Current Information:

Age-31

31, Chepstow Place, Bayswater

Estaires Communal Cemetery, France

The Battle of Neuve Chapelle

Between 10th and 13th March, 1915, the Indian Army Corps and IV Corps attacked the village of Neuve Chapelle in the Artois region of France. During the winter of 1914-1915, reinforcements had arrived from Britain and this was seen as an opportunity to use them to break through the German lines.

It started well. At 7.30am on 10th March, a 30 minute hurricane bombardment destroyed the German wire and front line trenches and at 8.05am the infantry went in. Neuve Chapelle was captured and over a mile of the German line taken. But that was the end of the success.  The British chain of command was weak and their communications poor, which was hardly surprising given that many of the troops had no previous experience of battle. The Germans re-organised and reinforced during the night and no further gains were made. British casualties mounted to 12,000 by the time the offensive petered out on 13th March.

Harry Byatt of the Royal Army Medical Corps was the medical officer attached to the 2nd Rifle Brigade battalion of 25 Brigade, 8th Division who was shot in the chest while attending to a wounded man during this battle. He was taken to the 25th Field Ambulance at Estaires but there he died from his wounds.