Gloucestershire Regiment - Roll of Honour of Officers of the Gloucestershire Regiment Who Died In The Great War Whilst Serving With 14th Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment

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Roll of Honour of Officers of the Gloucestershire Regiment

Who Died in the Great War

Those Officers of The Gloucestershire Regiment Who Died in the Great War

Whilst Serving With 14th (Service) Battalion (West of England)

No	Date Died	Surname	Forenames	Rank	Decs	Age	Cause	Country	Location/Sector/Area	Cemetery/Memorial	Notes
Died in 1916 (5 officers)
1	8th June	BUTT	Harry Alfred	Capt	-	40	KIA	France	"Pope's Nose", near Neuve Chapelle	Pont-Du-Hem Military Cemetery, La Gorgue (I.C.11)	-
2	8th June	ROBERTS	Gerald Chipchase	Lt Col	MiD	42	KIA	France	"Pope's Nose", near Neuve Chapelle	Pont-Du-Hem Military Cemetery, La Gorgue (I.B.12)	-
3	18th July	STAGG	Edward Christopher	2Lt	-	26	KIA	France	Trones Wood, south west of Guillemont, Somme	Thiepval Memorial (Pier/Face 5A and 5B)	-
4	30th August	CRAWLEY-BOEVEY	Thomas Russell	Capt	-	36	DOW	France	CCS at La Neuville, Corbie, Somme	La Neuville British Cemetery, Corbie (II.B.11)	(1)
5	25th October	COLTHURST	Arthur Beadon	Capt	-	46	KIA	France	Near "Bosky Redoubt", north east of Arras	Faubourg D'Amiens Cemetery, Arras (I.H.14)	-
Died in 1917 (5 officers)
6	21st August	PARSONS	Hardy Falconer	2Lt	VC	20	KIA	France	"The Knoll", north east of Lempire, Epehy	Villers-Faucon Communal Cemetery (A.16)	-
7	25th August	TRATMAN	Francis Victor	2Lt	-	20	KIA	France	Near Tombois Farm, north east of Lempire, Epehy	Villers-Faucon Communal Cemetery (A.14)	-
8	22nd October	WALLER	Thomas Henry Whalley	Lt	-	21	KIA	Belgium	"Panama House", south of Houlthulst Forest	Tyne Cot Memorial (Panel 72 to 75)	-
9	22nd October	WOMAR	Frederick	2Lt	-	29	KIA	Belgium	"Panama House", south of Houlthulst Forest	Tyne Cot Memorial (Panel 72 to 75)	-
10	23rd October	BAKER	Walter	Capt	MC	21	DOW	Belgium	47 CCS at Krombeke, north west of Poperinghe	Dozinghem Military Cemetery, Poperinghe (IX.C.17)	(2)
The Battalion was disbanded in France on 11th February 1918

Officers of Other Regiments Who Died in the Great War Whilst Serving With 14th (Service) Battalion (1 officer)
1	19th July 1916	LEES	Percival Booth	2Lt	-	28	KIA	France	Trones Wood, southwest of Guillemont, Somme	Thiepval Memorial (Pier and Face 7C and 7B)	(3)
Notes: 1. CRAWLEY-BOEVEY was wounded at Lamb Trench, north east of Trones Wood, near Guillemont, Somme on 22nd August 1916. 2. BAKER was wounded at "Panama House" south west of Houlthulst Forest on 22nd October 1917. 3. LEES was detached from the Hampshire Regiment.

Battalion History

The 14th Battalion was a "bantam" unit of volunteers from Bristol and Birmingham who had previously been rejected for service because of their short height. It was raised on 22nd April 1915 by the Bristol Citizen's Recruiting Committee and assembled at Masham Camp in Yorkshire. The Battalion was adopted by the War Office on 23rd June 1915 and placed under command of 105th Brigade of the 35th Division. In August 195 the battalion was moved to Salisbury Plain for intensive training for combat operations. The Battalion was moved to Southampton Docks on 30th January 1916 for embarkation to Le Have, arriving there on 31st January. On 2nd February the journey to Le Touret by train and march began arriving there on 27th February where Companies were temporarily detached to the four infantry battalions of 115th Brigade for instruction in trench warfare. On 7th March the Battalion concentrated at Robecq for musketry training and on 10th May at Colonne working parties were detached to CRE 35th Division to construct rifle ranges.

The Battalion went into the front line trenches on 30th March near Fauquissart relieving 15th Battalion Cheshire Regiment. Its first significant action came on 8th June, when it conducted a large raid south-east of Neuve Chapelle. In July, following the capture of Trônes Wood on the Somme by the 18th Division during the Battle of Bazentin, the Battalion moved into the line at the northern end of the Wood where, on 19th July, it suffered 107 casualties to enemy artillery. On 21st August 1917, while in the line near Épehy, the Germans attacked one of the Battalion's bombing posts. Although his bombing party were driven back, Second-Lieutenant Hardy Falconer Parsons remained and prevented the enemy from entering the trenches, for which act he was posthumously awarded the VC. The Battalion fought in the action of 22nd October 1917 during the Battle of Passchendaele, and saw its last action on 4th February 1918, when it successfully attacked "Gravel Farm" in the Langemarck sector. Seven days later the Battalion was disbanded at De Wippe, near Woesten and 12 officers and 250 men were transferred to the 13th Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment with the remaining men being sent via the II Corps Reinforcement Camp to the 12th Entrenching Battalion.

The Battalion earned 5 Battle Honours during the Great War: France and Flanders 1915 - 1918, Ypres 1917, Somme 1916, Bazentin, Passchendaele.

A detailed history of the battalion can be viewed here.

Regimental History

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.

Page last updated: 30th May 2025

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