Pte 51920 Frederick John Rugen

• Age: 28
• From: Liverpool
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 17th Btn
• K.I.A Tuesday 31st July 1917
• Commemorated at: Menin Gate Memorial
  Panel Ref: Panel 4 & 6

Frederick John Rugen was born 11^th February 1889 in Liverpool and was the son of Henry Edward Rugen and his "wife" Mary Ann (nee Morgan). He was baptised in Our Lady of Immaculate Conception on 07th March 1889. His paternal grandfather came to Liverpool from Germany. His father had married in 1875 to Mary J. Plunkett and was left a widower with five children:  Mary Jane, Florence, Herman, Henry, and Augustus, the youngest born in 1885.  His first wife Mary Jane died in December 1886, aged 39, and was buried at Kirkdale Cemetery, her given address 21 Salop Street. By this time they were trying to Anglicise their surname as electoral rolls indicate Rogan and Hogan.

His father never married his new partner Mary Anne Morgan until 1915, probably understanding the complexities of their sons pensions should they perish in the war. They had nine children, of which Frederick was the eldest, his birth recorded with mother Plunkett even though she died several years beforehand. He had younger brothers Albert, Percival (died at 19 months), George, and Francis (Frank), and younger sisters Evelyn, Annie (died in infancy), Louisa, and Kate (who died at age 4).

In 1891 the family is living at 30 Copley Street, Everton, Frederick is 2  and lives with his five half siblings and baby sister Evelyn. His father is a sugar boiler. 

The 1901 Census shows the family living at 20 Rector Road, Clubmoor, Liverpool. His father Henry Edward  is aged 49 born 1852 in Liverpool and gives his occupation as a labourer, whilst his mother, Mary, is aged 38 born 1863 in Dundalk, Ireland. They have eight children with them in the household, Henry aged 19 born 1882, Augustus aged 15 born 1886, Frederick aged 12 born 1889, Evelyn aged 10 born 1891, Louisa aged 8 born 1893, Albert aged 6 born 1895, George aged 2 born 1899 and Francis born 1901.

The 1911 Census shows the family at 42 Curate Road, Clubmoor, Liverpool. The family consists of father Henry Edward now employed as a dock labourer, his wife Mary, Frederick, a Bricklayer, Evelyn and Louisa employed as Confectioners Assistants, Albert employed as a Butchers Boy and George and Francis both at school. All the children were born in Liverpool.

Frederick married Margaret Webster in the summer of 1916. There are no records of children born to the marriage.

He enlisted in Liverpool and was serving in the 17th Battalion, The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Private No 51920 when he was killed in action on the 31st July 1917, aged 28, during the Third Battle of Ypres.

17^th Battalion Diary

On that day, the 89th Brigade was to follow up the attacks of the 21st and 90th Brigades and once their objectives had been taken, to go through them and secure a line of strong points on the German third line. The 89th Brigade line of attack was from the South West corner of Polygon Wood, to the Menin Road. The 17th Battalion, The King’s Liverpool Regiment was on the left of the attack, and the 20th to the right, with the 19th Battalion and the 2nd Battalion The Bedfordshire Regiment, in Divisional Reserve.

The Battalion moved into assembly positions east of Maple Copse between 05.00 and 05.20am, they were heavily shelled and suffered many casualties. At 07.50 they began to advance with the 17^th Battalion on the left, and the 20^th on the right, the whole time under heavy shell fire. On reaching their position which was the Blue Line , troops of both the 21^st and 90^th Brigades were still pinned down  and thus any attempt at further progress were futile.

Despite this they pushed on until their flank was just touching Clapham Junction. They then dug in and awaited the inevitable bombardment which hit them soon after. Despite this, they held onto the ground.  

During the action and their time in the line the 17^th Battalion lost three officers and 79 men killed or died of wounds and four officers and 198 men wounded. They were eventually relieved on the night of 3^rd -4^th August.     

Frederick 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.

The CWGC gives his date of death as 31st July 1917, whilst Soldiers’ Effects gives his date of death as between 31/7 and 4/8 1917.

Reported killed in the Weekly Casualty List 18th Sept 1917

King's (Liverpool Regiment) - Rugen, 51920, F.(Liverpool);

His widow Margaret received Frederick’s Army effects, including a War Gratuity of £6.  The pension card (date of death 31/7 - 4/8 1917), giving Margaret’s address as 15 Rector Road, Clubmoor, Liverpool, shows that she was awarded a pension of 13/9d a week from February 1918.

His half brother Augustus served in the K.L.R. and Labour Corps, and was discharged in December 1919 with a partial disability pension.

His brother Albert served in the 1/8th and 1/7th K.L.R.

His youngest brother Frank, born in 1900, enlisted in June 1918 in the 53rd Young Soldier Bn., K.L.R., was transferred to the Army Cyclist Corps, and was demobbed at the end of March 1920.

His brother George served as Private 46448 with the 2nd Battalion of the South Wales Borderers and was declared missing, his death officially accepted as having occurred on 11th April 1918. German records held by the International Red Cross (surname Rugan) show that George’s body was buried by the Germans in “Ferme du Prince Bleu” Street, approx. 1.5 km southeast of Bleu. His identity disc was sent in on 18/4/1918, next of kin unknown. His grave was evidently not found after the war and he is commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial to the Missing, Flanders.  George was 19.

His mother died in 1932, aged 68, and was buried on the 06th May at Kirkdale Cemetery, her given address 42 Curate Road. His father died in 1934 at the age of 81 and was buried on the 26th March also at Kirkdale Cemetery. They had lost five of their nine children.

Frederick’s widow Margaret remarried in 1923 to John Walker (who had served during the war in the K.L.R. and Labour Corps).

In 1939 Margaret, 47, is living with her husband, two stepsons and a daughter at 3 Broad View, Liverpool.  

Margaret died in 1979, aged 87.

His nephew, Francis Rugen, R.N., son of half brother Henry, was killed when his ship,  H.M.S. Farouk, a Q-ship (decoy vessel), was shelled by a U-boat on 13th June 1942 off the coast of Lebanon. Francis was 32.  He is commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial.  (The U-boat, U-83, was sunk in the western Mediterranean in March 1943 with the loss of all hands.)

Frederick is commemorated in Liverpool’s Hall of Remembrance, Panel 43.

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