My Great Great Grandad (on my fathers side) Walter Southwood was an Old Contemptible. He joined the 1st bttn of the Somerset Light Infantry at the age of 18 in 1908. He got married in 1914, aged 24 and he went off to France with the BEF in the following month. 1000 soldiers in the battalion left with him to go to France. By the end of the War only 226 made it all the way through, he was one of these (this figures do not include those who were invalided out-if these are not included it is 177). He was involved in Arras, the Somme and Ypres. He went over the top in the first wave on the first day of the battle of The Somme in 1916. the Battalion lost 26 officers and 478 men, but grandad survived. He picked up a gas victim from nomans-land in an atempt to save the victims life, finding the soldier was possibly already dead he decided to pick up the body and take it back to the trench. On picking it up the body expelled gas from it's lungs into his face. He had a terrible hacking cough ever since that moment. He remained with the battalion after the war as a cook or possibly a stewardin the officers mess in Belfast. He left the army in 1928. He was killed in 1944, when he fell off a ladder while cleaning windows.
I will get one up ASAP...i have one on paper and i will try to get it onto the screen This a Picture of him after 1918. He joined as a private and worked his way up to Sergeant I hope this works i am having trouble with the photos and stuff
That doesn't look like a military uniform. More like a Commissionaire . Any idea what he did after the Army? Not the correct cap badge for SLI. It should look like this http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:4rvVp8p-MgXOZM:http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/british_regiment/somerset_light_infantry_capbadge.JPG
Some sort of police uniform? Like this one: Albert ( My Great Great Uncle was also an Old Contemptible who was captured at Le Cateau in 1914)
After the War he stayed on as a cook or possibly a Steward in the Officers Mess, any help? This is all stuff i've picked up from family members, any outside info is hugely welcome
May I enquire what exactly does the term "Old Contemptible" mean? Is it being a member of the original B.E.F. in 1914?
May I enquire what exactly does the term "Old Contemptible" mean? Is it being a member of the original B.E.F. in 1914? In a word, Yes. See>> First World War.com - Encyclopedia - The Old Contemptibles
May I enquire what exactly does the term "Old Contemptible" mean? Is it being a member of the original B.E.F. in 1914? Hi Yes exactly ! The term "Old Contemptible" was adopted by the Veterans of the 1914 BEF,I believe as a result of the Kaiser's reference to "wiping out this contemptible little Army" . Regards Verrieres
They 'Old Contemptibles' held them up in Belgium not France. The Shclieffen Plan was designed to take out France before the 'Russian Steamroller' could mobilise. To take out a country you capture the capital and all the VIP therein. The Plan was to put more than half the German Army through neutral Belgium in a ginat hook, to attack Paris from behind. An attack was launched on the German-French border (Alsace-Lorraine) to distract the French. As soon as the frist Boche boot touched Belgian soil they were at war with Britain France and Russia. The BEF were sent to stop them.
They 'Old Contemptibles' held them up in Belgium not France. Not true, after the retreat from Mons most of the fighting was in France , read up on Le Cateau , the Marne, Aisne etc etc until the BEF moved back up north towards Ypres, which is back in Belgium. >> The Western Front in France and Flanders in 1914-1918
Is Mons in Belgium? I swear it was Belgium first, where we did a pretty good job. After the Frech Army had a series of defeats further south, they had to pull back, and as they were supplying us we had to pull back with them.
Yes, Mons is in Belgium but the Germans weren't really held up there for long. It was the Marne were Paris was saved.
I was wondering if he was ever a prison warder? The Uniform seems familiar but I'm having trouble googling up a picture for comparison.
mmm still thinking about the Corps Of Commisionaires. Their cap badge. See this Victorian chap. Soldiers of the Queen - Corps of Commissionaires Sergeant Single pocket too. Modern day uniforms on their website. Our People - Uniforms
