Early Life :

Education & Career :

Manager from Tettenhall (1908).

Service Life:

Campaigns:

• The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.

"The Battle of Loos (25 September to 18 October 1915) was the major battle on the Western Front in 1915, surpassing in every respect all that had gone before in terms of numbers of men and materiel committed to battle. The preliminary bombardment was the most violent to date and the battle was charaterised by the committment of Regular and Territorial battalions on a large scale, in which the Territorials performed just as well as the Regulars. As the battles on the Western Front in 1915 increased in size and violence, so the casualties increased in proportion: Neuve Chapelle 12,000, Aubers Ridge/Festubert 29,000 , Loos 60,000. 1916 was to take the casualty cost to another level. Loos was intended as a minor role in support of French efforts around Arras but circumstances reduced the French effort. It marked the first use of poison gas by the British. Once the initial assualt had failed the battle continued in a series of actions mostly focused on the northern sector around the tactically important Hohenzollern Redoubt."

Detail :

The following is an excerpt found on another site - author unknown.

The military conflagration that raged in Europe from the late summer of 1914 swept many men from their usual occupations into uniform, amongst them was William Millner.This is the story of his final actions.

The advance of the second wave suffered the same fate as the first. The remnants of the two companies had reached no further than the communications trench. On assessing the situation and the state of the men after the harrowing ordeal of crossing to the position, the senior surviving officer, Major Charles Barke, decided that the 1/5th North Staffords would remain in the trench.

Two companies of the 1/5th South Staffords, together with Nos. 3 and 4 Bombing Parties from the battalion, were located in a communications trench to the east of Big Willie. The two companies had orders to wait for the first line of the 1/5th North Staffords to reach their position before advancing forward with them. The commander of "C" Company was able to observe that the 1/5th North Stafford's advance had been checked, and his men remained in the trench. However, Captain William Millner , the officer commanding "B" Company, was unable to see the developing situation and therefore continued with his orders. The Company then climbed out from the trench and lay in front of it; 7 Platoon at the front, 6 and 8 Platoons in the second line, waiting for the 1/5th North Staffords to arrive and link up with them. As they moved through the gaps cut in the barbed wire into the open, several men were hit by enfilade machine-gun fire from the Redoubt, and the German artillery began to shell the trench. Having suffered heavy casualties in this exposed position, the survivors were compelled to scramble back into the communications trench. Among the casualties still lying out in the open was Captain Millner. Private Fred Proverbs climbed back over the parapet in an attempt to rescue Millner. A shell killed both men while Proverbs was dressing Millner's wounds.

The assualt on Hohenzollern Redoubt continued all day to no avail. The British casualties in this action consisted of 3,763 officers and men. It was the Division's first major action after its arrival on the Western Front, but was a gallant failure.

Character and Legacy
William's qualities were such that he was a natural leader of men. He had determination to succeed in whatever he undertook. This strength of character is shown in the May of 1915 when he was wounded:

In April 1915 the North Midland Division marched from Ballieul into Belgium. The Division was to enter the front line for the first time as a complete formation, taking over the trenches between Kemmel and Wulverghem. The area had been the scene of heavy fighting during October and November 1914, when the Germans had pushed a mixed force consisting of the Cavalry Corps, Indians and French troops from the Messines Ridge, which had a commanding view of the surrounding countryside. The British positions were dug into a smaller ridge in front of Wulverghem. The North Midland Division was brought into the line in this particular section as it was considered to be relatively quiet, and would be the best place for an inexperienced formation to acclimatise to the routine of trench warfare.

The Staffordshire Brigade was allotted the southern portion of the North Midland Division's area of responsibility, a frontage of approximately 2,000 yards.

.....Captain William Millner of the 1/5th South Staffords also narrowly avoided being killed while sniping on 5th May. One of the best shots in the country at that time, Millner was an excellent candidate for the role. While observing German movements from the barn of one of the farms close to the front line, he too was wounded by an enemy sniper. The bullet hit the cap badge of his service dress cap and creased his skull. Luckily, his injury was not serious and after a brief period of recovery returned to his battalion.

Masonic :

Senior Warden
In the Book "The Masonic Roll of Honour" his name is listed as W. Milner, which has made investigation of this casualty near impossible. Researcher Bruce Littley has now discovered his name is MILLNER and this now allows further investigation. The records at the United Grand Lodge of England show in the Lodge ledger that his name is confirmed as Millner, but also that he was paid up until at least 1921.

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