Capt Arthur de Bells Adam (MC)
1885 - 1916

CPL David Wallace Crawford
1887 - 1916

Lce-Corpl John Joseph Nickle
1894 - 1916

Pte 17911 Morton Neill
1897 - 1916

Lieut Edward Stanley Ashcroft
1883 - 1918

Lieut Edward Stanley Ashcroft

Age: 35
From: Liverpool
Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 17th Btn
D.O.W Sunday 12th May 1918
Commemorated at: Harlebeke New Brit Cem
Panel Ref: XI.E.5

Lieutenant E. S. ASHCROFT,

17th Battalion (C Company) King’s Liverpool Regiment.

Edward Stanley Ashcroft was born in Liverpool on 29th October 1882, was the second son of the second son of Charles Wesley Ashcroft and his wife Alice Mason (nee Hutchinson) who were married in Liverpool in 1877.

At the time of the 1891 census the family are living at 9 Derwent Square, Stonycroft, Liverpool. Frederic was 5 years old and had five brothers: William aged 9, Edward aged 9, Harold 6, Alec Hutchinson 3 and Arthur aged 7 months. Charles Wesley Ashcroft was 39 and recorded as a miller, and his wife Alice was 38 (Alice was also the daughter of a corn miller). Also living in the household are Mary Lord, a 26 year old governess and Margaret Evans a 20 year old housemaid.

By the time of the 1901 census the family had moved across the River Mersey to 16 Waterford Road, Oxton, Birkenhead. Charles is recorded as a corn miller, Alice has had two more children: Robert who is now 10, and Alice aged 5. William is a Cambridge undergraduate, Edward is an office clerk in a corn millers, and Frederic and the rest of his siblings are at school. Also living in the household are Esther Lawrenson a housemaid aged 27, Pattie Wright aged 16 a childrens nurse and a kitchen maid Margaret Shone aged 15.

At the time of the 1911 Census his parents are still living at 16 Waterford Road with four of their eight children (Alice has borne nine children but only eight had survived): William is now 29 and a solicitor, Edward 28 and a miller’s clerk, Arthur is an apprentice miller and Robert is 18 and still at school. The family have four staff: cook Annie Lawrenson, Kitchen maid Sarah Ann Hobson, housemaid Harriet Quayle and housemaid Nellie Anglesey. His brother Frederic is recorded as a visitor in the 1911 census, in the household of Clarence and Eunice Hackman in Godalming.

Edward was educated at Birkenhead School, between 1896 and 1900, and during this time at the school, he became School Prefect, Captain of the football XV team, and a member of the school cricket team. Edward Stanley Ashcroft also gave up a lot of his spare time to the school mission, eventually becoming the Sunday School Superintendent. On leaving school he went to work in the office of Edward Utchinson, of the Mersey Flour Mills, of which firm his father was a partner. When he was not working, he enjoyed playing for the Birkenhead Park Rugby Club, as a Three Quarter, and later went on to play for Cheshire. Eventually, he was chosen to play for the North of England, but as a result of an earlier injury, was unable to play. As well as being a keen rugby player, he also used to play golf at the Prenton Golf Club, Birkenhead.

In August 1914, Edward Stanley Ashcroft enlisted into the ranks of 17^th Battalion King's (Liverpool) Regiment, and whilst undergoing training with this battalion, applied for and was granted a commission. He was drafted over to France, in July, 1916, and was posted to 12th Battalion, of The King's Liverpool Regiment. In September, 1916, Lieutenant Ashcroft was badly wounded in action, and was invalided back to England, to recover. After recovering from his wounds, which took almost a year to heal, Lieutenant Ashcroft returned to France, embarking on 25th September, 1917. On the 1st October, 1917, he was posted to his first battalion, the 17th King's, and went on to serve with them until he was granted home leave, from 13^th to the 27th February, 1918. On his return to the front, he rejoined his Battalion, and remained with them until he was posted as Missing in action. The 17th King's war diary actually records that Lieutenant Ashcroft was posted as missing on 1st May, 1918, when the battalion was in the line in the Voormezeele Defences, near Ypres, Belgium.

