Good morning, This poignant letter appears in the latest issue of the magazine, " This England" . Spring 2007 page 60. It gives a rare insight into the effect the execution of a British soldier who was shot at dawn had on the other soldiers who witnessed the execution and the subsequent revenge which they took against the officers involved. Lest We Forget. Patrick Holland. Perth Western Australia.

On Mon, 26 Feb 2007 14:40:16 -0500, "Paul Cooper" <paulcooper@tugsworld.com> wrote: >One of my not-so-distant cousins was in the Army Cyclist Corp in Hounslow. >He served for just 10 months from Nov 1915 to Sept 1916, when he was >discharged as being unfit for further service due to pulmanory tuberculosis. > >He was officially discharged on 1st September 1916. BUT .. and this is the >bit that puzzles me .. there is a copy of a letter dated 8th November 1916 >from the Metropolitan Police. > >This letter states that on production of his discharge certificate and >signing of a receipt, a Khaki Armlet No.R37970 was handed to Mr Percy Barber >(my rellie) with accompanying leaflet which was explained to him. > >Can anyone tell me what was the reason for the police issuing armlets to >medically discharged soldiers? >My theory is that perhaps, as he was a young man of 'fighting' age, and >apart from his TB he would have looked fit, this armlet would be worn to >show that he had in fact served and was discharged. Perhaps something to be >worn in public so as not to be 'picked on' by people who would otherwise >think him a coward or concientious objector. You are correct. Here is an article from The Times of 1 November 1915 which makes reference to the introduction of a khaki armlet to certain categories of people: ------------------------------------------------- KHAKI ARMLETS. BADGES FOR RECRUITS AND INELIGIBLES. VIEWS ON A WAR OFFICE INNOVATION. The following official announcement was made on Saturday :- The Secretary of State for War has decided to issue khaki armlets, bearing the Royal crown, to the following classes of men:— (1) Men who enlist and are placed in groups awaiting a call to join the colours. (2) Men who offer themselves for enlist- ment and are found to be medically unfit. (3) Men who have been invalided out of the Service with good character or have been discharged "not likely to become efficient" on medical grounds. There will be a distinctive mark for each of the classes. The armlets are in process of manufacture. Notice will be given when they can be issued, together with instructions as to issue. The decision to issue the armlet is welcomed by responsible people, but the criticism is made that unless recognition is given to classes of war workers who at present wear no dis- tinguishing badge, obloquy will rest where it is undeserved. There are thousands of men to whom, with the approval of the Government, permission to enlist has been refused, but who, under existing or proposed arrangements, will have no badge to indicate their position. Among them are the great body of railwaymen and other indispensable workers. In some quarters there is a desire to abolish the war service badge worn on the lapel of the coat, and to make the khaki armlet the one recognized mark of national service. The idea of issuing armlets is not a new one. In September of last year the National Patriotic Associa- tion, of which Sir George Pragnell is chairman, pro- posed that there should be a voluntary mobilization of the whole country, and that all men and women who placed their services absolutely at the service of the Government should wear either the King's uniform or the King's khaki armlet. We understand that the adoption of the armlet was again suggested to Lord Derby some three weeks ago. Risk of Invidious Distinctions Sir George Pragnell yesterday expressed his satisfaction that the Secretary for War had decided to issue the armlet, but urged that the scheme must be extended. In his opinion, the present war service badge ought to be abolished. The armlet, he thought, ought to be the one distinguishing mark of willingness to serve according to one's qualifications. It would then be very difficult for a man to appear in public without the armlet. People would probably refuse to buy in shops where assistants were employed who did not wear the sign of willingness to serve the State, and the presence of a man without the khaki band in a place of amusement would be regarded as inexcusable. Mr. Richard Burbidge said that many men were doing work more valuable to the country than the service they could give as soldiers, and it would be regrettable if they were to be regarded as "slackers". Sir Charles Macara offered similar criticism. The issue of armlets, he said, was a step in the right direction, but it might operate unfairly if, without discrimination, it left open to public contempt men who were without the badge. The official statement concerning the issue of the armlets does not suggest that the unauthorised wearing of the band would be an offence against the law, but it is probable that the position of a man attempting any false pretence of this kind would be similar to that of a person who illegally wore the King's uniform. ------------------------------------------------- Forrest -- Forrest Anderson, Edinburgh, Scotland. E-mail: forrest@military-researcher.com Website: www.military-researcher.com Forrestdale Research - Military Genealogical Researcher

