233720 Pte. Charles Richard Hewitt British Army 10th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment from:Shipley, West Yorkshire Charles Richard Hewitt was my great-grandfather. He was born in Hull in the East Riding in 1875, and moved with his wife and son to Shipley, in the West Riding, probably to find work in the woollen mills.
We believe that he lied about his age when he volunteered. He would have been 39 in August 1914, but told the army he was 35. It is possible that he underwent some of his early training at Green Lane Barracks in Shipley.
He spoke of service near Poperinge, and on the Somme. We believe that he may have been wounded there, a knee injury. Part of his recovery took place at a hospital in Hampshire.
He was discharged from service in January 1918. The cause given was "wounds". He was awarded a Silver War Badge and the record gives his age at discharge as 38 and 6/12, thus supporting our belief that he had fudged on his age.
For the rest of his life, he wore shoes with a special spring in the heel which allowed him to walk normally.
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