“Surg.-Major AW Shea……..was also on that well remembered march out of Chesterfield, mounted, as always, on the popular “Sceptre” (alias “No. 9”). We remember the doctor because of his many waved farewells, which were all faithfully reordered by the cinematograph.
Mobilisation: Chesterfield 10th August 1914
“The crowds who cheered were also permitted a smile and a joke at our transport. Little wonder, for its variegated collection. The furniture-remover’s van, the brewer’s dray, and the grocer’s cart, even the farmers waggon, found their place in the column.”
As I hinted during the first lock down (!) – I fancied putting pen-to-paper and writing the History of the 2/6th Battalion. The only previously published History – limited to very few copies – just documented November 1914 to late 1916.
So I’ve been messing with titles and introductions – a bit like Bilbo Baggins and the start of the Hobbit…..
“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit…….”
So here we go
Men of the Forest Green Circle; being a history of the 2/6th Battalion, the Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire) Regiment (1917-18).
The story of the 2/6th Battalion, the Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire) Regiment starts as a North Midlands’ narrative in 1914 as men from the two Counties flock to join the newly established Territorial Battalion. However, even before the ‘2/6th’ leaves for France in February 1917, recruits from both Hull and London have bolstered their ranks and significantly redefined the composition of this ‘North Midlands’ Battalion.
This is their story……
The 178th Brigade of the 59th Division landed at Boulogne at the end of February 1917. This closely coincided with the Territorial Force renumbering that occurred in March 1917 and before the 2/6th Battn (59th Division) was engaged in any major operations on the Western Front.
By the time the 59th Division were engaged during the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line at the end of April 1917, all the men that were serving with the 2/6th Battn at that time had been renumbered with a 6-digit (24****) service number.
We can identify these men as the ‘Original 1917 Deployment’ of the 2/6th Battalion.
Therefore, by studying the service numbers of the 2/6th Battn men who were killed in action during the 11 months between April 1917 and April 1918 it is possible to see how the composition of the ‘Original 1917 Deployment’ was slowly diluted due to the ever increasing numbers of casualties (killed, wounded and missing) and subsequent reinforcements.
My first thoughts…….to be revised……
By mid-April 1918, and at the time of the last action of the 2/6th Battn (before being reduced to Cadre in May 1918), less that 1 in 5 men still serving were from the Original 1917 Deployment.
Charles was killed in action during a raid on Hunters Post in the last months of the Great War, and thanks to his great nephew Chris, we can now put a face to Charles and tell a little more about his short life and the sweetheart that he left at home.
Charles was born in Lincoln in July 1895 and in the 1911 Census was living with his family at 117 Winn Street. He was from a large family and an errand boy for a local doctor.
It’s not clear when Charles enlisted, and into which Regiment; interestingly, his two elder brothers both enlisted into the Lincolnshire Regiment and have very close regimental numbers.
Charles was certainly with the 1/7th Battalion at the end of 1916 (December) when the Territorial Force Renumbering was being planned and the Territorial Battalions of the Sherwood Foresters used a five digit (2****) regimental numbering system to renumber men being moved between battalions or being posted from other Regiments at the 14th Infantry Base Depot . Charles duly received a 7th Battalion 6-digit number in March 1917 (269262).
Charles most likely served with the Robin Hoods from December 1916 until the Battalion was reduced to Cadre in late January 1918.
Note the Service Record of 20070/269288 Alfred Harold Gregory, who has similar Regimental Numbers to Charles, was used to infer his service.
During early September 1918 the 1/6th Battalion made several attacks on the German strong points known as Hunter and Scott Post – see here for details. It was during this attack that Charles was killed in action or mortally wounded.
Chris has told me that there is a family legend that Charles died carrying a wounded man back to his own trenches. That he was hit and fell and that the wounded man asked Charles whether he was OK, he said he was ok and could carry on. He picked the man up again but was hit a second time, this time he told wounded man he would have to make his own way back and died.
An obituary was posted in a local paper by his fiancée “Vera L” who must have also sent the post card to the family.
Derbyshire Territorials in the Great War 