Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Memorial: | Pozieres British Cemetery, Ovillers-La Boisselle | IV. F. 18. | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.117 | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Education & Career :
Blinman went to Taunton School before becoming a surveyor.
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 1/6 Gloucestershire Regiment |
1/6th Battalion August 1914 : in St Michael's Hill, Bristol. Part of South Midland Brigade, South Midland Division. Moved on mobilisation to Isle of Wight but thence to Swindon but very quickly on to Maldon in Essex, arriving by end of August 1914. 29 March 1915 : landed at Boulogne. 15 May 1915 : formation became the 145th Brigade, 48th (South Midland) Division. November 1917 : moved with the Division to Italy. 11 September 1918 : left the Division and returned to France. 17 September 1918 : attached to 75th Brigade in 25th Division. |
| 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 : | Connaught No. 3573 E.C. | Somerset |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
16th September 1914 | 20th January 1915 | - |
This relatively new Lodge at the time of Percy's initiation sees amongst its membership two family members: Harry Thomas Blinman as a founder member in 1912 and Francis Kingston Blinman, initiated in 1912.
The war had started by the time Percy was initiated, and he became Fellowcraft before his untimely death on the Somme.
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