Military History

Cyrus is listed as being killed in action on 9th July 1915. A report in the Rugby Advertiser on states that Cyrus was shot through the head by a sniper in the early hours of 9th July whilst carrying out a bombing raid on enemy lines. The 1st Battalion war diary entries for the 8th, 9th & 10th July are transcribed below:-

8th July 1915. Trenches - Canal Bank: D Coy heavily shelled in morning. 11th Bde heavily engaged all day fighting mostly with hand grenades. 1 Platoon B Coy sent up to reinforce D Coy whose bombers were sent up to front line trenches.

9.30pm: B Coy relieved D Coy in support, A Coy were put in reserve at Hulls Farm to 11th Bde. C & D Coys were relieved by 147th Brigade & went into bivouac at Elverdinghe Chateau. Major Forster and Major Bannerman rejoined at 2am being relieved by Colonel Palk, Hampshire Regt.

Casualties: 2 Lieut Lewis (4th S. Staffs) & 2nd Lieut Johnson killed. Other ranks 8 killed, 54 wounded. 2nd Lieut J.H. Bennett wounded (shell shock).

9^th July 1915 - Elverdinghe Chateau: Left for Houtkerque at 8pm. 13 miles arrived 1.30am & went into bivouacs about 2 miles from the village. 2 machine guns handed over to 147^th Brigade.

Casualties A & B Coys: Other ranks 2 killed; 16 wounded, 3 missing.

Reinforcements: 38 other ranks joined

10^th July 1915 - Houtkerque: A & B Coys rejoined having come in Motor Buses from Elverdinghe. Got settled down, men cleaned up etc.

Military History

Military History

Citation: "No 1677 Private R. B. Sheil (now Corporal) A Company 1/8th Battalion Royal Warwickshire Regiment for great courage and resource in seizing and taking a prisoner in one of the enemy's listening patrol about 2am on 18-19th April"

The Leamington Courier reported that on April 19th 1915 Bernard and a comrade, Private Rainsford, were on duty at a listening post in the advanced trenches when they observed two members of a Bavarian regiment come out of their cover evidently bent on a scouting mission, and Bernard and Pte Rainsford resolved in a daring plan to capture them. They rushed at them at close quarters but the one Bavarian shot Rainsford dead. Sheil's old Rugby experience however stood him in good stead and he rushed upon this man, collared him before he had time to use his revolver and taking the weapon off him, marched him into the Warwickshire Territorials lines.

Bernard is listed as being killed in action on 1 July 1916, having originally being reported as missing in action. The 1st/8th Battalion war diary entry for that day is transcribed below.

The Sucerie in Front of Mailly-Maillet  – 1 July 1916 – Attack on Beaumont Hamel:

Military History

William was killed on 30th November 1918 when his vessel SS Prunelle was sunk by a torpedo. The following description of events is taken from Wikipedia.

"Prunelle left London for Dundee on 22 August 1918 with a crew of 16 and a cargo of jute. Her Second Officer, Alfred Cheetham, had served on four Antarctic expeditions: Robert Falcon Scott's Discovery and Terra Nova expeditions, and on Ernest Shackleton's Nimrod and Imperial Trans-Antarctic expeditions.

SS Prunelle

At 13:40 hrs on the same day as she left London, Prunelle was targeted by SM UB-112 when she was 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) south east of Blyth. The U-boat fired a torpedo without warning, which hit the ship on her port side near her engine room. The explosion and rapid sinking of the ship killed 12 of her 16 crew members, including Captain Storm and Second Officer Cheetham. Four survivors were rescued soon after, having clung to wreckage, and were brought ashore at Blyth."