Pte. 34839 Herbert James Fletcher. Yorkshire Regiment

[Peter Bennett]

Private HERBERT JAMES FLETCHER

Service Number: 34839

Regiment & Unit/Ship

Yorkshire Regiment

1st/5th Bn.

Date of Death

Died 30 August 1918

Buried or commemorated at

GLAGEON COMMUNAL CEMETERY EXTENSION

II. N. 6.

France

He was posted missing near Trelon on 26th May 1918 and is buried not far from there, albeit three months later. What happened between his date of capture and date of death?

[TullochArd]

48340 Pte AJ Bonsall 5 Yorks is also reported as KIA Died as PW (Thanks George Raynor ..... below) 30 Aug 18 and is buried next to him.  Can't find an ICRC connection regarding either man.

Edited 4 February , 2022 by TullochArd

[George Rayner]

Not sure if it helps the enquiry but both soldier's Effects report the same fact courtesy Fold3

Edited 4 February , 2022 by George Rayner

[The Inspector]

Hi All, 

FYI,

Probate here.....https://www.ancestry.co.uk/discoveryui-content/view/1835968:1904,  Saxonholme,,West Park St., Dewsbury, Yorks.

His brother Stanley Pickup Fletcher Pte 15/1275,  West Yorks. pres. died 1.7.16., same address.

Regards Barry

Edited 4 February , 2022 by The Inspector

[RaySearching]

Battalion decimated.

Details of the 1/5 Yorks May 1918 can be found on Bill Danbys website as link above

I assume Fletcher was captured by the enemy taken back accross the enemy lines as a pow 

and died of wounds or disease on the date stated

Ray

 

 

[Peter Bennett]

I have tried looking in the Red Cross records in Geneva but no luck. Where would he have been held between his capture and death

[Peter Bennett]

Thank you to all who replied 

Edited 4 February , 2022 by Peter Bennett
Typo

[TullochArd]

...... so we have two soldiers from Yorkshire Regt dying on same date and recorded as PWs at Trelow/Trelou, France.  Where is Trelow/Trelou?  I cannot find it as a significant PW Camp  Could it be anything to do with the use of PWs in Labour Companies?

1914-1918 Online "The German army established prisoner of war labour companies on the Western Front in 1915, made up of Russian prisoners, and later, of British, French, Italian and Romanian prisoners. The British and French armies established prisoner of war labour companies in 1916; indeed by July of that year 50 percent of all German prisoners held by France were working for the French army either in prisoner of war labour companies in the war zone or for the army on the home front.^[28] The German army additionally used prisoner labour in the East.^[29] The Austro-Hungarian and Russian armies also used prisoner of war labour companies. The development of prisoner labour companies marked a shift during the First World War towards the increasing and more ruthless exploitation of captive labour. Living conditions in prisoner of war labour companies were often harsh and in the Austro-Hungarian case, in particular, death rates were high. For those prisoners working for the German army in 1918, beatings and malnutrition were common, despite frequent orders from the third German Oberste Heersleitung (OHL) asking that prisoner labour strength be carefully conserved as it was desperately needed."

[Peter Bennett]

It is  Trélon, a commune in the Nord department in northern France.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trélon