1/5 (PRINCE OF WALES'S BN, DEVONSHIRE REGT

[Guest elm]

Hello

My thanks once again to everyone who helped me with some VERY useful replies to my first posting to the Forum, re the Palestine campaign and Ramleh War Cemetery.

I'm trying to solve a small mystery regarding my wife's grandfather, Private George Woodley. He was in the 1/5th (Prince of Wales's Battalion) of the Devonshire Regiment, and according to The Long, Long Trail, the regiment landed at Suez, Egypt in April 1917. The battalion was transferred to 232nd Brigade, 75th Division in June of that year and Pte Woodley lost his life on 20/11/1917. The date of his death was the first day of the Palestine battle in which the 75th Division took part -- the Battle of Nabi Samwil. So I assumed that he had died in that battle, which would tally with the fact that he is buried at Ramleh War Cemetery, Israel.

However, I have now obtained a copy of his death certificate issued by the General Register Office, which confirms his date of death as above, but shows his place of death as "Egypt". (Cause of death: "died of wounds"). I'm trying to work out how he could have died in Egypt if the battle was in Palestine -- or maybe he didn't die in that battle at all -- was there an EGYPTIAN war theatre in which the 75th Division were engaged in November 1917?

I'd be grateful for any help anyone can give me.

Many thanks

Gavin

[Chris_Baker]

Main/Base hospitals for the Palestine theatre were in Egypt. Perhaps he died in one of those?

[mutley]

Gavin

your man may have been one of the 48 men of the Battalion wounded during the battle for Junction Station on the 13th Nov 1917. The regimental history states

" The 5ths attack had been conducted with excellent order and steadiness, company and platoon commanders had led their men wll and controlled them excellently, and the battalion's behaviour in its first serious engagement earned it no little credti. It had got off lightly; out of 400 actually in action only 7 men were killed, while 2nd Lieuts. Dening and White and 48 men were wounded."

Hope this is of help.

[Guest elm]

Thank you for the info. Yes, this would explain why a man wounded in Palestine died in a hospital in Egypt. I have visited the Israel Railways website, and in the Railway Museum at Haifa East station, there is apparently the following exhibit:

"Ambulance coach no 4720 built in Belgium about 1893 for the Egyptian State Railway and used in World War 1 for transporting wounded soldiers from the front line during the British conquest of Palestine".

Regards

Gavin