Family :

Service Life:

Campaigns:

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

17 October - 11 November 1918. The final stage of the British advance saw them cross the Selle and the Sambre rivers as the relentless pressure was kept on the retreating Germans. By the 11th November 1918 the British army had returned to Mons, where it all started for them back in August 1914 when it made its first contact with the Germans, and where the war stopped when the Armistice was declared on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

Detail :

William was the Commanding Officer, 7th Battalion, Border Regiment. His first gallantry award, the Military Cross, was awarded to him whilst serving as a Lieutenant in the Lincolnshire Regiment. The citation, published in the London Gazette of 9th January 1917, reads: "For conspicuous gallantry in action. He handled his company with great courage and initiative, repelling two enemy attacks. Later, he led-a counter charge against the enemy with great gallantry.".

His award of the Distinguished Order was gained whilst second-in-command of the 7th Battalion, Border Regiment. The citation, published in the London Gazette of 29th November 1918, reads: "He commanded two companies in an outflanking movement to capture a village which was strongly held by the enemy. By his able dispositions and fearless leading he succeeded, with only two casualties, in taking four machine gums and fifty prisoners. The advance was then continued, .and the whole village finally captured. His fine example of courage and leadership inspired all ranks."

William was wounded seriously at Amerval, and died there on 20th October 1918. The following extract appears in a site about another individual from the Lancing College War Memorial:

"On the 20th of October 1918 the 7th Battalion Border Regiment was part of the Allied advance which was sweeping the German army before them and was only two weeks away from outright victory. Their task that morning was the capture of the village of Amerval near Le Cateau and the attack began at 2am. Having successfully captured the village the Borders were forced out again as the Germans counterattacked. They again assaulted the village and regained control of it just after dark. During this phase of the fight for the village the Commanding Officer of the battalion, Lieutenant Colonel William Edgar Thomas DSO MC and Noel Saunders, were both shot and killed by German snipers."

Masonic :

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