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204988 Pte. Albert Brain British Army 2nd Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment from:Calthorpe Street, Banbury (d.21st Nov 1914) Albert enlisted in the Royal Warwickshire regiment at Coventry whilst living in Banbury. The date of enlistment is not known but the 1911 census records taken on Sun 2nd April 1911 show that he was then serving overseas in Bombay with the 1st Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire regiment. The 1st battalion sailed for England on December 11th 1912 arriving there on 2nd Jan 1913. It was then based at Shorncliffe, near Folkestone. The battalion was in the 10th Brigade 4th Division. On 8th Aug 1914 the battalion travelled by train to Yorkshire (to assist in countering any threatened German invasion). From Yorkshire it moved to Southampton. On 22nd August the battalion sailed on the SS Caledonian disembarking at Boulogne on 23rd August. Sadly, Albert was killed on 21st November 1914 whilst serving with “A” Company of the 2nd battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment and he is commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial in Belgium. Albert’s death certificate states that he was ‘Presumed Killed In Action’. The certificate also states his rank as Lance Corporal. Therefore, sometime between 21st January 1913 (when the First Battalion arrived back in England) and 21st Nov 1914 Albert transferred from the First Battalion to the Second Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. The Second Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire regiment was in Litchfield from 1908-1911. Then for a short time at Shornciffe then Portland until it sailed for Malta on December 22nd 1912. It remained in Malta until 19th August 1914 when it left for England landing there on September 19th 1914. Based in Lyndhurst the battalion was then attached to the 22nd Brigade 7th Division and the battalion subsequently left for Flanders landing at Zeebrugge on 6th October 1914. Unfortunately the true manner of Albert’s death is unlikely to ever be known but it is very probable that he was killed whilst the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Warwicks was being relieved by the 2/Queens (Royal West Kent) Battalion. Additional Information: Further information from medal records etc show that Albert left for Flanders with the 2nd Battalion, Royal Warwicks on 4th October 1914 from Southampton. The battalion was involved in heavy fighting near Ypres on 24th/25th October when Albert, presumed Missing, was actually killed. He was officially declared dead on 21st November. Therefore, Albert was dead 3 weeks of leaving England. Keith Brain Reply Please type your message:      We recommend you copy the text about this item and keep a copy on your own computer before pressing submit. Your Name:             Email Address:       @ **Please put first part of your email, (before the @ sign) in the first box, and the second part in the second box. Do not include @, it is automatic. Do not enter your full email in each box or add an @ sign or random spaces.**