Pte 59571 Frederick Chandler

• Age: 34
• From: Birmingham
• 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

The 1891 census shows the eight year old Frederick living with his parents at 15 Montague Street, Aston. His father is 48 years old and is working as a paper hanger, his mother is 42 and is a fold woman in a paper mill. His siblings are: Edward aged 17 a printers apprentice, Catherine 16 who is a housekeeper, Frank 12, Percy 11, Herbert 5, Emma 4 and John 9 months.

Sadly, both Edward and Catherine died in 1898.

The 1901 census records the family living at 268 Victoria Road, Aston. Mary is now 52 and recorded as married but Richard is absent that day. Three of their children are at home, Frederick is working as a printing machine winder, Herbert is a grocers errand boy and Emma is at home. 

Frederick married Mabel Kate Nichols in 1910 in Maidstone, she was the daughter of Edward James and Susan Nichols, and was born on the 30th September 1887.

The 1911 Census shows the newly wedded couple living at 135 Whitehead Road, Aston, Birmingham with Frederick’s parents. Richard Thomas is recorded as an unemployed draper, the couple have been married for thirty eight years years and Mary has borne thirteen children of which six sadly died. Frederick is now 27, his occupation is a printer and plater machinist, Birmingham, his wife Mabel Kate is 24 and was born in Maidstone, Kent. Siblings still at home are Herbert who is a silversmith's clerk and Emma Louise who is an insurance clerk.

His father died aged 72 in the March quarter of 1914. His death was registered in Ashton-under-Lyne

Frederick enlisted in Liverpool and was serving in the 17th Battalion, The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Private No 59571 when he was killed in action on the 31st July 1917 during the Third Battle of Ypres, better known as the Battle of Passchendaele.

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 17th Battalion on the left, and the 20th on the right, the whole time under heavy shell fire. On reaching their position which was the Blue Line , troops of both the 21st and 90th 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 17th 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 3rd -4th August.

Frederick'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.