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8th Battalion, Welch Regiment
8th (Pioneers) Battalion, Welsh Regiment was raised at Cardiff in August 1914 as part of Kitchener's Third New Army and joined
40th Brigade, 13th (Western) Division which assembled on Salisbury Plain. 40th Brigade moved to Chiseldon and Cirencester in September 1914. Near the end of February the Division concentrated at Blackdown in Hampshire, in January 1915 they became a Pioneer Battalion. They moved to the Mediterranean from the 13th of June 1915 landing at Alexandria then moving to Mudros, by the 4th of July to prepare for a landing at Gallipoli. The infantry landed on Cape Helles between the 6th and 16th of July to relieve 29th Division. They returned to Mudros at the end of the month, and the entire Division landed at ANZAC Cove between the 3rd and 5th of August. They were in action in The Battle of Sari Bair, The Battle of Russell's Top and The Battle of Hill 60, at ANZAC. Soon afterwards they transferred from ANZAC to Suvla Bay. They were evacuated from Suvla on the 19th and 20th of December 1915, and after a weeks rest they moved to the Helles bridgehead. They were in action during The last Turkishh attacks at Helles on the 7th of January 1916 and were evacuated from Helles on the 8th and 9th. The Division concentrated at Port Said, holding forward posts in the Suez Canal defences. On the 12th of February 1916 they moved to Mesopotamia, to join the force being assembled near Sheikh Sa'ad for the relief of the besieged garrison at Kut al Amara. They joined the Tigris Corps on the 27th of March and were in action in the unsucessful attempts to relieve Kut. They were in action in The Battle of Kut al Amara, The capture of the Hai Salient, he capture of Dahra Bend and The passage of the Diyala, in the pursuit of the enemy towards Baghdad. Units of the Division were the first troops to enter Baghdad, when it fell on the 11 March 1917. The Division then joined \"Marshall's Column\" and pushed north across Iraq, fighting at Delli 'Abbas, Duqma, Nahr Kalis, crossing the 'Adhaim on the 18 April and fighting at Shatt al 'Adhaim. Later in the year they were in action in the Second and Third Actions of Jabal Hamrin and fought at Tuz Khurmatli the following April. By the 28th of May 1918, Divisional HQ had moved to Dawalib and remained there until the end of the war, enduring extreme summer temperatures.
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These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Great War.
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Those known to have served with8th Battalion, Welch Regiment during the Great War 1914-1918. - Cheetham Alban. Pte. (d.14th July 1917)
- Davies MID Thomas Maurice. Sgt. (d.23rd April 1916)
- Davies Thomas Maurice . Sgt. (d.23rd April 1916)
- Dethridge George Fredrick. Pte. (d.8th Aug 1915)
- Donegan Thomas. Pte. (d.20th March 1918)
- Johns MM. Leonard. Sgt. (d.16th Feb 1920)
- Lewis Lewis. Pte. (d.11th Jul 1916)
- Ousbey Joseph. Pte. (d.28th October 1915)
- Seccombe Richard. Pte. (d.8th Aug 1915)
- Smith Henry. Pte. (d.31st Mar 1918)
- Turner George. Cpl.
- Wake James. Pte. (d.12th Jan 1917)
- Ward Arthur James. Pte. (d.18th Oct 1918)
- Williams G.. Capt. (d.15th November 1918)
- Williams G.. Capt. (d.15th November 1918)
All names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
please Add a Name to this List
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Cpl. George Turner 8th Btn. Welch Regiment George Turnerwas a painter and a member of the territorial Kent Garrison Artillery. A sparsity of work led him to join the Welch Regiment in Cardiff in March 1912. He served with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions.
He was wounded at Zillebeke, France on 25th of May 1915.
He later joined 8th (Pioneers) Battalion, Sussex Regiment on 16th of October 1915 until demobilization in 1919.
George served in India and France.
After assignment to the 8th Btn served in Gallipoli with the Mesopotamia Expeditionary Force and Egyptian Expeditionary Force.
In 1921 he joined the 90-Day Emergency Service with 4th Buffs. Later in life George ran a green grocers shop in Sheerness, Kent.
He was one of my Grandfathers' older brothers.
My father remembers him in his later years.
All his military records and a family photos survived and are the basis for this information.
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Pte. Lewis Lewis 8th Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.11th Jul 1916) Always remembered.
R.I.P Lewis Lewis
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Pte. Joseph Ousbey 8th Battalion Welch Regiment (d.28th October 1915) Joseph Ousbey was 17 years old when he disembarked on Sulva Beach on 2nd of October 1915. He died of wounds on 28th of October 1915. I am
searching for any related photos please of 8th Welch Regiment or other people or his company section.
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Pte. Arthur James Ward 8th (Pioneers) Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.18th Oct 1918) Arthur Ward died from pneumonia and bronchitis and is buried in Basra War Cemetery.
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Pte. James Wake 8th Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.12th Jan 1917) James Wake is on Panel 24 of the Basra War Memorial in Iraq along with 7000 others.
He was killed in action, missing, his body never found.
He was my great great Uncle.
The War Graves Commission sent photo's of the memorial.
