Corporal 22276 John Tweedie

John Tweedie was born in about 1891 in Tandragee, County Armagh, Ireland, the son of John Tweedie and his wife Eliza (nee Sleeth). They had at least eight children: Margaret, Mary Jane, Robert, William, John, Henry (Harry), Sarahann and James. His parents married on 02nd June 1881 at Clarksbridge Presbyterian Church, Co.Armagh. John Tweedie 24 a mason of Drumnamether, and Elizabeth Sleeth 22 of Tullyvallen, father Williem Sleeth.
 

In 1901 the family, with eight children, is living at House 21 in Drumnamether, Mullaghbrack, Armagh. His father John, 40, is a farmer and bricklayer, his mother Eliza is 41, Margaret, 19, is a seamstress, Mary Jane, 15, Robert 14, William, 12, John, 10, Henry, 8, and Sarahann, 6, are at school, and James is 2.

 

In the coming years many of John’s siblings emigrated: Mary Jane, Robert, William, Harry, and Sarahann to the USA, and Margaret to Canada.

 

In 1911 his parents with the two youngest children, Sarahann, 16, and James, 11, are still at the same address. John is found on the 1911 Census listed as John Tweedy, a 20 year old dock labourer b.Co.Armagh boarding at 157 Hartnup Street, Everton. The head of the family is 55 year old William Sleith b.Co.Armagh, who most probably is his grandfather.

 

John enlisted in Liverpool on 10th November 1914, as Private 22276, No.1 Company, 20th (Pals) Battalion of The King’s Liverpool Regiment, giving his age as 23 years, and his occupation as clerk.  He is described as being 5’ 4” tall, weighing 121 lbs, with a fresh complexion, grey eyes and dark brown hair.  He gives his religion as Presbyterian, place of residence Tandragee, and his father as next of kin, at Drumnamether Clare, Tandragee.

 

The 20th Bn is initially quartered at Knotty Ash, and in January the four Pals battalions begin training as an infantry brigade at Knowsley, near Liverpool. In April the Pals battalions leave for Belton Park Camp in Lincolnshire, and in September move to Larkhill Camp on Salisbury Plain for final infantry training before shipping to France.  John disembarks at Boulogne with his battalion on 7th November 1915.

In the new year the Pals take up position in the south of the Somme line near Carnoy. John survived the fighting at the Somme in 1916, and in the Ypres Salient in 1917.

 

His service record has survived and shows :

Appointed unpaid Lance Corporal 28th March 1916

Granted leave to the U.K. in January 1917

Attended Transport course 3rd-30th March 1917

Appointed paid Lance Corporal 23rd March 1917

Appointed paid Acting Corporal and confirmed in rank 15th January 1918

To ‘G’ Base Depot 12th May 1918

On leave to U.K. 3rd-18th June 1918

To ’H’ Infantry Base Depot at Etaples 18th June 1918

John was transferred to the 9th Bn K.L.R. and joined his new unit in the field on 28/6/1918. At this time the 9th Bn was in the line at Gommecourt and shortly afterwards was relieved, and moved to Reserve camp near Authie for training and attack practice. On the 29th July the battalion moved to Arras, arriving on 31st July. The Battalion moves to Bailleul on 21st August, then to Bouque Maison and Barly. 

 

From the Battalion War Diary, 27th August, HENIN:  The Battn paraded in Fighting Order at 6 p.m. & proceeded to vicinity of HENIN, where they had tea at about 8 p.m.  At 9:30 p.m. the Battn moved forward to the HINDENBERG LINE and took over trenches in U.7.c... Occupation of trenches was complete by 4 a.m.”

 

“Verbal orders were received at 6 a.m. on the 28th inst. that the Battn would attack during the day.... Zero Hour to be at 12:30 p.m., this Battn to be on the right... Companies to be in position at 11:30.”

 

At Humber Redoubt:

“At 12:30 p.m. our barrage opened & the Battn commenced to move forward.  The going was not too good owing to the wire & numerous shell holes... At about 1:50 p.m. the Bttn continued the advance from the first objective and swung left in the direction of HENDICOURT.  Heavy machine gun fire was encountered... A considerable amount of gas was encountered and several casualties resulted... From 4 p.m. to dusk the positions occupied by this unit were heavily shelled by our own 18 pounders and also enemy 8” and 5.9s.  The Battalion suffered numerous casualties in consequence.”

 

John was one of the casualties as he was killed in action, on 28th August 1918. His body was never recovered or was subsequently lost, and he is remembered on the Vis en Artois Memorial, Pas de Calais.

The Vis en Artois Memorial bears the names of over 9,000 men who fell in the period from 8 August 1918 to the date of the Armistice in the Advance to Victory in Picardy and Artois, between the Somme and Loos, and who have no known grave.

The memorial was designed by J.R. Truelove, with sculpture by Ernest Gillick. It was unveiled by the Rt. Hon. Thomas Shaw on 4 August 1930.

CWGC gives his age as 24 but this does not match his age on enlistment. He would have been 27 or 28 years old.