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Royal Warwickshire 16th Battalion

S

skylark

Proud to be a Brummie !!
Sadly I have now found another relative who died in WW1. I have looked & failed to find his records on Ancestry, apart from his medal record of course. So I am posting the details I found on the CWGC in the hope that someone with knowledge of the Regiment can perhaps give me more details of the last days of John Humphries....

JOHN HUMPHRIES Pte No 364
Royal Warwickshire Regiment 16th Battalion
Died: 21/09/1916 of wounds aged 26
Grove Town Cemetary, Meaulte ( ref) 1.H.13

Parents: John & Ann Humphries of 172 St Benedicts Rd Small Heath.

Many thanks.
Margaret.
 
You need Terry Carter's book on the Bham Pals or he might see this and post. His death was reported in the Bham Weekly Post 2.12.16 but with little extra detail - enlisted early in the war. Born Bham, enlisted Aston.
 
Thank you both for your replies...much appreciated. I will keep my fingers crossed that Terry will have some additional info for me in the future....

Margaret.
 
Hi Margaret

As you know he died of wounds and is buried in Grovetown Cemetery, Meaulte. Which is a village that was behind our lines, near the Town of Albert. It was also the home of Casualty Clearing Stations and one was known as 'Grove Town' by the troops, hence the name of the cemetery, as all the mortally wounded soldiers who died at the CCS were buried there.

He could have only been wounded in one attack and that was against the German strongpoint known as 'Falfemont Farm', between 3 -5 September. The farm by then was just a pile of bricks but it was a formidable strongpoint bristling with machine-guns and protected by thick belts of barbed wire.

To attack the farm our troops had to climb up a steep hill and then crest a broad plateau, no cover, and criss-crossed by machine gun fire. Any frontal attack was a death trap.

To get close to the German defences, trenches were dug at night, into No Man's Land, up the slopes leading to the farm. Until our troops got within striking distance. The 16th Royal Warwicks managed to get a foothold in one corner of the farm's defences and after a fierce battle the Farm was taken.

The 16th Royal Warwicks lost 61 men killed and 195 wounded during the battles around Falfemont Farm.

During my many visits to the Somme, I have visited the site of the old Falfemont Farm (nowadays a new farm is situated further away). It is now a wooded area and the ground still pockmarked by old shell holes. Trees that were blasted by shellfire have now got 90 years of growth growing from their stumps.
I took a couple of photos last year. I will see if I still have them saved.

Terry
 
Hello Terry, thank you so much for giving me the details relating to the death of John Humphries...what sad reading it made, but I appreciate you taking the time & trouble to post it for me.

Thanks again..really appreciated.

Margaret.
 
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