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Key dates over October 1917

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Lives lost on this day: 6

5th October 1917 - THE TRIBUNALS WORCESTER CITY

Rolling casualty count: 7716

War Front:

1st Batt: Batt relieved by the 2nd Northamptonshires and marched back to Brigade Support at Red Lodge.

2nd Batt: Batt moved at 9.30am for Salperivier on the outskirts of St Omer. Billets good but scattered.

2/7th Batt: Batt cleaning up and reorganising. 2nd Lt AN Hutchinson wounded on 25.8.17, re-joined from hospital.

1/8th Batt: Batt marched to Dambri Camp.

2/8th Batt: Batt cleaning up in the camp. Capt. Godsall re-joined and 11 other ranks arrived from Divisional Depot.

3rd Batt: Batt proceeded to the trenches at 6.30pm and relieved the 17th Middlesex Reg. of the 6th Infantry Brigade. The Front held extended from the northern end of of Warwick South Island. A B and C Coys were to the right of the junction of Shetland road, with the 10th Cheshires on the right and Portuguese on the left. The Festubert Sector was low-lying and dominated by the Givenchy Ridge. The trenches were very old.

10th Batt: Batt relieved by a Batt of the 56th Brigade and moved to Rossignol Camp. 2nd Lt EGH Hornby and 2 other ranks were wounded.

14th Batt: Batt at Seaton Camp. Orders came that a Pioneer Batt was to be detached from the Division and to be placed under the orders of the 14th Corps Staff for work in the forward area.

Home Front:

THE TRIBUNALS WORCESTER CITY – Wood-Workers Wanted – There were several Military reviews, most of them being wood-workers. Lieut. Dixon stating that those men were urgently needed for aircraft work. The Military asked for the withdrawal of the certificate of Alfred Wilks (44) married, passed for general service and employed by Richard Wilkes as a carpenter, coffin maker and builder’s foreman. The Chairman “Are you going to guarantee that there will be no more deaths. Lieut Dixon: “No, but there are plenty of coffin makers in Worcester”. Mr Wilkes said the man was his only carpenter and if he was taken that he could not get another. Lieut. Dixon said carpenters were wanted for aeroplane work, but the difficulty in Worcestershire was that so many carpenters were over military age. Certificate continued.

WORCESTERSHIRE AND THE WAR – 10,000 SPECTATORS WATCH SPORTS AT THE FRONT – a young Worcester officer, writing from France front to his parents says: The Divisional Sports and Horse Show were held a few days ago. It was a huge fete, very well organised and as the weather was fine it proved a great success. About 10,000 men of the Division were present. There were lots of very interesting items, but I liked the music best. Four bands were playing in different parts of the grounds and just before the close the massed bands played a few pieces. There were lots of funny people there, soldiers in extraordinary “get-up” – one as Charlie Chaplin and another as Johnnie Walker.

Information researched by The Worcestershire World War 100 team