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9th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment
| Want to know more about 9th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment? There are:5241 items tagged 9th Battalion, Suffolk 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 with9th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment during the Great War 1914-1918. - Anderson Charles Fred. Pte (d.23rd November 1915)
- Barber Victor Albert. L/Cpl (d.20th November 1917)
- Booth Alfred George.
- Bunn MM. Clifford Charles. Cpl. (d.21st March 1918)
- Cant David. Pte.
- Cowling Frederick James. Cpl.
- Ford Walter. L/Cpl. (d.13th Sept 1916)
- Holman Albert Hector. Pte. (d.23rd April 1917)
- Holmes MM. Edgar Elijah. L/Cpl. (d.26th Sep 1917)
- Kelsey Stanley. 2nd Lt.
- Meadows MM Ebenezer John. Pte. (d.20th November 1917)
- Moss Joseph Benjamin. Cpl. (d.27th April 1917)
- Napthine Clare George. Pte. (d.13th Sep 1916)
- O'Brien James. Pte. (d.23rd March 1917)
- Palmer Fred. Pte. (d.28th Aug 1916)
- Rose DCM, MM, CdG. William. L/Cpl.
- Rowbotham Jack Catchpole. Lt.
- Ruth Ernest Edward. Pte (d.23rd Feb 1916)
- Saunders VC. . Sjt.
- Smith Arthur. Pte. (d.16th Sep 1916)
- Smy Arthur Robert. Pte. (d.16th September 1916)
- Stearns Morris William. Pte. (d.16th Sept 1916)
- Thorley William. Pte. (d.1917)
- Twigg William Oliver. L/Cpl. (d.28th April 1917)
- Vearer William. Pte. (d.16th September 1916)
- Warne Arthur . Pte. (d.16th September 1916)
- Wheatley William M.. Pte.
- Willmott Harry. Pte.
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 9th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment from other sources.
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Pte. James O'Brien 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.23rd March 1917) James O'Brien was killed in action on the 23rd of March1917 and is buried in Bethune Town Cemetery in France.
He resided at 40 Hargreaves Street, Colne.
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Pte. Albert Hector Holman 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.23rd April 1917) Albert Holman died of wounds on the 23rd of April 1917, aged 28 and is buried in in the Bethune Town Cemetery in France.
He was the husband of Ethel Holman, of 45, Milner St., Burnley
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L/Cpl. William Rose DCM, MM, CdG. 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment William Rose was wounded twice, once in 1915 and then again in 1917. I have found evidence of his citations and the original documents. He is listed in London Gazette as wounded. He carried shrapnel in his head until 1959 when he died of a stroke, caused by it. He married Olive May Heeley in 1917 and had 9 children. Stories passed down says he was one of only a few surviving after moving from one big battle to another.
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Cpl. Joseph Benjamin Moss 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.27th April 1917) Joseph Moss served with the 9th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment in WW1. He died 27th of April 1917 aged 41 years and he is remembered on the Loos Memorial in France. Brother of P. T. Moss of 46 Hornby St., Oswaldtwistle, Accrington.
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Pte. David Cant 9th Battalion Suffolk Regiment Grandad David Cant was born in Wickhambrook in 1889, out of wedlock. I don't know who his father was. He had a younger half-sister, Alice. He married Effie Clarke in June 1921 in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. They had two children, both girls, during their marriage, I am the son of the younger. He died in 1962 in Soham, Cambridgeshire, aged 72.
He enlisted in Kitchener's New Army, in the 9th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment, and sent to fight in France, landing at Boulogne on 31st of August 1915. In September, he was engaged in the Battle of Loos.
Grandad suffered typical wounds of WW1, shrapnel in his shoulder, trench feet, exposure to gas, and shell shock. It's only now, looking back, that I realise the extent of his trauma even into old age.
Grandad never learned to read or write. Even in his last years he would say "The only good German is a dead 'un".
I wish I had been old enough (I was 12 when he died) to talk maturely with him, and have a pint with him at the pub.
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Pte. Fred Palmer 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.28th Aug 1916) Fred Palmer served with the 9th Suffolk Regiment.
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L/Cpl Victor Albert Barber 9th Btn Suffolk Regiment (d.20th November 1917) Victor Barber was my uncle, born in Lowestoft 1893. He was injured at Loos, and died on the first day of the Battle of Cambrai 20th November 1917 during the first advance of the tanks. He is buried in a small military cemetery 6 miles south of Cambrai.
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L/Cpl. Edgar Elijah "Edward" Holmes MM. 12th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.26th Sep 1917) Edward Holmes was born in 1896. He joined the 1st Battalion, Suffolk Regiment in Ipswich. On the 16th of January 1915 the Battalion arrived in France. At some point he was transferred to the 9th Battalion as he was in this Battalion when he was awarded his Military Medal in 1916 (the award was announced in the London Gazette on the 27th of October 1916), I haven't been able to find out what he did to be awarded the Medal.
