The
Bedfordshire Regiment in the Great War
(Site
built by and © Steven Fuller, 2003 to 2010)
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Officers who died serving in the 4th Battalion
[Please note that although the list itself is
complete, I have yet to include all the information I have gathered
on each individual.]
By using the volumes of "Soldiers Died in the
Great War" as a foundation and amending the roll according to
information found in the battalion War Diary, regimental history,
newspaper clippings I have come across, Commonwealth War Graves
Commission (CWGC) database details and the officers' service
records (where available), this roll is as accurate as I can
achieve. Any additions or amendments will be added as I come
across them but please contact me if you are aware of a discrepancy
in the details shown.
This roll of honour is in chronological order
of the date the Officer in question died.
At 6.30am on the 13th November 1916,
the battalion tasted their first offensive action when the surprise
Battle of the Ancre was launched.
British Divisions assaulted German positions around
the Ancre River on the northern edge of the Somme battlefields
and made headway that would be capitalised on early in 1917.
Casualties were so heavy in the Division that the 2,000 German
prisoners taken easily outnumbered the survivors, yet gave the
British troops no trouble as they were sent back to the Prisoner
cages, often without guards. The Bedfords' own Brigade were
to be the third line of the assaulting waves of the 63rd Division,
yet they still lost 9 Officers and 57 men killed with a further
5 Officers and 130 men wounded or missing, most falling to a
German strongpoint that had been overlooked by the assaulting
waves. The first nine officers below are the Officers who fell
that day:
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Captain Francis George Coningsby ASHMEAD-BARTLETT
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916
Francis was gazetted a 2/Lt on the 6th August
1914, two days after war was declared.
He landed in France on the 19th December
1914 and served in the 2nd battalion from the 23rd December
until wounded during the battle of Neuve Chapelle on the
11th March 1915.
Having returned to fitness again he arrived
in France to serve in the 4th battalion, where he fell
during the Ancre battle. His obituary on page 1 of the
22nd November 1916 edition of the Times, records he fell
leading his Company. He was the son of the late Sir Ellis
Ashmead-Bartlett, M.P., and Lady Ashmead-Bartlett.
He left a wife, Phyllis and is buried in
the Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km north
of Albert
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Lieutenant Richard Harvey BOYS
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 27
Richard was gazetted a 2/Lt in the 2nd
battalion on the 20th March and joined the battalion in
the field on the 26th March as a cadet from the Artist's
Rifles.
Two months later, on the 17th May, he was
wounded at the Battle of Festubert during the eight day
battle that saw half of the battalion become casualties
and many of the wounded men drown when they were unable
to pull themselves from the deep ditches in the area.
After his ordeal in May, 2/Lt Boys returned to Blighty
to recover and was promoted to a full Lieutenant on the
29th October 1915. He was attached to the 4th battalion
when he returned to France in the autumn of 1916, where
he was killed during the Ancre battle.
Richard was the son of Dr. A. H. and Ada
Mary Boys, of 95, St. Peter's St., St. Albans and is buried
in the Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km
north of Albert
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Lieutenant Bartlett Laurie Stuart FRERE
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 20.
Bartlett was educated at Eton before the
war and was gazetted a temporary 2/Lt in the 4th battalion
on the 15th August 1914 and promoted to Lieutenant 4th
March 1915.
He arrived in France on the 13th May and
joined the 1st battalion in the field on the 15th May
1915 but was sent away to hospital on the 9th July 1915
with a fever. Having recovered, Bartlett joined the 4th
battalion and was killed during the fighting in November
1916.
He was the son of Laurie and Maud Mary Newton
Frere of Twyford House, Bishop's Stortford, Herts and
is buried in the Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart,
8km north of Albert.
He was also Mentioned in Despatches for
bravery in the field.
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Lieutenant William Arthur TURNBULL
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 23
William was gazetted a 2/Lt in the 4th
battalion on the 6th February 1915, which was confirmed
on the 24th October.
He appears to have left for France with
the 4th battalion in the summer of 1916 and on the 2nd
November 1916 he became the battalion adjutant; a role
he maintained until his death several days later.
William was the only child of Mr W. and
Mrs A.D. Turnbull, of Prior Manor, Corbridge-on-Tyne,
Northumberland. He lies in the Knightsbridge cemetery,
Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km north of Albert.
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Second Lieutenant Sydney Herbert AGATE
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 22
Sydney was gazetted a 2/Lt in the 3d battalion
on the 5th August 1916 and sailed to France attached to
the 4th battalion once they were deployed.
