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The 15th Battalion The Lancashire Fusiliers were known as The 1st Salford Pals, the battalion was raised in Salford, Manchester, in September 1914. On the 28 December 1914 they moved to Conway for training and then on 21 June 1915 to Catterick in North Yorkshire.
They became part of the 96th Brigade, 32nd Division
and crossed to France, landing at Boulogne on the 22nd of November 1915. Their first taste of action was at Thiepval Ridge on The Somme on the 1st of July 1916, the battle resulted in the Salford Pals being almost wiped out. The battalion was reinforced and saw action on throughout the war.
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May 2010 - Please note we currently have a large backlog of submitted material, our volunteers are working through this as quickly as possible and all names, stories and photos will be added to the site. For updates please see our
news page.
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List of those who served with The 15th Battalion, The Lancashire Fusiliers during The Great War
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James Burns 15th Btn Lancashire Fusiliers (d.1st Jul 1916) My Great Uncle, James Burns, served with the 1st Salford Pals, his regiment number was 10728. He was killed on the 1st July 1916, his death certificate said Missing-in-action, presumed dead. I had found in war records in the regimental book, that he was listed as Died of wounds so in 1995, armed with a copy of this, and a letter, the Mod did give permission to change his Death certificate to read, "Died of wounds."
I found the picture I have attached in an album that had belonged to my Great Grandmother Elizabeth, James was her only son. Elizabeth's husband James, who also served in France, was shot and lost the use of his right arm in 1915. This injury meant his trade as a shoemaker was no longer possible.
Having found the picture, my father recalled that as a child his mother had told him James died on the 1st July, so we got into communication with the War Graves commission and located James's details. His name is on the Theipval Memorial, so my husband and baby son visited, just to say hello and hopefully let him know that his family never forgot him, and the newest Great, Great nephew had passed along to say hello.
I have lots of research on his movements and a little history of the young man, before he went off to war. I think your site is a wonderful way of keeping their memories alive and educating the young. |
God's Own: 1st Salford Pals, 1914-1916 Neil Drum & Roger Dowson
This superbly researched book looks at the story of the raising and training of the Pals. It then moves on to their first experiences in France, and concludes with their destruction on the First Day of the Somme. Throughout there are numerous references to officers and men, and many first hand accounts, both of which combine to make it a fascinating account. This first section then ends with biographies of all the casualties, many of them accompanied by a photograph and some in great detail. The second part of the book is a complete roll of every officer and man that served with the 15th Lancashire Fusiliers from formation until 1st July 1916. It gives basic details of every soldier; some men have lengthy entries. A wonderful piece of research!
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Salford Pals , A History of the Salford Brigade: 15th, 16th, 19th and 20th Battalions Lancashire Fusiliers Michael Stedman
Salford was late in recruiting for its Pals battalions, with many of its men already joining Territorial units and a new Pals battalion in Manchester. Yet within a year it had raised four Pals battalions and a reserve battalion. Raised mainly from Lancashire's most notorious slums, the men trained together in Wales, North East England and on Salisbury Plain, they had great expectations of success. On the 1st of July 1916 the Somme offensive was launched and in the very epicentre of that cauldron the first three of Salford's battalions were thrown at the massive defences of Thiepval - the men were decimated, Salford was shattered. Michael Stedman records the impact of the war from the start on Salford and follows the difficulties and triumphs. Whether the actions small or great the author writes graphically about them all. Unusual photographs and a variety of sources make this both a readable and a scholarly account.
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