On this day 17th January 1916

2651 Pte. Abaham Savage died in the British Section of the Lahore Indian Stationary Hospital of erysipelas and is buried in MAZARGUES WAR CEMETERY (erysipelas is an acute bacterial infection of the skin). At the time the 46th Division were in Marseilles due to an aborted move to Gallipoli and they remained there until the end of January.

2651 Savage

Abraham Savage was a pottery labourer from Station Road on Whittington Moor and enlisted in October 1914 aged 21. He arrived in France with the 46th Division in February 1915.

Interestingly, Abraham’s family appears to have received a pension from the French Ministry of War.

2652 savage 2

On this day 7th January 1917

The Battalion relieved the 5th Battn in the right sector of trenches near to SOUASTRE.

Received a draft of 180 other ranks, but 160 were only partly trained. All 180 were sent to the Brigade Training Depot.

This draft of men most likely comprised the 26th, 27th and 28th Reinforcements.

These three reinforcements are interesting in that they were the last ones in which men were issued with Territorial Force numbers.

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The 26th Reinforcement comprised 47 men and again many of these were numbered alphabetically from 242594 George Hall through to 242624 Nelson Woolven. Interestingly, the majority of the men in this draft had previously seen overseas service with other Territorial Battalions of the Sherwood Foresters. In order to avoid a conflict of Regimental Numbers, and possibly in preparation for the Territorial Force Renumbering that was soon to occur, these men were issued with numbers from 20001 to 20039 (if they were not men of the 1/6th Battn).

6448 ShawArmy Form B. 103. Casualty Form – Active Service for 6448 Frank Shaw who arrived in France on 8th December 1916 from the 5th Reserve Battalion and was posted to the 14th Infantry Base Depot. Frank was a postman from Radford and had enlisted into the 7th Sherwood Foresters in December 1915.

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The 27th Reinforcement is harder to research but some information can be obtained from:-

263002 GelsthorpeArmy Form B. 103. Casualty Form – Active Service for 263002 Gelsthorpe who arrived in France on 4th January 1917 from the 5th Reserve Battalion. 

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The 28th Reinforcement comprised 92 men that were primarily numbered in alphabetical order and several men had already seen overseas service with the South Nottinghamshire Hussars. The 28th Reinforcement numbered as follows:-

7710 (242501) Robert Abbot through to 7798 (242586) Arthur E Wright.

7721 BransonArmy Form B. 103. Casualty Form – Active Service for 7721 Archibald Branson who arrived in France on 4th January 1917 from the 5th Reserve Battalion and was posted to the 1/6th Sherwood Foresters under Army Order 1499 of 1916. Archibald was a workhouse man from Stapleford and had enlisted originally into the South Notts Hussars in November 1915.

On 2nd January 1918

On the night of the 2nd/3rd January 1918 the Germans raided trenches at St Elie Sector but were repulsed. 2 OR were killed and 9 men wounded by enemy barrage.

Map Jan 1918

Raid 1918

  • 94457 Pte. John Stanley Griffiths was killed and buried in PHILOSOPHE BRITISH CEMETERY at MAZINGARBE. John was the son of John Joseph and Alice Griffiths of 47 Cannock Rd., Park Village, Wolverhampton.
  • 2493/240602 L/Sergt. Fred Moorcroft was killed and buried next to John Griffiths.

On this day 14th December

Lieutenant Cyril George RADFORD was awarded the Military Cross for a trench raid carried out on the 4-5th November 1917.

“For gallantry and devotion to duty when in command go the Right Party in a raid on the German trenches N.W. of Loos during the night 4/5th November 1917, though severely wounded in the stomach at the start, he led his men to the final objective in the enemy second line. After much hard fighting in which several of the enemy were killed, he succeeded in capturing four prisoners. After the recall signal, though suffering severely from his wounds, he remained to see all the wounded safely brought back”.

On this day 8th December 1917

3740 Pte. Frank Nicholls, a miner from Brampton, died of wounds in the 7th General Hospital on 8th December and was buried in LONGUENESSE (ST. OMER) SOUVENIR CEMETERY. He was 21 years old and the son of Edmund and Elizabeth Nicholls of 1 the fold, Chatsworth Rd., Chesterfield.

Frank enlisted on January 29th 1915 and trained with the 3/6th Reserve Battalion before being posted to the 1/6th Battalion in France. He arrived in France with the 6th Reinforcement on 4th March 1916 and joined the 1/6th Battalion ‘in the field’ on the 16th March.

He was scalded on the right foot by tea on the 29th April 1917 and after being admitted to the 1/3 NMFA, 58 CCS and 14 General Hospital (Wimereux) he was eventually transferred to England on 17th May 1917. He received treatment in Evington Military Hospital in Leicester before being discharged from Hospital on the 18th July.

Hospital

After being discharged Frank was posted to the Regimental Depot in Ripon and then the 5th Reserve Battalion. He returned to France on the 10th September 1917 with the 40th Reinforcement and was initially posted to the 14 IBD before taken on strength of the 1/6th Battalion.

Frank received a gun shot wound in the head on 24th November that caused a severe skull fracture. He was admitted to the 1st NMFA and transferred to the 7th General Hospital where he succumbed to his wounds on the 8th December.

Wounded

Frank was the only fatal casualty for that particular trench duty.

On this day 2nd December 1916

Whilst at Sus St. Leger (West of Arras) the Brigade were inspected by G.O.C. the Division who congratulated them on the “Maron Past” (which is a mystery to me!).

He also presented Military Medals to:-

  • 570 CSM. George William Dakin a tinsmith from Ashbourne.
  • 71 Sgt. William Hopkins a groom gardener from Bakewell.
  • 1450 Sgt. Charles William Woolley a farm labourer from Matlock.
  • 1464 Sgt. Wilfred Longson a shop assistant from Chapel-ne-le-Frith.
  • 2323 Cpl. Arthur Stroyan a striker and turner from Ashford.
  • 1936 L/Cpl. Vernon Samuel Smith a tube drawer from Chesterfield.
  • 1644 Dmr. James Chatterton a print works labourer from Birch Vale.
  • 1790 Pte. Samuel Dawes a coal miner from Chesterfield.

Smith

Smith 2

On this day 28th November

242600 George Henry Johnson was killed in action and buried in Philosophe British Cemetery at Mazingarbe. This was most likely an original trench burial by the 46th Division.

George was born at Fandon in 1884 as was a malster in the local brewery. He married Harriet in 1910 and they lived at  20 Sheppards Row,  Northgate, Newark in Nottinghamshire.

Johnson

Very little is know about George. He joined the 1/6th Battalion with the 28th Reinforcement from the 14th Infantry Base Depot in January 1917. His Regimental number at the time (#20007), which indicates that he was a Territorial Soldier from one of the other Notts & Derby Battalions (most likely 2/8th or 3/8th).

Note: The 2**** numbering system was used to move Notts & Derby Territorials around the different Battalions prior to the 1917 6-digit renumbering.