Hi all with the recent release of the British Army WWI Pension Records on Ancestry.com, I've had great success with a few of my rellies who served in WWI. As is usually the case when you get a couple of answers, they lead to dozens more questions :) I've solved a few puzzles easily, but I'm a bit stuck on this one. One of my not-so-distant cousins was in the Army Cyclist Corp in Hounslow. He served for just 10 months from Nov 1915 to Sept 1916, when he was discharged as being unfit for further service due to pulmanory tuberculosis. He was officially discharged on 1st September 1916. BUT .. and this is the bit that puzzles me .. there is a copy of a letter dated 8th November 1916 from the Metropolitan Police. This letter states that on production of his discharge certificate and signing of a receipt, a Khaki Armlet No.R37970 was handed to Mr Percy Barber (my rellie) with accompanying leaflet which was explained to him. Can anyone tell me what was the reason for the police issuing armlets to medically discharged soldiers? My theory is that perhaps, as he was a young man of 'fighting' age, and apart from his TB he would have looked fit, this armlet would be worn to show that he had in fact served and was discharged. Perhaps something to be worn in public so as not to be 'picked on' by people who would otherwise think him a coward or concientious objector. Any clues would be appreciated. btw - if anyone has relatives from the Harrogate area who served in the Great War, I have 2 booklets containing over 1400 photographs of servicemen and women who were killed, wounded, missing etc. You can see the index of names here .. http://freepages.military.rootsweb.com/~harrogatemilitary/warphotos.htm and I am happy to forward individual scans if you email me with a name. cheers ... Paul

I have now added my transcription of the subject war diary for July 1918 to the Military Records section of my website at the link below. Peter http://www.rimell.u-net.com/

First World War veteran Victor `Lloyd' Clemett dies at age 107 The Canadian Press TORONTO - Victor `Lloyd' Clemett, who was one of three surviving Canadian First World War veterans, has died at the age of 107. Clemett, born in 1899 in Toronto, enlisted in 1916 at the age of 16, following in the footsteps of his three older brothers. Clemett was sent to England after just three weeks of training and later stationed in France. His death in a Toronto hospital late Wednesday leaves just two surviving First World War veterans in Canada. Clemett, survived by two sons, had lived in the veteran's residence of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto since 2004. There will be a private funeral service for family and close friends. Some sites about hm http://data2.archives.ca/cef/ren2/025052a.gif http://data2.archives.ca/cef/ren2/025052b.gif http://www.theglobeandmail.com/series/remembrance/stories/clemett.html http://automatedgenealogy.com/census11/Test9.jsp?id=128595&highlight=36&desc=1911+Census+of+Canada+page+containing+Lloyd+Clemmett And a few of his comrades. http://firstworldwar.cloudworth.com/still-living-veterans-of-world-war-one.php Lest We Forget. Pvt William Middleton London Ont. MIA WW1 Pvt Ellery Ball. Dundas Ont. KIA WW! John Young VC WW1 Craftsman Ellery Denton Survivor WW2 Nelson. : Nelson

Hi Tom, Are you a thought reader? Yes that is my grandfather. While you state he died of natural causes, my Mother told me that he was guarding a Well and was attacked by a local independence group. Needless to say I have no proof of this and when my sister tried some years ago to get his service record from Kew, she was told that all of the records had been destroyed in a WWII fire. So as far as I am concerned it is still a bit of a mystery. Regards Ted ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tom Tulloch-Marshall" <prosearch@btinternet.com> To: <greatwar@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 5:37 PM Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] WW1 medals > Ted - do you mean that he served with the 1/4th Bn Royal West Kent > Regiment > ? > > Was his name Thomas Alfred Bennett ? > > If so, died (natural causes) 28/7/17. Commemorated on the Kirkee Memorial > nr > Poona. Previous service number 5005 (still 4th Bn RW Kent but could be > 1/4th, 2/4th, or 3/4th, though the latter is unlikely). There is a medal > card for him at The National Archives Kew (see online database on TNA > website). Medal qualification may result from service prior to India - > check > medal records. British WW1 service Medals were issued to nok of deceased > Other Ranks by default, - if they were undeliverable then the medal card & > roll should be notated to that effect. > regards > - > Tom Tulloch-Marshall > WW1 Military Research > website > http://www.btinternet.com/~prosearch/index.html > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.441 / Virus Database: 268.18.3/694 - Release Date: 20/02/2007 > 13:44 > >

