Pte
James Douglas Blackburn
Information about birth
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Year of birth: 1896 |
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Place of birth: Workington, Cumberland, England, United Kingdom |
Army information
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Country: England, United Kingdom |
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Force: British Expeditionary Force |
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Rank: Private |
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Service number: 32785 |
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Enlistment place: Workington, Cumberland, England, United Kingdom |
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Units: — King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, 10th Bn. (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 04/10/1917 |
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Place of death: Joist Farm, Zonnebeke, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 21 |
Cemetery
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Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood Plot: XXIV Row: B Grave: 12 |
Distinctions and medals 2
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British War Medal Medal |
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Victory Medal Medal |
Points of interest 3
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Enlistment place | ||
| #3 | Place of death (approximate) |
My story
Private James Douglas Blackburn served in the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry 10th Battalion, part of the 64th Brigade, of the 21st Division.
On the 4th of October 1917 the Division participated in the Battle of Broodseinde, a phase of the Third Battle of Ypres. The Division attacked at 6 a.m. with two brigades. The 64th Brigade on the left and the 62nd Brigade on the right. The attack of the 64th Brigade was carried by the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry 9th Battalion; with the KOYLI 10th Battalion in close support. Once the 9th KOYLI had captured its objective, the 10th Battalion would move through and capture the second objective, which included the hamlet of Reutel.
At zero hour, 6 a.m. the 9th and 10th Battalions left their positions on the southeastern outskirts of Polygon Wood and advanced towards their objective, a road just west of the hamlet of Reutel. The 9th Battalion led the attack, followed by the 10th Battalion. The men advanced behind a creeping barrage, but were still caught by heavy machine-gun fire. After the 9th Battalion had captured the German strongpoint of Joist Farm, they had to cross swampy and low lying terrain. While the men struggled through the boggy terrain they were enfiladed by machine-guns from a series of concrete forts to the right of the swamp. By now the troops of both Battalions had become intermixed. Notwithstanding the heavy casualties, attacking parties managed to attack and clear the machine-gun positions with hand grenades and rifle fire. The men of the 9th and 10th pushed on, capturing Juniper Trench and three more German strongpoints before reaching the first objective.
For an hour and forty minutes the men were held up in the captured trench by a German strongpoint on the east edge of Reutel. While clearing the trench they were subjected to heavy shelling. By now the right flank was in the air and at noon Germans were seen massing on the right, in the hope to flank the KOYLI. Once a tank had knocked out the strongpoint and the British barrage, which had stayed stationary for an hour and forty minutes, advanced the remnants of the 10th KOYLI moved through the 9th KOYLI.
The 10th had been mingled with the men of the 9th for a large part of the attack. It had already suffered heavy casualties. Whit only small numbers and no sign of any more Germans who were threatening the right flank, the 10th Battalion dug in some 150 yards ahead of the first objective. Cover was obtained by connecting shell holes throughout the rest of the day. The King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry 10th Battalion was eventually relieved from the front lines in the night of 6 and 7 October 1917.
The Battalion had suffered heavy casualties during their attack on Reutel. Four officers were killed, five were wounded and one was missing. Twenty-five other ranks were killed, 247 men were wounded and 41 men were missing. Private James Douglas Blackburn was killed in action on the 4th of October 1917. He was initially buried in the field, just east of Joist Farm. The location of his initial grave may suggest he was killed while crossing the boggy terrain, going to Juniper Trench, near Reutel. Private James Douglas Blackburn’s remains were exhumed after the war and interred in Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood.
On the 4th of October 1917 the Division participated in the Battle of Broodseinde, a phase of the Third Battle of Ypres. The Division attacked at 6 a.m. with two brigades. The 64th Brigade on the left and the 62nd Brigade on the right. The attack of the 64th Brigade was carried by the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry 9th Battalion; with the KOYLI 10th Battalion in close support. Once the 9th KOYLI had captured its objective, the 10th Battalion would move through and capture the second objective, which included the hamlet of Reutel.
At zero hour, 6 a.m. the 9th and 10th Battalions left their positions on the southeastern outskirts of Polygon Wood and advanced towards their objective, a road just west of the hamlet of Reutel. The 9th Battalion led the attack, followed by the 10th Battalion. The men advanced behind a creeping barrage, but were still caught by heavy machine-gun fire. After the 9th Battalion had captured the German strongpoint of Joist Farm, they had to cross swampy and low lying terrain. While the men struggled through the boggy terrain they were enfiladed by machine-guns from a series of concrete forts to the right of the swamp. By now the troops of both Battalions had become intermixed. Notwithstanding the heavy casualties, attacking parties managed to attack and clear the machine-gun positions with hand grenades and rifle fire. The men of the 9th and 10th pushed on, capturing Juniper Trench and three more German strongpoints before reaching the first objective.
For an hour and forty minutes the men were held up in the captured trench by a German strongpoint on the east edge of Reutel. While clearing the trench they were subjected to heavy shelling. By now the right flank was in the air and at noon Germans were seen massing on the right, in the hope to flank the KOYLI. Once a tank had knocked out the strongpoint and the British barrage, which had stayed stationary for an hour and forty minutes, advanced the remnants of the 10th KOYLI moved through the 9th KOYLI.
The 10th had been mingled with the men of the 9th for a large part of the attack. It had already suffered heavy casualties. Whit only small numbers and no sign of any more Germans who were threatening the right flank, the 10th Battalion dug in some 150 yards ahead of the first objective. Cover was obtained by connecting shell holes throughout the rest of the day. The King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry 10th Battalion was eventually relieved from the front lines in the night of 6 and 7 October 1917.
The Battalion had suffered heavy casualties during their attack on Reutel. Four officers were killed, five were wounded and one was missing. Twenty-five other ranks were killed, 247 men were wounded and 41 men were missing. Private James Douglas Blackburn was killed in action on the 4th of October 1917. He was initially buried in the field, just east of Joist Farm. The location of his initial grave may suggest he was killed while crossing the boggy terrain, going to Juniper Trench, near Reutel. Private James Douglas Blackburn’s remains were exhumed after the war and interred in Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood.
Sources 3
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10 Battalion King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry , (The National Archives, KEW (TNA), WO 95/2162/2). https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14303 Further reference |
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Bond R.C., The King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry in the Great War, (London, Percy Lund, Humphries & co. LTD, 1929), pg. 894-897. Sources used |
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McCarthy C., The Third Ypres Passchendaele. The Day-by-Day Account, (London, Arms & Armour Press, 1995), pg. 98-100. Sources used |
More information 3
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=dd2ce7b4-d0d9-4635-94ad-d0beb8e236d7 |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/367382 |
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/480123 |