‘Lived each day like he died - a very brave, gallant Englishman’
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 Loughborough Carillon Tower and War Memorial Museum, we look back at more of those who made the ultimate sacrifice in October 1917.
Harold Simmons.
Harold Simmons was born in Loughborough in 1896 and baptised at All Saints Church, Loughborough, on 9th January 1897.
He was the son of Frederick Simmons and his wife Emma (née Pepper) who were married at Holy Trinity Church, Loughborough, on 30th July 1882. Harold’s father started out as a carter but became a labourer and then, by 1901, was working as a boatman.
Harold had four brothers Samuel, Frederick, Ernest and Lawrence and two sisters Florence, and Clarice. Three other siblings died young.
In 1901 the family lived at 53 Ashby Square, Loughborough, but by 1911 had moved to 7 Cross Street.
In 1911 Harold, aged 14, was an apprentice iron moulder for hot water engines at the Britannia Foundry, Meadow Lane.
Harold enlisted at Leicester on 20th August 1914 and joined the Leicestershire Regiment as Private 10201. On 24th August he was posted to the 6th (Service) Battalion and sent from the Depot to Bordon, near Aldershot, Hampshire where the emphasis was on individual training, squadron and platoon drill. In March 1915 the battalion went into billets in Liphook.
In April the 6th Battalion became part of the 37th Division of the Army and concentrated at Cholderton on Salisbury Plain. On 22nd July the Division began to cross the English Channel and arrived in France on 30th July 1915. The Division initially concentrated near Tilques not far from St.Omer. In September the battalion was sent to Berles-au-Bois, south-west of Arras near the front line and began a series of trench tours.
On 1st October Harold was wounded by gun shots in the knee and buttocks and was sent back to England on the HMHS St. George.
By 21st December 1915 he had recovered and was briefly posted to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion at Patrington near Hull for duty with the Humber Garrison.
By 31st December, however, he was on his way back to France from Southampton, having been posted to the 1st Battalion.
Harold joined the 1st Battalion of the Leicesters in billets at Poperinghe. Between January and July 1916 the 1st Leicesters were on the Ypres Salient. From January 3rd to 19th March they were in the trenches at Wieltje, St Jean or Ypres Canal Bank and being heavily shelled by the enemy, with breaks at Camp A.
From 19th March until 15th April training took place at Wormhoudt and Camp K and then at a camp near Calais. By 19th April the battalion was back in action at Brielen near Ypres and on 23rd moved to the Canal Bank and the Forward Cottage line.
Further trench tours in the same location followed, with breaks at Camp D until mid-June when the battalion moved to L Camp, west of Poperinghe. Here they worked on cable-laying until the end of June. Most of July was spent at Camps K and J training and working on the railway. From Ypres Prison on 23rd July the battalion moved into the front line at Potizje.
On 1st August 1916 they left the trenches at Potizje and on the following day entrained at Proven for France. They reached billets at Lealvillers, Somme, on 4th August and on the following day marched to camp in Mailly-Maillet Wood. A period of training and working parties followed.
On 14th August they went into the trenches opposite Beaumont-Hamel, where they remained until 19th when they returned to the Mailly Wood camp. On 27th August they left for Flesselles. Here additional training took place.
On 8th September they occupied former German trenches in the area of Trônes Wood on the northern slope of the Montaubon Ridge while in the following days the build-up for a major battle took place.
The battalion took part in the Battle of Flers-Courcelette (15th- 22nd September) incurring grievous losses. They were also in action in the Battle of Morval (25th-28th September).
On 28th September Harold was taken to a Casualty Clearing Station and sent to No. 16 General Hospital at Le Tréport. On 11th October he was sent to England.
On 17th October he was posted to the Depot at Leicester and on 31st January 1917 to the 3rd Battalion at Patrington.
On 9th February he left Folkestone for France and on 26th February he was reposted to the 6th Battalion, joining them in training at Auchel on 28th.
Training was continued at Houtkerque until mid-February. Trench tours at Noyelles and Vermelles followed until the beginning of April when the battalion transferred to Hamelincourt. From 11th to 13th April the battalion was in action at the start of the Arras Offensive and on 3rd May in an attack on Fontaines les Croisilles.
