The Men Who Fell in WW1

South Warwickshire Family History Society War Memorial Transcription Project

The Fallen Men of South Warwickshire - World War One

L/Corporal 3/8441 Benjamin JACKSON - 1st Battalion, Dorsetshire Regiment

Died of Wounds on Monday 3rd May 1915 aged 35

Military History


Theatre of War in Which Died	WW1 Campaign Medals	Commonwealth War Grave or Memorial
France & Flanders	1914-15 Star, British War & Victory Medals	Reningelst Churchyard Extension

First Arrived in Theatre	Bravery & Conduct Medals	SWFHS Area Memorials
7 Mar 1915 in France	~	Corley War Memorial Gates

Action, Battle or Other Reason Died	Date and Place Enlisted	Other War Memorials
Second Battle of Ypres	2 Sep 1914 in Mountain Ash, Wales

Place of Death	Previous Regiments or Units
15th Field Ambulance, Reningelst	~

Circumstances of Death

Benjamin died of wounds at the 15th Field Ambulance at Reningelst having been wounded at Hill 60, Ypres. The 1st Battalion war diary entries for the period 2nd to 4th May 1915 are transcribed below.

Hill 60, Ypres - 2 May 1915: 5am B & C Coys relieved on Hill 60 by Devons and withdrawn to 39 & 40 trenches.

4.30pm: Dorsets relieved in trenches by Devons. Dorsets withdrew to dugouts.

Casualties: 2 killed 2 wounded

Hill 60, Ypres - 3 May 1915: Bn remained in dug outs in close support of Devons.

Casualties: 1 killed 5 wounded

Hill 60, Ypres - 4 May 1915: Bn remained in dug outs in close support of Devons.

Casualties: 5 wounded

An obituary in the Coventry Graphic on Friday June 4th 1915 reports:

Walsgrave residents will learn with regret and resentment that Lanc-Corpl. B Jackson, son of the late Mr. George Jackson of Walsgrave, has fallen a victim to the Germans dastardly use of asphyxiating gases. He was poisoned by a cloud of gas which enveloped the 1st Dorsets with whom he was serving. His painful death aroused in his comrades a bitter feeling against the enemy, as he had served all through the war and met the foe in fair fight many times without suffering serious injury.

The sad news of his death was conveyed to his sister, Mrs. E Wright, of 68 Smithford Street, Coventry, last week.

Personal & Family History

Birth Date/Place	Baptism Date/Place
Jan-Mar Qtr 1880 in Walsgrave on Sowe	28 May 1882 in Walsgrave on Sowe

Parents Names	Abode
George and Rose Jackson	Butts Croft, Corley

Schools	Colleges
	~

Address History	Employment History
1881 - Combe Road, Sowe	1891 - Scholar
1891 - Ansty Road, Sowe	1901 - Bricklayers Labourer
1901 - Ansty Lane, Sowe	1911 - Coal Miner/Getter
1911 - 136 Lockhurst Lane, Coventry	1914 - Collier
1915 - Butts Croft, Corley

Benjamin's father George had lived at Butts Croft, Corley since at least 1911.

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The UK Census has said that the total losses (deaths) in combat theaters from 1914–1918 were 876,084, which included 418,361 killed, 167,172 died of wounds, 113,173 died of disease or injury, 161,046 missing and presumed dead and 16,332 prisoner of war deaths.

For the men who died of wounds received on the Battlefield this website seeks to find out the circumstances of their deaths. In many cases the war diary for an ordinary Soldier or NCO's unit will not mention men by name and when preparing a Soldiers memorial page we are left to make an educated guess as to when, and often where, the soldier was wounded, which can range from a few seconds, minutes, hours, weeks, months and sometimes years before he died. The table below is designed to allow readers to make their own educated guesses as to when a soldier might have been wounded.

It should also be remembered that many men were only slightly or moderately wounded and they needed to be treated locally before being returned to the front lines and so a chain of evacution was created depending on locartions and battlefield logistics.

It can be seen above that nearly as many died of disease/sickness as did from being wounded. The below is a short guide prepared from material published by the BBC, Wikepedia, The Long Long Trail and The History Press along with the knowledge gained by us in researching our War Memorial Transcriptions (see menu items to left).

Chain of Evacuation

The Chain of Evacuation

1. Self treatment - All soldiers were issued with a large bandage designed to stop non-arterial blood flow if they were unable to get treatment.

