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2/7th (Leeds Rifles) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment
2/7th (2nd Leeds Rifles) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own), was raised at Leeds on the 15th of September 1914. On the 1st of March 1915 they moved to Matlock to join 185th Brigade, 62nd (2nd west Riding) Division. In May the moved to Thoresby Park, then in October 1915 to Retford, in November to Newcastle, in January 1916 to Salisbury Plain and in June 1916 to Somerleyton near Lowestoft. In October 1916 they moved to Bedford. They proceeded to France, landing at Le Havre in January 1917. They saw their first action on the Ancre in February, and went on to take part in many major actions, including, the Arras Offensive, the Hindenburgh Line, and at Cambrai in 1917. On the Somme, Arras, the Hidenburgh Line. On the 16th of June 1918 the Battalion was reduced to cadre strength and returned to England to be absorbed into 18th Battalion York & Lancs Regiment.
16th Oct 1915 The Derby Scheme
1st Dec 1915 Derby Scheme Armlets
11th Sep 1915 Last day of Derby Scheme Recruitment
10th Jan 1916 Group System Reopens
9th February 1916 Call Ups
11th Jun 1918 18th Battalion Yorks & Lancs raised 18th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment was formed at Margate on 11th of June 1918, absorbing the cadre of the 2/7th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment.
13th January 1917 Leaving Havre
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| Want to know more about 2/7th (Leeds Rifles) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment ? There are:5237 items tagged 2/7th (Leeds Rifles) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Great War.
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Those known to have served with2/7th (Leeds Rifles) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment during the Great War 1914-1918. - Atkinson John
Simeon. Pte. (d.19th March 1917 or 19th November 1917)
- Baker Nathan Simon. Pte. (d.4th Sep 1917)
- Coope Ernest Arthur. 2nd Lt
- Corkett Francis Albert. Pte.
- Hillas Joseph. Rflmn. (d.27th March 1918)
- Hillas Joseph. Pte. (d.27th March 1918)
- Hillas Joseph. Pte. (d.27th March 1918)
- Oates MM. Sam. Rflmn. (d.28th November 1917)
- Peacock Thomas Greville. Pte. (d.15th Apr 1917)
- Pickles John Edward. Pte. (d.17th September 1918)
- Ratcliffe James Ellis. Pte. (d.28th Nov 1917)
- Skipp Ralph. Pte. (d.27th Mar 1918)
- Tompofski MM. Myer. Rflmn. (d.27th September 1918)
- Ward Charles Edward. Rflmn. (d.15th Feb 1917)
- Woolley William Vivian. Rflmn. (d.7th April 1918)
All names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
please Add a Name to this List
Records of 2/7th (Leeds Rifles) Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment from other sources.
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Pte. Ralph Skipp 2nd/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.27th Mar 1918) Ralph Skipp originally came over from Coonoor, India. He was born in 1896 and was 22 years of age when he was killed in action on Wednesday 27th of March 1918. He is remembered on the Arras Memorial.
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Rflmn. Myer Tompofski MM. 2/7th Battalion West Yorkshire Regiment (d.27th September 1918) Myer Tompofski won his MM at the Battle of Bucquoy in March 1918 and was killed on the first day of the Battle of the Canal du Nord on 27th of September 1918. He was my mother's brother, always spoken of with huge affection. We have eight of his letters home revealing him to be a warm, funny, highly considerate son and brother.
He is buried with his comrades at the Flesquieres Hill Cemetery near Cambrai.
I have written a short play about my uncle based on his letters.
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Pte. John Edward Pickles 2/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.17th September 1918) John Pickles was my great uncle, brother of my paternal grandfather who, himself, served in the RAChD in the latter part of WW1.
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Pte. Joseph Hillas 2/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.27th March 1918) None of my family are alive who may have met my great uncle, Joe Hillas. His medals and death plaque have, sadly, long left the family and we have no photos of him. But I always remember him on 27th March. He has no known grave, but I have been to see his name on the Arras Memorial Bay 4. RIP great uncle Joe.
