Name
Thomas Brackley
1895
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
17/10/1915
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Private
17984
Grenadier Guards
1st Bn.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 /15 Star, British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
LOOS MEMORIAL
Panel 5 to 7.
France
Headstone Inscription
N/A
UK & Other Memorials
Tring War Memorial, St Peter & St Paul Church Roll of Honour, Tring, New Mill Baptist Church, Tring
Pre War
Thomas Brackley was born in 1895 in Tring, Hertfordshire, the son of James and Eliza Brackley, and one of eight children although one died in infancy. He was baptised on 2 Jan 1898 at Tring.
The family of parents, Harry (born 1887), William (born, 1886), Mary (born 1892), Thomas (Tom), Eva May (born 1898) and Amy (born 1900) had moved to Tring, Herts by the 1901 Census and were living at Marchcroft, where his father was working as a carter on a farm.
The family of parents, Harry (a grocer’s porter), William (a furniture porter), Tom (a gardener), May, Amy and Olive (born 1903 ). remained at Marchcroft in 1911.
His parents later lived at 14 New Mill Terrace, Tring.
Wartime Service
Tom enlisted in London and joining the Grenadier Guards, as Private 17984 serving in France with the 1st Battalion from 16 Mar 1915. No Service Record is readily available for Tom as Guards records are kept by the regiments. All Guards Units were transferred to the Guards Division from their original deployments on 4 Apr 1915 and 1st Battalion Grenadiers were posted to 3rd Brigade and their first engagement was at the Battle of Loos (25 Sep-15 Oct 1915). they were originally intended, as reserves, to follow up the opening attack but placed too far back and later fought at Fosse 8, the Quarries and Chalk Pit. Although the man fighting was declared over by 15 Oct, there was some small scale activity following. Tom was declared missing believed killed in action on 17 Oct 1915. He has no known grave and his name is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, France.
Additional Information
His father received a war gratuity of £4 and arrears of £4 15s 8d. His mother received a pension of five shillings a week. Brother to Henry (Harry) Brackley who served with the Royal Garrison Artillery and died of wounds on 24 March 1918. He is also named on the Tring Memorials.
Acknowledgments
Brenda Palmer, Neil Cooper
Jonty Wild, www.roll-of-honour.com
