Pte
William James Welham
Information about birth
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Date of birth: 14/06/1886 |
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Place of birth: Beccles, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom |
General information
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Profession: Coal Porter |
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: 18229 |
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Enlistment place: Colchester, Essex, England, United Kingdom |
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Units: — Essex Regiment, 2nd Bn. (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 10/10/1917 |
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Place of death: Compromise Farm, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 31 |
Memorial
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Tyne Cot Memorial Panel: 99 A |
Distinctions and medals 2
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British War Medal Medal |
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Victory Medal Medal |
Points of interest 2
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Enlistment place |
My story
Private William James Welham served in the Essex Regiment, 2nd Battalion, part of the 12th Brigade, of the 4th Division.
On the 9th of October 1917, the 12th Brigade participated in the Battle of Poelcapelle. The Brigade attacked to the north of Poelkapelle at 5.20 a.m. with the 2nd Essex on the right and the 2nd Lancashire Fusiliers on the left; the 2nd Duke of Wellington’s were in support and the 1st King’s Own in reserve. The immediately encountered severe sniper and machine-gun fire near the railway. The left of the attack was held up by machine-gun fire coming from German blockhouses to the northeast of Poelkapelle. These blockhouses weren’t taken out by the 11th Division on the right. It’s advance had already been checked. With the right flank up in the air the 2nd Essex was unable to advance any further than a few hundred yards. They dug in near Compromise Farm and were able to consolidate a position between the first and second objectives. The Battalion stayed in that position during the night. The soldiers had to occupy shell holes and their situation was made worse by the bad weather and heavy German shelling during the night. The shelling continued until the following day. From their position they could see German movement at Requette Farm, but no counterattack was made.
When daylight came, the 2nd Battalion was relieved by the Household Battalion. They moved to a support position near Ferdan House where they again had to occupy waterlogged shell holes.
Private Private William James Welham was killed in action on the 10th of October 1917. It is highly possible that he fell, due to the heavy shelling on the 2nd Essex’s positions. His remains were never identified. He is remembered on the Tyne Cot Memorial.
On the 9th of October 1917, the 12th Brigade participated in the Battle of Poelcapelle. The Brigade attacked to the north of Poelkapelle at 5.20 a.m. with the 2nd Essex on the right and the 2nd Lancashire Fusiliers on the left; the 2nd Duke of Wellington’s were in support and the 1st King’s Own in reserve. The immediately encountered severe sniper and machine-gun fire near the railway. The left of the attack was held up by machine-gun fire coming from German blockhouses to the northeast of Poelkapelle. These blockhouses weren’t taken out by the 11th Division on the right. It’s advance had already been checked. With the right flank up in the air the 2nd Essex was unable to advance any further than a few hundred yards. They dug in near Compromise Farm and were able to consolidate a position between the first and second objectives. The Battalion stayed in that position during the night. The soldiers had to occupy shell holes and their situation was made worse by the bad weather and heavy German shelling during the night. The shelling continued until the following day. From their position they could see German movement at Requette Farm, but no counterattack was made.
When daylight came, the 2nd Battalion was relieved by the Household Battalion. They moved to a support position near Ferdan House where they again had to occupy waterlogged shell holes.
Private Private William James Welham was killed in action on the 10th of October 1917. It is highly possible that he fell, due to the heavy shelling on the 2nd Essex’s positions. His remains were never identified. He is remembered on the Tyne Cot Memorial.
Sources 2
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2 Battalion Essex Regiment , (The National Archives, KEW (TNA), WO 95/1505/1). https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14303 Further reference |
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Burrows J., Essex units in the war : 1914-1919, (Southend-on-Sea, John H. Burrows & Sons, 1931), pg. 168-169. Sources used |
More information 3
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/876481 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=5a887101-f3ff-4dca-856c-2d32f4c5cec3 |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/4689835 |