Battle of Loos

105 Years ago saw the Battle of Loos - This is one young man's story:

REGINALD SEWELL - Private, 2nd Bn Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. The memorial records that he died in September 1915 at Loos.
Researching his military career has proved challenging as he doesn’t appear on any of the digitised military records. His name is not recorded as being listed on any of the war memorials in the care of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. His name does not appear on the “Roll of Honour” for the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry published at the end of the war in the Banbury Guardian. No known obituary notices have been found in any of the local papers.
However, there is a military record of the 1914-1915 Star being awarded to Private Reginald Sayell (9971) 2nd Bn Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, with the remarks, “Discharged – Medically unfit 16/10/15. There is no further military or civil records of a Reginald Sayell.
What we do know is that the 2nd Bn Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry were in the thick of the battle of Loos; being based in Givenchy in September 1915. The following is extracted from the War Diary of 2nd Bn Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry:
25th Sept 1915
About 2am information received that the “accessory” cylinders would be opened at 5.50am, so that own attack would commence at 6am. The attack by 5th Infr Bde was timed to the half an hour in advance of the attacks southwards
In the neighbourhood at the above hour the air was practically motionless, with the result that the gas hung very considerably and in our own part of the line did more harm to our own men than to the enemy, who in only a very few cases were found to have suffered from the effects.
The Right Co (A) had little difficulty in reaching the German 1st line and a great part of this Co also penetrated to the 2nd line, and then 150 yds beyond. The Co had about 20 bombardiers and between them they carried about 200 bombs of the new small pattern. Each man carried five in a belt and each pair shared a case of 12.
This supply was however nothing like sufficient to withstand the attack by the German Bombardiers launched about an hour after their lines were occupied. The 2 Cos of the 1st Queens Regt, as well as the 2nd Highland Light Infantry on their right were gradually forced back and by about ? am all these five companies, or what remained of them, were back in the British front line trenches.
Once more the shortage of bombs is one cause of our own retirement, another is that the match strikers in use with these ball bombs was vey much affected by the damp weather; another was the Germans use handle bombs and these undoubtably carry further than those without handles.
Meanwhile, the Left Co (D) on advancing from the neighbourhood of the WARREN, where our gas had affected many men, received a very warm reception from the enemy. They advanced in 2 parties, each of 2 sections; the southern one, under Lt NEWTON-KING at once came under severe machine gun fire, and practically no advance could be made here; the Northern party did no better as on advancing to the edge of the crater, they found the enemy ready prepared for them and for some little time a bombing and fire encounter took place in which we were able to kill many Germans but no ground could be gained, owing to the very heavy wire entanglements in front of their lines and the presence of many machine guns.
Between 6 and 11 am, our trenches were pretty steadily bombarded by “Fizz Bangs”, whilst heavier shell were directed on the neighbourhood of the church.
The remainder of the day and the night was quiet.
The 5th Bde had been told not to press their attack continuously should the first results be fruitless.
A section of the 5th Fd Co RSC was in readiness to assist should the attack be successful.
A working party of 100 men of the 7th Kings Regt was employed in digging out a command trench, but the work did not proceed very far. In one part of the line a party thus employed very much impeded the advance of re-enforcements on the line of slight cover.
Casualties: Killed – LT P F NEWTON-KING; 2Lt E R G HUGHES; 2Lt C HURST-BROWN and 2Lt L A VIDAL along with 33 men. WOUNDED -  Lt T E WITHINGTON; Lt A N CAREW-HUNT; Lt P L C WEBSTER; Lt J D BELGRAVE and Cpt E SCOTT (RAMC) along with 124 men. Missing Lt V A JACOB and 69 men


From the 1901 census, we find that Reginald (aged 5) lived, with his Grandmother (Lucy) and a cousin (aged 7) Rose Dennis. Looking at the order of census records its probable they were living along the Middleton Road close to Chacombe Manor. The census records that he was born in Oxford. In the 1911 census, now aged 15, he is still living with his Grandmother but has been joined by his father who is described as “single”. His place of birth is given as Chacombe, Northants.


It is quite possible to conclude that Reginald did serve under an assumed name or as the miss-spelt Sayell was severely injured on 25 September such that there was no possibility of any further military service. If this was the case all likelihood he died some time later, as a civilian, from his injuries. The family probably felt that they “lost” Reginald that September day.