He was killed during his first offensive
battle and was the son of Walter Golds Agate and P. Agate
of "The Oaklands" in Headcorn, Kent.
Second Lieutenant Agate is buried in the
Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km north
of Albert.
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Second Lieutenant John BRODIE
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 21
John was born 9th January 1895 and enlisted
on the 4th August 1914, when he was a resident of 18 Polmuir
Road in Aberdeen.
He was gazetted a 2/Lt on the 26th June
1915 and arrived with the 4th battalion late in the summer
of 1916. John was the son of John Brodie of 28 Carlton
Place in Aberdeen and is buried in the Knightsbridge cemetery,
Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km north of Albert.
He is recorded on Aberdeen's City Roll of
Honour, Aberdeen Grammar School Roll of Honour, Officers
Book page 85, North of Scotland Bank Ltd: War Record:
Page 29, Aberdeen Daily Journal Roll of Honour.
(With thanks to Anne Park, who provided
information taken from the Aberdeen Roll of Honour and
the list of sources)
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Second Lieutenant Thomas Hooton HILL
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 30
Thomas was gazetted a 2/Lt on the 7th July
1916 and arrived with the battalion not long before his
death that November.
He was the son of Sam Flower Hill and Eliza
Emily Hill of Northampton and is buried in the Knightsbridge
cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km north of Albert
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Second Lieutenant Harold Baldwin HUDSON
 Killed
in action 13th November 1916, aged 23
Harold was the son of William M. and A.E.
Hudson of 36 Friends Rd., Croydon.
He was a fellow of the Entomological Society
and lies in the Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart,
8km north of Albert
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Second Lieutenant Roger Leslie Stuart WILKINSON
Died of wounds 21st November 1916, aged 18
 Leslie
was gazetted a Temporary 2/Lt on the 6th March, which
was confirmed on the 24th October 1915.
He seems to have arrived with the
battalion when they were mobilised in July 1916 and was
wounded during their assault on the 13th November. Having
struggled against his wounds for over a week, on the 21st
(or 23rd) November, Roger died. He lived in Wraysbury,
Bucks at the time of his death and was the only son of
Richard and Margaret Wilkinson of 237 Knightsbridge in
Kensington.
Roger is buried in the Etaples cemetery
on the coast, where he died.
(My thanks to John Hamblin for the
photograph)
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In February 1917 the British army commenced
operations on the banks of the Ancre river once again, intent
on driving the German forces from the salient they occupied
before pushing on with their next large scale campaigns that
spring.
Several 'assault divisions' were assigned the
task, including the now renowned 63rd Division, who launched
their assaults on the 11th February. During these operations,
the following two Officers fell and a further 70 casualties
were suffered during the partly successful advance which was
held up by uncut wire.
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Lieutenant and Adjutant Leonard Terry DESPICHT,
M.C.
 Killed
in action 11th February 1917, age 26
Leonard was the son of Joseph and Lucy
R. Despicht, of "Trenebie," 375, Sandycombe Rd., Kew Gardens,
Surrey and a native of London.
He lies in the Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart,
8km north of Albert
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Second Lieutenant (Captain) Gillies McKIRDY
(MacKIRDY)
 Killed
in action 11th February 1917, age 26
Gillies was the son of Mrs. I. C. Mackirdy,
of 1 Ingleside Grove, Blackheath, London and is bured
in the Knightsbridge cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart, 8km
north of Albert.
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Second Lieutenant Eric Charles FREEAR
 Killed
in action 13th April 1917, aged 20
Son of Harry Marshall Freear, and Margaret
Ann Freear, of Harpenden, Herts. Bailleul Rd. East cemetery,
St. Laurent Blagny, north-east Arras
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The Arras Memorial to the
Missing
During the Battle of Arras, the Division
were ordered to assault German positions around Gavrelle.
Their tenacity resulted in the operation going down in the
annuls of their history as one of the finest achievements of
the war which, given their reputation, was quite something.
