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Remembrance
- The Yorkshire Regiment, First World War The Fighting Cousins, - Frank & Samuel Maltby Close Window to return to main Page |
Chris Weekes, <weebex12@hotmail.com>, a great nephew of Frank Maltby, has researched the careers of Frank, - and his cousin Samuel, in the Yorkshire Regiment in the First World War. Frank lost his life in the conflict, though Samuel survided (after being made a Prisoner of War. The description of the background and careers of the two Maltby cousins, below, is a result of this research. THis account has been broken down into sequential "chapters", which can be selected from the links below.
| 3 In the Battle of the Somme | 4 Autumn & Winter, 1916/17 |
6 SAMUEL MALTBY IS WOUNDED
As the 50th Division History says:
“The 5th Green Howards give their losses on 23rd April as 18 killed,
123 wounded and 57 missing.”
One of the wounded was Samuel R.D. Maltby 242471 A Company,
No 2 Platoon.
His army service records contain details of this, including a letter dated
27th April 1917 from his wife A. Maltby. She had heard from him that he
was in no 12 General Hospital, Rouen but she did not know how badly wounded
he was. He was obviously wounded in the second attack of 23rd April and
went through the well developed chain of medical assistance of Advanced
Dressing Station (ADS), Casualty Clearing Station (CCS) probably at Aguez
les Duisans NW of Arras (Map ref I 6) and then to one of the base hospitals
by train.
He was not sent back to a UK hospital and according to his
records he was discharged from Rouen on 12th December 1917 to base depot
at ETAPLES (Map ref C 4). Samuel Maltby was out of the fighting but many
of his comrades were not so ‘lucky’. In his excellent book ‘CHEERFUL
SACRIFICE’ Jonathan Nicholls says:
“The Germans were puzzled by the British plans------ Why were
they pressing on with the offensive here ?( Arras ) Again and again British
troops advanced only to find themselves caught in a trap ----- On 23rd April
the same tactics had caused the downfall of the Yorkshire and Durham Battalions
of the 150th Brigade as several battlefield cemeteries near Heninel (Map
ref K 6) silently testify.”
Paul Reed in his book ‘WALKING ARRAS’ devotes a whole chapter to the 50th Division action around Wancourt. (Map ref K 6).
He describes how the 4th Battalion Yorkshires were in the first wave of the attack including Captain D. S. HIRSCH who was killed, gaining a posthumous VC and is now commemorated on the Arras Memorial to the Missing together with those others who have no known graves. Those from the 150th Brigade killed on 23rd April can be found in the many Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in the area: Wancourt British, Rookery, Cherisy Road East, and Heninel Communal Cemetery Extension. The Yorkshire Regiment WW1 website is an excellent source of reference for anyone looking for a particular soldier.
Panel
of the Arras Memorial to the Missing
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