Name
Willie James
1899
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
20/09/1918
19
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Private
38172
Royal Warwickshire Regiment
10th Bn.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
LOOS MEMORIAL
Panel 22 to 25.
France
Headstone Inscription
N/A
UK & Other Memorials
Baldock Town Memorial, St Mary the Virgin Church Memorial, Baldock, Not on the Norton memorials
Pre War
Willie James was born in Norton, Hertfordshire in 1899, the son of Albert and Martha James and one of five children.
On the 1901 Census the family were living in Norton village, where his father was working as an agricultural labourer. By 1911 they had moved to Station Road, Ashwell, Herts and his father was working as a farm labourer, and Willie was still at school.
His parents later lived at 6 Orchard Road, Baldock. Herts.
Wartime Service
He enlisted in Baldock and joined the Warwickshire Regiment, serving with the 10th Battalion in France.
According to the war diary, on 20 September 1918, C & D Companies attacked at 6.30 am and made good progress capturing all the objectives as well as 79 prisoners. However the enemy counter attacked, which resulted in heavy casualties and C & D companies were forced to evacuate most of the captured positions.
Willie was one of the casualties and was killed in action on 20 September 1918, aged 19. He has no known grave and his name is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, France.
Additional Information
His father received a war gratuity of £5 and pay owing of £9 3s 4d. His mother received a pension of 5 shillings a week.
Acknowledgments
Brenda Palmer
Jonty Wild, Adrian Pitts, Paul Johnson
