Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Grave: | Blighty Valley Cemetery | XII. C. 5. Authuile Wood | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.119 | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Family :
Son of William and Annie Collis, of Thornleigh, Bootle, Cumberland. Jeweller (1909)Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 11/Border Regiment |
11th (Service) Battalion (Lonsdale) Formed in Penrith (HQ), Carlisle, Kendal and Workington on 17 September 1914 by the Earl of Lonsdale and an Executive Committee. Moved to Carlisle Racecourse. May 1915 : moved to Prees Heath and attached to 97th Brigade in 32nd Division. Moved in June 1915 to Wensleydale and on to Fovant in August. Adopted by War Office 27 August 1915. Landed at Boulogne 23 November 1915. 10 May 1918 : reduced to cadre strength, with surplus persoinnel being transferred to 1/5th Bn. 13 May 1918 : transferred to 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division. 31 July 1918 : cadre absorbed by 1/5th Bn. |
| Action : The Battles of the Somme 1916 |
The Battle of the Somme 1st July - 18th November 1916 is inevitably characterised by the appalling casualties (60,000) on the first day, July 1st 1916. Having failed to break through the German lines in force, and also failed to maximise opportunities where success was achieved, the battle became a series of attritional assaults on well defended defence in depth. The battle continued officially until 18th November 1916 costing almost 500,000 British casualties. German casualties were about the same, and French about 200,000. The Somme could not be counted a success in terms of ground gained or the cost, but it had a strategic impact as it marked the start of the decline of the German Army. Never again would it be as effective whilst the British Army, learning from its experience eventually grew stronger to become a war winning army. The German High Command recognised that it could never again fight another Somme, a view that advanced the decision to invoke unrestricted submarine warfare in an attempt to starve Britain of food and material, and in doing so accelerated the United States declaration of war thus guaranteeing the eventual outcome. 287 Brethren were killed on the Somme in 1916.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Lewis No. 872 E.C. | Cumberland & Westmoreland |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
15th November 1909 | 21st December 1909 | 21st February 1910 |
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley