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Remembered Today:

Suffolk Regiment Thomas Bridges


rachel.ridgeon

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I am looking for some information on Thomas Bridges 22088 Suffolk Regiment.

I cannot find his service record – I assumed burnt

His MIC shows Victory and Service but no Star.  

Thomas received the Military Medal I did find him in the Gazette 16th July 1918.

Any insights would help  Thanks

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Hi Rachel,

 

The medal rolls show his overseas service with the Suffolk Regiment as:

 

image.png.9991744730619e243b2024116c888c97.png

Image sourced from Ancestry

 

He appears on this Casualty List - link, which due to the delay between the date of actual wounding, and the date of a casualty list, may relate to a 'hospital' admission/discharge record which Findmypast has. It reads as:

 

First name(s): T

Last name: Bridges

Service number: 22088

Rank: Sergeant

Unit: 2nd Battalion Suffolk Regiment (76 Infantry Brigade, 3 Division [ORBAT])

Admitted to 34 Casualty Clearing Station on 24.10.1918, from 19 Casualty Clearing Station

Ailment:

image.png.c95c27195fe7f1642b3f948c415c8cdb.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

Transferred to 11 Ambulance Train on 25.10.1918

 

His Military Medal index card indicates that he was also serving with the 2nd Battalion at the time of his actions which resulted in the award.

 

image.png.e1c9a1a5024d592d84f42f5d42b6ec00.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

Looking at papers for other 'near number' men who originally served with the 12th Battalion, it seems likely that Thomas 'joined up' in October 1915, and was posted to the Battalion on the 15th. 

 

22080 Eglese

image.png.e785f279424f59465f3efc6f3e86687f.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

22082 O'Connor

image.png.7a2dfd30ac4c1e007640e052882d974d.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

22086 Horne

image.png.d5afa54638af64bde03338ca7d136338.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

22096 Israel

image.png.954ee2340e63308713c6a8cab82037d6.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

Regards

Chris

 

 

Edited by clk
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Chris

Many thanks – I was going to ask about his number and when he joined so thanks for adding the info

 

Thomas first joined the 12th – does his regimental number give any insights as to where and when he joined up.   

I see that the 12th was a Bantam battalion – on his brothers papers he’s recorded at being 5ft 2.  So being short of stature clearly ran in the family.

Seems to have moved Battalions during his time 12th 8th 9th 2nd why would have this been

 

I couldn't find him on the 1911 census - his name is scored out.

582351922_Screenshot2020-05-25at14_36_05.png.19f9d24ae6f0d2e894969718e9dee684.png

I had thought he may have joined the Army then but it would seem not

 

In the casualty list -  Is the Sh. short for Shell or Shot

 

Does anyone know any stats for the average age of MM recipients - Thomas was 22

When Thomas received this MM in July 1918 which battle would that have been in

 

After the end of the war Thomas married in May 1919. He made no mention of having been in the army on his marriage cert or on the birth certs of his children – was this normal to not mention being decorated or having been in the army

 

thanks again Rachel

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Hi Rachel,

 

20 hours ago, rachel.ridgeon said:

In the casualty list -  Is the Sh. short for Shell or Shot

 

I'm not 100% sure, but looking at the other injuries on that record page, and the hand in which they are written, I was thinking it might read as 'shell concussion'. However, that appears to be written in full (more or less) against one man. So I don't know why whoever kept the ledger, would have gone from a shortening of the word, to writing it in full, then back again. I wonder if it's the difference between 'shell' and 'shrapnel'. 'Blt' seems to have been used for 'bullet'.

 

image.png.adf2a4340df898d702ccc35189efb0ab.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

 

20 hours ago, rachel.ridgeon said:

Seems to have moved Battalions during his time 12th 8th 9th 2nd why would have this been

 

Without a service file or other evidence, I could only speculate. A Suffolk Regiment expert might be able to offer an informed opinion on known drafts of men being moved between the Battalions, which might be picked up in the respective war diaries. Another possibility is that he returned to the base depot (eg following sickness or wounding), and was recycled from there. The National Library of Scotland only has Casualty Lists from 1917 and 1918. It might be worth taking out a free trial with TheGenealogist to see if any of these hits are relevant. 