He died of wounds on the 26th of September 1917, his name is on the Thiepval Memorial, I have visited Thiepval and seen his name.
According to the war diary of the time the 12th Battalion was in or near the town of Gonnelieu which is near Cambrai, in September 1917.
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Alfred George Booth 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment Alfred Booth fought at the Battle of the Somme where he was seriously wounded. He was returned to England with a piece of shrapnel still in his body.
It was reported in his pension records that it was unsafe to remove the shrapnel.
He was also reported to have suffered from shell shock.
He died in 1919 it is thought as a result of the shrapnel wound.
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Pte. Arthur Robert Smy 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.16th September 1916) We just know that Arthur Smy was killed in action on the Somme on the 16th September 1916 aged 26.
He is remembered at the Thiepval Memorial in France.
I have been compiling my family tree and found this very brave man in my relatives. I will remember him always.
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2nd Lt. Stanley Kelsey 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment Stanley Kelsey, a Kitchener volunteer, was born in 1890 and was a watchmaker and jeweller in civilian life before the war.
He was wounded in shellfire whilst the 9th Battalion was in trenches near St Jean, Ypres, on 31st of January 1916. According to his son he was shell shocked.
After receiving treatment in the UK he was deemed unfit to return to active service with the Regiment in France, and was reassigned to the RFC where he was employed on aeroplane repair duties.
He continued in that role in the RAF when that service was launched in April 1918.
In August 1918 he was declared permanently unfit for further service and placed on leave, and was retired on grounds of ill health in March 1920.
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Pte. Arthur Warne 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.16th September 1916) Arthur Warne served with the 9th Suffolk Regiment. I know very little about my great uncle except that he was born into a Suffolk farming family and died unmarried, at the age of 25, in the Somme. He is remembered at the Thiepval Memorial.
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Pte. William Vearer 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.16th September 1916) William Vearer was my granddad's brother. He was killed at the Battle of the Somme. He was never found, but his name is on the Thiepval Memorial.
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Cpl. Frederick James Cowling 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment Frederick Cowling served with the 9th Suffolk Regiment.
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Cpl. Clifford Charles Bunn MM. 9th Btn. Norfolk Regiment (d.21st March 1918)  Clifford Bunn enlisted in the Army on a short service engagement and was attested at Felixstowe on 12th of September 1914 and passed his medical at Lowestoft on the following day. On 25th of September 1914 he was posted to the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Suffolk Regiment, based at Felixstowe for basic training.
When he joined the Army he was 17 years old (his army records him as 19) and a fisherman. He was 5 feet 6 inches inches tall, weighed 143lbs and his chest measurement was 35 inches fully expanded. He had a fair complexion, brown hair and brown eyes.
On 26th of January 1915 he joined the B.E.F. as a private (No. 15426) in the 2nd Bn., Suffolk Regiment, and was posted to the battalion which was holding the sector of the Allied Line in Belgium between Ypres and La Bassee in the Vierstraat area. The battalion formed part of the 8th Brigade of the 3rd Infantry Division. During early 1915 the battalion saw very little action nevertheless it sustained 140 casualties in March alone.
On 11th of April the battalion was withdrawn from the trenches and was in billets in Westoutre.
It was in the Vierstraat area that Clifford was wounded by a sniper. He received a gunshot wound to his cheek and jaw on 18 April 1915 and was taken to No. 8 Casualty Clearing Station at Westroute and was transferred to a military hospital at Wimereux the same day and thence on to the No. 8 Clearing Hospital at Bailleul. On the 25th of April he was sent back to England on the hospital ship St. Patrick.
He remained in England recovering from his wounds until 3 October 1915 when he was transferred to the 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment, 71st Brigade, 24th Infantry Division and returned to France.
On 25th of September the battalion had taken part the battle of Loos only twenty-five days after landing in France and had suffered heavy casualties. After the battle it was withdrawn to Proven to rest and reorganise. It was here that Clifford joined it on 4th of October 1915 as a replacement. The following day it marched with the 71st Brigade to Brandhoek where, on 11th of October, the brigade was transferred to 6th Division.
From October until the end of the year the battalion occupied the line at Forward Cottage trenches or at St. Jean. When not in the line it was ator near Poperinghe furnishing night time working parties. On 19th of December while in the trenches in front of St. Jean the battalion was subjected to a gas attack in the early hours of the morning followed by a very heavy bombardment which lasted 24 hours resulting in over eighty causalities. On 15 December Clifford had 1s 3d stopped from his pay for losing a clasp knife!
