Friday 19 October 2012

Op Drum - Essex Farm

A visit to Essex Farm Cemetery. The CWGC lists 1,097 casualties, and given it's location adjacent to a dressing station many would have died from wounds.

It was in Essex Farm Cemetery that Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae of the Canadian Army Medical Corps wrote the poem ' In Flanders Fields' in May 1915.


Essex Farm Cemetery
Cross of Sacrifice

Essex Farm Cemetery

There is the too familiar site of the graves of Royal Artillery all together, that died on the same date or near.

The counter battery fire on the Salient could result in an entire gun detachment being killed in a single incident. With in the cemetery 5 Gunners from 261 Siege Battery are buried together, four lost on 10th August 1917, the remaining casualty recorded as 12th August 1917. The Battery was equipped with 6 inch Howitzers and in August 1917 was part of the 65th HAG.
 
Royal Garrison Artillery
261st Siege Battery
 
                                          Gnr GA Moore   Cpl T Teague    Gnr D Marnock     Gnr AW Dodd    Gnr LJ Drury
 
Rank Initials Surname Age Date of Death Service No. Grave Ref
Gunner G A MOORE 19 10/08/1917 296660 I. Q. 24.
Corporal T TEAGUE 24 10/08/1917 43943 I. Q. 25.
Gunner D MARNOCK 19 10/08/1917 344204 I. Q. 26.
Gunner AW DODD 31 10/08/1917 147759 I. Q. 27.
Gunner L J DRURY   12/08/1917 147756 I. Q. 28.