Current Information:

Age-37

Attached from 25th London (Cyclist Battalion)

56, Forest Road, Kew

Hem Farm Military Cemetery, Hem-Monacu, France

Starting on 8th August, 1918, the Allies launched a series of offensives, collectively known as the Hundred Days Offensive, that resulted in the collapse of the German army and the end of the war by November. British, Australian and Canadian troops attacked across the old Somme battlefield and on the Arras front causing the demoralised German Army to fall back on a daily basis while the French did the same thing further south.

By the beginning of September much of the territory that had been lost earlier in the year,  when the Germans had made spectacular gains in March and April, had been won back but the Allies relentless pressure did not falter. At 5.30am on 1st September, 140 Brigade of 47th Division attacked at Rancourt, a few miles south of Bapaume on the road to Péronne. The 21st London and 15th London battalions led the attack with 17th London in support. At 2.45am, 15th London moved up to its assembly positions, encountering a certain amount of shelling as they did so but by 7.30am all objectives had been achieved and large numbers of prisoners and machine-guns captured. While consolidating their new positions the leading companies were subjected to some heavy shelling from an enemy field gun battery, firing over open sights from one thousand yards away. Touch was made with the East Surreys on the left but on their right 21st London had not advanced as far as their final objective and a gap developed through which some Germans tried to infiltrate but were prevented from doing so by Lewis gun fire. Shortly before midnight 15th London were relieved and marched to an assembly position on the Rancourt-Péronne road in preparation for an attack the next morning. Among the casualties suffered by the battalion on 1st September was Edward Lascelles. The CWGC has his death as 2nd September, but the Battalion Diary recorded that he was killed early during the adavnce on 1st Sptember, while leading C Company forward.