Soldier returned home to die?

[temptage]

Under what circumstances would warrant an injured soldier to be sent back to Blighty and treated in hospital before his death rather than being treated at a Field Hospital in France, like so many countless others?

There is a soldier buried in my local Cemetery who was injured on 01/07/1916 but died of his wounds on 17/07/1916 here in Blighty.

Its the first I have known of something like this, but does anyone know whether it was a common thing to do, especially with all the casualties from 01/07/16. Was it a case of having to repatriate some because there were too many to be dealt with in the Hospitals behind the lines?

Or might it have been that he was so badly injured that death was inevitable but for all concerned it would be easier to free up a bed at the hospital and send him back home to his family to see his days out?

Im not sure where he actually died, but he was returned to Grimsby for burial.

[Terry_Reeves]

Temptage

It was not that unusual. Badly wounded soldiers who required longer term treatment were sent home for the reason you have mentioned and perhaps because more specialised treatment was required, which was not available in hospitals within the BEF. Whilst a badly wounded soldier may have been stable enough to be transported to a UK hospital, his condition may well have deteriorated once at home, for all sorts of medical reasons.

TR

[centurion]

Given that there were no antibiotics available even a routine operation carried the risk of an ultimately fatal infection despite all the post Lister developments in antiseptic practices. Men were often sent back to Britain for operations simply because that's where the specialist hospitals where. I have also seen mentions of men sent home to Britain to recover taking a sudden turn for the worst and dying. I don't think that men were sent home to die they were usually sent home to recover but died.

[kenmorrison]

If he was L/Cpl (74) Alfred Wringe, 10th Lincolns, his death was registered at South Stoneham, Hampshire. http://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/search.pl

Buried Grimsby (Scathro Road) Cemetery.

Ken

[johnboy]

A lot of the London hospitals were close to large cemetaries. If you go to CWGC you will see the number of men buried in them.

[BIFFO]

one of my chaps had trench foot in Ypres,sent back to Blighty and died of blood poisoning,as has already been said unfortunately not that unusual

Biff

[temptage]

Thanks chaps. That answers that.

If his death was registered in South Stoneham, he will have died at The Royal Victoria Hospital at Netley, or the Welsh or Red Cross hutted Hospitals on the same site. I've read that by 4th July 1916 there were roughly 33000 seriously injured casualties at the French ports awaiting evacuation to British Hospitals.

[johnboy]

It also has to be remembered that even if a man died in a UK hospital he may still be buried miles from home if his NOK could not afford the transport of the body to his home town.

[temptage]

Hence the 650+ burials at Netle itself.

[centurion]

It also has to be remembered that even if a man died in a UK hospital he may still be buried miles from home if his NOK could not afford the transport of the body to his home town.

And given the numbers of emigrants who had returned to the Mother Country to enlist there would be men who had no NOK in Britain and whose 'home town' was far far away. Not only was there the cost of transport to consider. The railway companies appear to have made getting a body home as cheap as possible but a funeral itself cost which is why so many belonged to burial clubs - saving up for a "respectable" funeral. If the family did not have the money put by they might prefer the army to look after the burial rather than have a paupers funeral in the home town. The army would certainly do this but only at a burial site in close proximity to the place of death.

[Sue Light]

I've read that by 4th July 1916 there were roughly 33000 seriously injured casualties at the French ports awaiting evacuation to British Hospitals.

Although I can see where that comes from on the web, it has been taken out of context and doesn't reflect the situation accurately. The following extracts comes from the Official History, Medical Services, Volume 2, and shows that on the 1st July roughly half of all beds were vacant, and many of the men evacuated were already in hospital classed as 'slighter cases.' So despite the enormous numbers of casualties there were beds for all seriously wounded men, and the men evacuated as stated previously were being sent home to recover, not to die, though some did.

The accommodation in the hospitals on the Lines of Communication and in convalescent and stationary hospitals in the front area was, on the 1st July, approximately 61,000, including 1,300 for Indians, and the number of beds vacant at the time in the base hospitals was 30,602, including 428 for Indians, in convalescent depots, 5252, including 465 for Indians; in stationary hospitals in army areas 383, making a total of 36,237, including 893 for Indians.

Consequently, it became a matter of urgency to clear a large number of wounded to the United Kingdom, and in doing so a considerable number of slighter cases were evacuated from France. As a result of this experience, the convalescent depots in France were not only increased in number, but were organized for as many as 5,000 convalescents at a time, and a large convalescent depot to accommodate that number was opened at Cayeux near the mouth of the Somme on the 24th July.

The greatest number embarked on any one day during the battle was 11,946, on the 6th July, a figure which also represents the maximum number on any one day placed on board ships during the war. On the three previous days in July the numbers cleared from the base hospitals were 5,609, 8,350 and 7,011. After that date evacuation overseas was carried out at the rate of between 4,000 and 5,000 daily until the 9th July, and between 2,000 and 3,000 daily from then to the 15th July.

Sue

[TARA]

A relative of mine, Sgt E F Peachey, 8 Suffolks, was wounded at the Somme, 1 July 1916. He was evacuated to England and died of wounds at Woburn Military Hospital on 13 July 1916. His family had him buried in his home village churchyard, Edwardstone, Suffolk.

One record shows 'died 13 July 18', theatre of war 'home'. which I thought was misleading.

TARA

[centurion]

A relative of mine, Sgt E F Peachey, 8 Suffolks, was wounded at the Somme, 1 July 1916. He was evacuated to England and died of wounds at Woburn Military Hospital on 13 July 1916. His family had him buried in his home village churchyard, Edwardstone, Suffolk.

One record shows 'died 13 July 18', theatre of war 'home'. which I thought was misleading.

TARA

To list him as having died in any other theatre would be even more misleading