Some things I encountered yesterday

[Marc Thompson]

In the same vein as Jan's post I have recently come across reference to a burial at La Clytte Military Cemetery, Reninghelst, Belgium. It commemorates two soldiers by name - Privates W. Lumber and H. G. Noyce, both of the Hampshire Regiment and both of whom died on 30th June 1918 - but states that only one of them is buried in the grave.

I understand (still to be verified) that the two soldiers had been seen together being blown up by a shell. Presumably after the explosion only one, unidentifiable body (or parts of body?) could be found for burial and so the occupant of the grave is either Private Lumber or Private Noyce - but both are commemorated.

Is this a unique occurance on a gravestone? I know that there are a number of occurances where the exact location of a burial in the cemetery cannot be verified and thus the headstone will carry the wording "believed to be buried in this cemetery", but can't remember coming across an either/or situation before.

Regards

Marc

[Conor Dodd]

Is it possible that the soldier that isn't buried in the grave is eleswhere in thge cemetery (belived to buried there ?) as you see on Spec. Mem.

Conor

[Marc Thompson]

Conor,

Both men have the same grave reference so it is more a case of between whom the identification rests rather than an instance of believed to be buried or special memorial. Hence the reason why both names are commemorated on the same headstone. The grave was originally brought in from Leicester Camp Cemetery.

[Terry Denham]

Marc

This is an example of the protocol that CWGC use when the identity of a body has been narrowed down to two names.

The body in the grave is known to be one of the two names on the headstone either because of eye-witness reports or other evidence. (ie possibly two men seen to be killed by an explosion but only one unidentifiable body found or two men reported to be buried at a certain spot but only one found).

In these cases the requirements of CWGC rules are met because one man has a named commemoration above his grave and the other has his name engraved on a memorial (ie the headstone). It matters not which as two sets of n-o-k could then believe that their loved one had a grave.

I do not know how many such examples there are but this one will not be unique.

[Marc Thompson]

Thanks for that information Terry.