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Yorkshire
Regiment War Graves, - Guards' Cemetery, Combles (France, Somme) |
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Guards'
Cemetery, Combles - 1
Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>)
Combles village was entered in the early morning of the 26th September, 1916, by units of the 56th (London) Division and the French Army; and it remained in Allied occupation until the 24th March, 1918, when the place was captured after a stubborn stand by the South African Brigade at Marrieres Wood. It was retaken on the 29th August, 1918, by the 18th Division.
The village was later "adopted", with Flers, by the County Borough of Portsmouth.
Guards' Cemetery was begun by the Guards Division in September, 1916, and carried on by other units until March, 1917, and to a small extent in March, August and September, 1918. It contained at the Armistice 100 graves, of which 19 were those of officers and men of the Foot Guards; and it was then increased by the concentration into Plot II of graves from Priez Farm Cemetery. Six German graves of 1918 have been removed to another burial ground.
There are now nearly 200, 1914-18 war casualties commemorated in this site. Of these, over 10 are unidentified and special memorials are erected to 30 soldiers from the United Kingdom, buried in Priez Farm Cemetery and Combles German Cemetery, whose graves were destroyed by shell fire.
Six soldiers who served with the Yorkshire Regiment are buried in this cemetery.
We are extremely grateful to Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>) and Stephen Erskine (<erskine615@gmail.com>) who have generously provided the photographs of the cemetery and the headstones 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 Samuel Beaumont. 38439. 7th Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment. Son of Charles Henry and Elizabeth Beaumont, of Leeds. Killed 8 February 1917. Aged 22. Born Leeds, Enlisted Leeds. Photo by Stephen Erskine (<erskine615@gmail.com>) |
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Lieutenant Henry
Bloom. 12th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment. Died 14 February 1917. (Henry Bloom lived in "The Crescent", Linthorpe, Middlesbrough. He was born in 1889, in Stockton-on-Tees, and was a Solicitor's Clerk.) Photo by Stephen Erskine (<erskine615@gmail.com>) |
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| **Lieutenant Bloom was one of 13 soldiers who served in the Yorkshire Regiment who are commemorated in the British Jewry Book of Honour. Of the 50,000 Jews who served with the British and Colonial Forces during the First World War, 2,324 lost their lives and are commemorated in this book. |  |
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Corporal Herbert Fox. 18934. 7th Battalion Yorkshire Regiment. Killed 1 February 1917. Born Ampleforth, Enlisted Middlesbrough. Photo by Stephen Erskine (<erskine615@gmail.com>) |
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Private Walter Richardson. 25671.
13th Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment. Killed 5 March 1917. Born Bradford, Enlisted Bradford, Resided Lidget Green. |
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Private Richard Wall. 41055. 2nd Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), formerly 5609 4th Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment. Son of the late Thomas and Dorothy Wall; husband of Ethel Wall, of 4, Wordsworth St., Sunderland Rd., Gateshead. Killed 1 January 1917. Aged 28. Born Felling (Durham), Enlisted Newcastle-on-Tyne, Resided Gateshead-on-Tyne. "UNTIL THE DAY DAWNS"
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Private William Wright. 41056. 2nd Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), formerly 3698 the Yorkshire Regiment. Son of George and Anne Wright, of Hunwick, Durham. Killed 1 January 1917. Aged 36. Born Hunwick Lane End (Durham), Enlisted Bishop Auckland. "AT REST" |
Guards'
Cemetery, Combles - 2
Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>)
Guards'
Cemetery, Combles - 3
Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>)
Guards' Cemetery, Combles - 4
Photo : Richard Roberts (<richard.nsw@googlemail.com>)
The following note was received from the CWGC re. the above
commmeoration, and the general subject of soldiers known to be buried elsewhere;-
"What you have come across is known as a Duhallow Block. It is a stone
designed to hold an inscription that is communal to the headstones adjacent/behind
etc. In this case it does relate to the 30 stones around it who were known
to be buried at Priez Farm and Combles German Cemetery whose graves were later
lost or destroyed due to continued fighting in the area.
The headstone superscription to which you refer "Known to be buried elsewhere" is generally only reserved for casualties who are known to buried elsewhere in a cemetery that still exists where there exact grave is unknown."