Tag Archives: Somerset Light Infantry

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Edward Horwood

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Private Edward Horwood

Albert Edward Horwood was born in Bath, Somerset, in the spring of 1864. The middle of five children, his parents were Joseph and Agnes Horwood. Joseph was a stone mason and, when Agnes passed away in 1872 he married again, this time to a woman called Elizabeth.

When he left school Albert – who became better known as Edward – found work in a local foundry. Joseph died in 1888, and just two years later, Edward married Emily Wheeler. She was the daughter of labourer from North Bradley, Wiltshire, and it was in the parish church that the couple exchanged vows.

The couple set up home in the Lyncombe area of Bath, and went on to have nine children, all but one of them girls. Edward continued with labouring work for the next twenty years, as his children grew in the family home in Cheltenham Street.

Despite his age, when was broke out in Europe, Edward stepped up to play his part. He enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry on 6th November 1914, and was assigned to the 4th Battalion. His service records show that he was 44 year of age and 5ft 11ins (1.8m) tall.

Attached to one of the regiment’s supply companies, Private Horwood remained on the Home Front. He remained on active duty for more than eighteen months until, in June 1916, he was medically discharged because of a large ulcer and epithelioma (lesion) on his tongue. Edward’s medical notes suggest that he was offered an operation to remove the potentially malignant growth, but that he had declined.

At this point Edward’s trail goes cold. He returned home, and passed away on 28th March 1917 and, while the cause is not publicly documented, it seems likely to have been related to the growth in his mouth. He was 52 years of age.

Albert Edward Horwood was laid to rest in the St James Cemetery in his home town of Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, India, Lance Corporal, photography, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Lance Corporal Alfred Sowden

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Lance Corporal Alfred Sowden

Alfred Edward Sowden was born in the autumn of 1883, in Bath, Somerset. He was the youngest of seven children to Robert and Mary Sowden. Robert had died by the time of the 1891 census, and Mary turned to charring to bring in money for the family.

In the summer of 1904, Alfred married Harriet Sumsion, a baker’s daughter also from Bath. The couple set up home in a small cottage on the main road to Bristol, and had a son, William, who was born the following year. Alfred was working as a house painter by this point, and the young family had a lodger, William Gabb, who was a local chef.

When war came to Britain’s shores, Alfred stepped up to play his part. He may have had some previous military experience, because he joined the Somerset Light Infantry as a Lance Corporal. Assigned to the 2nd/4th Battalion, by August 1915, he was on his way to India. His troop remained there for two years, before moving to Egypt in the autumn of 1917, then on to France the following June.

With the end of the conflict, the Empire’s forces were slowly demobbed. While he was waiting to be stood down, Lance Corporal Sowden fell ill. He developed influenza and septic pneumonia, and the combination was to prove fatal. He passed away on 30th January 1919, at the age of 35 years old.

Alfred Edward Sowden’s body was brought back to Bath for burial, where he was laid to rest in the city’s St James’ Cemetery.

Alfred’s widow had had a tragic few years. Her father, Walter, had passed away in February 1916, and her mother died just three months after Alfred.

Harriet never remarried after her husband’s passing. She remained in the family home for the rest of her life and, by the time of the 1939 Register, had a boarder, billiard marker James Jones. She was close to family, however, as her brother William lived just three doors away.

Harriet died in September 1941 at the age of just 56. She was laid to rest near her husband, reunited after 22 years.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Albert Townsend

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Private Albert Townsend

Albert Henry Townsend was born on 7th November 1890 in Bath, Somerset. One of thirteen children, his parents were George and Annie Townsend. George was a painter by trade, but when he died in the autumn of 1895, Annie was left to take in laundry to earn money to support her and the four of her children still living at home.

By the time of the 1911 census, Albert was 21, and had found work as a baker. He was still living with his mother, two siblings and a nephew in a house in the centre of the city. All but Annie’s grandson were earning money by this point, and, with five rooms, the family were in a better position than some of their neighbours. Next door was Albert Smith, a coal carter, who had to support a family of ten people.

In the summer of 1914 war broke out, and within months, three of the Townsend brothers – Albert and his older brothers Arthur and Charles – had enlisted.

Arthur Townsend had joined the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry earlier in the year, and within weeks of conflict being declared, he was on the Western Front. He was to be one of the early casualties of the conflict, and was killed in action during the Battle of the Marne on 9th September. He was just 29 years old and, while his body was never identified, he was commemorated on the La Ferte-sous-Jouarre Memorial.

