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Key dates over November 1918

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

Lives lost on this day: 27

4th November 1918 - Bolshevik demonstrations begin in Germany

Rolling casualty count: 11446

War Front:

2nd Batt: Batt remained in billets during the first hours of the advance, listening to the gunfire and awaiting orders to advance. Word came that the 31st Division had taken their objective and Batt marched up to Hecq which had been taken earlier.

3rd Batt: At 0900 hours the Batt moved to billets near St Hubert cross-roads.

4th Batt: At 0900 hours there was Coy and Platoon training. At 1130 hours, the Batt formed up and did 30 minutes of Ceremonial and Batt drill. An NCO`s class commenced under the Adjutant. The following men were awarded decorations for operations near Gheluveldt from the 29th August to 3rd October:

Lt Col Tudor Fitzjohn, DSO, a bar to his DSO, Capt JM Thorneloe MC, a bar to his MC. Capt AH Bowman and 2Lt RN Warren, the MM,

Capt W Russon, Sgt WJ Smith, the MM and Pte AE Hughes, the DCM.

14th Batt: The 1st Line transport moved to Mastaing. The Batt started training.

Home Front:

Pte. William Milner, Worcestershires, T.F. (elder son of Mr. W. Milner, 14, Covercroft, Droitwich) has died from wounds received in a raid on Austrian trenches. A Chaplain writes: “He died as other brave men have died, doing their duty fearlessly and faithfully. You will always have proud memories of your soldier son.” His Company Commander says: “He was for some time my batsman and I feel his loss very much. He was one of the best soldiers I have met, and he is a great loss to the Battalion.” Pte. Milner joined up under the Derby scheme at the first mass meeting held at Droitwich; his father recalls that he was the one man to step up on the platform to enlist. He had been in France about two years and in Italy about 14 months. He was 22 years of age.

Worcestershire Honours: The honours published in Monday’s “Gazette” includes the following: Air Force Cross: Capt. W.H.N. Shakespeare, M.C: Capt. Shakespeare is a son of Mr. W. Shakespeare, jun., and was formerly in the 8th Worcesters. He was awarded the M.C. for service in the air in December, 1917.

American Soldier Visitors: Twenty wounded soldiers arrived at Worcester this afternoon for convalescence. It was to Worcester that the Anglo-American Fellowship movement was inaugurated to offer hospitality to men from “namesake” and other towns on the other side; and accordingly Worcester sought as far as war condition permitted to welcome them worthily. At Shrub Hill they were received by civic officers and conveyed from the railway station to the Guildhall in a decorated tram-car. They were stirred en route by military music and civilian cheers, and at the Guildhall they were received by the Mayor and their hosts for the week. During the week all kinds of entertainment are programmed, visits to factories etc., theatrical, cinema performances, and so on. On Saturday they will be guests at the Mayor’s lunch, and on Sunday they will be invited to join in the Mayoral procession to the Cathedral, a bit of “old Worcester.”

The official returns reported to Dr. Mabyn Read by the Registrar show that there were 30 deaths from influenza last week. Of these, 15 were reported on Monday and Tuesday, and the others during the last four days of the week. Of these 15 were males and 15 females. One was a baby under 1; five were between 1 and 5; five between 5 and 25; and 19 between 25 and 65. In addition, there were three deaths from pneumonia which were ascribed to influenza. There were several other fatal cases during the weekend. The growing death toll seems incompatible with the statement recorded at the end of last week that the disease is on the wane, but Dr. Mabyn Read points out the these deaths were in nearly every case those of patients who had been ill for a week or more.

A meeting of the Worcestershire Standing Joint Committee was held on Saturday. The Chairman said he had received a communication from the Home Office stating that with the object of saving expense, the female wards of Worcester Prison would be closed from Monday next, and the prisoners would after that day be sent to the Birmingham Prison. The Chairman said he had not yet been able to ascertain what effect this would have upon the county, but as far as the Southern part was concerned, if prisoners were committed to Quarter Sessions and had to be sent to Birmingham, the cost to the county of their railway fares would be considerable.

Railway Company Commends Officers: The Chairman said the G.W.R. Company had written drawing attention to the very commendable conduct of Detective Constable Wilkins and P.C. Humphries, who were successful in bringing to justice two people who had stolen some goods from the railway sidings. The arrest of the prisoners was entirely due to the alertness of the constables mentioned. The Committee ordered that the facts should be inserted in the officers’ records.

The Commandant of the German prisoners’ camp at Great Witley wrote that the detention cells had been condemned as unfit for the winter. He had asked the Superintendent of Police for the use of the police cells there, but the Superintendent said he could not allow the use of it. The Chairman said the difficulty was that there was only one cell, and when the sergeant was away there was no one in charge except the sergeant’s wife, and he did not think it right to leave a prisoner in a cell there with only a woman to look after him. With every desire to help the Military, they could not allow the use of the cell. Mr. Wheeler said that the cells in Worcester should be offered, and the Chairman, saying there would be plenty of room in the prison now that the female wards were closed, agreed to inform the officers of that fact.

General List: Casualties to officers in today’s list number 194 – killed, 31; died of wounds, 5; died, 10; wounded, 147. The number of casualties in the ranks is 4,840 – killed, 698; died of wounds,281; died. 221; wounded, 3,628. The list includes the names of 47 officers who have been repatriated.

How the Soldiers will come Home: An industrial census of men serving under the colours was made long ago, and they will be discharged from service not as military units, but as workers’ groups according to the demands made by the Labour Ministry and Reconstruction Department. Priority will be given to men who before were in industries that now stand most in need of labour and also to those whose jobs are held open for them to return to. The arrangements for disbanding made by the military authorities will enable as many as 40,000 men a day to be transferred from the Army to civil life. So far as possible the discharges will take place in equal numbers of men on foreign service and those on home service, to avoid the former having cause for complaint that the best jobs were snatched up before they came home. Coal mining is bound to have an early call for miners to be taken out of the regimental ranks. The railways must be immediately reinforced. Building is also essential and urgent. Food supplies will have first call on all available shipping after the war and raw material will have second.

The Board of Agriculture are being constantly asked whether they want pigs kept. They want every possible pig kept, but they cannot promise any food beyond January, and they therefore cannot advise anyone to keep pigs who does not see some way of providing for them out of local resources. They urge every pig-keeper to make the best shift he can.

Information researched by The Worcestershire World War 100 team