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Pte. Joseph Hillas 2/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.27th March 1918) My great uncle, Joseph Hillas, died in Bucquoy on 27th March 1918. Accounts say he died with an officer, but neither body was found. He is remembered on Bay 4 of the Arras Memorial. Joe was the elder brother of my grandfather, Alfred James who, luckily, was too young for the war.
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Rflmn. Joseph Hillas 2/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.27th March 1918) I have just returned from helping to dedicate a memorial to the Bradford Pals in Bus Les Artois, but while out there I was privileged to lay a cross at the site of the trench outside the Village of Bucquoy in which my great uncle, Joe Hillas 241178 of the Prince Of Wales 7th Leeds Rifles, was killed. His body was never found and he is mentioned on the Arras Memorial.
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Pte. John
Simeon "Akky" Atkinson 2/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.19th March 1917 or 19th November 1917) There is some discrepancy with the CWGC on date of John Simeon Atkinson's death as with his middle name as it is Simeon or Lineon. The Buslingthorpe Road Church Memorial at St. Michaels said John S. Atkinson 265907 which does bear in with all the facts from my aunt who is still alive to date(19/4/16).
His brother, Harry, survived the Great War but when questioned he simply said you don't want to know about that.
Their future brother-in-law, William Kirkley, is on the same memorial of St. Michaels which got demolished in the early 1960's, so the memorial was then placed in St.Marks Church Woodhouse, Leeds.
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Pte. Francis Albert Corkett 2/7th (Leeds Rifles) Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment My Grandfather, Francis Corkett, didn't speak much about his war but he did mention Etaples and that he 'much preferred to be in the front line than at rest in Etaples.'
He also mentioned that when he was at Etaples that 'it was ringed with battle-hardened and armed troops.'
He also mentioned, in passing, that 'they' 'must've been short of blokes because although I was gassed twice the buggers kept sending me back!'
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Pte. James Ellis Ratcliffe 2/7 Btn. (Leeds Rifles) West Yorkshire Regiment (d.28th Nov 1917) James Ellis Ratcliffe was the uncle of my wife's aunt. He was born in the Woodhouse area of Leeds in 1887, one of seven children of John Ratcliffe and Jane Ratcliffe, née Marshall, three of whom served in WW1. He worked as a warehouse packer before joining the army during the war. He was killed in action at Bourlon Wood, France on 28th November 1917. James has no known grave, but is remembered on Panel 5 of the Cambrai Memorial at Louverval, Departement du Nord, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France.
His brothers George, Army Service Corps, and Ernest, Royal Garrison Artillery, both survived the war.
His niece, our Auntie Marjorie was born in 1918 and never knew her uncle James, but has clear memories of her uncles George and Ernest. She is now nearly 96, and, along with her sister Dorothy (my late mother-in-law) served in the Wrens in WW2.
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Pte. Nathan Simon Baker 2/7th Leeds Rifles West Yorkshire Regiment (d.4th Sep 1917) This story is so very sad, but in a strange way happy:
I never knew my uncle who died from wounds in France on 4th September 1917. He was my grandma's first born son. She came over to this country from a village called Kovno in Russia in 1890 age 16 to marry my grandfather in 1893.
She had eight more children but two died. With my uncle dead in 1917, my grandma and grandfather were so distraught at this but she fell pregnant with my father who was born in April 1919 she hadn't wanted anymore children but this baby helped her and my grandfather carry on. In 1951 my father married and I was born.
So out of sorry came happiness and I just wanted to share this story with you. I wish I had photos of my uncle but I never saw any.
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Pte. Thomas Greville Peacock 2/7th Btn. West Yorkshire Regiment (d.15th Apr 1917) Thomas Peacock died of his wounds on the 15th April 1917 and was buried at St Sever Cemetery extension in Rouen, France.
His details are Service Number 266437 Private (Rifleman) Thomas Greville Peacock 2/7th Battalion, The Prince of Wales Own West Yorkshire Regiment.
He was probably wounded in the Battle of Arras (9th April to 16th May as his battalion was part of 185 Infantry Brigade which was in the 62nd (2nd West Riding)Division.
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