Arthur Richards(on) (Private No. 10060)2nd Battalion South Wales Borderers - 87th Brigade - 29th Division
Arthur was born on January 26th 1889, and probably did not
move to Eton Wick until 10 years later. He attended the Windsor National School
until he was 10 years old, and first registered at Eton Porny on February 7th
1899, leaving there on March 15th 1903 to take up farm work. No evidence has
been found to suggest that Arthur was anything other than an early war time
volunteer.
He was 25 years old when war was declared and his Battalion, the 2nd
South Wales Borderers, were at that time serving in Tientsin, China, where
Germany had substantial influence. On September 23rd 1914 they were landed at
Lao Shan Bay for operations in conjunction with allied Japanese Army Units
against Tsingtao. Six weeks later, on December 4th, they embarked at Hong Kong,
and landed in Plymouth on January 12th 1915.
The Battalion moved to Rugely
where they became part of the 87th Brigade, 29th Division, and on March 17th
1915 they sailed from Avonmouth to Alexandria, arriving in Egypt 12 days later.
The 29th Division was the last of three Divisions formed in
the U.K. with mainly professional soldiers brought home from overseas service
and were often referred to as the C. in C. General Hamilton's, "Piece de
Resistance". They were in fact the only Division available at the time for
the forthcoming Dardanelles offensive without taking troops from the western
front.
During the war the S.W.B. had a total of 18 Battalions, but only the 2nd
served in Gallipoli for the initial April attack. Three months later the 4th
Battalion S.W.B. was also landed on Gallipoli. From the outset the campaign was
poorly planned, suffering a severe shortage of drinking water, ammunition and
reinforcements. Divisions sent to the Western Front had gone with an initial
10% reserve of men for casualty replacements. Despite the greater distance to
send supplies and men, there was no initial reserve at Gallipoli. British,
French, New Zealanders and Australians were landed at five beaches on the
peninsula, starting the offensive on April 25th 1915.
Three of the four S.W.B. companies went ashore at
Hassarlik Point, Morto Bay, just inside the narrow Dardanelle Straits, intent
on advancing inland, past the 88th Brigade and taking the Achi Baba Hill. The
first day was reasonably successful and casualties were less than 100.
Unfortunately the overall progress was not good and the Borderers were unable
to break away from their beach head as planned. The Turkish defenders were
always brave and determined fighters, with their many snipers taking a steady
daily toll of the allied troops. By day five, April 30th, the 29th Division had
suffered 4,266 men and 187 officer casualties for no appreciable advance.
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| The Helles Memorial |
Three
days after the S.W.B. had landed in Morto Bay they were fighting against fierce
opposition along Gully Ravine in a combined, but unsuccessful, attempt to
capture Krithia. All were very exhausted, and the shortage of shells and
adequate replacements was proving too much against an enemy defending familiar
terrain and receiving steady reinforcements. It was here, in front of Krithia,
that Arthur Richards died. He has no known grave and so is commemorated on the
Helles Memorial at the south west tip of the peninsula. It stands 100 feet
high, and from its commanding position is a well recognised mark for shipping.
The memorial records the names of 20,765 men who fell during the campaign
between April 25th 1915 and January 1916 and have no known graves. In December
and early January all allied troops were withdrawn.
Arthur was a difficult
soldier to research as, for some un-established reason, he chose to serve under
a different name. His father's name was also Arthur, and when they moved to
Eton Wick they lived in Albert Place, Common Road. There was another lad with
the same name living only a few doors away who was five years younger. Perhaps
because there were three Arthur Richards living so close together, he was
prompted to serve as Arthur Richardson. The C.W.G.C. has no trace of Arthur
Richards of the 2nd S.W.B. Fortunately the Regimental Museum in Brecon
suggested and pursued the idea of an alias. They then located Arthur
Richardson, whose next of kin was given as Eliza Richards of Albert Place, Eton
Wick. They record his death as May 2nd 1915, although the local paper was at
variance, giving the date as May 15th 1915.
It is believed Arthur had one
brother, and the family lived on in Albert Place for many more years. Arthur is
also recorded on Eton Wick Memorial and on the Eton Church Gates. In both instances
his name is correctly given as Richards. On the Helles Memorial he is
commemorated as A. Richardson.
This is an extract from Their Names Shall Be Carved in Stone
and published here with grateful thanks to the author Frank Bond.
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