Wounded while sheltering a man with his own body
THROUGHOUT the centenary of the First World War, we have been remembering the soldiers from the Loughborough area who lost their lives while serving their country. Here, with the help of Marigold Cleeve and a small number of researchers from the Loughboro
Harold Russell, known to his family and friends as ‘Harry’ was born in late 1885 in Derby and baptised when he was seven years old, on 24th February 1892, at All Saints Church, Loughborough.
He was the only son of William Sidney (or Sydney) Russell and his partner Eliza Ann Foulds. Harry had two sisters Lizzie Pearl Cassandra and Lilian Beatrice.
Harry’s father was variously employed over the years: in 1876 he was a hotel manager in Liverpool, in 1881 he was a stockbroker and ganger and by 1892 he was the manager of a restaurant in London.
Harry was brought up in Loughborough, and lived with his mother and sisters at the home of his grandparents George and Sarah Foulds, No. 2, Dead Lane.
In 1891, when Harry was only five or six years old his mother died, aged 37, and his grandmother Sarah Foulds died the following year. After this his older sister Lizzie looked after him and the Russell children remained with their grandfather in Dead Lane until he died in 1901.
Harry’s father also appears to have died prior to 1901.
Harry became a compositor at a printing firm in Leicester and in 1911 was boarding in the home of Charles and Fanny Hubbard at 113 Upper Kent Street, Leicester.
On 20th May 1914 he married Edith Kirk at Swan Street Primitive Methodist Church, Loughborough, and the young couple moved to 15 Cumberland Road.
Harry enlisted in Loughborough on 3rd December 1915 and joined the Leicestershire Regiment as Private 30224.
After initial training at Leicester he was sent on 2nd June 1916 to join the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion at Patrington, near Hull, for duty with the Humber Garrison.
On 13rd April 1917, when he was stationed at Easington, County Durham, he received notice of his first overseas posting.
On 3rd May 1917 Harry left Folkestone for No. 12 Infantry Base Depot in Calais. Initially he was posted to the 8th Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment at St. Leger.
Between 9th and 11th May the battalion did a brief trench tour before marching to Berles-au-Bois on 11th May. Musketry training, practice in tactical schemes, brigade sports and inspections took place here until the end of May.
Harry was transferred to the 9th Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment on 28th May and joined them at B Camp, Moyenville, on 3rd June. Between 3rd and 6th June the battalion was in training and also constructing latrines and cookhouses. On 7th June the battalion went into the right sub-sector of the Divisional front trenches in the Burg line.
Here the enemy was very active with trench mortars. On 11th June the battalion was relieved and moved back from the front trenches and provided working and carrying parties. O
n 14th June the battalion prepared to support an attack by the 12th and 13th Northumberland Fusiliers and carried ammunition to the front including Mills grenades, rifle grenades and petrol bombs.
The action continued until 18th June. On 20th June the battalion was relieved and proceeded to B Camp, Moyenville, having suffered 110 casualties.
Between 21st June and 7th July the battalion was at rest in Blairville and also took part in a special course in bayonet fighting.
Between 8th and 13th July the battalion was in reserve and provided working parties and on 14th July they returned to the front line for a week.
Harry’s service record has been quite severely damaged by fire but it is known that around the middle of July 1917 he became a victim of trench fever.
Trench fever is caused by the bacterium Bartonella Quintana which is spread by body lice.
This bacterium was not isolated until the 1960s by J. W. Vinson in Mexico City and although soldiers in the trenches may not have been aware of the cause of the disease they did spend a lot of time trying to get rid of the lice that infested their clothing.
Symptoms included a sudden fever, pain in the eyes, dizziness and constant severe pain in the shins.
The fever had a peculiar characteristic in that it would break after five or six days, but then climb again several days later. This cycle might be repeated as many as eight times.
Recovery could be slow, taking several months. Complications included relapses of the illness, heart problems, fatigue, anxiety, and depression.
Harry was admitted, firstly to No. 63 Field Ambulance, then to No. 6 General Hospital in Rouen and finally brought back to England on HMAT Warilda.
On 26th July he was admitted to the 1st Southern General Hospital, Stourbridge Section ( Wordsley Infirmary), Stourbridge, Worcestershire, where he remained until 24th September.
When he left hospital he was granted ten days leave to Loughborough.
The exact details of Harry’s whereabouts between the beginning of October 1917 and early March 1918 have been lost from his service record although there are residual notes on his record which suggest that that he may have been at the Depot in Leicester, and then for a few weeks with the 4th Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment.
On 11th March 1918 he was transferred from the Leicestershire Regiment to the Army Service Corps at Grove Park, Lewisham, and on 24th March sent for training at the Machine Transport Depot in Sydenham, Kent.
Harry, now Driver M/394796, returned to France in May 1918. He embarked at Portsmouth on 20th May and arrived at Rouen two days later.
From Rouen he was posted to 604 Machine Transport Company attached to 201 Siege Battery of the XV Corps and sent to Hazebrouck.
He had only been there a few days when, on 29th May 1918 he was killed in action, aged 32.
Harry was buried at La Kreule Military Cemetery, Hazebrouck, Grave I. B. 12. He is remembered on the war memorial in the former St. Peter’s Church building, Loughborough. and on the Carillon.
Harry’s widow was remarried in 1922 to George E. Adey and went to live in Ashby de la Zouch.