Ted - do you mean that he served with the 1/4th Bn Royal West Kent Regiment ? Was his name Thomas Alfred Bennett ? If so, died (natural causes) 28/7/17. Commemorated on the Kirkee Memorial nr Poona. Previous service number 5005 (still 4th Bn RW Kent but could be 1/4th, 2/4th, or 3/4th, though the latter is unlikely). There is a medal card for him at The National Archives Kew (see online database on TNA website). Medal qualification may result from service prior to India - check medal records. British WW1 service Medals were issued to nok of deceased Other Ranks by default, - if they were undeliverable then the medal card & roll should be notated to that effect. regards - Tom Tulloch-Marshall WW1 Military Research website > http://www.btinternet.com/~prosearch/index.html

DELHI MEMORIAL (INDIA GATE) IMPHAL INDIAN ARMY WAR CEMETERY [mainly WW2] + 7 that contain civilian war dead in the undivided India provinces Cemetery: DELHI MEMORIAL (INDIA GATE) Country: India Locality: unspecified Visiting Information: 20.11.2006: Please note that it is only possible to get within 50 yards of some parts of the memorial due to security arrangements in Delhi. Access to read the names on parts of the memorial is therefore restricted. Location Information: The Delhi Memorial (India Gate) stands at the eastern end of the Rajpath, or Kingsway. Historical Information: Of the 13,300 Commonwealth servicemen commemorated by name on the memorial, just over 1,000 lie in cemeteries to the west of the River Indus, where maintenance was not possible. The remainder died in fighting on or beyond the North West Frontier and during the Third Afghan War, and have no known grave. The Delhi Memorial also acts as a national memorial to all the 70,000 soldiers of undivided India who served and died in every main theatre of operations except Italy during the First World War, the majority of whom are commemorated by name outside the confines of India. The memorial was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. No. of Identified Casualties: 13314 Alan... Alan T...{East Midlands UK} Please visit our family genealogy websites via; <http://forefathers.homestead.com/> http://forefathers.homestead.com/ _____ > -----Original Message----- > From: greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of > EDWARD SOUTHWICK > Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 3:15 PM > To: GREATWAR-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] WW1 medals > > My grandfather was in the 1st/4th Bn Queens Own. He died in India in July > 1917, Would there be a Medal Card for him? How can I find out if my > grandmother actually received any service medals he might have been entitled > too? > Trust someone can help a newbe > Ted > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with > the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Well Ted, if you was to give your grandfathers name & rank people would be able to help you. The short & curly is that if he served overseas there will be a MIC and a listing on the CWGC. Alan... > -----Original Message----- > From: greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of > EDWARD SOUTHWICK > Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2007 3:15 PM > To: GREATWAR-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] WW1 medals > > My grandfather was in the 1st/4th Bn Queens Own. He died in India in July > 1917, Would there be a Medal Card for him? How can I find out if my > grandmother actually received any service medals he might have been entitled > too? > Trust someone can help a newbe > Ted > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with > the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

My grandfather was in the 1st/4th Bn Queens Own. He died in India in July 1917, Would there be a Medal Card for him? How can I find out if my grandmother actually received any service medals he might have been entitled too? Trust someone can help a newbe Ted

I agree this petition is unecessary. Of more importance would be a posthumous pardon for all those poor souls who were executed for "cowardice", and an inability to function as a result of shellshock, etc. THAT was an injustice. David Green Message: 3 Date: Tue, 20 Feb 2007 18:11:06 -0000 From: "M.G.Fergusson" <fergussons@blueyonder.co.uk> Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] rememberance day To: <greatwar@rootsweb.com> Message-ID: <000a01c7551a$7da897a0$5a1f2952@Fergiecomp> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Dear All, The Unknown Warrior had a State Funeral when he was buried in Westminster Abbey, in my opinion there is no point or reason to this petition. Aye Malcolm

