B A Pollard

Bertram Alfred Pollard

Born circa 1874, in London?   Killed in Action 13 October 1915 

Buried at Spoilbank Cemetery, Nr Ypres

Company Sergeant Major 3/6084 6th Btn Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry

The earliest census return for Bertie is 1881.  Aged 6, he is living in Penzance with 64 year old Elizabeth Wallis, a retired general servant.  She is the head of the household, his relationship to her is "boarder.  His birthplace is stated as Banbury, Oxfordshire.  Ten years later, he is still a boarder with Ms Wallis, though he is now said to have been born in London.  On his army records he said he had been born in Penzance and at one time he lists an "E Wallis" in Penzance as his next of kin, stating that she is his aunt.  There is a Bertram Alfred Pollard recorded as born in Kensington, London in the last quarter of 1874, so perhaps this is Bertie.

His parents are conspicuous by their absence.  On his CWGC records it states that his parents are Mr and Mrs Alfred Pollard of Penzance, though I've not found any other record of them.

Bertie, a harness maker, enlisted with the regular army on 5 June 1893, having already joined the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry militia .  On 2 June 1873 he had been examined at Bodmin.  He was 5 feet 4 1/2 inches tall, weighed 116 pounds and had a chest measurement of 32 inches - 34 1/2 inches when expanded.  His complexion was sallow, his hair dark brown and his eyes blue.  The examining doctor was unimpressed and considered him unfit due to his chest measurement.  Three days later, a captain declared him fit and Bertie embarked on a long career with the Army with the 2nd Battlion DCLI.  His records show his service at home and abroad as follows:

5 June 1893 - 9 Dec 1894         UK

10 Dec 1894 - 20 Feb 1900      India

21 Feb 1900 - 17 Aug 1901      Ceylon

18 Aug 1901 - 7 June 1905      Home

8 June 1905 - 2 Sept 1907        Gibraltar

3 Sept 1907 - 19 Jan 1910      Bermuda

20 Jan 1910 - 10 Mar 1913    South Africa

11 Mar 1913 - 4 June 1914   Home

On 28 April 1905, Bertie married Alice Ann Jones in Penzance.  

 His discharge came on 4 June 1914, just two months before the outbreak of the Great War.  He and Alice must have found a home in Newquay, as the town is given as his place of residence on the casualty records.  He re-enlisted at Bodmin and was posted not to his previous Battalion, but to the 6th Battalion.

Bertie's medal card shows that he was in France by 21 May 1915.  

The history of the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry gives no details of the incident in which Bertie was killed; in fact, it simply states that for the final three months of 1915 in Ypres, nothing of great note happened to the 6th DCLI. 

British wounded being evacuated from Ypres

By Rogers, Gilbert (MBE) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Bertie is buried with three other men of his battalion who fell on 8, 9 and 11 October.

Alice had his gravestone inscribed with the words  "In fondest remembrance RIP".  She appears to have moved back to her native Wales, dying in Cardiff in 1949.  She and Bertie do not appear to have had any children.

P G F Collins

Percival George Fenwick Collins

Born 1892 at St Columb  Killed in Action 18 August 1916 Flers-Courcelette

Lieutenant (Temp) 6th Battalion Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry

Percival was the younger son of Thurstan Collins and Ellen Fenwick - see the post about his older brother Gerald.

Percival was at Rugby School in 1911.  Meanwhile, his parents and sisters were living at their new house "Gluvian" in Newquay's Edgcumbe Gardens.  The Cornish architect Silvanus Trevail is credited with designing the house for Mr Collins, but more recent research suggests that it was in fact one of his partners who was responsible.

Sadly Percival's military records do not survive, but his medal index card indicates that he was in the Coldstream Guards before joining the DCLI.  6th Battalion moved to France on 22nd May 1915 with 43rd Brigade, part of 14th (Light) Division.  The Division were at the Action of Hooge, near Ypres, when the Germans used a flamethrower for the first time during the early hours of 30 July 1915.  The British were forced to fall back from the front line, but regrouped and started to rush men up to hold the ground.  The 6th Battalion DCLI were one such battalion, ordered to secure one section of the front near Zouave Wood.  According to the account of Lieutenant Blagrave,

"They lined Zouave Wood and held it.  They were grand, and nothing could move them."


Although Percival survived this battle more than 50 of his comrades did not.  In all, 14th Division lost 2,500 men.  Lieutenant Blagrave fell on 12 August 1915 trying to rescue men trapped by enemy shelling in the cathedral at Ypres.  After the war around 40 bodies were found in a cellar under the Cloth Hall at Ypres, members of B Company, 6th Battalion DCLI.

The 14th Division was to play a part in one of the early battles of the Somme, that of Delville Wood in July 1916.  General Haig ordered that Trones Wood be cleared of Germans so as to protect the British forces' right flank.  The battle for Trones Wood began on 14 July and by the following afternoon the 14th (Light) Division and 18th (Eastern) Division had taken the Wood.

On 15 September 14th Division were again in action at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette, the third main phase of the Battle of the Somme .  This battle is notable as the first in which tanks were used (49 were deployed, although not all made it into action).  14th Division were still holding part of Delville Wood and their objective was to clear out the last pocket of German resistance, which they achieved.  The following day the Division was unable to make further progress, let down by inadequate artillery support. The offensive began again on 17 September and continued until 23 September, during which time Percival lost his life, in an offensive which failed to gain its chief aim of pushing a hole through the German lines.

Percival is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial as well as Newquay War Memorial and a plaque in St Michael's Church (with his brother, Gerald).

Update 18 July 2011

In an edition of the Cornish Guardian on 1 September 1916 there is an article about the Collins brothers.  This mentions that Percival attended St John's College, Oxford after leaving Rugby School.  When war broke out he was intending to join the Indian Civil Service, but joined up instead.  He was a good lawn tennis player,  
being a member of his College team.