Christmas was spent resting at Poperinghe, moving back into camp behind Ypres on the 30th of December after a spell in the trenches at St. Jean.
The battalion remained in this sector until 5th of April 1916 went it moved back to Calais for R & R. It remained here for 10 days and was back in its old camp near Poperinghe and back in the front line around St. Jean and Forward Cottage. It came out of the line again on 18 May 1916 to a camp behind Ypres, returning to the trenches around Forward Cottage early in June. The end of the month saw the Battalion back in camp near Poperinghe until 3 July when it marched to Bollezeele, moving a few days later to Houtkerque for recuperation and training in open warfare. On July 22nd it took over billets in Ypres.
On 4th of August the battalion marched to Albert and took over trenches in front of Mailly-Maillett Wood where they were given the task of clearing the battlefield of the dead of the Ulster Division.
The 28th of August saw the battalion moving to Mericourt l'Abbe on the Ancre and thence into the Sandpit area on the south-eastern edge of Ginchy where on 11 September it took over the trenches of 4th Bn., Coldsteam Guards.
On 13th of September the battalion took part in the attack by the 6th Division on the Quadrilateral between Ginchy and Bouleux Wood but it was stopped by fierce German resistance. The attack recommenced on the 15 September, this time involving 11 British Divisions (including the 6th) during the attack the battalion suffered heavy casualties losing over 100 men dead or wounded and was withdrawn into the support trenches on 17 September. The Quadrilateral was captured by the 6th Division the following day but it had suffered over 3500 casulaties. On the 19th September the battalion marched to Ville-sur-Ancre.
Between 25th and 28th of September the battalion took part in the Battle of Morval when the villages of Morval, Gueudecourt and Les Boeufs were attacked, the latter being captured by the 6th and Guards Division.
From the 3rd of December 1916 to 22nd of December Clifford seems to have been at a Base Hospital in Boulogne. 26th of December 1916 he was in Beaumarais.
On the 23rd of January 1917 he Rejoined his battalion in the field.
On the 6th of May 1917 he was appointed acting Corporal.
and on the 18th of July 1917 he was gazetteered for the Military Medal
16th of February 1918 he was posted to 9th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment.
On 19th of February 1918: Canon Bignold writes "Corporal Clifford Bunn, M.M., has just been to see me and looks very well, but the drum of one ear is destroyed. He is off again for the Front this evening and is very cheery."
Clifford was Posted missing on the 21st of March 1918
and on the 17th of April 1918 his Father was notified that he had "died on or since 21 March 1918"
His total service was reckoned to be 3 years 191 days
and on the 19th of November 1918 his mother was granted a pension of 7s 6d to be paid from this date.
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L/Cpl. William Oliver Twigg 9th Battalion Suffolk Regiment (d.28th April 1917) I know very little of William. Only that we share a common ancester.
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Pte. Morris William Stearns 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment (d.16th Sept 1916) Morris Stearns served with the 9th Suffolk Regiment
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Pte Charles Fred Anderson 9th Btn Suffolk Regiment (d.23rd November 1915) Charles Anderson worked as a farm labourer until enlisting in the Suffolk Regiment. He died of his wounds on 23rd November 1915 and is commemorated at the Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery (IID3).
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Pte. Harry Willmott 9th Btn. Suffolk Regiment Harry Willmott enlisted on the 20th of March 1916 at Bury St. Edmunds at the age of 32. He was assigned to the 9th Suffolk Regiment who left Folkestone on September 7th 1916 for Etaples near Boulogne, in France, arriving September 8th. On September 19th he joined the 9th Battalion.
Harry was reported missing on the 21st of March 1918 whilst serving with the 12th battalion.
He was captured by Germans on 22nd of March 1918 and was held at Altdamm and Perchim, but was released on the 14th of Dec 1918.
He returned home to March.
His nephew Pte. Francis Willmott (1880) Cambridgeshire Regiment, gave his life June 28th 1915, and his name is remembered on a plaque at the March, Cambridgeshire memorial.
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Pte. Arthur Smith 9th Battalion Suffolk Regiment (d.16th Sep 1916) Arthur Smith was wounded in the leg at Ypres on May 8th 1915. He stayed in hospital at Exeter UK and was quoted by the local paper "Our fight in Ypres was hell. I thanked God when I got away from it. I don't know whether any of the fellows from Chatteris were wounded or killed in the fight, as I saw several of them five days before the battle".
Arthur was killed on the 16/9/1916 at Flers-Courcelette, attacking the
Quadrilateral, as part of the Somme offensive.
On reporting his death, a news paper article reported that Arthur, Frank Wheeler & Rifleman Freeman were all best friends at school. They all died within a week of each other in September 1916 on the Somme.
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