204531 Rifleman William James Robinson British Army 8th Battalion, C Coy. The Rifle Brigade from:Ryland Road, Birmingham (d.15th Sept 1916) Rifleman Z/1227 William James Robinson, 8th Battalion Rifle Brigade, “C†Company is remembered on the Thiepval Memorial face 16B/16C
He was killed, on 15th September 1916 at the battle of Flers and Courcellete. It is likely he was killed by German enfilade fire from Pint Trench as the Battalion attacked Flers from the rear of Delville Wood as they advanced out of Brown Trench.
William was born on 6th June 1895 in Birmingham, the eldest son of William James Robinson (b.1871) and Georgina Robinson (b.1876). Before enlisting he lived with his parents and brothers and sisters; Nellie (b.1896), Albert (b.1899), Elsie (b.1904), Rose (b.1907) and George (b.1910) and Edna (b 1913). The family home was a back-to-back house in Edgbaston, Birmingham. The house had a kitchen/living room, a bedroom and an attic. William’s occupation at 15, listed on the 1911 Census return was Capstan Operator. He lived in the same house all of his short life.
William became one of the many soldiers known as ‘Kitchener’s New Army’ that were used to fill the ranks when after the British standing Army and Reservists “The Old Contemptibles†were decimated in the first few months of the War.
He was among the early volunteers enlisting after the declaration of war in August 1914. This is indicated by the “Z†prefix to his service number. The “Z†Prefix was used by the Rifle Brigade for Special Reservists signing up for a period of three years and was only used for about 1 month. All the men with “Z†prefixes enlisted in late August 1914 to mid September 1914 and numbered just short of 3000.
At the time of his enlistment he would still have had the choice of regiments to serve in, so he actually chose to join the Rifle Brigade. The 8th Battalion Rifle Brigade was part of the 14th (Light) Division. The Division was called Light as it contained all Light Infantry battalions such as the Rifle Brigade and the Kings Royal Rifle Corps.
His 1914-15 Star Roll shows that he entered theatre on the 9/8/15. Before then it is likely he was training or at the depot of the 5th or 6th Rifle Brigade in the Isle of Sheppey. These training and feeder battalions were also used as the north River Thames Garrison on Guard duty.
Unfortunately, his record, where his destination in France would have been listed, has not survived. However, it is possible he would have gone to an Infantry Base Depot in France (most likely the 47th at Havre) and then from there would have been posted to the 8th Rifle Brigade.
His record would also have recorded the exact date that he arrived with the 8th Battalion in the field. However, there were drafts of men who joined the 8th to reinforce after the Battle of Hooge, on the following days:-
110 draft - 9/8/1915,
50 draft - 14/8/1915,
67 draft - 22/8/1915
It is very unlikely but possible that he joined with the 9/8/1915 draft. It is more likely he joined with the 14/8/1915 or 22/8/1915 drafts of men, which probably meant he was at the 47th Infantry Brigade Depot at Havre for a couple of days before being posted to the 8th Rifle Brigade.
The Battalion war diaries show that he served in and around the Ypres/Arras and Poperinge areas before moving down to the Somme area just before the battle of Flers and on the 15th September 1916.
According to Trevor Pidgeon (Flers & Gueudecourt 2002), the men of the 14 Division (of which the 8th Battalion Rifle Brigade were part) were deployed along the Longueval-Ginchy road and out into the fields north of Delville Wood. The area was called the Brewery so-called because of the trench names Beer, Ale, Hop, Lager, Stout, Bitter, Pilsen, Pint, Porter and VAT. Many of these trenches were still held by the Germans so that when the British advanced they would be superb enfilade targets for the German machine gun and rifle fire.
The leading troops at zero hour were to be the 8th Battalion Rifle Brigade and the 8th Battalion Kings Royal Rifle Corps. William’s Company (Company “Câ€) was in Brown Trench. At zero hour the Company was to advance in a north easterly direction towards Flers.
According to the war diaries of the 8th Battalion Rifle Brigade, there was an intense bombardment at zero hour (6.20 a.m.). The battalion moved forward under the barrage. For the first 150 yards casualties were reasonably light, however in the next 200 yards they came under heavy fire and the casualties were very high. This was mainly due to heavy fire from Pint Trench. It is likely but not certain that William was killed during that fateful 200 yards. The Battalion did continue its advance and by around 7.00 a.m. had captured its objective, Switch Trench, but in doing so encountered formidable resistance involving fierce hand to hand fighting, so he may have been killed there.
Captain S. J. Worsley, D.S.O., M.C. describes the fighting around Delville Wood as follows:-
Every semblance of a trench seemed full of dead-sodden, squelchy, swollen bodies. Fortunately the blackening faces were invisible except when Verey lights lit up the indescribable scene. Not a tree stood whole in that wood.
Several, including myself, had dysentery, and that in a ghastly battered trench with no prospect of medical attention. After all, we stood and lay on putrefying bodies and the wonder was that the disease did not finish off what the shells of the enemy had started.
There was hand-to-hand fighting with knives, bombs, and bayonets; cursing and brutality on both sides such as men can be responsible for when it is a question of "your life or mine"; mud and filthy stench; dysentery and unattended wounds; shortage of food and water and ammunition.
From an historic point of view the attack was the very first to see the use of the new ‘tanks’ in combat. The Rifle Brigade was to be protected by Tank D1, commanded by Captain Harold Mortimore. Although the tank was able to clear the Brewery Trench, it was early on hit by a shell which put it out of action. William’s Company (“Câ€) were within a hundred yards or so of the tank.
It has not been possible to discover exactly how he died, by bullet, shell, grenade or hand to hand fighting. However, following his death, some personal possessions were returned to his parents. So at some point I assume there must have been an identifiable body (which it is always possible was buried in a makeshift grave). But as his death is recorded on the Thiepval Memorial to the missing, then the body or possibly grave must have subsequently been destroyed.
William James Robinson like the millions of other young men of his generation lived, fought and died in conditions so horrendous that we can scarcely comprehend. His sacrifice will be remembered in perpetuity by a grateful family. His body lies somewhere in that corner of a foreign field that will be forever England.
|