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Auction: 23001 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 92

Four: Private G. Richards, 1st & 6th Battalion, Royal West Kent Regiment, who was killed in action on 3 July 1916 during the attack at Ovillers and La Boisselle

Queen's South Africa 1899-1902, 4 clasps, Cape Colony, Orange Free State, South Africa 1901, South Africa 1902 (5794 Pte G Richards. Rl. W. Kent. Regt); 1914 Star (L-5794 Pte. G. Richards 1/R. W. Kent R.); British War and Victory Medals (L-5794 Pte. G. Richards. R. W. Kent R.), very fine (4)

George Richards served in France with the Royal West Kent Regiment from 11 September 1914. Having transferred to the 6th Battalion, he was killed in action on 3 July 1916 and is buried at Ovillers Military Cemetery.

The Regimental History takes up the story of that fateful action:

'Much of the German wire had escaped destruction by the earlier bombardment, and the two salients to be attacked by The Queens and the Battalion respectively were separated by a stretch of uncut wire 300 yards long, while an even longer belt to the left of the Northernmost salient, the one which the battalion was attacking, put an extension of the attack to that flank out of the question. The Royal Fusiliers, who were opposite this frontage, were told off to give covering fire from rifles and machine-guns, and a smoke barrage had been arranged for the protection of this flank, but the prospect of enfilade fire was a serious menace.

After the failure of the supports to reach the German second line the survivors of the attack put up a most gallant fight to retain their gains in the front line. Their position was precarious and isolated. The Queens, on the right, had come up against uncut wire, in front of which they were mown mercilessly down, only a handful getting through into the German trenches. Thus the 6th were without support on the right and were soon hard pressed on that flank, while on the left a strong point at the junction with the communication trench held up C Company's bombers. They were cut off from reinforcements by the enfilade fire of the machine guns which swept No Man's Land'.

Despite capturing the German trenches and the Colonel's explicit orders that the ground taken must be held at all costs, the casualties were so high they had no choice but to leave their hard-won gains. The losses had been terrible: 617 Officers and men had gone into action - 375 of them became casualties.


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Sold for
£380

Starting price
£170