204765 RSM. Arthur William Thew DCM, MSM.British Army 5th Battalion Durham Light Infantry from:Stockton, Co Durham R.S.M. Thew was my grandfather. He was born in Elvet, Durham in 1877 and was educated at the Bluecoats School. After a few years as a clerk at the pits, probably elvet pit, he enlisted with the DLI in 1896.
He served with the 1st battalion in South Africa during the Boer War.
He was transferred to India in 1902 where he stayed until 1907.
He returned to the UK in 1907 and married Durham girl Mary Elizabeth Wandless. He then joined the regiment in Cork, Ireland. He also spent some time in Colchester and Newcastle. In 1915 he went with the 1/5 battalion to France. He was returned to Stockton in 1917 [age 40] to help with recruitment and training. He died in 1943, 3 months before I was born.
His SA medals which included bars for Tugela Heights /Laings Nek and the WW1 medals were donated to the DLI museum. These medals were lost to the family for many years until in the late eighties on a chance visit to the old family home in Durham Road, Stockton, my mother and I met the current occupant, a WW2 DLI veteran, who had the medals, he promised the to us and several days later they arrived in the post.
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