Tpr
William Walter Baxter

Information about birth

Year of birth:
1897
Place of birth:
Ogbourne, Wiltshire, England, United Kingdom

General information

Profession:
Carter

Army information

Country:
England, United Kingdom
Force:
British Expeditionary Force
Rank:
Trooper
Service number:
2427
Enlistment place:
Faringdon, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom
Units:
 —  Household Bn.  (Last known unit)

Information about death

Date of death:
12/10/1917
Place of death:
Poelcapelle, Belgium
Cause of death:
Killed in action (K.I.A.)
Age:
20

Cemetery

Cement House Cemetery
Plot: 9
Row: B
Grave: 29

Distinctions and medals 2

Points of interest 3

#1 Place of birth
#2 Enlistment place
#3 Place of death (approximate)

My story

On 12 October 1917 the Household Battalion (10th Brigade, 4th Division) took part in an attack with the 1st Battalion Royal Warwickshire to their right and 18th Division to their left. They suffered 50 casualties in the assembly lines due to heavy enemy shelling. During the attack the Household Battalion was unable to keep in touch with their left, because the 18th Division was held up. They could not go beyond their first objective and a defensive flank towards the village of Poelkapelle was formed. A German counter attack was easily repulsed and other companies came to reinforce the Household Battalion. William must have died during this attack or was one of the 50 casualties in the assembly lines. He was buried close to the frontline (U.19.b.5.9.) and was later reburied in Cement House Cemetery.

Sources 2

Household Battalion (The National Archives, KEW (TNA), WO 95/1481/1).
http://www.nmarchive.com
Sources used
McCarthy C., The Third Ypres Passchendaele. The Day-by-Day Account (London, Unicorn Publishing Group, 2018).
Sources used

More information 3