ALFRED OXLEY 

Alfred OXLEY
Rank: Private
Service Number:17298.
Regiment: 2nd Bn King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)
Killed In Action Thursday 5th August 1915
Age Unknown
FromBowden.
County Memorial AltrinchamAltrincham and District RoH
Commemorated\Buried Ypres Menin Gate Memorial
Grave\Panel Ref: N/A
CountryBelgium

Alfred's Story.

The 1901 census shows Alfred living 7 Chapel Street, Altrincham, and working as a railway porter, by 1911 he had married and moved to 20 Chapel Street and was working as general labourer, while his wife was head of the lodging house they ran, they had five children.

The 2nd battalion KORL arrived in Le Havre on the 16th January 1915, Alfred’s medal index card shows he arrived on the 23rd February; the battalion had by this time already seen action and lost a number of men, a diary entry covering the 23rd states. The battalion remained in huts and a draft of 50 men under the command of Lt G.L Sommerville arrived. Alfred may have been one of these.

The Battalion War Diary for the day Alfred was killed reads:

08/05/1915

7am Enemy shelled trenches, blowing them in, and rendering them untenable. The enemy advanced and captured the front-line trenches; they advanced against the support dugouts.  The OC 3rd Monmouth’s called for our company to support his line and B Company under Captain Farwood at once moved across the road and occupied some old trenches.

10am Enemy commenced attack on the support dugouts but were held in check when 200 yards from them the enemy were observed moving in a westerly direction on both flanks of the position.

11.35am Major Clough assumed command on the death of Col Martin. Message received to retire on Potijze, B Company was ordered to retire first followed by the three platoons of C Company on the north of the Ypres – Zonnebeke Road.

The diary entry for the 9th May gives the casualties for the period the battalion were in the front line it reads.

The remainder of the battalion were withdrawn from the frontline and sent back to the hut’s total casualties during this last tour in the trenches 4th to 9th May were:

Officers: Killed 4, Wounded 5, Wounded and Prisoner 2, Wounded and missing 1, missing 4.

Other ranks: Killed 36, Wounded 110, Wounded, and missing 31, Missing 721

NOTE: The Commonwealth War Graves commission has 339 men from the 2nd Battalion KORL listed as killed between the 4th and 9th May, 313 of them listed on the 8th May 1915.