George Burton and George Sharpe were not the only men on the Ibstock war memorial to have started their Army life with one of the Leicester TF battalions before being transferred. Men who had trained with and fully expected to join one of their County's TF battalions were diverted on arrival in France to a unit they had no previous connections with.

John William Steel was just 18 years old when he attended his medical at the Glen Parva barracks on 6th March 1917, it was to be another seven months before he was called up on the 29th November 1917. Unlike many others on the Ibstock memorial, John was not miner but a plumber and painter by trade. His father George Steel had established the family business, which was run from 55& 57, Hight Street, Ibstock and advertised his house maintenance services in the Kelly directory and elsewhere. No doubt George Steel had hopes his two sons John and Henry would stay in the business in future years. But now he saw his eldest son conscripted, while young Henry stayed at home.

On completion of training, private 46057 Steel embarks on the 4 April 1918 for France. Within a day John Steel and others from the same draft are transferred to the 9th Norfolks and renumbered. John becomes private 41413. Leonard Maurice Newman from nearby Coalville becomes private 41420.

It's a time for crisis for the Allies, the enemy's hammer blows of the spring offensive on the Somme in March have come close to breaking through. On 9th April the Gremans switch to Flanders and launch operation “Georgette” attacking the British between Givenchy and Armentières and a thrust across the valley of the River Lys, towards the important railway centre of Hazebrouck, followed by a second attack, further north, in the direction of Messines. The situation deteriorates on 11 April, with the abandonment of Messines Ridge and enemy infantry pouring across the Lys to within five miles of Hazebrouck. Sir Douglas Haig issues his ‘Backs to the Wall’ special Order of the Day. As Ypres is threatened, Plumer decides to withdraw the British lines almost to the ramparts on the 14th Arpil. The defence is pushed back but not broken and gradually shored up by the feeding in of reserves. In the centre the enemy were threatening Bailleul, important for use as the home of headquarters, medical units, billets, etc, and with an RFC aerodrome just outside the town.

By the 15th april the 9th Norfolks and come under the temporary command of the 1st Leicesters, both part for the 71st Brigade of the 6th Division. The 9th Norfolks had already lost heavily in their rear guard action in the earlier 21st March enemy offensive, the draft of men originally destined for the 1/4th Leicsters had helped to bring them up to strength. On the 15th April with no previous combat experience and with only just over a week in the field, soldiers like John Steel of Ibstock and Leonard Newman of Coalville found themselves manning the front line and trying to stem the tide close to Crucifix corner, near Dranoute . The war dairy entry says:

Total casualties are 2 Officers and 108 other ranks, and many more wounded.

Both John Steel and Leonard Newman are posted missing on 15.4.1918 along with most of the others. On December 9th 1918 John 's Mother writes a plaintive letter asking for news of her son. But it is an agonising year before the Army finally notifies them on 8.5.1919 that he was killed in action. The truth is they were almost certainly dead on the 15.4.1918, but the advancing enemy prevented the recovery of bodies. Out the total of 110 lives lost only 4 have known graves. Perhaps they are buried together in in some unmarked place never to be found. John William Steel's name was added to the thousand of others on the Tyne Cot memorial, along with Leonard Maurice Newman from nearby Coalville who had died on the same day in 1918.

Young John William Gray, a miner, was another Ibstock man who had volunteered to join the TF. In John's case he had taken a medical on the 17th May 1915 at Coalville and his papers were countersigned at Loughborough on 18th May 1915, the date his service reckons from. Nineteen year old John W Gray was now private 4265 of the 3rd/5th Leicesters. With the shortage of uniforms and equipment suffered by TF reserve units, John is given a khaki armlet on 19th December 1915.

For whatever reason, he remains in the UK for a year and 101 days. John finally embarks for France in the heat of the summer on 27th August 1916, bound for the 1st/5th Leicesters. On arrival in France he is immediately transferred to the 8th Battalion of the Leicesters and is given the new regimental number 40219, joining them in the field on the 2nd September 1916. John would not have felt out of place as his new battalion was part of the “Leicester Tigers Brigade” consisting of the 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Liecesters. But he was soon to experience the full ferocity of the Somme battle.

September 15th is regarded as the beginning of the third phase of the Battle of the Somme. It was a day of progress with the British advancing on a six mile front to a depth of 2,000 to 3,000 yards. Flers, Martinpuich, Courcelette and High Wood were all captured and tanks made their first ever appearance in battle. But here was no breakthrough, and heavy casualties were sustained. The next major assault was to be on Lesboeufs and Morval. Bad weather delayed operations from the 23rd to 25th September when the assault took place. The preliminary bombardment began at 7am on 24 September; the assault troops waiting in muddy ‘jumping-off’ trenches early next morning witnessed a barrage of unprecedented destructive power on German positions, which intensified just before zero hour. At 12.35pm on 25 September, as the creeping barrage pounded down on No Man’s Land, the infantry advanced.

These were the scenes that John W Gray of Ibstock would have witnessed as his battalion was just one of many assembled for the attack that day. Events are described in the war dairy:

Just how far John advanced on that warm cloudless day is hard to tell, and whether he even saw the enemy is doubtful. He was struck by a bullet that passed through the top of both thighs, at one of the machine gunners favoured heights. He was one of the many 8th Battalion men to have been mowed down. Just how long it was before aid and the stretcher bearers reached him is unknown, but he was passed down the evacuation chain to no.6 General Hospital Rouen, from where he was returned to England on 28/9/16. John's war had so far lasted just over 30 days.

