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Lt. Alfric Euan Allies
British Army 8th (Service) Btn. Royal Welsh Fusiliers
from:Alfrick
(d.16th Aug 1915)
Alfric Allies was born October 16, 1890, in Worcestershire, the third of four children of Alfred Edward Allies and Florence McIver (nee Murray) Allies of Bewell, Alfrick, Worcestershire. He was educated at Yardley Court School and Tonbridge School in Kent (day boy, 1905-09). After leaving Tonbridge School he was employed at Eton House for a year before proceeding to Brasenose College, Oxford, in 1910 (B.A. with honours in jurisprudence, 1913).
His intention was to one day practice at the Bar, but after leaving Oxford he practised at the Inner Temple. Before the war he enlisted as a private in King Edward’s Horse, but he was later forced to resign from that formation because he had gained too much weight. On 9th of September 1914, he was gazetted 2nd Lieutenant in the 8th Royal Welsh Fusiliers and on 1st of January 1915, he was promoted to lieutenant.
He was killed in action while leading a raid in the vicinity of Cheshire Ridge, Anzac, on 15th of August 1915, aged 24 years (he was originally listed as wounded and missing). His name is commemorated on the Helles Memorial; the Alfrick War Memorial; the roll of honour in St. Mary’s Church, Alfrick, Worcestershire; and the Yardley Court School Roll of Honour, Tonbridge, Kent.
An account follows of Lieutenant Allies’ death, taken from letters from both his company commander and his battalion commander, Lieutenant Colonel A. Hay:
”On August 15th, two companies of the Battalion were holding a line of trenches at the head of a dangerous salient, and the Turks were driving a sap up from their main trench some 70 yards distant, with a view to bombing our trench from a ridge that also commanded the bivouac area of the Battalion. On the night of the 15th, a small bombing party had failed to dislodge the Turks, who had even succeeded in erecting four steel loopholes concealed by leaves on the ridge within 30 yards of our trench. After consultation, the C.O. decided to send out a bayonet party of 12 men, and selected Lieut. Allies, ‘an enterprising and capable officer’. Though it was daylight, he hoped that our machine-gun fire would enable them to effect their object in comparative safety. Lieut. Allies charged gallantly 15 yards in front of the enfilade fire. He was the first to reach the loopholes and was seen to fire his revolver into the trench, but then fell over the ridge towards the Turks, evidently wounded. He was seen crawling back up the slope of the ridge, but was again fired on, rolled back out of sight, and has not been seen or heard of since. Six of his men were also missing, and no sign of any of them was discovered by a bombing party that reached the trench on the following night. His Company Commander testified to the universal sorrow at the loss the Battalion had sustained, and to their admiration of the gallant way in which Lieut. Allies had led his men; and both he and the C.O. expressed their conviction that, if he was taken prisoner, he would be well treated by the Turks.”
