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Key dates over December 1916

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: 2

8th December 1916 - Vicar at St. Peters kills himself

Rolling casualty count: 5080

2nd Batt: After cleaning up am, the Batt moved to Camp 20 which it took over from the Household Batt. This camp was dirty and blankets arrived very late as the lorries did not turn up.

4th Batt: GOC 87th Brigade visited the Front Line and found all trenches passable and dry from end to end. Relief by the 1st Essex reg, then Batt marched to Bernafay. Seventy –four men sent to the 29th Divsional Labour Batt at Guillemont.

9th Batt: Batt arrived at Twin Canals, a post on a desolate plain which was covered by slushy mud and there had to pitch camp.

Home Front:

County Appeal Tribunal Mr Bund and the Concientious Objector – A sitting of the County Appeal Tribunal was held this morning at the Shirehall. The Chairman alluded to the case of conscientious objector named Francis Jones. The Tribunal made an order that within 21 days he should find work of national importance and exempted him from combative service. He had evidently extended his conscientious objections to speaking the truth and acting straightforwardly, which he was sorry to say he had not done. Having been exempted since August 29th, he had succeeded in eluding the military and police and doing one day’s work in that period. He went back to his old employer and stated that he had leave to work for him and his old employer took him on again. Then, finding he was likely to get into trouble, Jones applied for a post at Malvern School, where they agreed to take him. He had succeeded in dodging the Warwickshire and Birmingham Police and there had been considerable correspondence in regard to him. One admired his cleverness and he might be useful to the Army, though not in the way of fighting. One could not have the orders of the Tribunal stultified in this way. The non-combatant certificate would stand and the Military could take what course it thought fit.

Worcester Tragedy – Clergyman Shoots Himself –Wife’s Terrible Ordeal – People in St. Peter’s parish were shocked to hear this morning of the death in tragic circumstances of the Rev. H>C>P> Wilkinson the Curate of the parish, who resides at 36 Hill Avenue. He shot himself with a revolver as he was getting up. Mr Wilkinson had been very unwell for some time. His wife was standing by the dressing table when he got out of bed. He walked in the direction of the dressing table, took a small revolver from his trousers pocket (the existence of which his wife was unaware) and before she had time to comprehend what he was about to do, shot himself through the head. The distressed young lady had to step over the dead body in order to get out of the room. Dr Moore Ede, who was sent for, could only pronounce life extinct and he took the wife and her young son to his home.

Information researched by The Worcestershire World War 100 team