Many other Leicester men would never be going home. On the long casualty list that day are several men who had been transferred to the 8th battalion along with John William Gary, including: Private 40217 William Bloxham from Hinckley; Private 40163 William Cooke from Whitwick and Private 40181 Sidney Musson from Burbage.

It is nine months before John recovers from his wounds and is fit enough to return to duty. On 10.6.1917 he is sent back to France, embarking from Folkestone. He spends several days at the 12 IBD Calais where once again he is transferred to a new battalion and joins the 9th Leicesters on 18.7.1917.

The 110th Brigade went into divisional reserve in July 1917, but remained in the Tunnel Sector, battalions taking turns in the front line until the beginning of September. No major attacks were carried out, but casualties continued to be sustained, mainly due to shellfire. Early in September 1917, the 21st Division entrained and once again headed north for the Ypres Salient.

This would be John's first experience of Flanders, where the third battle of Ypres had been in progress since Tuesday 31st July 1917 and was fought in some of the worse conditions of the entire war. On day 57 of the battle, Monday 1st October 1917, the 8th and 9th Leicesters were holding the brigade front east of Polygon wood. At 5.25am the enemy put down a heavy barrage on the front company and Polygon Wood, the first wave attacks through a smoke screen. Two waves are driven off by lewis gun and rifle fire, but the 9th battalion's right flank is threatened. At 5.40am 2 platoons of “D” Company under Lt. Col. P. E. BENT D.S.O. and “B” Company under Lt. BURN immediately counter attacked the enemy. The counter attack was successful and drove enemy from our front but Lt. Col. BENT who lead the charge with a cry of “come on the Tigers”, is killed. He is posthumously awarded the VC for his actions. The enemy shelling in POLYGON WOOD is extremely heavy, causing many casualties. Remnants of the 7th Leicesters arrive as reinforcements around 9.30am and the line is held against further enemy advances. The Leicesters attempt to consolidate and improve their position throughout the afternoon when all movement is subject to sniper and machine gun fire. Enemy shelling increases again at 1.15pm and later at 5.30pm. In response to an SOS at 7.00pm and 11.00pm any threat is broken by a barrage. The night passes comparatively quietly.

This must have been one of the most traumatic day's of John Gray's life. Whose to say if he was one of those in that heroic charge, but in the relative claim of the following day disaster strikes and John is exposed to mustard gas. There is no report of gas shelling, it was either a stray or perhaps with his nerves shredded and in an exhausted state John falls on contaminated ground. (All reference in his papers are to wounding by gas shell). His comrades would have done their best to dress his wounds, but his badly effected with burns and he is blinded by the severe blistering of his eyes. At least there is a lull in the fighting for the 9th battalion who are relieved on the night of the 3rd October 1917. John is passed from Field Ambulance to 17 CCS on the 2nd and is transported to no. 5 General Hospital at Rouen by the 4th October. It is two weeks until John is able to be evacuated to the UK on the 14th October 1917.

While it may not have been an outright killer, even tiny amounts of mustard gas penetrating clothing and masks would cause agonisingly painful injuries. If inhaled, things could be very much worse.

On 20.10.1917 John Gray is admitted to the 2nd Western General Hospital which had sections scattered at numerous Manchester locations. There he is recorded as being gassed on 1st October 1917, contradicting his B.103 entries. John is hospitalised for over six months, during which time he develops bronchitis on 18.12.1917. His eyesight recovers, and his burns heal, he is discharged class II for gradual exercise on 16.5.1918, but John still complains of head and eye pain. In just over a week John is re-admitted to the more local 5th Northern General Hospital at Pretoria Rd, Leicester on 24.5.1918. John's heart is failing. After five months it is clear John will never recover and he is discharged from the Hospital and the Army on 8.10.1918 as medically unfit with a Silver War Badge. John dies at home on 20/3/1919 and is buried in the St.Denys Churchyard, Ibstock.

Two other young Ibstock miners, Albert Marlow and Arthur Ottey, had first served in the 1st/5th Leicesters before being transferred. Their papers have not survived, but their original Army numbers, 4087 and 4195, fall within range of those men who are known to have volunteered in late March to early May of 1915. As their enlistments took place at Loughborough, home of the 5th Leicestershire TF battalion, they are likely to have first been posted to the 3rd/5th Leicesters before being transferred to the 1/5th when sent to France on 28.10.1915. They were in in the same draft of men as George Sidney Bott, whose name is also on the Ibstock memorial, and many others from places like Heather, Coalville, Whitwick, Measham and Hugglescote.

Neither man is named in the history of the 1/5th Leicesters and without service papers it is not possible to say with accuracy what happened to them. But Albert Marlow was posted to the Labour Corps as private 439778 sometime between October 1917 and January 1918. After its formation in January 1917, soldiers who had recovered from wounds, injury or illness but were no longer classed A1 often found themselves posted to the Labour Corps. Whether it's Albert Marlow's health that finally breaks down or his is wounded again isn't known. He is recorded as “died at home” on 29/10/1918 and is buried at the Pretoria Road Cemetery in Ibstock.

Arthur Ottey seems still to have been in the 1st/5th at the time territorials were numbered and becomes private 241478. He is later transferred to the 7th Leicesters, part of 110th Brigade. At the time Arthur Ottey is killed on 22.8.1918 their war diary reads:

Arthur Ottey has no known grave, and is name appears on panel 5 of the Vis-en-Artois memorial.