Royal Lancaster Regiment - Artillery Badge ( 202131, Pte W. G. Trewern )

[kenf48]

12 hours ago, charlie962 said:

 

Any particular view as to where Trewern fits in?

Charlie

Not really, Mrs RFL’s guess is as good as mine and her observations regarding the field postcard on the 12th is persuasive. I’d suggest he may have been amongst the 8 on the 19th July only because there were, relatively, more casualties than on the other days.  It may have been later but allowing for him to be passed up the evacuation chain it  would have been a couple of days before he arrived at 64 CCS.  He was, “Dangerously Ill” on the 27th July which probably meant, to be blunt,  the medics believed he had  little chance of survival. There were no antibiotics and the pneumonia had to take its course.  

Medical Servces Diseases of the War Volume II https://ia803107.us.archive.org/35/items/medicalservicesd02macp/medicalservicesd02macp.pdf 
discusses in some detail the development of gas warfare and the treatment of casualties.  Although effective in the high number of casualties the unreliability of ‘gas cloud’ attacks led to the delivery of gas by artillery shells.  Developed in late 1916 the most lethal gas was the Green Cross shell.  The chemical used was a powerful lung irritant.  The chemical was also used in the projectiles of the minnenwerfer, or trench mortar.

The bombardment of Ypres described above marked only the  second time mustard gas was used on the Western Front, the first was just two days earlier.   “Medical Diseases” notes that the effects of mustard gas were often delayed  but the damage to the lungs of exposure to the lung irritant in to Green Cross shells was more  immediate. In fatal cases death occurred within three days of exposure 80% within the first twenty four hours. 

A mix of both Green and Yellow Cross shells were used during the Ypres bombardment which skews the casualty figures  but there is a table on page 293 that shows the admissions to the four CCSs after the bombardment of Ypres, including No. 64, were 2,143; 266 were described as seriously ill with pulmonary trouble. Of these 39 died in the first week, 17 in the second and 30 in the third.  The death rate from mustard gas was estimated to be less than 5%.  In the three weeks ending 28July 64 CCS had just one death in the first week which was ascribed as probably due to a lung irritant.

It therefore seems likely he died within a week or so of exposure to the gas.

 

[FROGSMILE]

54 minutes ago, kenf48 said:

Not really, Mrs RFL’s guess is as good as mine and her observations regarding the field postcard on the 12th is persuasive. I’d suggest he may have been amongst the 8 on the 19th July only because there were, relatively, more casualties than on the other days.  It may have been later but allowing for him to be passed up the evacuation chain it  would have been a couple of days before he arrived at 64 CCS.  He was, “Dangerously Ill” on the 27th July which probably meant, to be blunt,  the medics believed he had  little chance of survival. There were no antibiotics and the pneumonia had to take its course.  

Medical Servces Diseases of the War Volume II https://ia803107.us.archive.org/35/items/medicalservicesd02macp/medicalservicesd02macp.pdf 
discusses in some detail the development of gas warfare and the treatment of casualties.  Although effective in the high number of casualties the unreliability of ‘gas cloud’ attacks led to the delivery of gas by artillery shells.  Developed in late 1916 the most lethal gas was the Green Cross shell.  The chemical used was a powerful lung irritant.  The chemical was also used in the projectiles of the minnenwerfer, or trench mortar.

The bombardment of Ypres described above marked only the  second time mustard gas was used on the Western Front, the first was just two days earlier.   “Medical Diseases” notes that the effects of mustard gas were often delayed  but the damage to the lungs of exposure to the lung irritant in to Green Cross shells was more  immediate. In fatal cases death occurred within three days of exposure 80% within the first twenty four hours. 

A mix of both Green and Yellow Cross shells were used during the Ypres bombardment which skews the casualty figures  but there is a table on page 293 that shows the admissions to the four CCSs on the including No. 64, were 2,143; 266 were described as seriously ill with pulmonary trouble. Of these 39 died in the first week, 17 in the second and 30 in the third.  The death rate from mustard gas was estimated to be less than 5%.  In the three weeks ending 28July 64 CCS had just one death in the first week which was ascribed as probably due to a lung irritant.

It therefore seems likely he died within a week or so of exposure to the gas.

 

A very interesting and compelling analysis Ken, thank you. 

[charlie962]

7 hours ago, kenf48 said:

therefore seems likely he died within a week or so of exposure to the gas

Thank you for all that research and thus your conclusion seems most probable.

Charlie

[RFT]

Hello again,

All in all this has been quite a week.  What intially commenced with  a request for information on a Royal Artillery cap badge, has evolved into into a topic concerning the latter days of my grandfather's life.  The final analysis leads to me to agree with ken48 and I must my thank him whole heartedly for his conclusion.  In addition, I would also like to express my gratitude and thanks to the several GWF members for their indepth knowledge and also for their kindness and patience with me in my quest.  

With best regards to you all,

(Suzanne) Mrs RFT

PS A photo of 202131, Pte W G Trewern, will follow soon.