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Pte. William Franklin
British Army 2nd Btn Durham Light Infantry
from:Dalston, London
My Granddad William Franklin was born on 12th. March 1889. He enlisted at Stratford, London on 12th. March 1907 - being his 18th birthday - in the Durham Light Infantry, (2nd. Battalion) no.9960. He served for 5 years of his army service as a regular and then went onto 3 years Army Reserve in 1912.
When war broke out on 4th August 1914 he saw on a poster on the police station notice board, High Road, Tottenham that all Army Reservists should report for duty at once. This he did and re-joined his old regiment and was part of the British Expeditionary Force of September 1914 that went to France and Flanders, "The Old Contemptibles" that distinguished themselves so gallantly in those early battles of 1914, and in 1915 and 1916. He was awarded 1914 Star (5th Aug. - 22nd Nov. 1914), 1914-1918 Medal and The Great War for Civiliisation 1914-1919.
He was transferred to the Royal Munster Fusiliers on 1st April 1917, served in Ireland and was discharged on 1st September 1917 as being no longer physically fit for War Service, aged 28 years and 174 days. He had served 8 years and 110 days with the Colours and 2 years and 64 days in the Army Reserve. His War Service was therefore 3 years and 28 days.
Although The Durham Light Infantry was an infantry regiment, Pte. William Franklin also obtained a Mounted Infantry Certificate in 1907. While he was in the army he married and went on to have 9 children of whom one was my Mum who was born 30th. October 1916. One of the children died during infancy in the 1920's. Two of the sons also went on to serve in the army during the 1939/45 war. William Franklin died in 1973, aged 84 years, having been an inspector on London Buses throughout his civilian life. Most of the family were evacuated to St. Leonards at the outbreak of war in 1939 and he retired there, working part-time as a porter in Marine Court, St. Leonards-on-Sea, having survived the London Blitz during WW2, and lived there until his death.
