisional Field Companies RE, assisting them in creating barbed-wire entanglements, saps, communication trenches and defensive works.   On 14th April the Battalion concentrated at Essars and was formally placed under command of 39th Division as Divisional Pioneers, working in the Festubert-Givenchy-La Bassee Canal sectors.  

The Battalion saw its first significant action on 30th June 1916, during the Battle of the Boar's Head, when it dug communication trenches behind the assaulting troops.  On several occasions during the battle the Pioneers had to stop digging to defend themselves, and the Battalion suffered 71 casualties.  It saw action again towards the end of 1916 during operations on the Ancre.  In March 1918, the Battalion suffered particularly badly in the opening week of the German Spring Offensive, during which it was required to take positions in the line as infantry, and by the time the Division was withdrawn on 31st March the Battalion had sustained 326 casualties. On 10th April 1918 at St Omer, 450 men and nine officers were allocated to the newly formed 2nd Battalion of the Divisional Composite Infantry Brigade,  and nine officers to No 1 Battalion of the Composite Brigade.   The Composite Brigade last saw action on 26 April during the Second Battle of Kemmel, part of the Battle of the Lys, after which, on 5th May 1918, all detached officers and men rejoined the Battalion at Ruminghem, southeast of Calais.   The Battalion was then ordered to form training cadre on 10th May 1918 in the form of a Demonstration Company, with all other surplus personnel being sent to Etaples for onward posting to other Gloucestershire Regiment units.  One of the main roles of the demonstration Company was to train the 105th Engineer Regiment of the AEF.   On 15th August 1918, the Battalion cadre was transferred to 197th Brigade of the 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division, in preparation for major reinforcement and re-roling as an infantry/pioneer battalion.   The Battalion remained with the Brigade when the Brigade was transferred to Lines of Communication duties on 20th September 1918 in the Calais and Dieppe area under orders of HQ BEF.

On 18th December 1918 whilst at Le Havre, under command of 116th Infantry Brigade, the first men, miners and medically downgraded left the unit for demobilisation which continued throughout January, February, March, April and May 1919.   On 3rd May 1919 the Battalion was placed under command of 197th Brigade until later in the month when the Battalion was disbanded.

The Battalion earned Battle Honours during the Great War:   France and Flanders 1915 - 1918,  Ypres 1917,  Somme 1916 and 1918,  Ancre Heights,  Ancre 1916,  Pilckem,  St Quentin,  Rosieres and  Kemmel.

Copyright and source:  The Long, Long Trail

The brass “collar dog” insignia worn by men of Pioneer Battalions in the British Expeditionary Force. The design is of a crossed rifle and pick, representing the battalion's dual fighting and labouring role.

The Gloucestershire Regiment was formed on 1st July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms which saw the amalgamation of the 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot and the 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot.   These two units became respectively the regular 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Regiment, with the Regimental Depot based at Horfield Barracks, Bristol.  The 1881 reforms also redesignated the Militia and Rifle Volunteer Corps (RVC) units within the Regimental District of Gloucestershire as Battalions of the Regiment  - the Royal South Gloucestershire Militia forming the 3rd (Militia) Battalion and the Royal North Gloucestershire Militia forming the 4th Militia Battalion.    The 1st (City of Bristol) Gloucestershire Rifle Volunteers formed the 1st (City of Bristol) Volunteer Battalion and the 2nd Gloucestershire Rifle Volunteers forming the 2nd Volunteer Battalion. 

In 1908, as part of the Haldane Reforms, the two Militia Battalions were reorganised and restructured forming the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion and the three Volunteer Battalions (the 3rd Volunteer Battalion had been formed in 1900) were reformed the 4th, 5th and 6th Battalions of the Regimental Territorial Force (TF).   After the Declaration of War on 4th August 1914 and at various stages up to 1st July 1918, the Gloucestershire Regiment had formed, disbanded or re-constituted up to 27 Regular, Territorial Force, Service and Reserve Battalions.

Detailed history of the Gloucestershire Regiment can be viewed here, here and here.