Geburtsjahr: 1890

Geburtsort: Harrogate, Yorkshire, England, Vereinigtes Königreich

Beruf: Stoffschneider

Land: England, Vereinigtes Königreich

Truppe: British Expeditionary Force

Rang: Private

Dienstnummer: 24928

Einberufung ort: Leeds, Yorkshire, England, Vereinigtes Königreich

Einheiten:  —  West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), 9th Bn.  (Letzte bekannte Einheit)

Sterbedatum: 27/08/1917

Sterbeort: Pheasant Trench, Belgien

Todesursache: Im Kampf gefallen

Alter: 27

British War Medal Medaille

Victory Medal Medaille

Private George Braithwaite, a 27-year-old tailor from Leeds, was killed during the Battle of Passchendaele. He served with the 9th Battalion of the West Yorkshire Regiment (32nd Brigade, 11th (Northern) Division).

The 9th West Yorkshire Regiment attacked from Maison Bulgare on 27 August 1917. Their objective was Pheasant Trench. George Braithwaite was a part of “A” Company, which was positioned on the right flank. George’s Battalion advanced towards the second objective at 1:55pm. A shrapnel barrage was sent into the German trenches. At 01:58 pm the Germans launched a counter-attack, fixing their barrage on Langemark-Winnipeg Road. The right of the 9th Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment came under fire from Vieilles Maisons.

Before the men even reached Pheasant Trench, many had already fallen. Even though some made it into Pheasant Trench, they had to retreat and create a line of posts east of Bulow Farm, parallel to Pheasant Trench. A day later, these posts were consolidated. On 29 August the Battalion was relieved. Casualties had been high. 65 killed, 152 wounded and 17 missing.

Private George Braithwaite was reported missing. Red Cross eye-witnesses later declared to have seen him fall during the attack. His girlfriend Evelyn Townsend wrote to Pte Horseman, one of Braithwaite’s close friends, for further information. He stated that George died during the attack on Pheasant Trench.

9 Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment. (The National Archives, KEW (TNA), WO 95/1809/2). https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14303 Verwendete Quellen

McCarthy C., Passchendaele The Day-by-Day Account, (London, Uniform, 2018), pg 67. Verwendete Quellen

Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/842742

Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=50c97f4b-7aa3-4ab0-8df8-21015032a8fb

Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/468931

A Street Near You https://astreetnearyou.org/person/842742/