Pte
William Henry Cozens

Informations sur naissance

Date de naissance:
15/07/1893
Lieu de naissance:
Chelsea, Surrey, Angleterre, Royaume-Uni

Informations générales

Profession:
Dégraisseur-Teinturier

Informations service militaire

Pays:
Angleterre, Royaume-Uni
Force armée:
British Expeditionary Force
Rang:
Private
Numéro de service:
20111
Incorporation date:
16/11/1915
Incorporation nom de lieu:
Beverley, Yorkshire, Angleterre, Royaume-Uni
Unités:
 —  East Yorkshire Regiment, 8th Bn.  (Dernière unité connue)

Informations sur décès

Date de décès:
26/09/1917
Lieu de décès:
Van Isackere Farm, Belgique
Cause du décès:
Killed in action (K.I.A.)
Âge:
24

Mémorial

Tyne Cot Memorial
Panneau: 48A

Distinctions et médailles 2

British War Medal
Médaille
Victory Medal
Médaille

Points d'intérêt 2

#1 Lieu de naissance
#2 Lieu d'enrôlement

Mon histoire

Private William Henry Cozens served in the East Yorkshire Regiment 8th Battalion, part of the 8th Brigade, of the 3rd Division. The 3rd Division participated in the Third Battle of Ypres. It attacked the village of Zonnebeke on the 26th of September 1917. The operation was part of the Battle of Polygon Wood (26th September-3rd October 1917).
The Division attacked with the 8th Brigade on the left and the 76th Brigade on the right, with the Ypres-Roulers railroad acting as a boundary between the Brigades. Zonnebeke being the final objective of the 76th brigade and Hill 40, at the Langemark-Zonnebeke road running Northwest from the village, was the objective of the 8th Brigade. The 8th Brigade’s attack was carried by the 2nd Royal Scots and the 8th East Yorks; the 1st Royal Scots Fusiliers and the 7th King’s Shropshire Light Infantry. The 8th East Yorks, on the left, and the 2nd Royal Scots, on the right, were the first to leave their lines. They were to capture the first objective. Once they had captured the line of the first objective, the 1st Royal Scots Fusiliers and the 7th King’s Shropshire Light Infantry were to move through them and advance to Hill 40, with the 8th East Yorks and the 2nd Royal Scots in support.
At zero hour 5.30 a.m. the men followed closely behind a creeping barrage. The 2nd Royal Scots advanced along the railroad, easily keeping their line of advance. But the 8th East Yorks had to advance over marshy and shot up terrain, forcing them to the flanks. Notwithstanding the ghastly state of the ground the East Yorkshires reached their objective at 7.00 a.m. capturing 15 German prisoners and 4 machine guns and clearing three German pill-boxes in the process. The 1st Royal Scots Fusiliers and the 7th King’s Shropshire Light Infantry leap frogged over the first objective and reached the Western slopes of Hill 40 at 10.00 a.m. Two German counterattacks in the afternoon were successfully repulsed and the men held the line for three days before they were relieved.
Private William Henry Cozens was killed in action on the 26th of September 1917, during the attack on Hill 40, Northwest of Zonnebeke. His remains were never recovered and he is remembered on Tyne Cot Memorial.

Fichiers 1

Sources 3

8 Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment , (The National Archives, KEW (TNA), WO 95/1424/2).
https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14303
Autre référence
McCarthy C., The Third Ypres Passchendaele. The Day-by-Day Account, (London, Arms & Armour Press, 1995), pg. 89-92.
Sources utilisées
Wyrall E., The East Yorkshire Regiment in the Great War 1914-1918, (London, Harrison & Sons. LTD, 1928), pg. 234-239.
Sources utilisées

Complément d’informations 3