What battle or battlefield would my relation have died during the 1st World War?

Question

My Great-Great Uncle James Keen died aged just 20 on 14th August 1917 and is buried in GODEWAERSVELDE BRITISH CEMETERY. He was in the 21st Batallion Kings Royal Rifle Group. The Commonwealth War Graves information says this: "The cemetery was begun in July 1917 when three casualty clearing stations were moved to Godewaersvelde. The 37th and the 41st buried in it until November 1917, the 11th until April 1918, and from April to August 1918, during the German offensive in Flanders, field ambulance and fighting units carried on the burials."

Would he have died in Flanders, the Somme, Passchendale or where?

All information greatfully received. Thank you.

Answer 1

21st (Service) (Yeoman Rifles) Bn. Formed by the Northern Command from farmers from Yorkshire (2 Coys), Northumberland and Durham (1 Coy), Lincolnshire (1 Coy) and Leicestershire and Norfolk (1 Coy) in Sep 1915. Joined the 124th Brigade, 41st Division.

First Battle of Bapaume. 24-25 Mar 1918.
First Battle of Arras. 28 Mar 1918.
Advance in Flanders. 18 Aug-6 Sep 1918.
Battle of Ypres. 28 Sep-2 Oct 1918.
Battle of Courtrai. 14-19 Oct 1918.
Action of Ooteghern. 25 Oct 1918.
Battle of Flers-Courcelette. 15-22 Sep 1916, including the capture of Martinpuich.
Battle of Le Transloy. 1-18 Oct 1916, including the capture of Eaucourt l’Abbaye, Le Sars and the attacks on Butte de Warlencourt.

Battle of Messines. 7-14 Jun 1917, including the capture of Wytschaete.
Operations on the Flanders Coast. 20 Jun-11 Nov 1917.
Battle of the Menin Road. 20-25 Sep 1917.

Answer 2

Write to the British War Graves commission, and ask for information on the 21st Battalion Kings Royal Rifle Group. Specifically,ask what battles this troop fought in in August of 1917.

Answer 3

WW-One 14th August 1917 - Passchendaele seems the most likely.

WW1: Experiences of an English Soldier: Letter to Kate, 14th July 1917 War Diaries of Harry's Battalion August 6th · Passchendaele 31st July 1917 ... July 14/1917. Dear Kate. I have received your parcel it came in very nice. we ...
http://www.wwar1.blogspot.com/2007/07/letter-to-kate-14th-july-1917.html

This next site has a specific date 14th August 1917 for the Battle of Langemarck.

BATTLE OF LANGEMARCK 8th ROYAL INNISKILLING FUSILIERS 14th August 1917 .... 14. SYNCHRONISATION. All units will send a watch to Bde.H.Q. daily at 6 p.m. 15. S.O.S. SIGNAL. ...
http://www.freespace.virgin.net/sh.k/ordlang.html

R.I.P. James Keen, Soldier, 21st Batallion Kings Royal Rifle Group.

WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.

Answer 4

Could be Flanders,but Old Lady has the best advice,which is to contact the War Graves Commission.

Answer 5

As you have a regiment and battle group for your uncle you should contact the current branch of the army to find out where you can access the regiments war diaries. This will give you where they were fighting on the date of his death. I would suggest you contact any of the light infantry units in the present armed forces.

Answer 6

Definitely not the Somme. Probably Paschandale

Answer 7

Looks most likely to be Passchendale

Answer 8

King's Royal Rifle Corps, also know as the 60th Regiment of Foot keep their records at the

Royal Green Jackets Museum
Peninsular Barracks
Romsey Road
Winchester
Hampshire
SO23 8TS

The 21st (Service) (Yeoman Rifles) Bn. Formed by the Northern Command from farmers from Yorkshire (2 Coys), Northumberland and Durham (1 Coy), Lincolnshire (1 Coy) and Leicestershire and Norfolk (1 Coy) in Sep 1915. Joined the 124th Brigade, 41st Division.

This Division was formed in September 1915, and was part of the Fifth New Army, K5. Most of its units had been locally raised, often by the Mayor or Borough Councils. The Division moved to France by 6th May 1916. Commanded throughout its life by Major-General S.T.B.Lawford, who was CO of the 22nd Brigade, 7th Division in its early days, the 41st Division became a highly dependable fighting unit.

All units were concentrated near Steenwerck, and the Division began familiarisation with trench warfare in the areas of Ploegsteert and the Douve valley, south of Ypres, where it remained until August 1916.

Your great great uncle would have fought at The Battle of Flers-Courcelette (sixth phase of the Battle of the Somme 1916)

The Division remained in the line, pushing on to Courcelette over the next few days before coming out for a rest and re-fit.

