‘Greatest soldier’ will be subject of history talk

A SPECIAL talk will throw light on the life and times of one of Hinckley’s sporting and military heroes.

Historical Greg Drodz offers a presentation on Togo Bolesworth, a boxer who came to be known as the best soldier in the Leicestershire Regiment.

Through social media memories group Hinckley District Past and Present, Greg will bring his research to a power point screen for the event tonight (October 25) at the Greyhound pub on New Buildings in Hinckley.

Private Sydney “Togo” Bolesworth was killed in action in the First World War just over 100 years ago.

Greg said: “When I started to look into the background of the names on Hinckley War Memorial, I very quickly came across the name of Togo Bolesworth.

“He was something of a local celebrity as he was a well known local boxer with a large following of supporters.

“Togo was a nickname which I will explain in my talk and it was his officers who described him as the best soldier in the Leicestershire Regiment. Yet there are twists and turns in his story that leave you admiring Togo for the fact that he was just an ordinary bloke doing an extraordinary job -as they all did.

“Togo was killed in No Man’s Land on October 1 1917. He has no known grave.”

The talk will begin at 7.30pm and entry is free.