Pte
Archibald Thomas
Information about birth
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Year of birth: 1897 |
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Place of birth: Ashby, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom |
General information
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Profession: Station Hand - Farm Hand |
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: 15833 |
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Enlistment place: Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom |
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Units: — Coldstream Guards, 1st Bn. (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 17/09/1917 |
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Place of death: Ney Copse, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 20 |
Cemetery
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Artillery Wood Cemetery Plot: IX Row: C Grave: 9 |
Distinctions and medals 3
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1914-15 Star Medal |
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British War Medal Medal — 12/01/1920 |
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Victory Medal Medal — 12/01/1920 |
Points of interest 2
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Enlistment place |
My story
Archibald Thomas was a twenty-year-old Farmhand from Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, who fell during the Battle of Passchendaele. The young man enlisted in Scunthorpe in 1915 and served as a Private in the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards, part of the 2nd Guards Brigade, of the Guards Division.
After having seen action during the first days of the offensive, the 1st Coldstream Guards moved to the hinterland for rest and training. On 16 September 1917 Archibald’s Battalion moved into the front line. The Guards Division held the line between Japan House and Ney Copse, along the Broenbeek stream.
The 1st Coldstream Guards relieved the 2nd Irish Guards in the left sub-sector, facing Ney Wood and Ney Copse. Along this line a good deal of local fighting took place. Both sides regularly conducted raids on each other’s positions. At night patrols were sent out to try and locate German movements. On the 17th of September a patrol of the 1st Coldstream Guards reconnoitred the Broenbeek valley, without encountering any opposition. Though no Germans were seen on that day the Guard’s front line was heavily shelled during the night.
Private Archibald Thomas was killed in action on 17 September 1917, while holding the line near Ney Copse. The twenty-year-old was possibly mortally wounded due to German shelling. Archibald was buried in Captain’s Farm Cemetery. After the war all the men buried there were reinterred in Artillery Wood Cemetery.
After having seen action during the first days of the offensive, the 1st Coldstream Guards moved to the hinterland for rest and training. On 16 September 1917 Archibald’s Battalion moved into the front line. The Guards Division held the line between Japan House and Ney Copse, along the Broenbeek stream.
The 1st Coldstream Guards relieved the 2nd Irish Guards in the left sub-sector, facing Ney Wood and Ney Copse. Along this line a good deal of local fighting took place. Both sides regularly conducted raids on each other’s positions. At night patrols were sent out to try and locate German movements. On the 17th of September a patrol of the 1st Coldstream Guards reconnoitred the Broenbeek valley, without encountering any opposition. Though no Germans were seen on that day the Guard’s front line was heavily shelled during the night.
Private Archibald Thomas was killed in action on 17 September 1917, while holding the line near Ney Copse. The twenty-year-old was possibly mortally wounded due to German shelling. Archibald was buried in Captain’s Farm Cemetery. After the war all the men buried there were reinterred in Artillery Wood Cemetery.
Sources 6
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"Passchendaele. The Day-by-Day Account", McCarthy C., London, Uniform, 2018, pg. 75. Sources used |
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"The Coldstream Guards 1914-1918", Ross-of-Bladensburg J., London, Oxford University Press, 1928, pg. 102-103. Sources used |
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Ancestry https://www.ancestry.com/ Further reference |
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CWGC https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/101412/thomas,-/ Sources used |
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The Long, Long Trail http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/ Sources used |
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War Diary Coldstream Guards, 1st Bn. http://www.nmarchive.com/ Further reference |