You begin to comprehend the carnage of World War One when you learn how few Thankful Villages there are. These were the fortunate communities that lost no servicemen in the war, when all around them did. Out of some 16,000 villages in England, only 50-odd are ‘thankful’. You could be forgiven for thinking Somerset got off lightly as it has the highest number of any English county (nine). It’s just not so, however, as there are around 750 cities, towns, villages and hamlets in the county. Nine thankful villages represent just over one per cent of Somerset’s communities.
The 13th (1st Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot (Somerset Light Infantry from 1920) was awarded 60 battle honours during World War One, winning one Victoria Cross, but losing 4,760 men over the course of the conflict. The 1st Battalion was engaged from the start, fighting at the Battle of the Marne and the Aisne in 1914, Second Ypres (1915), the Somme (1916), Third Ypres (Passchendaele) in 1917, then various battles in 1918, as the Allies finally pushed the Germans back. The 1st Battalion’s experience of the Great War is a roll-call of the Western Front offensives that scarred this nation’s consciousness for years to come.
Other battalions played their part on the Western Front, including the 6th, 7th and 8th (Service) battalions, the 11th (Territorials) and the 12th (West Somerset Yeomanry) Battalion (Territorials). The 8th took part in Britain’s major offensive of 1915, the Battle of Loos (September-October), suffering such grievous casualties it took the rest of that year to rebuild its strength.
Denne historien er fra November 2019-utgaven av Somerset Life.
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Denne historien er fra November 2019-utgaven av Somerset Life.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Up on the Down
Try this easy-to-follow Exmoor walk with SIMONE STANBROOK-BYRNE
Shop until you drop
It’s Somerset’s county town, it’s the place to go for the big shops, but Taunton is also home to a thriving independent scene, discovers CATHERINE COURTENAY
Creatures of the night
Have you ever had something swoop past your ear, almost unseen? You may have had a brief encounter with a bat, says BERNARD BALE
Bowled over
Now that we can return to skittle and bowling alleys - albeit with new rules BERNARD BALE reveals that the sport of bowling has many Somerset links
Trackway through time
In the Somerset Levels SIMONE STANBROOK-BYRNE discovers a place where our Neolithic heritage rubs shoulders with the present day
SAVING THE SPLENDOUR OF EXMOOR
The splendour of Exmoor National Park may appear timeless and untroubled, but a new book reveals the long and often bitter struggle conservationists faced to save the landscape from the twin threats of afforestation and the plough
Decorative art
Not simply functional, treat your walls like an extension of your personality
Charity starts at home
How do we teach our children the importance of giving back?
Blooming brilliant
Will and Lauren Holley purchased a four-acre field in Somerset, converted it into a nursery, opened during lockdown and now their perennial plants are flying off the shelves. JULIE HARDING meets the go-getting couple
Age-old advice
Just become a grandparent for the first time? Perhaps you need a little guidance, so here are some top tips about how to embrace your new family role
