Lt EHL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade. Killed 15 Sep 1916 on the Somme

[MBrockway]

Remembering today

Lt Evelyn HL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade,



Killed in action 15 Sep 1916 at the Battle of Flers/Courcelette on the Somme.

Andy's Topic on this man and his great friend, Malcolm White:
Two Men - One Memorial, The Story of two Shrewsbury Schoolteachers

and my Topic on his memorial in Worcester Cathedral:
Lt EHL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade, Killed 15 Sep 1916 at The Somme

Remembered for another year.

He gave his today for our tomorrow.

Mark

[stiletto_33853]

Remembering Evelyn and all the men that fell in the Battle of Flers/Courcelette on the 15/9/16.

Andy

[MBrockway]

Remembering today

Lt Evelyn HL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade,

[Picture courtesy of Richard Van Emden] [Memorial Window in Worcester Cathedral]

Killed in action 15 Sep 1916 at the Battle of Flers/Courcelette on the Somme.


Andy's Topic on this man and his great friend, Malcolm White:
Two Men - One Memorial, The Story of two Shrewsbury Schoolteachers

and my Topic on his memorial in Worcester Cathedral:
Lt EHL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade, Killed 15 Sep 1916 at The Somme


Remembered for another year.

He gave his today for our tomorrow.

Mark

[Keith Iles]

Remembered

[stiletto_33853]

Remembering Evelyn.

Andy

[MBrockway]

Remembering today

Lt Evelyn HL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade,

Evelyn in August 1916 a month before he fell (2/Lt Kiek in background) His memorial window in Worcester Cathedral No 7 in the 1907 Oxford Blue Boat nine years earlier

[Picture courtesy of Richard Van Emden] [Memorial Window in Worcester Cathedral] [Picture courtesy of Andy Pay]


Killed in action 15 Sep 1916 at the Battle of Flers/Courcelette on the Somme.


Andy's Topic on this man and his great friend, Malcolm White:
Two Men - One Memorial, The Story of two Shrewsbury Schoolteachers

and my Topic on his memorial in Worcester Cathedral:
Lt EHL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade, Killed 15 Sep 1916 at The Somme


Remembering since 1969 when I first saw his window in the cathedral cloister. We will not forget.


Mark

[Perth Digger]

A fine Man.

Mike

And happy birthday to you, Mark.

[gwendraith]

We Will Rermember Him.

[MBrockway]

We Will Rermember Him.

A comrade of your great uncle, same battalion, fallen on the same day.

Riflemen united.

We will remember them

[gwendraith]

A comrade of your great uncle, same battalion, fallen on the same day.

Riflemen united.

We will remember them

Yes, a very bad day for the 9th RB. I think all but one officer was killed and most of the rest of the battalion killed or wounded, too

[Perth Digger]

Gwendraith

The War Diary gives the following:

Officers

7 killed or DOW including attached RAMC doctor, 8 wounded. So, probably 2 or 3 unscathed.

Other Ranks

56 killed, 160 wounded, 82 missing.

The War Diary doesn't say how many went in to battle, but no doubt one of the RB experts on here will know.

Mike

[stiletto_33853]

Total battalion strength 21 officers, 676 other ranks according to Divisional order number 73 for movement on 10//9/16.

Andy

R.I.P. Evelyn

[Perth Digger]

I knew it would be you, Andy!

[stiletto_33853]

Brigade report on the action states that all officers apart from one 2nd Lieut., who had joined the battalion only a couple of days before the attack, fell. Looking at the report and cross referencing with other reports, most officers seem to fall on the advance to Bulls Road from M.G. fire on the right flank where the Guards Division had failed to keep up with the 14th Division. At 10.30 am they decided to dig in and await the Guards Division to catch up with a defensive block was made in Gas Alley, near its junction of Gird Trench, with Gas Alley made into a defensive flank.

At 9.30pm a verbal order was given to retire 400 yards as the Guards were still not up to the 14th Div's position, however after confirmation from the C.O. of the 9th KRRC this order was not adhered to.

Andy

[Perth Digger]

2nd Lt HC Rounds reported for duty, 5 September 1916.

All the battalions are under orders to leave a cadre of officers, NCOs and ORs at the Transport Lines. Does the Brigade report suggest that wasn't done, or that all the officer reserves were called up?

Edit: With a strength of 21 officers, it looks as if 7 stayed behind.

Mike

[stiletto_33853]

Hi Mike,

Just going through all the Appendices now to try and find this but there are a lot (an awful lot of them) covering September 16.

September 16 increase/decrease

[Perth Digger]

That list confirms the 15 casualties, Andy. "Fell" usually means killed, I thought, but obviously not in this case.