Hello Malcolm, Nice to see you still active on list. It is commonly recognised that 750,000 signatures are required for the government to at least take any notice, therefore I see no reason to speak against this petition when looking at the time span permitted and the numbers signing, I cannot foresee the petition reaching anywhere close to this figure. I do feel it would have been better to word the petition in a manner that rejoiced the bravery of those that survived the massive loss of life on the Somme 1916 and Salonika 1918 rather than a 'repeat' of a state funeral already given. Alan... Alan T...{East Midlands UK}              Please visit our family genealogy websites via;               http://forefathers.homestead.com/ Lest they be forgotten > Dear All, > The Unknown Warrior had a State Funeral when he was buried in Westminster > Abbey, in my opinion there is no point or reason to this petition. > > Aye > Malcolm

Dear All, The Unknown Warrior had a State Funeral when he was buried in Westminster Abbey, in my opinion there is no point or reason to this petition. Aye Malcolm

Is there any point to this ? The Unknown Warrior has already been buried. And why on the anniversary of the Somme ? Rememberance day is in November. Phil Lamb ----- Original Message ----- From: <Norfolk12@aol.com> To: <greatwar@rootsweb.com> Sent: 20 February 2007 16:19 Subject: [GREATWAR] rememberance day > _http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Remembrance/_ > (http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Remembrance/) > sign the petition re remembrance day > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

Hi, Have I missed something, The Unknown Warrior, Rememberance Day, The Somme, Mick.

_http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Remembrance/_ (http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Remembrance/) sign the petition re remembrance day

Angela It means the soldier received a Silver War Badge and was discharged from the Army due to either sickness or wounds. The codes List... refer to the entry on the rolls for the above award which are held at the National Archives at Kew. The latter should provide details regarding date of enlistment and discharge; reason for the latter; number of Silver War Badge and unit discharged from. Hope this helps Mike Shingleton -----Original Message----- From: Dai Bevan <daibevan@clara.co.uk> Sent Subject: [GREATWAR] Medal Cards > Hi all, > I am looking into my Blackshaw WW1 medal cards and 2 of them had been > early discharged and against Action taken was the following codes: > List L/426 and List L.C/2964. > Does anyone know what they mean and what would have happened to them? > Regards > Angela. > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > GREATWAR-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Angela, 'List' usually refers to the Silver War Badge (SWB) List. The SWB was awarded, upon application, to those whose service was terminated due to sickness, injury, wounds, etc. The Medal Index Card list reference points you towards the relevant volume of the SWB Rolls held at the National Archives. Ken -----Original Message----- From: greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Dai Bevan Sent: 16 February 2007 19:02 To: GREATWAR@rootsweb.com Subject: [GREATWAR] Medal Cards Hi all, I am looking into my Blackshaw WW1 medal cards and 2 of them had been early discharged and against Action taken was the following codes: List L/426 and List L.C/2964. Does anyone know what they mean and what would have happened to them? Regards Angela.

Hi all, I am looking into my Blackshaw WW1 medal cards and 2 of them had been early discharged and against Action taken was the following codes: List L/426 and List L.C/2964. Does anyone know what they mean and what would have happened to them? Regards Angela.

Hello, Pam. Yes, a Silver War Badge can be researched on the basis of the number shown on the back of it, provided that the number has either a "B-" prefix or no prefix at all. If it has an "RN" prefix it was awarded to a naval person and it is unresearchable. Assuming that the badge has "B-" prefix or no prefix at all, your best bet is to contact Great War Medals, PO Box 1914, London, N14 7XS; tel 020 8482 1918, or e-mail malaw@greatwarmedals.freeserve.co.uk . They undertake this research for £4.50 per badge number. (I have no connection with Great War Medals other than having been a very satisfied customer of theirs for the last twenty years.) Ken. (in West Sussex, UK) ----- Original Message ----- From: greatwar-request@rootsweb.com To: greatwar@rootsweb.com Sent: Monday, February 12, 2007 8:06 AM Subject: GREATWAR Digest, Vol 2, Issue 25 Today's Topics: 1. Silver War Badge (Pam Gardner) Message: 1 Date: Sun, 11 Feb 2007 18:46:49 -0000 From: "Pam Gardner" <pgassoc@tiscali.co.uk> Subject: [GREATWAR] Silver War Badge To: <greatwar@rootsweb.com> Message-ID: <001301c74e0d$0065c740$4101a8c0@peterwl3f5lq4r> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Any suggestions please as to how to research the name of the recipient of the SWB based on the medal number? many thanks Pam Gardner ------------------------------