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Sgt. Leonard Johns MM. 8th Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.16th Feb 1920) Leonard Johns was born c. 1893, he was the son of Leonard and Catherine Johns and lived at 1 Glyn Street, Ynysybwl. After much service overseeas, he succumbed to illness and after discharge on 31st of May 1919 died on 16th February 1920 and is buried in Ynysybwl Cemetery, Ynysybwl. He was awarded the Military Medal (Greece) 3rd Class with clasp.
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Pte. Thomas Donegan 2nd Btn Royal Welch Fusiliers (d.20th March 1918) Thomas Donegan enlisted in the 1st Battalion, Connaught Rangers on 5th March 1892. In November 1902 he was tried by court martial and sentenced to 12 months imprisonment for destroying military property. On completion of his sentence he was discharged.
He re-enlisted on 18th of August 1914 in the 8th Battalion, Welsh Regiment and was transferred to the 6th Battalion, Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry on 8th of January 1915. He was discharged on 18th of February 1915, being listed as "unlikely to become an efficient soldier", due to chest trouble.
He re-enlisted again on 17th of August 1915 in the 2nd Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers. He served in France from 22nd of December 1915 to 5th of March 1916 when he was invalided to England. He served in Egypt from 20th of October 1916 to 17th of January 1918 when he was again invalided to England after attempting to shoot a fellow soldier. He was initially admitted to Netley Hospital on 1st of February 1918 and then to Dykebar War Hospital. Two weeks later he was admitted to Crookston Hospital where he remained until his death. He committed suicide by hanging on 20th of March 1918. Cause of death was returned as death by strangulation.
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Pte. Henry Smith 8th (Pioneer) Btn. Welch Regiment (d.31st Mar 1918) Henry Smith of the 8th Welch Regiment is my Granddad. He was born in Liverpool and enlisted at Warrington, at the time he resided at 3 Lea Street, Widnes, Lancashire. Henry died in India on 31st of March, 1918, aged 31
and is buried at Poona. He is commemorated on the Kirkee 1914-1918
Memorial in Bombay and locally commemorated at St Mary's church in Widnes.
A married man, Harry left a widow, Bridget and seven children. Prior to his enlistment he was employed at the Lancashire Metal Works in Widnes and was a parishioner of St Mary's church.
He had previously served in the Dardanelles and Mesopotamia where he was taken ill with enteric fever and eventually recovered. Twelve months before his death he was posted to India. He died from peritonitis in a hospital in Poona.
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Pte. Alban Cheetham 9th Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.14th July 1917) Alban Cheetham was from Ancoats in Manchester. He originally joined the 8th Battalion Welsh Regiment on 20th September 1915 and served in the Balkans at Gallipoli. He died on 14th July 1917 "of accidental wounds" whilst serving with the 9th Battalion Welsh Regiment in the Passchendaele area. Alban is buried at Ballieul Communal Cemetery Extension Nord.
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Capt. G. Williams 8th Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.15th November 1918) Captain Williams is buried in the Lubumbashi Cemetery in the Congo.
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Capt. G. Williams 8th Btn. Welch Regiment (d.15th November 1918) Captain Williams is buried in the Lubumbashi Cemetery in the Congo.
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Sgt. Thomas Maurice Davies MID 8th Btn. Welsh Rgt. (d.23rd April 1916) Thomas died on 23rd April 1916 while fighting in Mesopotamia and was Mentioned in Dispatches. He is remembered with honour on the Basra Memorial, Panel 24.
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Pte. George Fredrick Dethridge 8th Battalion Welsh Regiment (d.8th Aug 1915) The 8th Btn. of the Welsh Regiment embarked on 15th June 1915 at Avonmouth and landed at Anzac Cove on 5th August. George Dethridge was in "C" company, part of The 13th Division Pioneers. He was in the 2nd Line of the advance pushing forward to Apex Ridge. They were caught in the open and suffered great losses. George was one of the many lost in action. He was reported missing presumed dead on 8th of August 1915 just 3 days after landing.
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Pte. Richard Seccombe 8th Btn. Welsh Regiment (d.8th Aug 1915) Richard Seccombe was my great-grandfather; my grandmother's father, who she could hardly remember as he was killed when she was 5 years old. She was named Violet and she was the eldest with three younger siblings: Clara, Caroline and her brother Jonny. Her mother Gertrude was also pregnant at the time but miscarried the baby on hearing the news of her husband's death.
My grandmother did talk about her father. One of the things she remembered was that he was a Master Stonemason working in the quarry that was in Maesteg, but that has now been filled in and houses built on top. She said she on the day he left in his uniform he knelt down and hugged them all very hard and kissed them all over their faces, and that was the last time she saw him.
I have since discovered that he joined up in Porthcawl, and then travelled near to Brighton to do his training. He was then transported by ship to Gallipoli in Turkey and arrived on August 5th 1915. He was killed three days later aged 32. I do not know where he was buried but he is commemorated on Panel 140 to 144 of the Helles Memorial on the Gallipoli Peninsula. The battle area where he died was fought over for another four months and then all the Allies were pulled out not having gained any ground after very stiff Turkish resistance. All those men from both sides killed for nothing. What a waste.
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