 |
Remembrance
- The Yorkshire Regiment, First World War 2nd Lieutenant George Clarence KNOWLES Close window to return to main page |
|
Photo : "Lijssenthoek
Military Cemetery - Daily Reflections of the Great War"
2nd Lieutenant George Clarence KNOWLES.
9th Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment. Son of Mr. Knowles, of "Kirkwood,"
The Villas, Palmer's Green, London. Killed 10 June 1917.
Buried LIJSSENTHOEK MILITARY CEMETERY.
The following notes are from Robert Coulson's Biographies
of Officers of the Yorkshire Regiment;-
"George Knowles was born in London on July 31st 1897. He was gazetted
as a 2nd Lieutenant on August 16th 1916 and joined the 9th Battalion in October
of 1916 during the Somme offensive, seeing action at the Le Transloy Ridges.
In late October of that year the battalion were moved north and spent Christmas
and the New Year of 1917 in and out of the line in the Ypres Salient.
In preparation for the Messines battle the battalion moved up into position
in the assembly trenches during the evening of June 6th 1917. The attack went
in at 6.50 a.m. the following morning and 2nd Lieut Knowles was wounded in
this advance and
taken from the battlefield for treatment. He died of his wounds three days
later on June 10th 1917 at the age of 20."
A brother officer wrote later,
“We have lost our very dearest and best beloved boy in the battalion.
He was idolised by his men. In difficult times in the trenches and when in
rest he was always doing something for the care of his platoon and his boldness
and absolute disregard
of danger when in action was superb. The greatest thing he could have done
he did gloriously and his faithfulness in simple matters was part of his life”.
Other photos seen in the website "Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery - Daily Reflections of the Great War".
--------------> Return to Top of Page