Having rested, and re-supplied, he then returned to The Battle of Le Transloy (eighth phase of the Battle of the Somme 1916)

He then took part in the highly successful Battle of Messines

Your ancestor must have died in the The Battle of Pilckem (first phase of Third Battle of Ypres or "Passchendaele"). This opening battle took place between 31 July - 2 August 1917.

During the battle - the artillery, now concentrated in overwhelming strength, would concentrate as much on knocking out or neutralising the enemy artillery as the forward positions that the infantry would attack. There was now plenty of high explosive and gas-filled shells. Enemy artillery would be spotted by aeroplane or by flash spotting or sound ranging.

The infantry had developed a long way from the lines of riflemen, advancing into machine gun fire. Armed with much greater firepower (Lewis machine guns, Mills bombs and rifle grenades) and covered by the heavy Vickers guns of the Machine Gun Corps, each Platoon had been split into four specialist sections. In general, the infantry was much more mobile and packed greater hitting power than had been the case before.

The tanks played a role in the opening of the battle, but the increasingly wet and boggy ground meant that tanks were rendered useless as the battle went on.

German defensive tactics: the enemy had long moved away from heavily-manned and vulnerable continuous trench lines. They had developed the idea of "defence in depth", with multiple defensive positions arrayed back in some cases several miles from the front. Each position consisted of deep belts of thick barbed wire, covered by machine gun posts in concrete emplacements. Elsewhere, there were infantry shelters, signalling stations, casualty posts and headquarters, also deep underground in concrete. The British had already experienced this at Arras. At Ypres, the attacking British force would face a truly formidable fortress. The defensive positions were manned as lightly as possible. Once the attacking British force had spent its strength against the machine guns and barbed wire, fresh counter-attacking "Eingriff" Divisions would move in and kill them off.

Gough decided that the attack would be preceded by a long artillery bombardment, lasting from 16 to 25 July (the originally intended day of attack). This was conventional practice at the time. It was believed that a heavy and long bombardment was necessary to sufficiently damage the enemy's defences - but it gave away all element of surprise.

Plumer and Rawlinson has both suggested a limited advance of about 1500 yards, after which the guns could be brought up for another attack. And that was before the enemy greatly added to their defences. Gough, ever the "thruster", planned a much more ambitious 5000 yards for the first day, to be achieved in four steps. The objective would be Langemarck - Polygon Wood - Broodseinde. He was in possession of good intelligence that described the enemy's defensive position quite accurately. The plan meant that the opening bombardment would be spread much more thinly and the infantry had an awfully long way to go. But it was still a "bite and hold": even Gough was not thinking of rushing cavalry through to sweep on to the Belgian coast but like Haig, he had hopes.

The bombardment opened as planned on 16 July and was originally intended to lead to an attack on 16 July. But some British heavy artillery was late in arriving and bad weather hampered the programme. The zero day was moved to 31 July. By then, 4.3 million shells had ben fired at the enemy's defences. It was to prove insufficient: 64 pillboxes with their machine guns were still active in the German front line alone. The effect of the shellfire was much better on the left and in the centre. The defences on the British right, in front of the Gheluvelt plateau, were least worried by it. The baleful effects of this imbalance would soon be felt.

At 3.50am on 31 July 1917, the infantry went over the top. Before the attack is described in detail it is necessary to point out that from the afternoon onwards it rained - it rained in torrents. This was after several days of poor weather. Shell holes, useful shelter in an attack, soon filled with water. The ground quickly became sodden. Every stream became a wide barrier. Guns and equipment began to sink and rifles clogged with mud.



41st Division attacked on both banks of the Ypres-Comines canal with 122nd Brigade to the south and 123rd Brigade to the north of the waterway. The direction of their advance was south east. 122nd Brigade captured Hollebeke by 11.30am and consolidated in the ruins, just 100 yards short of their objective. Later that night, the 12th East Surrey came up and pushed on to Forret Farm. 123rd Brigade attack was slowed by flooded ground and they fell behind the protection of the creeping barrage. They eventually reached their second objective, the Green Line, but were held up by undamaged pillboxes north of Hollebeke Chateau.

1-3 August 1917
No major offensive action was undertaken, while the artillery began to move forward. The rain continued. German counter attacks took place against 8th Division and 15th (Scottish) Division, 39th and 55th (West Lancashire) Divisions but in each case were dealt with by British artillery and stubborn defence. 51st (Highland) Division pushed across the Steenbeek and established a number of posts. The assault Divisions were gradually relieved, with fresh formations taking over the front.

I imagine that this is when your ancestor died, in the clear up operation of the first battle.