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Auction: 8010 - Orders, Decorations, Medals & Militaria
Lot: 202

A Great War Group of Three to Private C.H. Berry, Worcestershire Regiment, Killed in Action, 24.8.1916 1914 Star, with Bar (9431 Pte. C.H. Berry. 2/Worc:R.); British War and Victory Medals (9431 Pte. C.H. Berry. Worc.R.), nearly extremely fine, with Great War Bronze Memorial Plaque, ´Charles Henry Berry´, this with enclosure slip and in card box of issue, with Cap Badge (lot) Estimate £ 240-280 9431 Private Charles Henry Berry, born Gillingham, Kent, 1886; enlisted Worcesterhire Regiment, 1902; served during the Great War with the regiment on the Western Front from 12.8.1914; served in the Gallipoli Theatre of War from April 1915, returning to the United Kingdom having received a gunshot wound in June 1915; after a period of re-cuperation he returned to the Western Front initially as part of the 2nd Battalion before being attached to the 3rd Battalion and it was with the latter that he was killed in action, 24.8.1916, the 3rd Battalion were serving on the Somme in August 1916 and on the 24th they were part of the force that assaulted the Hindenburg Trench, part of the Leipzig Salient, ´´At 4.10pm on the 24th the Battalion advanced to attack on trench 26-35-64 and was completely successful.... the enemy found our men on top of them before they could man the parapet or get their machine guns into action. The enemy offered stout resistance in the trench and most of the casualties occured in bomb fighting, the enemy suffered severly.. fumite and smoke bombs were flung down entrances of dugouts and a considerable number of the enemy were destroyed in certainly two dugouts by these bombs, remainder surrendering; about 80 prisoners being taken including wounded... the position was completely in our hands by 5.30pm´´ (The 3rd Battalion War Diary entry for 24.8.1916, refers); the Battalion suffered 1 Officer killed 5 wounded, with 24 other ranks killed and 123 wounded; Berry is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial, Somme, France.

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£380