On the following day the battalion moved to the support posts on the Sunken Road, staying there until 8th May when they moved to the forward posts. Relieved on 11th May they marched to the railway bank and on 12th May to billets in Berles-au-Bois.
The remainder of May was spent resting and training in musketry and tactical schemes. From 1st-7th June two companies of the battalion worked on improving C Camp at Moyenville whilst the other two companies worked for the Royal Engineers digging communication trenches in Sunken Road. Following this the battalion returned to the trenches at Croisilles, taking the front line from 11th-19th June.
Here they were heavily shelled. From C Camp at Moyenville on 20th June the battalion moved to Hendecourt-les-Ransart for rest, training and field firing.
Back in Divisional Reserve at Moyenville on 1st July the battalion moved back into the front line and support trenches at Croisilles from 8th July until 1st August.
On 18th July Harold was appointed a Lance Corporal.
From 1st - 9th August there was training at Moyenville as well as working parties at St. Leger prior to another trench tour at Croisilles until 17th. August concluded with training at Hamelincourt and Manin.
In the first two weeks of September there was training, sports and a military gymkhana at Manin. On 16th September the battalion entrained at Savy for Caestre and continued training there and at Fontaine Houck until 25th September.
On 26th they moved by bus to a camp on the road between La Clytte and Dickenbusch and immediately marched to Scottish Wood and Bedford House.
The battalion moved up to the line on the Ypres-Menin Road near Hooge on 30th September.
On October 1st they moved into reserve in Polygon Wood before being relieved for two days. On 4th October the battalion moved to Zillebeke Lake and consolidated in front of Polygon Wood.
On 5th October the battalion moved into the front line, and on 7th October the enemy opened a heavy barrage, during which Harold, aged 21, was killed.
The officer commanding Harold’s platoon wrote to his parents that Lance Corporal Simmons’ death took place on Sunday evening October 7th. A shell burst only a few yards away from him and death was instantaneous.
He added: ‘I had known your son for a considerable time and found him at all times an excellent soldier and a very conscientious non - commissioned officer.
“He was always very popular with his companions in the company, and will be greatly missed by all and I am personally very sorry to lose him.”
Harold is commemorated on the Tyne Cot Memorial, Zonnebeke, Panels 50-51.
His brother Frederick, who was also with the Leicestershire Regiment, died a Prisoner of War in 1918.
James Freestone.
James Freestone was born at Stapenhill, Burton on Trent, Staffordshire, in 1890, the youngest child of James Freestone and his wife Eliza (née Thurman) who were married at St. Botolph’s Church, Shepshed, on 30th March 1874.
James Junior had two older brothers Herbert and Ernest and four older sisters Charlotte, Eliza, Sarah and Edith.
In 1891 the family was living at 16 Short Street, Stapenhill, and James Junior’s father was employed as a maltster.
By 1901 the family had moved to a cottage in Loughborough Road, Quorn, James Senior is no longer with them but heading the household is William Freestone, a cowman on a farm.
By 1911 the family had moved again to Iveshead Road, Shepshed, William Freestone, now a stone quarryman, was still with them, and James Junior was employed as a clay miner.
In late 1911 James Junior married Kate Allen in the Loughborough registration area and the young couple set up home in Ring Fence, Shepshed.
James Junior was now employed as a builder’s labourer with William Blood of Shepshed and by 2926 they had three daughters Gladys, Lily and Edith. The family later moved to 46 Mill Street, Loughborough.
On 12th March 1914 James Junior enlisted at Shepshed to join the Leicestershire Territorial Army.
Posted to the 1/5th Battalion he served with them until 26th December 1914 when he was discharged.
He re-enlisted with the Leicestershire Regiment in 1916 as Private 32820 and was posted to the 8th Battalion. As his service record has not survived it is not known when he joined the battalion but in December 1916 and January 1917 reinforcement drafts of ordinary rank soldiers joined their number and it is possible that James was in one of these groups.
