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Key dates over December 1915

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Lives lost on this day: 3

23rd December 1915 - Roland Leighton dies of wounds

Rolling Casualty Count: 2623

1st Batt: C Coy was shelled during day but no damage done.

2nd Batt: Hot baths at Bourecq were allotted to the Batt. 500 men bathed and were issued with clean underwear. Men who did not bathe were employed elsewhere.

10th Batt: Batt relieved by 10th Royal Warwickshire.

11th Batt: The Batt transport which had been left behind in Marseilles for want of accommodation on the battleships, rejoiced us. With their help, a good camp was pitches close to the trenches and Batt enjoyed their first Christmas in the field. Beer, oranges, fresh meat, bread, flour and raisins etc made a good Christmas meal.

Sec.Lt Roland Leighton of 1/7th Worcestershires was shot on a moonlit 22nd December while inspecting the wire near Hebuterne. He died in the Casualty Clearing Station at Louvencourt the following night and is buried there. His fiancee, Vera Brittan, wrote and published extensively their letters and those of their group of friends including her brother Edward, most notably in Testament of Youth, while a composite edition was published as Letters from a Lost generation

SHOPS ACT: HOLIDAYS

Dear Sir, - As there appears to be much doubt among shopkeepers as to their position under the above act during the Christmas season, I should be glad if you would publish this letter in which I beg to point out that the Shops Act, 1912. Provides that "where a shop is closed during the whole day on the occasion of a Bank Holiday and that day is not the day fixed for the weekly half-holiday, it shall be lawful for the occupier of the shop to keep the shop open for the serving of customers after the hour at which it is required to be closed either on the half-holiday immediately preceding, or on the half-holiday immediately succeeding the Bank Holiday.

Information researched by the WWW100 team.