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Yorkshire
Regiment War Graves, - Brown's Copse Cemetery, Roeux (France, Pas de Calais) |
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Brown's
Copse Cemetery, Roeux (1)
Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>).
Roeux was built over a system of caves which helped to make its capture in 1917 exceptionally difficult. It was attacked by the 9th (Scottish) Division without success on 12 April. The chemical works close to the railway station were taken by the 51st (Highland) Division on 22 April and after incessant fighting, the village was cleared by the same Division on 14 May. The chemical works were lost again and retaken on 16 May. The Germans re-entered the village at the end of March 1918, and it was finally retaken by the 51st Division on the following 26 August.
The cemetery is named from a small copse (the Bois Rossignol) on the east side. Plots I to IV are composed almost entirely of graves cleared from the battlefield in the summer of 1917. Plots V to VIII were made after the Armistice when 850 graves were brought in from a wide area north and east of Arras.
The cemetery now contains 2,072 burials and commemorations of the First World War. 862 of the burials are unidentified but there are special memorials to eight casualties known or believed to be buried among them. Other special memorials commemorate two casualties buried in Vitry-en-Artois Communal Cemetery German Extension, whose graves could not be found.
Amongst the graves are those of 5 soldiers who served with the Yorkshire Regiment.
We are extremely grateful to Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>) who has generously provided the photographs on this page.
Click on the thumbnail image of a headstone for a larger version of the photo which opens in a new window.
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Private William Brook Butterworth.
24493. 2nd Battalion Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment), formerly 32496 Yorkshire Regiment. Killed 3 May 1917. Born Leeds, Enlisted Leeds, Resided Armley (Yorks). Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>). |
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Lance Corporal Thomas Randolph Pallett.
46065. 25th (Tyneside Irish) Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, formerly 19149 the Yorkshire Regiment. Killed 28 April 1917. Born Kingston, Enlisted Shepherd's Bush (London). Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>). |
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Private Samuel Pinder. 63550.
2nd Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), formerly 39096 the Yorkshire Regiment. Son of Mr. J. R. Pinder, of 10, Ellison Place, Jarrow-on-Tyne. Killed 7 October 1918. Aged 21. Born Jarrow, Enlisted Jarrow. Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>). |
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Lance Corporal William Clarence Simmonite,
MM. 12499. 7th Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment. Killed 10 May 1917. Born Park (Sheffield), Enlisted Sheffield. Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>). |
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Private William Sweeting. 18020.
7th Battalion East Yorkshire Regiment, formerly 28771 the Yorkshire Regiment. . Killed 8 July 1917. Born Hook (Yorks), Enlisted Goole. Photo : International War Graves Photography Project of the Find a Grave website Note : The headstone shows the name "J W Sweeting" (as per the CWGC record), but there is no evidence as to where the "J" originates. |
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Brown's
Copse Cemetery, Roeux (2)
Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>).