Pte 21899 John Wilfred Smith

• Age: 21
• From: Manchester
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 18th Btn
• K.I.A Saturday 1st July 1916
• Commemorated at: Thiepval Memorial
  Panel Ref: P&F1D8B &8 C.

21899 Private John Wilfred SMITH, 18th Battalion, KLR.

John Wilfred Smith was born in Manchester on 11th May 1895, the eldest of four children born to Sidney William Edward (known as William) and his wife Ada Emma Brown who had been married in Manchester in July 1895. John was baptised in Christ Church, Harpurhey on May 20th 1897 along with a baby sister Ada May who sadly died shortly afterwards. The family are recorded as living at 69 Lee Road, Harpurhey.

At the time of the 1901 census William, who had been born in Blackley, Manchester in 1872, was working as a police constable, he is living with his wife Ada who was born in Hull 1875 at 29 Dunstan Street, Blackley, Manchester. They have two children at home;  4 year old John and 4 month old Lilian Louisa who had been born in Blackley and was baptised in Christ Church, Harpurhey on 31st Jan 1901. 

William and Ada had another daughter called Rose Ethel who was born on the 11th Sept 1903 in Grimsby. It is not known if the family ever lived in Grimsby or that Ada perhaps was staying with family when Rose was born, but she was baptised on the 3rd July 1907 at St James, Oldham when the family were living at 3 Back James Street in Oldham. Sidney(William) is recorded as working as a labourer. 

At some point, before the war broke out, they all moved to Bush Bottom Farm, West Lavington, Wiltshire where John’s father worked as a gamekeeper. They probably moved after 1912 as another son, Cyril, was born on the 1st March 1912 and whose birth is recorded as being in Fazakerley, Liverpool(from RN Service record in 1930). 

The family lived at Merrilocks Cottage in Blundellsands when the 1911 census was taken. John, then 14, was an assistant in a poultry business which his father William, aged 38 was managing. His mother is 36 years of age and they state that they have been married for 15 years and three of their five children have survived. John's siblings are shown as; Lilian Louisa aged 10 and Rose Ethel aged 7.  

John Wilfred enlisted on 07th November 1914 in Liverpool as Private 21899, joining the joining 18th Battalion of The King's Liverpool Regiment as Private 21899. He gave his age as 19 years 6 months, (when he was probably just past his 18th birthday) his occupation as clerk and his next of kin as his father Sidney W. Smith. He is described at 5’ 8”, 112 lbs, 34” chest with a fresh complexion, blue eyes and light brown hair. Religion was Church of England. 

From the 23^rd September 1914 he was billeted at Hooton Park Race Course and remained there until 03^rd December 1914 when they moved into the hutted accommodation at Lord Derby’s estate at Knowsley Hall. On 30th April 1915 the 18th Battalion alongside the other three Pals battalions left Liverpool via Prescot Station for further training at Belton Park, Grantham. They remained here until September 1915 when they reached Larkhill Camp on Salisbury Plain. 

John Wilfred crossed to France with his Battalion on board the SS Invicta on the 7th November 1915.

He was killed in action during the attack at Montauban on 01st July 1916.

The events of the day for the 18th Battalion were as follows: 

At 6.30am the artillery commenced an intensive bombardment of the enemy’s trenches. Zero Hour – 7.30 am – the battalion commenced to leave their trenches and the attack commenced. The attack was pressed with great spirit and determination in spite of heavy shelling and machine gun enfilade fire which caused casualties amounting to 2/3rds of the strength of the Battalion in action. The whole system of German trenches including the Glatz Redoubt was captured without any deviation from the scheduled programme. Consolidated positions and made strong points for defence against possible counter attacks.

Graham Maddocks provides more detail concerning the events of the day:

As the first three waves began to move forward towards the German reserve line, known as Alt Trench and then on to the Glatz Redoubt itself, they suddenly came under enfilading fire from the left. This was from a machine gun which the Germans had sited at a strong point in Alt Trench. The gun itself was protected by a party of snipers and bombers, who, hidden in a rough hedge, were dug into a position in Alt Trench, at its junction with a communication trench known as Alt Alley. These bombers and snipers were themselves protected by rifle fire from

another communication trench, Train Alley which snaked back up the high ground and into Montauban itself. The machine gun fire was devastating and it is certain that nearly of the Battalion’s casualties that day were caused by that one gun.

Lieutenant Colonel Edward Henry Trotter wrote in the conclusion of his account of the days action:

I cannot speak to highly of the gallantry of the Officers and men. The men amply repaid the care and kindness of their Company Officers, who have always tried to lead and not to drive. As laid down in my first lecture to the Battalion when formed, in the words of Prince Kraft:

“Men follow their Officers not from fear, but from love of the Regiment where everything had always and at all times gone well with them”.

Joe Devereux in his book A Singular Day on the Somme gives the Casualty Breakdown for the 18th Battalion as Killed in Action 7 Officers and 165 men and of those who died in consequence of the wounds 3 Officers and 19 men a total of 194 out of a total loss for the four Liverpool Pals Battalions of 257.

John has no known grave he is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme.

The Thiepval Memorial, the Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, bears the names of more than 72,000 officers and men of the United Kingdom and South African forces who died in the Somme sector before 20 March 1918 and have no known grave. Over 90% of those commemorated died between July and November 1916.

On 01st August 1932 the Prince of Wales and the President of France inaugurated the Thiepval Memorial in Picardy. The inscription reads: “Here are recorded the names of officers and men of the British Armies who fell on the Somme battlefields between July 1915 and March 1918 but to whom the fortune of war denied the known and honoured burial given to their comrades in death.”

His effects, which consisted of his disc, 2 cards and 3 photos, were sent to his mother in February 1917, and his service medals in May 1919 and November 1921 by which time Ada and her daughters and young son Cyril were living at 31 Cambridge Road, Crosby.

This was not the only loss Ada and her remaining children suffered. Her husband William, who had served 8 years with the Hants Regiment when he was younger, enlisted in the R.A.M.C. as Private 66599 on September 27th 1915 in Salisbury. He was described as 6’ tall and weighing 148lbs. William almost immediately crossed to France in November 1915 with the 99th Field Ambulance. He was promoted several times, in December 1915,  and July 1916 and was acting Lance Sergeant from May 4th 1917.

He was awarded the Military Medal for gallantry on 26th April 1917 (London Gazette ref 11/w/83922). The Battalion diary refers to this award in the entry of 17th March 1917 as follows:

The Military Medal has been awarded to W Smith RAMC for gallant conduct on the 4th inst. at CLERY. 

According the R.A.M.C. diaries he was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal on the 31st October 1917, the day before he was killed in heavy shelling on 01st November 1917 at the age of 45. He is buried in Khandahar Farm Cemetery just over the French border in Belgium.

Ada received William’s effects in February 1918, his disc, letters, photos, album, his wallet and spectacles in a case and a pair of scissors.

Both William and his son John are commemorated on the War Memorial in the village of West Lavington, Wiltshire.

By the 1921 Census at Cambridge Road, Crosby, mother Ada is widowed, living with Louisa, Rose and Cyril. 

His brother Cyril signed up with the Royal Navy on his 18th birthday in 1930, having been on HMS Ganges and HMS Calliope training as a boy from the age of 15. He gave his occupation as game keeper’s assistant.

The 1939 Register shows a Cyril Smith with his exact date of birth, married and living in Manchester and serving as a police constable. The Register also shows a Lilian Louise Smith with the correct date of birth working as a childrens nurse in Wesham Park Hospital in Fylde.

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