Mike

[purvis15]

Just had a look at a personal list of officer casualties kept by my Gt Gt Uncle Herbert Purvis who was wounded on 15th Sep and his list shows only 2Lt Round as unwounded. Herbert himself was the only company commander (B Coy) not killed. The CO, Adjutant, medical officer and the other Coy Cmdrs all died. Herbert was hit in the legs by MG fire at the limit of the advance just in front of Bulls Road near to where Capt Merewether (D Coy) was killed which he witnessed shortly before he was hit himself. Two brave KRRC Riflemen dragged Herbert back to the communication trench which led back to Gap trench at the cost of their own lives - sadly he never knew who they were. He talks of being carried for a way by an FOO but also having to crawl over piles of dead Germans to get back to where the guards were who carried him back to their RAP. Quite a day, and he was the lucky one.

[stiletto_33853]

A tragic story Rob, repeated in many of the 14th Division battalions on this day.

Andy

[MBrockway]

A tragic story Rob, repeated in many of the 14th Division battalions on this day.

Andy

As well as the battalions of 41st Division to their left. 21/KRRC, the Yeoman Rifles, also took very heavy losses on this day

A bad day for all the rifles

[MBrockway]

Remembering today

Lt Evelyn HL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade,

 

Killed in action 15 Sep 1916 at the Battle of Flers/Courcelette on the Somme.

 

Evelyn                                                                             His memorial window in Worcester Cathedral     

 

[From Two Men]                                                                                           [Picture courtesy of Pal Kitchener's Bugle]                                                   

 

 

No 7 in the 1907 Oxford Blue Boat nine years earlier

[Picture courtesy of Andy Pay]



Andy's Topic on this man and his great friend, Malcolm White:
Two Men - One Memorial, The Story of two Shrewsbury Schoolteachers

My Topic on his memorial in Worcester Cathedral:
Lt EHL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade, Killed 15 Sep 1916 at The Somme
 

Holly's topic on the 15 Sep Action from the perspectives of 9/RB and 9/KRRC:

What happened to the 9th btn RB

 

 

Evelyn relaxing with other 9/RB officers in August 1916 a month before he fell ...

L-R: 2/Lt Walter ELLIOTT; 2/Lt Roger KIRKPATRICK; Capt Herbert GARTON; Lt Evelyn SOUTHWELL; 2/Lt Herman KIEK.

 

Garton and Southwell fell on this day and, bar Elliott, the rest were wounded.  Here's the 16 Sep 1916 brigade report of 9/RB casualties courtesy of Andy

 

A colourised version of Richard's shot shown above

 

Remembering since 1969 when I first saw his window in the cathedral cloister. We will not forget.

 

Mark

Edited 11 April , 2017 by MBrockway

[stiletto_33853]

Remembering Evelyn on this day.

[Jim Hastings]

Wonderful post Mark and Andy, remembered 

[KRMatthews]

On ‎16‎/‎09‎/‎2015 at 12:09, stiletto_33853 said:

Hi Mike,

Just going through all the Appendices now to try and find this but there are a lot (an awful lot of them) covering September 16.

September 16 increase/decrease

Just looking at this my GGF was missing 15th Sept from 9th, would he just come under O.R? of he was declared as killed in action (although I don't think found) on the 25th- Alfred John Payne if any use?Is there anything else in those diaries about him??

Thanks

Katie Reigate, Surrey

On ‎15‎/‎09‎/‎2013 at 00:13, MBrockway said:

Remembering today

Lt Evelyn HL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade,



Killed in action 15 Sep 1916 at the Battle of Flers/Courcelette on the Somme.

Andy's Topic on this man and his great friend, Malcolm White:
Two Men - One Memorial, The Story of two Shrewsbury Schoolteachers

and my Topic on his memorial in Worcester Cathedral:
Lt EHL Southwell, 9th Rifle Brigade, Killed 15 Sep 1916 at The Somme

Remembered for another year.

He gave his today for our tomorrow.

Mark

Southwell is pictured in this....

Some great photos for you.....

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3666866/Relaxing-carnage-Heartbreaking-photos-troops-eve-Somme-100-years-ago.html

 

(I'm looking for any info on my Great Grandfather S/12899 Alfred John Payne, Missing 15th Sept declared Killed in Action 26th Sept 1916)

[MBrockway]

Thanks Katie - already have these photos from Richard Van Emden (he of this parish) who is the source of the Daily Mail article, but have only published (with Richard's permission) extracts suitably cropped to show Evelyn Southwell  - e.g. this one ...

 

I also posted the complete picture last year in Post #21 after Richard published his Somme book: obviously they were embargoed before then.

 

As you can see, the originals were black and white, but Richard has had them colourised for the book.

 

You may have seen Richard as part of the BBC's Passchendaele anniversary commemoration commentary team.  I particularly enjoyed his stories of Harry Patch and his reminiscences of the 1917 Battle of Langemarck (another important RB and KRRC battle).

 

If you follow the links in my Post #21 higher up, you'll also see I have already linked to the Daily Mail colourised version.

 

Nice to have the picture embedded here though and to have Southwell remembered ahead of his 15th September anniversary!

Mark

 

 

Edited 8 August , 2017 by MBrockway