Almost 300 of the battalion became casualties during their stubborn
operations, including the following three officers who were
killed that day:
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Second Lieutenant William Robert BRIDGES
Killed in action 23rd April 1917, aged
22
William was the son of Philip and the late
Mary Bridges of Bridgend, Stonehouse in Gloucestershire
and lies in the Aubigny communal cemetery, 15km north-west
of Arras
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Second Lieutenant Sidney Gerald MULLIGAN
Killed in action 23rd April 1917, aged
28
Sidney was the son of Samuel and Julia
Jessop Mulligan, of 39, Talbot Rd., South Tottenham, London
and is remembered on the Arras memorial to the missing
(above)
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Second Lieutenant Horace Wellesley MUIR
Killed in action 24th April 1917, aged
33
Horace was the son of the late George Horace
Muir, of "Hartfield Rise", Hartfield Square, Eastbourne
and is remembered on Arras memorial to the missing (above)
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Second Lieutenant Roy TIMBERLAKE
 Killed
in action 27th July 1917
According to the personal diary of Frederick
Spicer, MBE, MC, Roy was killed by a bullet whilst
leading a ration party and is buried in the Bailleul Rd.
East cemetery, S. Laurent Blagny, Arras.
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During the Second battle of Passchendaele,
the battalion were involved in a frontal assault that was quickly
bogged down by glutinous mud and cut to pieces by murderous
German cross fire
They lost almost 250 men in the battle, including
the next three officers:
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Captain Leslie Charles Thomas GATE
Killed in action 30th October 1917, aged
21
Captain Gate was attached to the 4th battalion
from the 10th battalion. He was the son of Thomas Alexander
and Emma Augusta Gate and is remembered on Tyne Cot memorial
to the missing
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Second Lieutenant Albert Edward TEE
Killed in action 30th October 1917, aged
28
Albert was the son of Joseph Tee, of Farcet,
Peterborough and husband of Christine May Hall (formerly
Tee), of 330, Washington St., Woburn, Mass, U.S.A. He
has no known grave but is remembered on Tyne Cot memorial
to the missing
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Lieutenant Cecil Hooten WAREING
Died of wounds 1st November 1917, aged
26.
Cecil was the son of Henrietta Helena Wareing,
of 46, Southgates, Chichester and lies in the Dozinghem
military cemetery, north-west of Poperinghe
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Second Lieutenant Albert Victor CLARKE, MC
Died of wounds 02/01/1918
Second Lieutenant Clarke initially enlisted
as a Private in the Essex regiment and was commissioned
in July 1917. He was attached to the 4th Battalion from
November 1917 and was gassed whilst holding the trenches
at Villers Plouich in France. Two of his fellow officers
were also gassed on the 2nd January but Albert died later
that day.
He is buried in the Rocquigny-Equancourt
Road British Cemetery, Manancourt, 12km south-east of
Bapaume.
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Second Lieutenant George Willmot CHILDS
Died of wounds 22nd January 1918, aged
35.
George was the son of G. W. C. and Agnes
V. Childs, of Ilford, Essex and lies in the Rocquigny-Equancourt
Road British Cemetery, Manancourt, 12km south-east of
Bapaume, 12km south-east of Bapaume.
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Second Lieutenant Ernest Charles WEBB
Killed in action 17th February 1918, aged
25
Second Lieutenant Webb was attached to the
4th battalion following the disbanding of the 8th battalion
and was killed soon afterwards. He was the son of the
late Charles and Caroline Webb and lies in the Rocquigny-Equancourt
Road British Cemetery, Manancourt, 12km south-east of
Bapaume.
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The Arras Memorial to the
Missing
During the opening phase of the German
Spring Offensives, the battalion were heavily engaged from the
start and were practically rebuilt once the fighting had died
down.
The following eleven officers lost their lives
during the fighting in March and early April 1918:
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Lieutenant William Stanley DAVIS
Killed in action 22/03/1918, aged 22
William was from the 5th battalion but
fell whilst attached to the 4th battalion in France. He
was killed in battle on the 23rd March, whilst the Battalion
withdrew from Havrincourt Wood, through Neuville towards
Ytres. William was the son of Mary Rosina Davis, of 7,
The Embankment, Bedford, and the late Dr. William Davis.
He is remembered on Arras Memorial to the missing (above).
William can be seen here
in some of the group photographs
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Captain Noel Charles Frederick NIXON
Killed in action 24th March 1918
Captain Nixon was from the 8th battalion,
but was attached to the 4th when they were disbanded in
January 1918. He was initially posed as missing but his
body was not recovered. Hence, he is remembered on Arras
Memorial to the missing (above)
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Second Lieutenant Robert Charles FYNN
  Killed
in action 25th March 1918
Robert was the son of Mr. and Mrs. W. W.
