Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Grave: | Etaples Military Cemetery | XVII. B. 5. | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.138 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 47D GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Family :
Son of Richard and Eliza J. Williams, of Anglesea, N. Wales.Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 4th South African Infantry |
The 4th SA Infantry Regiment and the larger South African Brigade initially served with the British 9th (Scottish) Division. Following the Brigades decimation in March 1918, it was reconstituted and incorporated in September into the 66th (2nd East Lancashire) Division until the end of the War. After a short campaign in North Africa against a Turkish attack on the Suez Canal the South African Scottish, as they were known, were sent to France. Here they took part in the Battle of Delville Wood as part of the battle of the Somme in 1916. Between July 12 and 19th the total casualty rate was about 74% of those who went into action. By the end of July, the SA Scottish had suffered 868 casualties. After Delville Wood, the shattered SA Scottish were reformed and served on the Western Front in particular at Vimy Ridge, the Somme, the battle of Passchendale, Marrieres Wood, and the battle of Messines. |
| Action : The Arras Offensive and associated actions |
9 April - 16 June 1917. The Arras Offensive consisted of a series of linked attacks starting with the Anglo Canadian assault on the dominant Vimy Ridge feature through the battles in the Scarpe River valley and up to the assaults on the Hindenburg line in the summer of 1917.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Woodstock No. 2379 E.C. | South Africa (Western) |
| Joined : | United Service Lodge of Pretoria No. 2967 E.C. | South Africa (Northern) |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
22nd November 1911 | 11th March 1912 | 13th May 1912 |
Joined United Service Lodge of Pretoria No. 2379 on the 22nd November 1911, the same day he was recorded as being having been initiated into Woodstock Lodge - his mother lodge. He was passed and raised in in the other and resigned from Woodstock 1st Jan 1913 .
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