St Sever Cemetery Extension Rouen & 9 North Staffords

[Ancre1917]

I'm just having a look at the soldiers who died from the North Staffordshire Regiment between 5 April and 17 July 1918 and have come across circa 67 men from the 9th battalion buried in St Sever Cemetery Extension who died between 13 and 28 June.  They are  mostly in Plots P.XI and Q.I-, II and III .  Reading the CWGC information, it would appear that most of there men buried there died in one of the surrounding hospitals.  Does anyone know why so many men from one pioneer battalion should be buried here?  I don't have access to the war diary at he moment, so any ideas would be much appreciated as I've set this as my Christmas holiday task.

Richard

[kenf48]

I think you mean between the 13 and 28 May 1918.  The Battalion casualties were relatively light in June.

 

A summary in the war diary shows that in May they suffered 59 gas casualties who died of wounds and one soldier who died of wounds from shelling. It also lists 10 more wounded by shelling and 140 from gas.  Only one other rank was killed in action.  

 

The diary notes that on the 11th May up to 2000 gas shells were'poured into Fonquevillers' and 'great difficulty was experienced in wearing the box respirators".

 

The following day it was "Work as usual"  i.e. digging, so I guess most of the casualties occurred on the 11th.

 

Ken

 

 

 

[Ancre1917]

Yes, thanks Ken.  It was May.  That seems a  high number of wounded from gas but, there again, digging whilst wearing a box respirator must have been somewhat difficult.

Richard

[kenf48]

On 20/12/2017 at 22:04, Longton1971 said:

Yes, thanks Ken.  It was May.  That seems a  high number of wounded from gas but, there again, digging whilst wearing a box respirator must have been somewhat difficult.

Richard

 

See this thread esp. post 13. The OH Medical Services is available online 

https://archive.org/details/medicalservicesg02macp

 

Ken

Edited 30 December , 2017 by kenf48

[MBrockway]

Sorry Ken - but that's the OH Medical Services, General History, Vol II!

 

My refs are in the OH Medical Services, Diseases of the War, Vol. II.  This volume covers the gas campaigns in great detail over several chapters.  The gas deaths buried at Rouen are covered on pp.313-314, but it's well worth reading the pages nearby for general context.

 

Luckily this is also available on-line here:

https://archive.org/details/medicalservicesd02macp

 

Mark

 

[kenf48]

Shoulda 👀 

 

Thanks

Ken

[Ancre1917]

Thanks Mark and Ken. That's a very interesting read.

Richard

[MBrockway]

I've added another relevant document from GOC Third Army relating to the May 1918 mustard gas bombardment casualties to the other topic.

 

See here ...

 

[Ancre1917]

Thanks, Mark.

Richard

[Colee]

Hi,

I came across this thread while trying to work out what had happened to a Labour Corps Private, Hugh Victor Baverstock (150th Labour Corps) originally of the Northants Regiment who died of wounds on 13th May 1918 and is buried with some of the 9th Staffordshire soldiers in the St Sever Cemetery in Block 'P' Plot II. I think I may have my answer in the numbers who sadly succumbed to the mustard shell bombardment of 11th May. How have you been able to establish that they died in the surrounding hospitals?

Many thanks

Colee

[mandy hall]

Information from Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

 

History Information

During the First World War, Commonwealth camps and hospitals were stationed on the southern outskirts of Rouen. A base supply depot and the 3rd Echelon of General Headquarters were also established in the city. Almost all of the hospitals at Rouen remained there for practically the whole of the war. They included eight general, five stationary, one British Red Cross and one labour hospital, and No. 2 Convalescent Depot. A number of the dead from these hospitals were buried in other cemeteries, but the great majority were taken to the city cemetery of St. Sever. In September 1916, it was found necessary to begin an extension, where the last burial took place in April 1920. During the Second World War, Rouen was again a hospital centre and the extension was used once more for the burial of Commonwealth servicemen, many of whom died as prisoners of war during the German occupation. The cemetery extension contains 8,348 Commonwealth burials of the First World War (ten of them unidentified) and in Block "S" there are 328 from the Second World War (18 of them unidentified). There are also 8 Foreign National burials here. The extension was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield.

 

Mandy

[Colee]

OK great thanks, all interesting info. Are there records do you know that show which hospital a soldier might have gone to - and if there is no reference, is it safe to think they may not have gone to hospital?

thank you

[kenf48]

On 07/03/2018 at 20:14, Colee said:

OK great thanks, all interesting info. Are there records do you know that show which hospital a soldier might have gone to - and if there is no reference, is it safe to think they may not have gone to hospital?

thank you

 

If a soldier is reported to have 'died of wounds' then he had usually* entered the casualty evacuation chain.  The chain in F & F was quite complex, although a casualty could move through it fairly rapidly to arrive at one of the hospitals at the base.

See LLT for a full description http://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/a-soldiers-life-1914-1918/the-evacuation-chain-for-wounded-and-sick-soldiers/

 

Soldiers effects shows Pte Baverstock died 'in the field' which suggests he did not die at a Base Hospital as where death occurred in hospital it is usually* recorded on the Effects Register.

 

*In the absence of a service record it's not safe to think they may not have gone to hospital, but there is a degree of probability they did not.

 

 CWGC records indicate he was originally interred where he lies and his body not exhumed from elsewhere.   

 

Looking at surviving service records Pte 60063 Bambridge (101 Labour Company) was also shown as dying 'in the field' in Effects and 'died of wounds'  on SDGW. However there is a note on his record that  he was admitted to 10th General Hospital at Rouen on 13 May suffering from Gas Poisoning and died the same day. 

So was he dead (or dying) on arrival?  Difficult to say.  

 

There is a war diary for 10th General Hospital which may or may not have further details of admissions that day http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/bb6e60ff44ed4ceca8803bbc56586274

 

Ken

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Colee]

Ken, thank you so much for taking the time to explain all that, the link was really useful - and extremely helpful too to add further light with another soldier's records. This forum is such a wonderful source of information. Huge appreciation. Colee