2nd Lieut Alfred Lyth Orme

• Age: 22
• From: Liverpool
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 18th Btn
• K.I.A Tuesday 31st July 1917
• Commemorated at: Menin Gate Memorial
  Panel Ref: Panel 4 & 6

Albert Lyth Orme was born in 1895 in Waterloo, Liverpool and was the son of David George and Minnie Jane Annie (nee Lyth) Orme who were married in 1892 at Christ Church, Waterloo. He was baptised on 1st Sept 1895 at St John's Church, Waterloo. He had two brothers, Lawrence David, who served in both wars and Leslie Lyth who died in infancy and two sisters Sadie Ellen and Minnie Lyth. 

On the 1901 census the family were living at 8 Canning Street, Waterloo. Father David G. aged 39, a joiner contractor b.Waterloo, mother Minnie J. A. is aged 29 b.Ruthin, Denbigh, children born Waterloo, Lawrence D. aged 7, Alfred L. aged 5, Leslie L. aged 3,and Sadie 1.

On the 1911 census the family were living at 26 Sandon Street, Waterloo. Father David George aged 49, a house joiner, mother Minnie Jane Annie(married 18 years 5 children 4 still alive) is aged 41, children Alfred, aged fifteen, was working as a clerk in a solicitor’s office. He had two brothers, Lawrence David aged 17, who served in both wars and Leslie Lyth who died in infancy and two sisters Sadie Ellen aged 11 and Minnie Lyth aged 5.

He was formerly Private 1312 / 265086 in the King's Liverpool Regiment though little is known about his early military service, as he only appears in the  18th Battalion War Diary when he arrived at Battalion Headquarters on 20th June 1917, at the Canal Reserve Camp at Dikkebus in the Ypres Salient area of Belgium. This was only just over a month before his death in action.

He was killed in action on 31st July 1917, on the first day of the Third Battle of Ypres, better know as Passchendaele.

On this day, before Zero Hour, which was 04.00am ,the Battalion was to form up in Sanctuary Wood, but it was dark and continually falling rain gave very poor visibility. As a result, No.2 and No.4 Companies became separated from the others, and were moved over to the left flank towards positions known as Surbiton Villas and Clapham Junction.

No.1 and 3 Companies were soon in action with the enemy, and were for a time, held up against a strong point until the German defenders withdrew. Following this, an attempt was made to penetrate a broad belt of uncut wire, but this was covered by Machine-guns which killed every man attempting to advance came to a halt.

The situation was similar with No.2 and 4 Companies, who had attacked along the wrong axis. Their advance was met with fierce opposition, and once all the experienced officer’s had been killed or wounded, all cohesion was lost, although some men did reach and cross the Menin Road at Clapham Junction.

By this time the situation had become extremely confused, and the whereabouts of all four companies being unknown to Battalion Headquarters, urgent attempts were made to discover their locations. Eventually by Mid Afternoon, it was established that the bulk of the companies, although all mixed together, were dug in the vicinity of Stirling Castle and by mid evening, the Battalion Headquarters moved forward to meet them. Casualties assessed at the time were fourteen officers and two hundred and fifty other ranks had been killed, and it was subsequently established that seven officers and seventy six other ranks had been killed, during the course of the day. One of these was Second-Lieutenant Orme. He was aged twenty two.

He was reported as killed in action in the Liverpool Echo on 09th August 1917:

ORME - Killed in action on July 31, aged 22 years, Sec-Lieut. Alfred Lyth Orme (K.L.R.), the dearly-loved second son of Mr and Mrs D. Orme, 7 South Road, Waterloo.

ORME - Killed in action, aged 22 years, Lieut. Alfred Lyth Orme of the K.L.R., beloved nephew of Mr and Mrs Whittingham Lyth, 526 Stanley Road, Bootle.

His death was also reported in the Liverpool Courier 10th August 1917:

Many friends in the Waterloo district will learn with regret that Mr. and Mrs. D.G. Orme, of 7, South-road, Waterloo, have received official information that their son, Second Lieutenant Alfred Lyth Orme King’s Liverpool Regt. was killed in action on July 31 in Flanders. The deceased officer, who was 22 years of age, was in the local Territorial Battalion of the King’s before the war, and went out to France with the first detachment. He went through all the fighting, and was promoted from bugler to lance-corporal and then to corporal. After the battle of the Somme he was offered a commission, and after being home for some time was gazetted to one of the city battalions of the King’s, and went back to France. “I am going to fight side by side with my own Waterloo boys” he told his parents in a letter written shortly before his death. Before the war broke out he was a prominent figure at the Cunard concerts for seaman, and served with the White Star Line as a bugler on the Megantic. His brother, Corporal l. Lawrence Orme (Machine Gun Company) is out at the front.

Albert's body was not recovered or was subsequently lost as he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, Belgium.

The site of the Menin Gate was chosen because of the hundreds of thousands of men who passed through it on their way to the battlefields. It commemorates casualties from the forces of Australia, Canada, India, South Africa and United Kingdom who died in the Salient. In the case of United Kingdom casualties, only those prior 16 August 1917 (with some exceptions). United Kingdom and New Zealand servicemen who died after that date are named on the memorial at Tyne Cot, a site which marks the furthest point reached by Commonwealth forces in Belgium until nearly the end of the war. New Zealand casualties that died prior to 16 August 1917 are commemorated on memorials at Buttes New British Cemetery and Messines Ridge British Cemetery.

The YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL now bears the names of more than 54,000 officers and men whose graves are not known. The memorial, designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield with sculpture by Sir William Reid-Dick, was unveiled by Lord Plumer on 24 July 1927.

Soldiers Effects to father David G., Pension to mother Minnie J.A.

Albert is also commemorated on the following Memorials:

Hall of Remembrance, Liverpool Town Hall, Panel 63 

St John’s C. OF. E. Church Memorial

Waterloo with Seaforth War Memorial  

We currently have no further information on Alfred Lyth Orme, If you have or know someone who may be able to add to the history of this soldier, please contact us.