On 11th October 1916 the 8th Leicesters had moved into the Hohenzollern reserve, support and frontline trenches. The battalion remained in the Hohenzollern sector, with breaks at Mazingarbe and Vermelles until 15th December when they marched to billets in the candle factory at Béthune. From there the battalion moved to Auchel where they remained until 26th January 1917 training.
On 28th December the troops were entertained by a Lena Ashwell concert party. From Auchel the men moved to Winnezeele to continue training in tactical manoeuvres before returning to Béthune and the front line trenches at Sailly Labourse, with breaks at Noyelles-surMer and Mazingarbe.
In April 1917 the battalion moved to Hamelincourt and occupied the Outpost Line on the Hénin-Croisilles road until 13th April, then transferred to Bailleulmont for training before going into support at St. Leger.
On 3rd May the battalion took part in an attack on the village of Fontaine-lèsCroisilles where casualties were high. After the attack the battalion bivouacked at St. Leger before going back into the line on 9th May.
On 11th May the battalion marched to Berles-au-Bois for musketry training and practice in tactical schemes, brigade sports and inspections which lasted until the end of May.
On 1st June the battalion marched to huts in Hamelincourt for additional training in bombing and rifle grenades and field exercises until 7th June.
On the night of 7th/8th the battalion went into the trenches in the Hindenburg Line. From there they attacked the enemy on 15th June but were compelled to withdraw.
They remained in the front line until 19th June when they returned to camp at Hamelincourt. A period of rest at Blairville then lasted until 1st July, after which the battalion returned to Hamelincourt.
On 9th July 1917 the battalion was back in the trenches near Croisilles before going into Brigade Reserve. After one more front line trench tour at Croisilles the battalion moved to Camp A at Moyenville for eight days training. Another trench tour followed before the battalion moved to a hutment camp at Ervillers on 17th August.
On 25th August the battalion moved by motor bus to Barly and from there, on the following day, marched to Ambrines. Two periods of training followed, firstly at Ambrines and then at Avesnes-le-Comte.
On 16th September the battalion marched to Savy, entrained for Caestre and went into camp for more training.
On 23rd September they began a series of moves, firstly to Meteren, then by bus to Hallebast before marching to Sint Hubertushoek and from there to Ridge Wood south-west of Ypres.
On 30th September they moved up to the front line at Polygon Wood.
On 1st October the enemy attacked the 9th Leicesters who nearby and got possession of their front line.
The 8th Leicesters went to assist but the enemy made repeated attacks. Counterattacks were hit by a heavy enemy barrage in the neighbourhood of Joist Farm.
On the night of the 2nd/3rd October the battalion was relieved and marched to Scottish Wood Camp.
On 4th October the 8th and 9th Battalions of the Leicesters were amalgamated because of their high casualty rate.
On 5th October the battalion moved to railway dugouts at Zillebeke.
James was wounded in action on 7th October 1917, and he died of his wounds on 14th October, aged 27.
He was buried in Godeswaersvelde British Cemetery, France, Grave I. 0. 7.
James is remembered on the Shepshed War Memorial in Glenmore Park and on the war memorial in the Church of St. James the Greater, Oaks in Charnwood.
Albert Ernest Barker.
Albert Ernest Barker was born in Loughborough in late 1896, the son of John Thomas Barker and his wife Annie (née Clowes).
Albert’s parents were married on 27th June 1894 at St. Bartholomew’s Church, Quorn, and Albert had two brothers Reginald and Arthur.
Another sibling had died in infancy.
In 1901 the Barker family lived at 72 Fisher Street, Nottingham and Albert’s father was a grocer.
By 1911 the family had moved to 40 Leopold Street, Loughborough, and Albert’s father was now a master baker, with his wife Annie assisting in the business. Albert meanwhile, aged 14, was a house painter’s assistant.
The family later moved to 22 Mona Street, Beeston, Nottinghamshire.
Albert enlisted in 1916 and joined the 1/7th Battalion of the Sherwood Foresters (Notts & Derby Regiment).
His service papers have unfortunately not survived and the precise dates of his enlistment and posting to France are therefore unknown.
The 1/7th Battalion at Souastre received a batch of 102 reinforcements from the base at Calais on New Year’s Day 1917, however, and it is possible that Albert was among them.
