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Auction: 8010 - Orders, Decorations, Medals & Militaria
Lot: 271

1914 Star, with Bar (8041 Pte. J.R. Latham. 2/W.Rid:R.), nearly extremely fine Estimate £ 80-100 8041 Private Joseph Robert Latham, born Birmingham; served during the Great War with the 2nd Battalion West Riding Regiment on the Western Front from 10.8.1914; he was killed in action 24.8.1914; on the latter date, just two weeks into their campaign, the 2nd Battalion were in action on the Mons-Conde canal, ´´We marched at daybreak to Wasmes and found the battalion about 5 am occupying trenches on steep wooded ground. The whole battalion was subjected to some hours of awful gun fire, splendidly supported by the West Kents who suffered serious losses. The Germans ran up their guns by hand to within 600 yards of a loop-holed wall, which they blew to pieces. The battalion failed to get the order to retire, though this had been sent in quadruplicate. It held its position for one and half hours after the order had been sent out. Many hit and missing. I got back to town about 2 or 3pm and found it practically deserted except for a small rearguard on the railway bridge´´ (War Diary of Major MacLeod, C/O 2nd Battalion, refers); the battalion suffered 4 officers killed and 3 wounded, 37 other ranks killed, 35 wounded and 244 missing; Latham is buried in Hautrage Military Cemetery, Saint-Ghislain, Hainaut, Belgium.

Sold for
£180