Fynn and lies in the London Cemetery and extension in
Longeuval on the Somme
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Second Lieutenant Arthur HAYES
 Killed
in action 25th March 1918, aged 21
Arthur was attached to B Company of the
4th battalion from the 3rd (Reserve) battalion and is
shown here in
the 1917 Officers group photograph.
He was the son of W. F. and Anne Hayes,
of 115, Torriano Avenue, Kentish Town, London and is remembered
on Arras Memorial to the missing (above)
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Lieutenant-Colonel John Stanhope COLLINGS-WELLS,
V.C., D.S.O.
Killed in action 27th March 1918
Lieutenant Colonel Stanhope-Wells was the
battalions Commanding Officer. His full biography can
be seen here.
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Major George Paterson NUNNELEY, M.C.
  Killed
in action 27th March 1918, aged 36
Major Nunneley was the battalion's second
in command and was a pre war officer who had served on
the Western Front since November 1914.
He was the son of Rev. F. B. Nunneley, M.A.,
M.D. and lies in the Ovillers Military Cemetery, 5km north-east
of Albert.
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Second Lieutenant Oliver Jack SOAMES
 Killed
in action 27th March 1918, aged 24
Oliver was born in Earl Stonham, Suffolk
and was the son of Mr. and Mrs. H. Soames and the husband
of H. K. Olive Soames, of 71, Norwich Rd., Ipswich.
He lies in the Bouzincourt Ridge Military
cemetery, 3km north-east of Albert.
Oliver can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Second Lieutenant David Harold MACKLIN
 Killed
in action 27th March 1918, aged 20
David joined the 4th battalion on the Western
Front on the 11th August 1917.
On the 27th March 1918, the 4th Battalion
was west of Albert and counter attacked German positions,
resulting in heavy Officer casualties including 2/Lt Macklin.
He was the son of the Rev. Herbert W. Macklin
and Marian M. Macklin, of White Wood Corner, Sandy, Beds
and is buried at the Ovillers Military Cemetery.
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Second Lieutenant Leslie Arthur Walter VINCENT
 Died
of wounds 31st March 1918 whilst a POW in German hands,
aged 22
Leslie was the son of Mr. A. R. Vincent,
of 21, Cowick Rd., St. Thomas, Exeter and lies in the
Cambrai East military cemetery.
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Lieutenant James Bowen PRIMROSE-WELLS
 Died
of wounds 4th April 1918 whilst a POW in German hands,
aged 30
James was the son of Dr. and Mrs. Primrose
Wells, of Pinner Wood, Duncan, Vancouver Island, British
Columbia and is buried in the Blighty Valley Cemetery,
Authuile Wood, 4km north-east of Albert
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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The Pozieres Memorial to
the Missing
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Second Lieutenant Reginald B. RUDDOCK
Killed in action 6th April 1918
Lieutenant Ruddock was from the 5th Northumberland
Fusiliers, attached to the 4th Bedfords. He arrived with
Second Lieutenants Lovatt and Miln (both below) on the
4th April and was killed 2 days later.
He has no known grave and is remembered
on the Pozieres Memorial to the missing (above).
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Second Lieutenant Charles LOVATT, M.C.
Killed in action 12th April 1918, aged
21.
Second Lieutenant Miln was from the 26th
Northumberland Fusiliers, attached to the 4th Bedfords.
He arrived with Second Lieutenants Ruddock and Miln (above
and below) on the 4th April and was killed a week later.
As he earned a Military Cross for bravery.
He was the only son of Mr. and Mrs. J. Lovatt,
of 28, Egerton Rd., South Shields and lies in the Aveluy
Wood cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsaart.
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Second Lieutenant William Wallace MILN
Killed in action 24th or 25th May 1918,
aged 21.
Second Lieutenant Miln was from the 26th
Northumberland Fusiliers, attached to the 4th Bedfords.
He arrived with Second Lieutenants Ruddock and Lovatt
(both shown above) on the 4th April and was killed the
following month.
He was the son of George Peddie Miln and
Lillie Miln, of Abbots Lodge, 35, Liverpool Rd., Chester
and is remembered on the Soissons Memorial to the missing.
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Second Lieutenant William MATHIESON
Killed in action 25th May 1918, aged 37
Second Lieutenant Matheison was initially
posted as missing. He was the son of James Mathieson,
of 19, Lyndhurst Gardens, Glasgow and husband of Mabel
Nellie Mathieson, of 22, Rose St., Haxby Rd., York.
