Rfn
Arthur Edward Norman
Information about birth
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Date of birth: 24/06/1886 |
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Place of birth: Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand |
General information
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Profession: Labourer |
Army information
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Country: New Zealand |
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Force: New Zealand Expeditionary Force |
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Rank: Rifleman |
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Service number: 44142 |
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Enlistment date: 30/09/1916 |
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Enlistment place: Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand |
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Units: — New Zealand Rifle Brigade, 2nd Bn. (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 16/01/1918 |
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Place of death: Reutel, Beselare, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 31 |
Cemetery
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Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood Plot: II Row: B Grave: 11 |
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
Rifleman Arthur Edward Norman served in the 2nd Battalion of the 3rd New Zealand Rifle Brigade, part of the New Zealand Division. He enlisted on 30 September 1916, aged 30 and embarked for the Western Front from Wellington on 26 April 1917. He is recorded as having been a labourer by profession and was from Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand. He appears to have gotten married to Margaret Cecelia McKay whilst on leave before his Unit embarked for Europe. The couple were married in Christchurch on 5 March 1917 and on 7 March 1917 Arthur is charged with overstaying leave and has to forfeit 2 days wages. It appears he overstayed his leave in order to get married.
The Third Battle of Ypres, also known as Passchendaele had been fought between 31 July - 10 November 1917 and subsequently the newly established Allied front-line had to be consolidated and defended. The New Zealand Division was in the Polygon Wood sector after the end of the Third Battle of Ypres. Much of the time was spent in wiring, repairing crumbling trenches and improving defences. The landscape was covered with waterlogged shellholes. Rifleman Norman was Killed in Action on 16 January 1918, the exact circumstances and location of his death have proved difficult to narrow down. However, what we do know is that throughout the Winter of 1917/18 the 2nd Battalion, 3rd N.Z. Rifle Brigade were circulated in and out of the front-line, usually in the Polygon Wood area. On 14 January, in heavy snow, the 2nd Battalion returned to the line from Ypres, relieving the 2nd Otago in the region of the hamlet of Reutel. German shelling was particularly heavy and persistent in this region and the 2nd Battalion's position faced a German stronghold which had been created from a derelict British tank. It is likely that Arthur Edward Norman was killed as either a result of shelling or possibly by machine gun fire from this German stronghold, as the opposing German forces generally held higher ground and movement in the New Zealand lines was often observed and shelled or machine-gunned.
The 32-year old fell on 16 January 1918. His comrades buried him at their lines between the hamlet of Reutel and Jetty Warren. His remains were exhumed after the war and interred in Buttes New British Cemetery; Plot II, Row B, Grave 11. Casualties suffered by the New Zealand Rifle Brigade for the month of January 1918 are recorded as; 38 Killed, 5 Officers and 149 Other Ranks Wounded, 1 Missing.
The Third Battle of Ypres, also known as Passchendaele had been fought between 31 July - 10 November 1917 and subsequently the newly established Allied front-line had to be consolidated and defended. The New Zealand Division was in the Polygon Wood sector after the end of the Third Battle of Ypres. Much of the time was spent in wiring, repairing crumbling trenches and improving defences. The landscape was covered with waterlogged shellholes. Rifleman Norman was Killed in Action on 16 January 1918, the exact circumstances and location of his death have proved difficult to narrow down. However, what we do know is that throughout the Winter of 1917/18 the 2nd Battalion, 3rd N.Z. Rifle Brigade were circulated in and out of the front-line, usually in the Polygon Wood area. On 14 January, in heavy snow, the 2nd Battalion returned to the line from Ypres, relieving the 2nd Otago in the region of the hamlet of Reutel. German shelling was particularly heavy and persistent in this region and the 2nd Battalion's position faced a German stronghold which had been created from a derelict British tank. It is likely that Arthur Edward Norman was killed as either a result of shelling or possibly by machine gun fire from this German stronghold, as the opposing German forces generally held higher ground and movement in the New Zealand lines was often observed and shelled or machine-gunned.
The 32-year old fell on 16 January 1918. His comrades buried him at their lines between the hamlet of Reutel and Jetty Warren. His remains were exhumed after the war and interred in Buttes New British Cemetery; Plot II, Row B, Grave 11. Casualties suffered by the New Zealand Rifle Brigade for the month of January 1918 are recorded as; 38 Killed, 5 Officers and 149 Other Ranks Wounded, 1 Missing.
Sources 1
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Seymour, W. W., The History of the Rifle Brigade in The War of 1914-1918, (Londen, The Rifle Brigade Club Ltd., 1936), p. 259-262. Sources used |
More information 5
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/480385 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=0982b82c-4d32-4911-b55c-44ac27153c1a |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/7180657 |
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Online Cenotaph (Auckland Museum) https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/c11544 |
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The NZEF Project (UNSW Canberra) https://nzef.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=191075 |