Albert’s service records have been lost to time, so it is not possible to identify when he enlisted. He joined the Somerset Light Infantry, and was assigned to the 4th Battalion, who set sail for India in October 1914. Private Townsend was not to travel with them, however as he had contracted septicaemia while camped on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire. He was transferred to the Royal United Hospital in Bath for further treatment, but his condition was to prove too severe. He passed away while still admitted on 19th October 1914. He was just 23 years of age.

Albert Henry Townsend was laid to rest in the St James’ Cemetery in his home city, Bath.

Annie Townsend had now been a widow for nearly twenty years and, within a matter of weeks, had lost two of her sons. Tragically, the war was not done with her family yet.

Charles Townsend was still serving, having enlisted in the 8th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry. He arrived in France in July 1915, and over the next year, wascaught up in some of the fiercest fighting of the conflict. On 1st July 1916, the Battle of the Somme began, the darkest day in history for the British Army. Twenty thousand soldiers were killed, and Private Charles Townsend was amongst the fallen. He was just 30 years of age. He was commemorated on the Theipval Memorial.

Annie had lost a third son to the conflict in a little under two years, and her pain must have been unimaginable. She lived on until 1923, when she died at home in Bath. She was laid to rest close to her husband and Albert, a family partly reunited once more.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Sidney Warren

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Private Sidney Warren

Sidney Charles Warren was born in the spring of 1894, and was one of a dozen children to William and Eliza Warren. William was a farm labourer and shepherd from Somerset, and it was in the village of Combe Florey, near Taunton, that Sidney was born. The Warrens’ sons all followed William into farm work, and the 1911 census found the family – then eight strong – living in a three-room cottage in the village.

When war broke out, Sidney was quick to enlist. He joined the 5th Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry on 16th December 1914, and which was based in Prior Park, near Bath.

The following month, Private Warren became unwell. His father later reported that he had “from childhood… suffered from his chest, and if he caught the slightest cold he became very short of breath. He could not run and jump about like other boys.” [Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 6th February 1915]

On 27th January, Sidney reported sick to Captain Brimblecombe of the Royal Army Medical Corps. He was suffering from a cold, and was given quinine. He reported sick again on the 28th, and the medical officer, gave him more quinine. The following day, Private Warren returned to duty.

That afternoon, after drill duties, Sidney and a couple of friends, George Berry and George Lewis, went into Bath for a few hours. They went to the White Hart Public House and had a drink and a meal. The two of them then made their way back to Priory Park around 8pm.

On the way up the hill [Sidney] called to [his friends]… “Come quick.” They went back, and caught hold of him, and he said “I’m dying.” They laid him down on the road, and [George Berry] went up to Priory Park for a doctor. A Red Cross man came down with a stretcher, and [Sidney] was conveyed to the Police Station and then to the Hospital.

Bath Chronicle and Weekly Gazette: Saturday 6th February 1915

Private Warren passed away while at the hospital. A post mortem was held, which found that all of his organs were healthy, and that his lungs were “voluminous, but showed no signs of disease. The heart appeared perfectly healthy.” The coroner attributed Sidney’s passing to syncope after “a large undigested meal and walking up-hill”. He was just 20 years of age when he passed.

Sidney Charles Warren was laid to rest in the St James’ Cemetery in Bath, the city in which he passed away.

Private Sidney Warren
(from britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk)
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, Malta, photography, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, unknown, war

Private Joseph Viles

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Private Joseph Viles

Joseph Viles was born at the end of 1886 in Bath, Somerset. One of seven children, his parents were collier-turned-general labourer Joseph Viles and his wife, Sarah.

When he left school, Joseph found work as an errand boy, but, in reality, there is little documented about his life. There are only really two records that give an insight into the man he became.

The first is the 1911 census, which confirms he was a Private in the 2nd Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry. The return gives his location as the St Andrew’s Barracks in Malta.

The second document dates from 29th June 1909, and is a court martial for Private Viles’ for the use of insubordinate language towards a senior officer, in this case a Major. The trial was held in Portland, Dorset, and Joseph was sentenced to 30 days’ imprisonment.

Sadly, a lot of the service records for the Somerset Light Infantry have been lost over time, and those relating to Joseph are amongst them. The only other confirmed detail for Joseph is that of his passing, but even this raises questions.

Private Joseph Viles died on 4th August 1914 – just seven days after war was declared. His regiment was actually based in Quetta, India, at this point, so it is likely that he was at home on leave at the time he died. No cause for is death is noted, and it is likely to have been from an illness of some description, as nothing unusual was reported in the newspapers of the time. Joseph was 27 years of age.

Joseph Viles was laid to rest in Bath’s St James’ Cemetery, where his parents would also be buried, Joseph Sr in 1948, and Sarah in 1958.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, unknown, war

Private Alfred Stoyle

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Private Alfred Stoyle

Details of Alfred Lawrence Stoyle’s life a challenging to piece together. Most of the information comes from his service records, but even that is limited.

