Pte
Charles Smith
Information about birth
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Date of birth: 07/03/1893 |
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Place of birth: Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
General information
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Last known residence: 191 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
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Profession: Steamfitter |
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Religion: Church of England |
Army information
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Country: Canada |
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Force: Canadian Expeditionary Force |
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Rank: Private |
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Service number: 1351 |
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Enlistment date: 28/09/1914 |
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Enlistment place: Valcartier Camp, Quebec, Canada |
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Units: — Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 06/05/1915 |
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Place of death: Hell Fire Corner, Ieper, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 22 |
Memorial
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Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial Panel: 10 |
Points of interest 4
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Last known residence | ||
| #3 | Enlistment place | ||
| #4 | Place of death (approximate) |
My story
Charles Smith was born in 1893 in Toronto, Ontario. Charles and his brother William boarded at 191 Queen Street West in Toronto. Charles was employed as a steamfitter on a lake boat that made four daily trips across Lake Ontario from Toronto to Niagara and back. Charles first mentioned "W. Smith", 191 Queen Street, Toronto, as his closest relative. This was his brother William, who himself enlisted a little later in the war. He later adjusted this and listed Miss Edith Reid, who lived in Niagara-on-the-Lake, as his next-of-kin. She was the daughter of a local butcher and lived in Davy Street. Edith May Reid married Herbert George West on 13 October 1915. George enlisted on 7 June 1915, before marrying Edith, and returned to Canada in May 1919. Herbert and Edith had two children. However, in the 1921 census, Edith lived with her two children in her parents' house on Davy Street.
In 1914, as a British Dominion, Canada was drawn into an unprecedented worldwide conflagration. Canada had no army of its own. Its permanent militia had a total of only 3,000 troops. To swell the ranks, volunteers were recruited from all over the vast country. There was no shortage of candidates. Tens of thousands wanted to join the Expeditionary Force and as a result only the best qualified were selected. Charles enlisted on 28 September 1914 at Valcartier Camp, Quebec. Having previously served with the Royal Army Medical Corps, he was exactly what the Canadian Army was looking for. Charles was taken on by the Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry, the last privately raised regiment in the British Empire. The Patricia’s were assigned to the 27th British Division.
At the end of the year, 20 December 1914, Charles left for Europe. In early April 1915, the 27th Division relieved French troops around Polygon Wood, Zonnebeke, east of Ypres. During the Second Battle of Ypres, German attacks on their left flank, made their positions untenable. On 3 May, they were forced to move into new positions on the Bellewaerde Ridge. With the Germans on their tail, the new trenches were hurriedly thrown up. There was hardly any time to construct a parados or parapet. The Patracias were still digging, when they witnessed a feat of German gründlichkeit. In the light of dawn on the 4th of May 1915 it looked as if the entire 4th Army was coming down the ridge near Westhoek in perfect formation. Many Patricias came out of their trenches, applauding the spectacle. But reality dawned, as the first shells came crashing down. The Patricia's were under heavy artillery fire for the rest of the day. Gritting their teeth, they had to watch how their hastily dug positions were shot to pieces. Although no attack developed, the battalion suffered over 120 casualties. In the early morning of 5 May, the Patricia’s were relieved from the frontline, and moved back to reserve at the junction of the Ypres-Roulers railway line and the Menin Road, a place that became known as "Hellfire Corner". On the evening of 6 May, they relieved the Shropshires on the Bellewaerde Ridge.
Charles Smith was killed on 6 May 1915. The 22-year-old was buried at Hellfire Corner, near Ypres (I.10.d.0.2). After the war, the grave could not be found. Charles is commemorated on the Ypres Monument (Menin Gate).
In 1914, as a British Dominion, Canada was drawn into an unprecedented worldwide conflagration. Canada had no army of its own. Its permanent militia had a total of only 3,000 troops. To swell the ranks, volunteers were recruited from all over the vast country. There was no shortage of candidates. Tens of thousands wanted to join the Expeditionary Force and as a result only the best qualified were selected. Charles enlisted on 28 September 1914 at Valcartier Camp, Quebec. Having previously served with the Royal Army Medical Corps, he was exactly what the Canadian Army was looking for. Charles was taken on by the Princess Patricia’s Light Infantry, the last privately raised regiment in the British Empire. The Patricia’s were assigned to the 27th British Division.
At the end of the year, 20 December 1914, Charles left for Europe. In early April 1915, the 27th Division relieved French troops around Polygon Wood, Zonnebeke, east of Ypres. During the Second Battle of Ypres, German attacks on their left flank, made their positions untenable. On 3 May, they were forced to move into new positions on the Bellewaerde Ridge. With the Germans on their tail, the new trenches were hurriedly thrown up. There was hardly any time to construct a parados or parapet. The Patracias were still digging, when they witnessed a feat of German gründlichkeit. In the light of dawn on the 4th of May 1915 it looked as if the entire 4th Army was coming down the ridge near Westhoek in perfect formation. Many Patricias came out of their trenches, applauding the spectacle. But reality dawned, as the first shells came crashing down. The Patricia's were under heavy artillery fire for the rest of the day. Gritting their teeth, they had to watch how their hastily dug positions were shot to pieces. Although no attack developed, the battalion suffered over 120 casualties. In the early morning of 5 May, the Patricia’s were relieved from the frontline, and moved back to reserve at the junction of the Ypres-Roulers railway line and the Menin Road, a place that became known as "Hellfire Corner". On the evening of 6 May, they relieved the Shropshires on the Bellewaerde Ridge.
Charles Smith was killed on 6 May 1915. The 22-year-old was buried at Hellfire Corner, near Ypres (I.10.d.0.2). After the war, the grave could not be found. Charles is commemorated on the Ypres Monument (Menin Gate).
Sources 5
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Hodder-Williams R., Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry: 1914-1919. Volume I (Londen: Hodder and Stoughton, 1923) 50-57. Sources used |
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Personnel Records of the First World War (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG 150, Box 9017 - 4). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
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Ron Dale, Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum, personal communication, 16 February 2023. Sources used |
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War diaries: Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG9-III-D-3, Volume number: 4911, Microfilm reel number: T-10703, File number: 346). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
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War Graves Registers: Circumstances of Death (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG150, 1992-1993/314, Box 39-244; Box: 122). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
More information 4
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/1596080 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=91cc08be-2fec-4854-87c2-f74fe604d30a |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/5711957 |
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The Canadian Virtual War Memorial https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/1596080 |