| Home > Ordinary Heroes > Charles Edward Davis MM |
A brief medical examination took place, in which he was discovered to weigh 154 pounds, and have a 39-inch chest. A well-built young man, by the standards of the day. He was pronounced fit for active service, given number 11280 and posted to the newly forming 6th (Service) Battalion.
Charles was posted to the Battalion at Dorchester, and on 19 September 1914 to Wareham in Dorset.
He was appointed to the rank of Lance Corporal on 21 January 1915. At some point soon after arrival, Charles was involved in a minor misdemeanour that led to him being put on a charge (reason not given). He was given 14 days detention and deprived of his stripe.
On 9 July 1915, Charles married. It was highly likely that he had been warned for overseas service, for he soon embarked with his battalion, moving to France four days later.
He was appointed to the rank of Lance Sergeant on 13 January 1916.
On 16 February 1916, Charles was wounded during a counter attack made by his battalion after a surprise German attack had captured the forward British positions at a notorious position near Ypres, called The Bluff. An extract from the battalion war diary, with an analysis of casualties, appears here.
He received wounds to the buttocks and elbow, and was initially treated at 52 Field Ambulance. Being moved down the casualty evacuation chain, he was admitted to No 10 Casualty Clearing Station at Remy Siding in the hamlet of Lijssenthoek near Poperinge. After receiving further treatment there, Charles was moved by No 19 Ambulance Train to No 13 General Hospital at Boulogne, and from there to England by hospital ship, arriving on 9 March. He was admitted to Northumberland War Hospital at Gosforth on 10 March 1916, and remained there until 20 April when he was transferred to the Military Convalescent Hospital at nearby Alnwick. While at Gosforth, Charles underwent surgery that removed eight pieces of shrapnel from his buttock, leaving some five pieces still buried in the muscle.
Unknown to Charles, his commanding officer had recommended him for the award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal. At some point it is likely that he had become a bombing specialist, for in the counter attack he had led a bombing party. The draft citation, which appears in the war diary, read “On the night of 15/16 February during the attack on the German trenches, the bombers were led with great skill and daring by Corporal C. E. Davis and succeeded in occupying a portion of the German trench. Cpl Davis although wounded a few yards from the trench remained with the bombers, giving orders until the trench was occupied. Twenty one of the bombers were either killed or wounded in the action”.
Charles was eventually pronounced fit for further service, and he embarked for France once again on 3 August 1916, arriving at the Base at Rouen next day and being posted on to the 1st Battalion of his regiment.
On 11 October 1916, the London Gazette carried the announcement of the award of the Military Medal to Charles. MM awards do not carry a citation, so it is not certain why this award was made. Announcements were usually printed some 3-5 months after the decision to make the award, which would place this event before Charles joined the 1st Battalion . Presumably a decision had been taken at Brigade or Divisional level to reject the recommendation for the DCM in favour of the lesser award of the MM. It is possible that Charles was never made aware that he had been recommended for the DCM.
He was promoted to Sergeant on 6 September 1916.
Charles was granted a period of leave between 25 September and 10 October 1917. This leave was extended by another five days, for reasons now forgotten. However, just before going on leave he had won a middleweight boxing medal in a Fourth Army competition, and it may be an extra reward for this.
On 6 January 1918, Charles left the Battalion and France, moving to England in order to undertake a course that would lead to a commission as an officer.
There are no records that explicitly tell us what happened after this point. However, on 21 June 1918, Charles was examined by a Medical Board at the 2nd London General Hospital, Chelsea, and downgraded to category B2, on account of defective vision. This was sufficient for his commission to be halted. Things had not improved when he was re-examined in December 1918 at Red Barracks, Weymouth. The medical report states that the defective vision was not caused or aggravated by his war service, but was in fact “constitutional”.
He was posted to the 15th (Reserve) Battalion of the London Regiment and then to 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, the Dorsetshire Regiment on 11 July 1918.
On 31 March 1919, this by now highly regarded and experienced NCO was discharged to Class Z Army Reserve from the dispersal centre at Fovant. This meant that he was subject to recall in the event of emergency for up to twelve months, but in the event this was not required.
A medical report completed on 9 December 1919 remarked that his eyesight gave him a 30% disability, but that this had now ceased. He was not awarded a pension due to disablement suffered as a result of war service.
This
article is published with the kind permission of Charles'
son Dennis Davis and Peter Brown. If
you have any information concerning Charles Davis, or would
like to commemorate one of your relatives on a page like this,
please contact
the webmaster. |
|
|