2. Stretcher Bearers - Stretcher bearers recovered the dead and wounded from No Man’s Land. They would go out at night and during breaks in the fighting. This led to them having to overcome mud, shell craters and crowded trenches, sometimes in darkness. It took four men to carry a stretcher, sometimes more in deep mud. They would carry basic medical supplies, such as bandages.

3. Regimental aid post (RAP) - A RAP was close to the front line, such as in a dugout (a hole dug in the side of a trench). Here light wounds would be treated so that soldiers could return to the front line. Those who needed more treatment were moved on to a dressing station.

4. Advanced Dressing Station - A dressing station was often set up in a tent behind the trenches. Seriously injured soldiers were moved to a casualty clearing station by a motor or horse-drawn ambulance.

5. Field Ambulance - These were mobile front-line medical units for treating the wounded before they were transferred to a Casualty Clearing Station [CCS]. List of Field Ambulances and locations

6. Casualty Clearing Stations (CCS) - A CCS was the first medical facility in which the moderately seriously wounded would receive treatment. Here, soldiers were treated by doctors, nurses and surgeons. A CCS contained operating theatres, mobile X-ray machines and hospital ward beds. A CCS would normally have a nearby Cemetery(s) where they buried the soldiers who did not survive. List of CCS and Locations

7.1 Ambulance Trains - Railway carriages converted into hospital wards created in 1914 because of the necessity of having to treat sick and wounded servicemen urgently, and the task of moving them away from the Front to hospitals and other places of recuperation. Used to transport men away from CCS.

7.2 Ambulance Barges - Same as Ambulance trains, although slow, the journey was smooth and this time allowed the wounded to rest and recuperate. However there are incidences, particularly in the Mesopotamia theatre where they became extremely unsanitary and overcrowded with near intolerable conditions which caused many deaths.

8. Hospital Ships - Most hospital ships were requisitioned and converted passenger liners. Despite the excellent nursing and medical care many patients died aboard because of their extreme wounds. The risk of torpedoes and mines as they travelled from Battlefields to Home bases was very real. List of WW1 Hospital Ships.

9. Base/Field/Stationary/General/Isolation hospitals in Theatre - A base hospital was where civilians and serious injuries were treated. They were usually in large converted buildings. A base hospital had operating theatres, X-ray departments and specialist centres for treatment of specific problems, such as gas poisoning. The wounded would arrive here by train or motor ambulance. Normally located next or near to a local cemetery(s)

10. General & Isolation Hospitals in UK - Where either existing Military Hospitals or large houses, institutions, estates etc. that were converted to Hospitals . Normally located next or near to a local cemetery. List of British Military Hospitals (not exhaustive)

11. Convalescence Homes/Hospitals - Places where soldiers completed their recovery or available treatment before returning to the front or being invalided out of the army (Silver Badge holders)

Chain of Evacuation Diagram

Ypres 1917 Chain of Evacuation Diagram

Medical Treatment in WW1 Video

L/Coporal 9249 Bernard Harold PITCHER

Regiment & Unit

11th Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment

Enlisted On/At

November 1914 at Stratford on Avon

Former Regiment

Details & Age at Death

Killed in Action, Tuesday, April 10, 1918 aged 21

Medals

1915 Star, British War and Victory Medals

Medal Citation (if app)

n/a

Theatre

France & Flanders

Action/Battle

First Battle of the Scarpe

Place of Death

Monchy

CWGC Grave/Memorial

Arras Memorial

SWFHS Memorial(s)

Bidford on Avon

Other Memorial(s)

Circumstances Leading to Death (Normally from War Diary)

The battalion took part in the advance towards Monchy and captured positions at Les Fosse's Farm where they consolidated. Bernard was killed during this operation.

Family & Personal History

Birth Date & Place

Jul Qtr 1895 - Wellesbourne

Baptism Date & Place

21 Oct 1899 Wellesbourne, St. Peter

Parents

Thomas & Ruth Pitcher
Stirchley

Wife & Marriage

Children

Address History

1911: The Bank, Bidford
1917: 12 Charlotte Road, Stirchley

School(s), Colleges & University

Occupation(s)

1911: Errand Boy

Other Information

Brother of Carl Rudolph Pitcher

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South Warwickshire Family History Society War Memorial Transcription Project

The Fallen Men of South Warwickshire - World War One

Private 3013 William Charles HEWITT - 2nd Bn Royal Warwickshire Regiment

Killed in Action Friday, December 18, 1914 aged 43

Military History

Theatre

France & Flanders

Action/Battle/Other

Local Actions near Bethune

Place of Death

Le Maisnil