He was wounded in action and captured on 29th April 1918. His name appears on a list of prisoners at Limburg Camp in Germany but it was not uncommon for prisoners who never left the front to be assigned to a POW camp. He was reported by a German field hospital to be wounded with bullets in the left upper arm and lower back, and to have died of his wounds on 12th May at Reckem. Edward was buried by the Germans in Lauwe Cemetery, near Menin, Belgium, grave 413. He was 35 years of age.

After the war, when graves were concentrated, Edward’s body was removed and reinterred in Harlebeke where he now rests at Plot 2, Row E, Grave 2, New Harlebeke Military Cemetery, Belgium.

Harlebeke village was taken on the night of 19-20 October 1918 by the 9th (Scottish) Division.

Harlebeke New British Cemetery was made after the Armistice when graves were brought in from the surrounding battlefields of 1918 and, in 1924-25, from German cemeteries or plots in Belgium. The earlier concentrations are in Plots I and X, and the later in Plots I, II and XI to XIX. In the latter group are many graves of October 1914.

In May 1940, The British Expeditionary Force was involved in the later stages of the defence of Belgium following the German invasion, and suffered many casualties in covering the withdrawal to Dunkirk. Commonwealth forces did not return until September 1944.

The cemetery now contains 1,116 Commonwealth burials and commemorations of the First World War. 181 of the burials are unidentified and a special memorial is erected to one casualty who is believed to be buried among them. Other special memorials record the names of 19 casualties buried by the Germans in other burial grounds whose graves could not be found on concentration. There are also ten burials of the Second World War in the cemetery.

The cemetery was designed by W H Cowlishaw.

His family contacted the "Bureau de Secours aux Prisonniers de Guerre" (Prisoner of War Relief Office) in Berne, Switzerland. They were informed on 30th August 1918 that Edward had been wounded and captured and were only notified on 21st September that he had died in captivity.

His POW status had been reported in the local press:

Lieut. Edward Stanley Ashcroft

News has been received that Second Lieutenant E. Stanley Ashcroft, reported in Wednesday's "Daily Post" as wounded and missing, is now notified as wounded and a prisoner.

Following confirmation of Edward's death his school wrote:

His loss is a severe one, and one which concerns the School very greatly, for he had for many years been the life and soul of the work at the School Mission. He had a positive genius for work of this sort. Night after night he gave up to the Club. But it was a great deal more than the regularity of his attendance there that has made his loss an irreparable one. He loved the work for its own sake, and formed real friendships with many of the boys, upon whom his strong, straight, and manly character had a tremendous influence. Most of his spare time was devoted to the interests of young people, and in addition to all that he did at the School Club he was superintendent of a Sunday school. He realised more than most the value and duty of service, and in living up to the highest ideals which he set before himself he was actuated by the highest of all motives—the love of God.

His two brothers Frederic and William also fell whilst serving in the Liverpool Pals. Frederic on the 09^th April, 1917 at Arras and William on the 22^nd March,1918 near St Quentin.

Lieutenant Edward Stanley Ashcroft is commemorated on the following memorials;

Hall of Remembrance, Liverpool Town Hall at Panel 16 Left

Birkenhead School Chapel

Birkenhead School Memorial Book

Prenton Golf Club War Memorial

Birkenhead Park Rugby Club Roll of Honour

His father Charles was made a Justice of the Peace in July 1918. An extract from the Birkenhead News on 27th July reads:

"Mr Charles Wesley Ashcroft of 16 Waterford Road, Oxton, Birkenhead is a partner in the firm of Messrs. E.Hutchinson and Sons, The Mersey Flour Mills, Burlington Street, Liverpool. Mr Ashcroft has been a leading member of the Palm Grove Wesleyan Church. He has not been an active participant in politics, although his sympathies are with the Liberal Party, but he has evinced an interest in local affairs. Mr Ashcroft in his leisure time is a keen golfer and angler. He has five sons serving their country, whilst two others have fallen during the war."

Edward's father died in 1925.

Alice, his mother, made a contribution to Birkenhead School in memory of her three sons that had died in the war. The donation was to build some steps from the playing fields to the gymnasium which were finished in 1955. In 2020, The Old Birkonian Society Council organised a memorial to recognise her funding contributions and have placed a plaque in their honour by the steps.

The Old Birkonian Society website has photos of the three men with a short biography of each, and photos of the steps and memorial. (obs.org.uk/news-1)

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

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