The Somerset Light Infantry records suggest that Private Alfred Stoyle was born in March 1890 in Widcombe, Bath. Physically, he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, and weighed 109lbs (49.4kg). He had blue eyes, brown hair, a tattoo of crossed flags on his right forearm and a scar above his right eye.

According to the document, Alfred’s parents were Alfred and Ellen Stoyle, and he had been working as a mason’s labourer before he enlisted on 13th February 1909. Early records for the Stoyles are hard to come by, The 1891 census found Alfred and Ellen living in Walcot, Somerset, with their eight children. They have a son, Alfred, although he is noted as being 19 at the time, which does not match the service records for the Alfred who enlisted. They have another son, Albert, who was born in 1886, and it seems that he may have used the name Alfred when enlisting (indeed, those service records note not only Alfred’s parents, but his older siblings Nellie, Ada, Henry and Alfred).

The next census, in 1901, recorded Alfred Sr as being a pauper in the Bath Union Workhouse. He was also listed there in the 1911 census, while that document recorded Ellen living in two rooms in the centre of Bath with Albert/Alfred and her youngest son, William.

Alfred Jr was recorded as being a general painter. By this time, he had enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, and was on reserve status, allowing his daily life to continue. He undertook annual training, and, when war broke out in August 1914, he was formally mobilised.

Private Stoyle was sent to France the following month, and ended up spending four months there. In January 1915 he returned home, and there appears to have been a medical reason for doing so. Within a matter of months, he was discharged from the army as he was no longer physically fit. The service records do not give a reason for his dismissal.

At this point, Alfred’s trail goes cold. He seems to have returned home to Somerset, and passed away on 21st August 1915. Based on his service records, he was just 25 years old, although his true age is debatable.

Alfred Lawrence Stoyle was laid to rest in St James’ Cemetery Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, photography, Royal Engineers, Sapper, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, unknown, war

Sapper Albert Colston

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Sapper Albert Colston

Albert Edward Colston was born in the spring of 1887 in Bath, Somerset. The oldest of seven children, his parents were Thomas and Elizabeth Colston. Thomas was a carpenter and the family were raised in Lyncombe, to the south of the city centre.

Elizabeth died in 1905, by which time Albert had left school. He worked with Thomas and, by the time of the 1911 census, the family – father and four children at home – had moved to a terraced house in the suburbs of Twerton.

During this time, Albert volunteered with the Somerset Light Infantry. When war came to Europe, however, he was enlisted into the Royal Engineers. He joined on 28th February 1916, and was assigned to the Wessex Field Company. His service record show that he was 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, of normal physical development and with good vision.

A few months after enlisting, Albert married Alice Selway. She was a groom’s daughter from Bath who, at the time of their marriage, was working as a housemaid in a boarding house in the centre of the city.

Sapper Colston spent the next year on home soil. In March 1917, however, he was discharged from the army as he was deemed no longer medically fit for active duty. Sadly, the records do not confirm the complaint that led to his dismissal.

It is likely that he returned home when he was discharged. He died in Bath just weeks later, on 4th April 1917. He was thirty years of age.

Albert Edward Colston was laid to rest in St James’ Cemetery in his home city, the same location as Elizabeth, mother and son reunited again.

Alice married for a second time in May 1919. He husband was William Keepen, and the couple went on to have a son, Reginald, who was born in 1920. Reginald died in 1937, while Alice lived until 1918. The couple were buried in Haycombe Cemetery on the outskirts of Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, injury, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Edgar Cox

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Private Edgar Cox

Edgar Albert Cox was born in Wanstrow, Somerset, in the spring of 1897. The youngest of five children, his parents were railway packer Herbert Cox and his wife, Orpha.

When he left school, Edgar found employment as a live-in farm hand in Upton Noble, a mile from where his parents lived. When war came to Europe, however, he felt a pull to serve, and enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry.

Full details of Private Cox’s military service are lost to time, but he was assigned to the 8th (Service) Battalion, and arrived in France towards the end of July 1915. He certainly saw action at the Somme, where his troop was involved in the battles of Bazentin Ridge, Flers-Courcelette and Morval.

It was in the battle of le Transloy, however, that Edgar was injured. His wounds were severe enough for him to be medically evacuated to Britain for treatment, and he was admitted to the 1st Southern General Hospital in King’s Norton, Birmingham. Sadly his wounds were too much for his body to bear: he passed away on 9th October 1916, at the age of just 19 years old.