 

20 hours ago, rachel.ridgeon said:

When Thomas received this MM in July 1918 which battle would that have been in

 

The first confirmation I saw, is his name appearing on a long list contained in 'Routine Orders' of 21.4.1918 - see p33/103 of part 1 of this download. I would think that the list probably relates to mid/late March 1918 (German Spring Offensive) actions. The Battalion war diary (see link in previous post) might be able to help a bit more. There is help on how to read map references here.

 

You can't be sure where he joined up. The common factor in the near number papers I saw is that the men pitched up in Bury St Edmunds on 15.10.1915 (where they would have been allocated their service numbers), and posted to the 12th Bn on the same day. Eglese attested in Peckham; O'Connor in Rathkeale; Horne in Walford; and Israel at Finsbury Barracks.

 

Regards

Chris

Edited by clk
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On 25/05/2020 at 10:30, clk said:

He appears on this Casualty List - link,

 

I see from the Casualty List that is next of kins address is given as Limehouse, E, (i,e East London). The same list also as has 22026 J Vass (St Albans) and 22250 J. Watson (Victoria Park, E)

 

Looking at the men with nearby service numbers that Chris has kindly provided enlistment dates for I noted

On 25/05/2020 at 10:30, clk said:

22082 O'Connor

image.png.7a2dfd30ac4c1e007640e052882d974d.png

Image sourced from Findmypast

 

The Long, Long Tail has this to say about the 12th Battalion, (my highlight) :-

 

Formed at Bury St. Edmunds on 7 July 1915, as a bantam battalion. While still at the depot it was joined by a draft of some 200 men from the depot of the Middlesex Regiment.

https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/army/regiments-and-corps/the-british-infantry-regiments-of-1914-1918/suffolk-regiment/

Although their paperwork doesn't state it, given their original places of enlistment that could equally apply to Eglese, Horne and Israel - and potentially Bridges as well as the other two from the Casualty List.

 

22 hours ago, rachel.ridgeon said:

Seems to have moved Battalions during his time 12th 8th 9th 2nd why would have this been

 

Other ranks didn't routinely move between Battalions, so the likely explanation for the move from 12th to 8th and 8th to 9th is that he was wounded \ accidentally injured \ fell sick \ had health problems and was medically evacuated back as far as the coast or even the UK. If it was the UK then on recovery he would have gone to the Regimental Depot and from there posted to a Home Service Battalion for assessment and refresher training, eventually joining a draft back out to the front. On arrival back in France he would have gone to an Infantry Base Depot. As the war went on these Depots sent men wherever they were needed - that fact that he stayed with the same Regiment may either be luck or a possible indicator that the medical evacuations happened relatively shortly after he first went out.

 

If he stayed in France for treatment he would then most likely have gone to a Convalescent Depot and then to an Infantry Base Depot.

 

Unfortunately only men who were wounded turn up in the Casualty Lists, so if any of the other reasons apply then it's either hoping he turns up in one of the admissions \ discharges registers that Chris has mentioned, or a local newspaper report.

 

The move from the 9th to the 2nd has another possible explanation - the 9th was disbanded in February 1918 as part of the wider British Army re-organisation. The 9th Battalion War Diary for the final weeks of their existance may show where drafts of men went to, and possibly even a roll-call.

 

Hope that helps,

Peter

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  • Admin

 

On 25/05/2020 at 14:48, rachel.ridgeon said:

In the casualty list -  Is the Sh. short for Shell or Shot

 

'Shell Concussion' was used to infer there was no visible injury.  On November 21 1916 the diagnosis of the more familiar term 'shell shock' had been dispensed with by the medical authorities, in fact it was banned from all medical reports and could not be used as a diagnosis. 

It was believed proximity to exploding artillery shells caused disruption to the brain, leading to neurological injury and the well known images of men suffering from "shellshock'.

 

The issue was further complicated by the fact proximity to exploding shells could cause men to be buried, ear drums burst as well as the more obvious injuries from shell splinters or shrapnel as described above.  These injuries, where there was no visible sign, were also described as 'commotional', although it was estimated they were less than 10% of cases. 

The MOs were supposed to prefix reports with "W" (Wound) if the injury was a direct result of enemy action, or "S" for Sick for symptoms of physical and mental exhaustion.  'W' men were entitled to wear a wound stripe. 

 

Not only did they struggle to give it a name, 'neurasthenia' for example became common to describe the emotional impact of war but even more difficult was treatment.

 

Ken

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