According to a hospital record, however, in September 1917 Albert had been with the battalion in the field for six months.
This would place his arrival in France in March 1917 and according to the battalion’s war diary 49 reinforcements joined the battalion on 18th March 1917 at Souastre.
From January to mid-March 1917 the battalion remained on trench tours at Fonquevillers with breaks at Souastre before being sent to Nedonchelle and then to billets at Fosse Calonne, a mining village west of Lens, for road work.
At the end of April they went into the front line in the Lievin sector and May was spent in the support line in the Loos St. Pierre sector, trench digging.
In June 1917 the battalion was in the front and support lines at Lievin, Bully-Grenay, and at Loos St. Pierre where they incurred 45 casualties from enemy gas bombs.
On the night of the 29th/30th June the battalion moved forward in a surprise attack on the enemy in the Lievin Sector and sustained about 40 casualties.
The battalion spent most of July at Chelers, east of St. Pol, resting, in training and undergoing inspections before moving into Brigade support at Philosophe, near Vermelles, on 24th July.
At the beginning of August they were draining trenches amid enemy shelling in the St. Elie sector. Back in Brigade support the battalion provided working and carrying parties and practised tactics for a raid.
After another trench tour at St. Elie the battalion marched to Drouvin and then Vaudricourt.
The rest of the month was spent in training at Hesdigneuil and Fouquières.
The battalion returned to the front line trenches in the Cambrin sub-section at the beginning of September.
Here the men experienced three days of very heavy enemy bombardment.
On 2nd September Albert was admitted to No. 4 Stationary Hospital with a fever of unknown origin but was discharged three days later and rejoined his battalion.
Relieved on 7th September the battalion moved into Brigade support at Annequin.
Back in the Cambrin trenches on 13th September they were visited by a correspondent of the Nottingham Guardian.
Following a move to Mazingarbe on 23rd September they underwent further training including wiring practice, played recreational football and attended a Divisional concert-party by The Whizz-Bangs in the hall of Mazingarbe brewery.
On 28th September the battalion went into the trenches in the Hill 70 sector, not far from Lens.
On the night of the 4th/5th October while the battalion was being relieved the enemy attempted a raid and Albert was severely wounded.
He died from his wounds, aged 21, on 16th October 1917.
Albert’s mother received a letter from the Captain of Albert’s Company which said: ‘When I took command of the company I realized what a fine straight boy your son was.
“I was wounded the same night that he was and were both sent to the same hospital.
“Whilst he was here I visited him frequently, every day.
“The boy was very ill when he arrived here, but he was so brave and cheerful time.
“All my sympathy goes out to you, he was such a brave lad.
“You must always remember he lived each day like he died a very brave and gallant Englishman.”
Albert was buried in Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, Grave VI. A. 15.
His brother Reginald was killed in action the previous June.
John William Briggs DCM, MM.
John William Briggs was born in Louth, Lincolnshire, in November 1894.
He was the son of George Briggs and his wife Emma (née Atkin) who were married at Holy Trinity Church, Louth, on 10th August 1893.
John had three brothers George, Jim and Jonathan. Another sibling had died at birth.
In 1901 the Briggs family was living at 8 Little South Street, Louth, and John’s father was a time and store keeper for a wallpaper mill.
By 1911, however, they had moved to 15 Windermere Street, Leicester, and John’s father was now a manager of a wallpaper store while John, aged 16, was an apprentice cabinet maker. John’s widowed grandmother, Ann Briggs, was also living with the family.
John subsequently moved to Loughborough and took a job as assistant manager to Mr. J. E. Hodgson at the Universal Trading Company, Baxter Gate.
John enlisted at Loughborough on 3rd September 1914 and joined the Leicestershire Regiment. From the Depot on 24th September he was posted to the 8th (Service) Battalion as Private 13244 and sent to Aldershot for training. He moved to Shorncliffe in Kent at the end of February 1915.
On 2nd April 1915 John married Elsie Emma Hodgson, the daughter of his former manager at the Universal Trading Company, at the Baxter Gate Baptist Chapel in Loughborough.
