Current Information:

Born-Brentford

Menin Road South Military Cemetery, Ypres

In the evening of 11th February, 1916, 9th Royal Sussex, 73 Brigade, 24th Division moved into the front line opposite Bellewaarde Farm in the Ypres salient. Although the next day was fairly quiet, the following day, 13th February, was anything but. ‘A’ Company of 9th Royal Sussex were subjected to an 8 ½ hour bombardment by the German artillery which caused considerable damage to the front line trench and resulted in thirty casualties, a number of who were killed. Second Lieutenant Tisdall was killed when trying to dig out a man who had been buried by the shelling.

Things got even more violent on the next day, 14th February, 1916, when, in the late afternoon, the enemy blew two mines on the front line held by 9th Royal Sussex, burying a platoon alive. They then tried to seize control of the two craters formed by the explosions but the quick action of 9th Royal Sussex, prevented this. They got to the craters first and then spent a long, wet night digging themselves in, no doubt wishing they could be somewhere else on Valentine’s Day.