Private George Frederick Raven
267890, 1/6th Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment
George Frederick Raven was born at Barnsley on 27th February 1894, the sixth child and sixth son born to Norfolk born Police Constable John William and Lincolnshire born Emma Raven (nee Elvin ) who married at Market Rasen, Lincolnshire on 18th March 1884. In 1897 the couple had their seventh surviving child, an only daughter, Dorothy May. All of the children were born in Barnsley between 1885 and 1897 and all of their sons were of an age which might require them to serve in WWI.
By 1901 the family had moved to live at Ryecroft Street Ossett and by 1911 they had moved on to live at Hardy Street Brighouse where George Frederick, aged 17 years, worked as a silk dresser.
By 4th August 1914 Great Britain and much of Europe were pulled into a war which would last 1,566 days, cost 8,528,831 lives and 28,938,073 casualties or missing on both sides.
George Frederick’s army service record has not survived making it difficult to be certain as to the date of his enlistment and embarkation for a theatre of war. What is known is that he was not awarded the 1914-15 Star Medal indicating that he did not serve overseas until 1st January 1916 at the earliest.
When he did enlist he joined the 1/6th Battalion of the Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment which was formed on 4th August 1914 stationed at Skipton in Craven as part of the 2nd West Riding Brigade of the West Riding Division. It moved to Hull and Grimsby for coastal defence work and in November 1914 the battalion moved to Doncaster and on 14th April 1915 it was mobilised and embarked for Boulogne. Shortly thereafter it came under the orders of the 147th Brigade of the 49th Division.
George Frederick’s six digit service number suggests that he may not have served overseas until early 1917 when the six digit numbers were first issued (although the consensus is that some were issued in late 1916). That being the case he would be joining a battle weary battalion who had been in the field for almost two years. By early 1917 the battalion were positioned west of Arras holding the line. In mid/late July 1917 they moved to the French/Belgium border at Ghyvelde and then along the coast to Nieuport by early August.
Following the ‘Race to the Sea’ in 1914, the majority of the Belgian coastline had fallen under German control, enabling submarine and surface raiders to operate out of Bruges, Ostende and Zeebrugge. British attempts to limit these operations had been largely unsuccessful when in 1917 the British proposed an amphibious assault called ‘Operation Hush’, on the Belgian coast around Nieuport (Nieuwpoort). However a German attack inflicted heavy casualties and seriously damaged the Operation Hush preparations. The attack was the first use of mustard gas in the war.
Following the German attack, 49th (West Riding) Division, including the 1/6th battalion, who had been concentrating around Dunkirk (Dunkerque) in preparation for their part in Operation Hush, were moved forward to relieve 32nd Division around Nieuport where they had been affected by the German raid. The Division stayed in this area until 2nd August and although no major infantry attack took place it was subjected to very heavy shelling, gas attacks and aerial bombardment.
George Frederick’s 49th Division remained for the rest of August and September 1917 in West Flanders. In October 1917 the battalion were charged with holding the line but suffered heavy casualties on the 8th & 9th October. By mid October the battalion had located between Poperinge and Ypres where the enemy mounted hostile plane attacks and shelling which often lasted all day.
In November the Division moved to the south west of Poperinge and later to the south east of Ypres at Zillebeke. There was little enemy action until 22nd November when in the evening the battalion was instructed to defend a greater part of their front line. On the morning of the 23rd November heavy enemy shelling caused five deaths of officers and other ranks and ten other ranks wounded.
One of those men was Private 267890, George Frederick Raven.
1/6th Duke of Wellington’s Regimental War Diary 23 /11/ 1917. Records 267890 Private Raven.
And here we have it recorded at the time. On the 23rd November 1917, Private George Frederick Raven, 267890, was wounded. He died of those wounds two days later on 25th November 1917. George Frederick was the youngest of six sons born to John William and Emma Raven. He was 23 years of age.
He is buried at LIJSSENTHOEK MILITARY CEMETERY at plot reference XXVII. BB. 19A.
During the First World War, the village of Lijssenthoek was situated on the main communication line between the Allied military bases in the rear and the Ypres battlefields. Close to the Front, but out of the extreme range of most German field artillery, it became a natural place to establish casualty clearing stations. The cemetery was first used by the French 15th Hopital D’Evacuation and in June 1915, it began to be used by casualty clearing stations of the Commonwealth forces. From April to August 1918, the casualty clearing stations fell back before the German advance and field ambulances (including a French ambulance) took their places.
Centre: George Frederick Raven. Ever In Our Thoughts
The cemetery contains 9,901 Commonwealth burials of the First World War, 24 being unidentified. There are 883 war graves of other nationalities, mostly French and German, 11 of these are unidentified.
George Frederick Raven was posthumously awarded the British and the Allied Victory Medals for service overseas in a theatre of war.
He is also remembered at the Brighouse St. Martin’s Parishioners Memorial dedicated on 29th May 1921 and attended by the Archdeacon of Halifax. His name is also inscribed on the Brighouse War Memorial in Rydings Park, Brighouse.
In 2022 George Frederick Raven once of Ossett, will be remembered at the Ossett War Memorial in the Market Place where his name will be inscribed alongside his brothers and sisters in arms; the Ossett Fallen.
With thanks to The Ossett Fallen Research Team. Written by Alan Howe for Ossett Heritage. 24th January 2022.
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