When John returned to his battalion his new wife went to live at 3 Radmoor Rd, Loughborough.
In April 1915 John’s battalion became part of the newly established 37th Division of Kitchener’s 2nd New Army and the Division began to concentrate on Salisbury Plain.
On 25th June the units were inspected by King George V at Sidbury Hill. On 22nd July the Division began to cross the English Channel and Walter travelled to France on 29th July 1915.
Initially the 37th Division concentrated near Tilques. The 8th Battalion then moved via Watten, Houlie, St. Omer, Eecke and Dranoutre to Wulverghem and Berles-auBois, a short distance from the front line.
In the months that followed the 8th Battalion did tours in the trenches, alternating with the 6th Leicesters who relieved them.
They were involved in operations in Bailleul, Le Bizet, Armentières, Mondicourt, Beauval and Berles-au-Bois.
In April 1916 John had moved with the 8th Leicesters to the Doullens area for six weeks cleaning up, resting and training. In mid-May they returned once more to the trenches in the BienvillersBailleulmont sector, but nearer Gommecourt.
In June there was a series of nightly excursions into No-Man’s Land with patrols attempting to gather information on the enemy’s dispositions.
On other occasions there were working parties out repairing the British barbed wire entanglements. The situation became increasingly hazardous as the month wore on when the Germans began to use a new and more accurate type of trench mortar. The 8th Battalion did not participate in the first days of the Somme Offensive but was held in reserve.
On 6th July John’s battalion left billets at Humbercamps and marched to Talmas, continuing on the following day to billets in Soues. On 10th July the battalion marched to Ailly-sur-Somme, entrained for Méricourt and travelled from there by lorry to bivouacs in Méaulte. Between 10th and 13th July the battalion was in the trenches near Fricourt and subjected to fairly continuous enemy fire.
On the 14th July the battalion was in action at the Battle of Bazentin Ridge. After the battle the battalion withdrew to Ribemont and then to Méricourt, and having entrained for Saleux, marched to Soues. From Soues the battalion moved to Longeau, Gouy-en-Ternois, Lattre St. Quentin and then to Arras where they went into the trenches on 29th July.
Casualty figures for the battalion in July had been high: 17 officers and 415 other ranks had been killed, wounded or were missing. The battalion went into Divisional Reserve at Agnez-les-Ouisans on 8th August but went back into the trenches at Arras on 18th August where they were on the receiving end of trench mortar bombs and heavy shells until 2nd September.
On 1st September John became ill and was sent to a Field Ambulance. He rejoined his battalion on 7th September in rest billets at Lignereuil.
On 13th September they marched to Frevent and entrained for Dernancourt. On 15th they reached a point between Fricourt and Méaulte before proceeding to Trônes Wood on 16th. From 17th-23rd September the battalion was in reserve and supporting the troops in the front line by providing carrying parties.
In the evening of 24th September the battalion marched up to take their position ready for an attack but before they reached this point the men were heavily shelled by the enemy. Just after midday on 25th September the 8th Leicesters launched a successful attack in waves on the right of Flers and then pressed on to Gueudecourt. Considerable losses, however, were suffered in this action.
After Morval the battalion withdrew to Dernancourt, entrained for Longpré and marched to Pont Remy before transferring to the Hohenzollern Reserve, support and frontline trenches. The battalion remained in the Hohenzollern sector, with breaks at Mazingarbe and Vermelles until 15th December when they marched to billets in the candle factory at Béthune.
On 16th October 1916 John had been appointed a Lance Corporal (unpaid), his new position being confirmed with pay on 25th of the same month.
On 19th December 1916 he was promoted again to Acting Corporal.
From Béthune the battalion moved to Auchel where they remained until 26th January 1917 training. On 28th December the troops were entertained by a Lena Ashwell concert party. From Auchel the men moved to Winnezeele to continue training in tactical manoeuvres before returning to Béthune and the front line trenches at Sailly Labourse.
In April 1917 the battalion moved to Hamelincourt and occupied the Outpost Line on the Hénin-Croisilles road until 13th April, then transferred to Bailleulmont for training before going into support at St. Leger.
