Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Grave: | Croisilles British Cemetery | I.A.3 | |
Awards & Titles: | 1914-15 Star British War Medal Victory Medal | ||
Early Life :
Frank was born in West Kensington, London, the son of Irish-born Surgeon-Major David and Indian-born Constance E. Woods later of 3, Bath Road, Camberley, Surrey.His brother, Arthur, was noted to be a 2nd Lieutenant in the Antrim Artillery in 1891 and was at home with the family residing at 25 Addison Mansions (North Block), Blythe Road, Hammersmith. In 1911, Frank is noted living at home.
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 3/4 The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment) |
| 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.
Detail :
Lieutenant Frank Cecil Woods, 3rd Battalion, Queen's (Royal West Surrey) Regiment. Killed in Action 2nd April 1917.
Appears in the London Gazette Issue 28902, Page 7304. Gazetted to be a 2nd Lieutenant on Probation in the 3rd Battalion 15th September, 1914.
He is noted on his medal card to have embarked to France in 1915.
He is interred at Croisilles British Cemetery and his grave is tended by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. His name appears in the book Visiting the Fallen-Arras South by Peter Hughes: "The majority of the 2nd Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment) who fell that day are to be found closest to the entrance to the cemetery in Plot I, Row A, though a few more are scattered elsewhere in the cemetery. One of the four officers from this battalion, Lieutenant Frank Cecil Woods, was the son of Surgeon Major David Woods, Royal Army Medical Corps (Plot I.A.3). The other three are buried either side of him."
The book explains further that the cemetery was first used after the village of Croiselles was captured from the Germans on the 2nd April 1917 at its second attempt by the 7th Division to make this advance.
Probate WOODS Frank Cecil of 3 Bath-road Camberley Surrey lieutenant H.M. Army died 2 April 1917 in France Probate London 22 September to William George Fraser Nelson solicitor. Effects £894 15s.
For his service he was awarded the 1915 Star (as 2nd Lieutenant), the British War Medal and the Victory Medal (as Lieutenant). His brother, Lieutenant-Colonel G.G. Woods applied for the medals, which were posthumously sent to his mother Constance.
He is further commemorated on the Camberley War Memorial.
His file exists at the National Archives under the reference: WO 339/30683.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Border No. 2475 E.C. | Hampshire & IOW |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
4th November 1915 | 12th September 1916 | 14th November 1916 |
Frank was a Lieutenant employed in HM Forces and resident at Camberley when initiated into Border Lodge No. 2475 in 1915. His war service is shown in the contribution record and the final annotation reads "Killed March 1917." Frank's name was overlooked for both the 1921 and 1933 workings of the Masonic Roll of Honour and his name was found in a trawl of the lodge contribution record data and submitted in 2019 for inclusion.
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