William has no known grave but is remembered
on Pozieres Memorial to the missing (above).
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Captain Herbert Reginald GLEDSTONE
Killed in action 25th May 1918, aged 25.
Captain Gledstone was from the Northumberland Fusiliers,
attached to the 4th Bedfords.
He was the son of the late Thomas Liddle
Gledstone and Annie Elizabeth Gledstone and is remembered
on the Pozieres Memorial to the missing (above).
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Second Lieutenant Percival James FLORY
Killed in action 22nd August 1918
Percival is buried in the Bienvillers military
cemetery, 18km south-west of Arras.
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Lieutenant and Quartermaster Mark BRAWN, D.C.M.
 Killed
in action 1st September 1918, aged 38
Mark was the son of William and Anne Brawn,
of The School House, Elton, Huntingdonshire and lies in
the St. Martin Calvaire British cemetery, St. Martin sur
Cojeul, 8km south-east of Arras.
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Captain Richard Brodnax KNIGHT
Died of wounds 5th September 1918, aged
37
Captain Knight was from the 3rd (Reserve)
battalion, attached to the 4th when he was killed.
He was the son of the Rev. C. E. Knight
(Rector of Chawton, Alton, Hants.) and Emma G. Knight,
of "Summerlands," South Farnborough, Hants and is buried
in the St. Sever cemetery, Rouen.
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The battalion were engaged in The Battle
for the Canal Du Nord between the 27th September and 1st October
1918, losing around 200 men in the process, including the following
seven officers:
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Lieutenant Ernest Dennis ELLIS
Killed in action 27th September 1918, aged
25
Lieutenant Ellis was from the 10th battalion,
attached to the 4th when he was killed. He was the son
of David and Annie Ellis, of "Holmsdale," Balbriggan Co.
Dublin and is buried in the Moeuvres communal cemetery,
10km west of Cambrai.
He can be seen here
in the officers' group photograph taken in September 1917.
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Captain Owen Ellis HOBSON
Killed in action 27th September 1918, aged
27
Captain Hobson joined from the 6th battalion
when they were disbanded in May 1918, being attached to
the 4th.
He was the son of James Walter and Rosamond
Hobson, of Bedford and the husband of Eileen Nora Roberts,
of Lavenderhayes, Budleigh Salterton, Devon.
Owen lies in the Moeuvres communal cemetery,
10km west of Cambrai and was mentioned in despatches for
bravery.
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Captain Joseph Keith BATTEN
Killed in action 27th September 1918, aged
26
Captain Batten was from the 5th battalion,
but attached to the 4th Battalion in France, having also
served in the 7th up until their disbandment. He joined
the Battalion on 18th June 1918 and was wounded 27th September
during operations to take the Hindenburg Line across the
Canal du Nord.
Captain Batten died from his wounds later
that day.
Joseph was the son of Joseph and Katie Alice
Batten, of Park Corner, Peterborough and is buried in
the Mouevres Communal Cemetery Extension.
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Second Lieutenant Thomas Jenkinson WALLER
Killed in action 28th September 1918, aged
26.
Second lieutenant Waller joined the battalion
from the 3rd Northumberland Fusiliers.
Thomas was the son of Thomas M. and Emily
M. Waller, of 13, Brierville, Durham and lies in the Sunken
Road cemetery, Biosleux-St. Marc.
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Second Lieutenant Frank William BELLAMY
Died of wounds 8th October 1918, aged 23
Second Lieutenant Bellamy transferred from
the 6th battalion when they disbanded and was attached
to the 4th when he fell.
He was the son of Isle and Edith Bellamy,
of 5, Francis St., Scunthorpe, Lincs and is buried in
the Noyelles sur L'Escaut communal cemetery extension,
5km south-west of Cambrai.
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Second Lieutenant Frederick Daniel SIMMONDS
Died 18th February 1919, aged 36
Second Lieutenant Simmonds joined 4th Battalion
on the 3rd October 1918.
He was the husband of Mrs. A. Simmonds,
of 53, Upper Gloucester Place, Dorset Square, London and
is buried in the Wandsworth (Earlsfield) Cemetery.
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Second Lieutenant Albert LEVY (LEVI)
Died 12th June 1919
Second Lieutenant Levy joined the battalion
on the 20th April 1918 but was wounded 1st October 1918.
He is buried in the Willesden Jewish cemetery,
England.
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4th Battalion links
Below are links to the other pages with information
on the 4th battalion during the Great War:
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