On 3rd May the battalion took part in an attack on the village of Fontaine-lèsCroisilles where casualties were high. After the attack the battalion bivouacked at St. Leger before going back into the line on 9th May. On 11th May the battalion marched to Berles-au-Bois for musketry training and practice in tactical schemes, brigade sports and inspections which lasted until the end of May.
On 1st June the battalion marched to huts in Hamelincourt for additional training in bombing and rifle grenades and field exercises until 7th June.
On the night of 7th/8th the battalion went into the trenches in the Hindenburg Line. From there they attacked the enemy on 15th June but were compelled to withdraw.
They remained in the front line until 19th June when they returned to camp at Hamelincourt. A period of rest at Blairville then lasted until 1st July, after which the battalion returned to Hamelincourt. On 9th July 1917 the battalion was in the trenches near Croisilles before going into Brigade Reserve. After one more front line trench tour at Croisilles the battalion moved to Camp A at Moyenville for eight days training.
John was granted 15 days leave on 3rd August and he rejoined his battalion on 18th August at a hutment camp in Ervillers. On 14th August John had been confirmed in rank as a Corporal.
On 25th August the battalion moved by motor bus to Barly and from there, on the following day, marched to Ambrines. Two periods of training followed, firstly at Ambrines and then at Avesnes-le-Comte.
On 16th September the battalion marched to Savy, entrained for Caestre and went into camp for more training. On 17th September John was appointed Acting Sergeant (with pay). On 23rd September the battalion began a series of moves, firstly to Meteren, then by bus to Hallebast before marching to Sint Hubertushoek and from there to Ridge Wood south-west of Ypres.
On 30th September they moved up to the front line at Polygon Wood.
On 1st October the enemy attacked the 9th Leicesters who were nearby and got possession of their front line. The 8th Leicesters went to assist but the enemy made repeated attacks. Counterattacks were hit by a heavy enemy barrage in the neighbourhood of Joist Farm.
On the night of the 2nd/3rd October the battalion was relieved and marched to Scottish Wood Camp.
On 4th October the 8th and 9th Battalions of the Leicesters were amalgamated because of their high casualty rate.
On 5th October the combined battalion moved to railway dugouts at Zillebeke and on 7th they went into the front line. The weather was very wet, the men suffered severely in the open trenches and shell holes and on 8th and 9th October 53 Ordinary Ranks were killed or wounded.
Relieved on 11th October the battalion moved to Anzac Camp where the combined battalion was restored to two units. On 12th October the 8th Battalion entrained at Ouderdom station for Ebblinghem and marched to Le Croquet.
From here three days later the battalion moved by motor lorry to the Gheluvelt area on the Menin Road for six days of cable trench digging.
The men worked under heavy hostile barrages, moving to and from the area under shellfire. Between 17th and 22nd October 86 Ordinary Ranks were killed, wounded or went missing. John was one of those killed. He died on 17th October 1917, aged 22.
Sergeant Briggs was awarded the Military Medal on June 16th 1917 and was recommended for another award for his gallantry between 1st and 4th October 1917.
In a letter to his widow an officer of John’s company wrote that: ‘He was killed by a shell while leaving the line with a working party after having just completed a day’s work.
“He suffered no pain, as death was instantaneous. He was one of the best N.C.O.s in the company and had done some remarkably fine work recently in actions in which the battalion took a prominent part.
“Everyone in the battalion deeply deplored his death, as he was most popular with the battalion’.
Briggs received a posthumous award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal, with the citation as follows: ‘For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty during a hostile attack.
“He took his Lewis gun forward as soon as the enemy barrage began, and, though the line was outflanked, he remained in an isolated forward position until his gun was put out of action.
“He then went back, obtained another gun, and kept it in action until the attack was beaten off. He showed the greatest courage and determination in a very difficult position’.
John is remembered on the Tyne Cot Memorial, Zonnebeke, Panels 50-51. He is also commemorated on the Baxter Gate Baptist Church Memorial, Loughborough, and on the Carillon.
John’s widow was remarried to Charles A. Cullen, a widower with two small sons Charles and Clarence, in Loughborough in 1922.