Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Memorial: | Thiepval Memorial, Picardie | Pier and Face 1C | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.125 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 32C GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Family :
Son of Thomas and Catherine Hilton of 65 Wouldhave St South Shields. Estimate Clerk.Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 1st Battalion The Lincolnshire Regiment |
1st Battalion August 1914 : in Portsmouth. Part of 9th Brigade, 3rd Division. Landed at Le Havre on 14 August 1914. 14 November 1915 : transferred to 62nd Brigade, 21st Division. The Bermuda Rifle Volunteer Corps sent a contingent of 2 officers and 125 men, who served with 1st Lincolns from June 1915 onwards. They had suffered 75% casualties by the end of the war. |
| Action : The Battles of the Somme 1916 |
The Battle of the Somme 1st July - 18th November 1916 is inevitably characterised by the appalling casualties (60,000) on the first day, July 1st 1916. Having failed to break through the German lines in force, and also failed to maximise opportunities where success was achieved, the battle became a series of attritional assaults on well defended defence in depth. The battle continued officially until 18th November 1916 costing almost 500,000 British casualties. German casualties were about the same, and French about 200,000. The Somme could not be counted a success in terms of ground gained or the cost, but it had a strategic impact as it marked the start of the decline of the German Army. Never again would it be as effective whilst the British Army, learning from its experience eventually grew stronger to become a war winning army. The German High Command recognised that it could never again fight another Somme, a view that advanced the decision to invoke unrestricted submarine warfare in an attempt to starve Britain of food and material, and in doing so accelerated the United States declaration of war thus guaranteeing the eventual outcome. 287 Brethren were killed on the Somme in 1916.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Hadrian No. 1970 E.C. | Durham |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
6th October 1914 | 5th January 1915 | 2nd February 1915 |
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley