Name
Ernest Alfred Reynolds
7/4/1888
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
28/04/1920
32
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Corporal
M/398046
Royal Army Service Corps
No. 1 M.T. Reserve Depot
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 /15 Star, British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
GREAT BERKHAMSTED (ST. PETER) CHURCH CEMETERY
Row 9.
United Kingdom
Headstone Inscription
EVER IN OUR THOUGHTS
UK & Other Memorials
Wigginton Village Memorial, Not on the Berkhamsted memorials
Pre War
Ernest Alfred Reynolds was born on 7 April 1888 in Wigginton, nr Berkhamsted, Herts, the only son of Alfred and Rebecca Reynolds (nee Busby) and one of five children.
On the 1891 Census the family were living at Church Row, Wigginton, Herts, where his father was working as a general labourer. They remained there in 1901 and 1911. After leaving school, Ernest worked as a motor mechanic for Edwin Southey at 165 High Street, Berkhamsted.
Ernest returned to Berkhamsted on his first leave and married Ethel Emily Ada Sargent at St Peter's Church, Berkhamsted on 27 December 1915. Ethel worked at the Mantle Factory and lived at 36 Cross Oak Road. They had two children, Ernest Jack born 9 February 1918, and Barbara Patricia born 13 November 1919.
Wartime Service
Ernest enlisted at Watford on 7 September 1914, soon after the outbreak of war, and joined the Bedfordshire Regiment. After basic training he embarked from Southampton on 25 July 1915 with the 7th Battalion. He returned to Berkhamsted in late December to marry Ethel Sargent (see above) but soon returned to fight in the Battles of the Somme and the Battle of Albert in 1916. He was promoted to Corporal on 2 July 1916, following which he fought in the Battles of Bazentin, Thiepval and Ancre.
On 20 January 1917 he received a gunshot wound to his right shoulder and was repatriated to England on 22 January 1917 on the Hospital Ship Aberdonian. The following month whilst in hospital in Stourbridge, he contracted Trench Fever and was transferred to Epsom in early May for convalescence. He was then posted to the 3rd Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment on 14 June 1917. This was a reserve regiment used for soldiers recovering from wounds on home soil. At this time he retrained as a Lewis Gunner but was categorised as B2 and assigned light duties until demobilisation as the attack of Trench Fever had left him with vascular disease of the heart. In June 1918 he was returned to hospital owing to an attack of influenza but recovered and in August was transferred to the Army Service Corps, eventually being discharged as unfit on 9 March 1919 with a pension based on being 50% incapacitated from the heart disease.
He died on 28 April 1920, aged 32, and is buried in Great Berkhamsted (St Peter) Church Cemetery. (Rectory Lane Cemetery)
Additional Information
His widow ordered his headstone inscription while living at 36 Cross Oak Road, Berkhamsted, Herts., it reads "EVER IN OUR THOUGHTS".
On the Rectory Lane Cemetery website there is photo of Ernest in his soldier's uniform.
Acknowledgments
Brenda Palmer
Jonty Wild, www.roll-of-honour.com., www.rectorylanecemetery.org.uk, Peter Reynolds
