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Pte. Edwin Louis Priest
British Army 17th (1st Football) Battalion Middlesex Regiment
from:Southend on Sea
Edwin Priest attested on 12th of December 1915 as part of the Lord Derby scheme. He stated his willingness to serve for the duration of the war and was posted for duty on 11th of February 1916. After training, he joined the 17th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment in France along with a draft of 69 other ranks. The Battalion was undergoing refit in a rest area of the Somme after having severe casualties at 2 actions on the Somme at Delville Wood and Guillemont.
After refit, the Battalion and Edwin carried out regular tours of duty in the Somme front line trenches throughout January, February, March and April 1917. This included forming regular working parties. During April 1917 they also practiced for their forthcoming part in the Arras offensive. On 28th of April they made their attack, the objective being the capture of Oppy Wood and village. All went well early on. However, the battalions attacking either side of them were unable to keep up due to uncut wire and very strong German defences. This enabled the Germans to make strong counter attacks on both flanks of the 17th Middlesex. Despite determined efforts to resist this, it effectively resulted in most of the attacking Middlesex troops being surrounded and killed, wounded or captured. The remnants of the Middlesex had to return to their original starting point. In this action the Middlesex suffered their highest single casualties of the war. The wounded who managed to get back were those injured early in the attack before the Germans had managed to surround them. Fortunately Edwin was wounded by shrapnel in the left arm early on. He helped assist another wounded man back.
Edwin was sent back to the Warrington Military Hospital in England and was eventually deemed fit on 23rd of June 1917. However, he was only fit for 2nd line duties, eg guarding lines of communication. He was posted to the 1st Garrison Battalion of the Essex Regiment and spent 18 months in Egypt and Palestine, catching measles there. January and February 1919 was spent in Salonika, where he caught malaria. This invalided him back to England to the Belmont Road Hospital in Liverpool. He was demobbed on 8th of April 1919.
