This was an interesting question and certainly one that I have wondered about. My grandfather was killed 21st June 1915 aged 41, whilst in Suffolk Regt he had as far as I am aware no previous military service. What made it even harder to understand was that he was the father of 10 children, the youngest just a few months old. I guess it is hard to understand the motivation from those times. Regards John Taylor QLD -----Original Message----- From: greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:greatwar-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Peter Gower Sent: Monday, 25 June 2007 3:35 AM To: greatwar@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] Age of service Remember that whatever answers you get will be the legal answers. Just as boys of twelve were able to get accepted as eighteen year olds, so the elderly were able to pass themselves off as younger. There were certainly sixty-plus year olds, and I would not be surprised to know that there were seventy-year olds. One such was meant to have come from Brockville, Ontario, and was taken to meet King George when his age was discovered and he was sent home, but I have never found his attestation papers. Peter ------------------------------- 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

Hello John, My great grandfather was also KIA 16th June 1916 aged 41 with 13 children at home, the youngest being twins born 1913. He left one of the higher paid jobs in the area as a steelworker to answer the call to arms. I often wondered why, was great gran such a bad wife or what, my grandmother and my uncle and aunt's opinions was that she was a very understanding soul ! Alan ... Alan Taylor... {East Midlands UK} Please visit our family genealogy site:- http://www.forefathers.homestead.com/ This was an interesting question and certainly one that I have wondered about. My grandfather was killed 21st June 1915 aged 41, whilst in Suffolk Regt he had as far as I am aware no previous military service. What made it even harder to understand was that he was the father of 10 children, the youngest just a few months old. I guess it is hard to understand the motivation from those times. Regards John Taylor QLD

Hi Alan, My grandfather also joined up in 1914. He had previously served with the Irish Guards and went to France/Belgium as an Irish Guard. He was 30 and left 2 motherless children in the care of friends in order to go. I often wondered why too. >From what I've read fiction and non fiction, it was supposed to be a war that would be easily over by Christmas of that same year and without the terrible losses that occurred. My mother told us the few stories her father had told her about that war and the conditions in which they fought. He was honourably discharged in early 1915 as medically unfit to fight and the rest of his life suffered from the illness he contracted there. He was 47 when he died of that illness. There's a very good series, in my opinion, by Charles Todd written about (fiction) the effects of the war on men who survived it and the general disallusion amongst them regarding their time fighting in that war and the aftermath at least in England. Certainly the stories reminded me of what my Grandfather had revealed of his experience. Eleanor, B. C. Canada ----- Original Message ----- From: "Alan Taylor" <alan.taylor-howe@ntlworld.com> To: <greatwar@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, June 27, 2007 2:35 AM Subject: Re: [GREATWAR] Age of service Hello John, My great grandfather was also KIA 16th June 1916 aged 41 with 13 children at home, the youngest being twins born 1913. He left one of the higher paid jobs in the area as a steelworker to answer the call to arms. I often wondered why, was great gran such a bad wife or what, my grandmother and my uncle and aunt's opinions was that she was a very understanding soul ! Alan ... Alan Taylor... {East Midlands UK} Please visit our family genealogy site:- http://www.forefathers.homestead.com/ This was an interesting question and certainly one that I have wondered about. My grandfather was killed 21st June 1915 aged 41, whilst in Suffolk Regt he had as far as I am aware no previous military service. What made it even harder to understand was that he was the father of 10 children, the youngest just a few months old. I guess it is hard to understand the motivation from those times. Regards John Taylor QLD ------------------------------- 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: 7.5.476 / Virus Database: 269.9.10/873 - Release Date: 6/26/2007 11:54 PM