The body of Edgar Albert Cox was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Mary’s Church in his home village of Wanstrow.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorsetshire Regiment, Gloucestershire, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war, Wiltshire

Private Henry Wheeler

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Private Henry Wheeler

Henry William Edward Wheeler was born in early 1890, the fifth of thirteen children – and the oldest son – to Henry and Anne Wheeler. Henry Sr was a labourer from Witham Friary in Somerset, and this is where the family were born and raised.

When he left school, young Henry – who became known as Harry to avoid confusion with his father – found work as a postman. When war broke out, however, he enlisted as a Private in the Somerset Light Infantry. Full details of his military service are unclear, but his marriage certificate confirms that he was a soldier by the spring of 1915.

Harry’s wedding was to a woman called Mabel Hulbert, who was working as a domestic servant in Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire. It was in the village’s church that the couple exchanged vows, and within a matter of weeks, Private Wheeler was sent to France.

Harry’s troop – the 1st Battalion – was involved in some of the fiercest fighting of the war, and it is likely that he was involved at The Somme in July 1916. At some point, though, he moved across to the 5th (Service) Battalion of the Dorsetshire Regiment, who had moved to France, having been fighting at Gallipoli. The specifics of Private Wheeler’s time in the army are, however, destined to be lost to time.

Private Wheeler’s trail can be picked up again after the end of the war, presumably when he had returned to Britain prior to being demobbed. Sadly, however, he was admitted to a military hospital in Wilton, Wiltshire, suffering from ‘disease’. He passed away on 8th February 1919, at the age of 29 years old.

The body of Henry William Edward Wheeler was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Mary’s Church in his home village of Witham Friary.

Henry’s younger brother, John, also served in the First World War. He enlisted in the 8th (Service) Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry, and arrived in France on 4th October 1915, just a couple of months after his older brother.

John was killed in fighting on 11th October 1917 – possibly as part of the opening salvos of the Battle of Passchendaele – and was just 20 years old. He was laid to rest in the Outtersteene Communal Cemetery in northern France.

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, injury, Kings Royal Rifle Corps, Oxfordshire, photography, Private, Second Lieutenant, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, suicide, war, Yorkshire

Second Lieutenant Cedric Pepper

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Second Lieutenant Cedric Pepper

Cedric William Pepper was born in 1895 in South Kirkby, Yorkshire. He was the middle of three children to William and Harriette Pepper. William was a colliery owner from Leeds, and the family lived in some comfort in Rawdon Hill in Wharfdale. The 1901 census records show that they employed a governess, cook, two housemaids, a kitchen maid and a page.

By the time of the next census, in 1911, the Pepper family had moved to Shipton in Oxfordshire, where they lived in the 27-room Shipton Court. Cedric, by this time, was still studying, having been taught at Winchester College, where he lasted only a year, Tonbridge School, and then Worcester College in Oxford.

When war broke out, he had taken time away from his studies, and was working on a ranch in Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe). He returned to Britain at the start of the conflict and enlisted in the King’s Royal Rifle Corps. Assigned to the 2nd Battalion, Private Pepper arrived in France in November 1914, and was wounded in his thigh the summer of 1915.

Private Pepper returned to Britain to recuperate and, when he had recovered, he was given a commission in the 3rd Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry. It was while he was training in Oxfordshire that the now Second Lieutenant Pepper met his end.

The evidence at the inquest… suggested that the death from a bullet wound… was accidental.

Second-Lieutenant William Eric Warburton… stated that early last week Lieutenant Pepper told him he was in some difficulty with a woman, but he did not explain it. Lieutenant Warburton did not think that this caused him to take his life. In his opinion Lieutenant Pepper knew nothing of the working of an automatic pistol he possessed.

The medical evidence was that a bullet entered the centre of the forehead. The doctor said that if the wound was self-inflicted it was quite possible that it was accidental.

The jury returned a verdict of Death from a bullet from an automatic pistol, but that there was no evidence to show how the wound was inflicted.

Central Somerset Gazette: Friday 29th October 1915

Second Lieutenant Pepper died from the bullet wound on 21st October 1915. He was just 20 years of age.

Pepper Family Memorial

Cedric William Pepper’s family were, by this time, living in Redlynch House, near Bruton, Somerset. He was cremated, and his ashes immured in the wall of St Peter’s Church in the hamlet.

Second Lieutenant Cedric Pepper
(from findagrave.com)

In researching Cedric’s life, there is a definite sense of a young man desperately looking to please his father. A successful Yorkshire colliery owner, he may have expected more from his oldest son, a drop out from Winchester College, possibly sent to Southern Africa to find himself. While an immediate return to Britain to serve his country would have been commonplace, the suggestion of difficulty with a woman and the subsequent accident with his gun just adds to the sense of a need for Cedric to not disappoint his father.