Mill Road Cemetery, Thiepval (Somme)

Details

Thiepval is a village and commune in the Department of the Somme. The village is a little East of the river Ancre, about 5km above Albert, and between the village and the river was Thiepval Wood. The village was destroyed in the war, but the existence of the commune after a long period of uncertainty was preserved.

From the time when trench warefare began on the Ancre, Thiepval was garrisoned by the 108th Regiment of Württembergers. It was attacked unsucessfully by the 32nd and 36th (Ulster) Division on the 1st July, 1916, and in memory of that attack the Ulster Divisional Memorial, a replica of Helen's Tower at Clandeboye, has been erected on the high ground North of the Wood. The 18th Division attacked again and took it on the 26th September, 1916, and their memorial obelisk is erected in the former Château grounds. The village remained in British occupation until 25th March 1918, and it was retaken on the following 24th August by the 38th (Welsh) and 17th Divisions.

The cemetery (called at one time Mill Road Cemetery No.2) is midway between the site of Thiepval village and St. Pierre-Divion. It was made in the spring of 1917, when the battlefield was cleared; the present Plot I contains 260 War Dead then gathered. After the Armistice it was enlarged by the concentration of 1,038 War Dead from smaller cemeteries and from the battlefields of Beaumont-Hamel and Thiepval.

Mill Road Cemetery now contains the graves of 1,304 soldiers (or sailors of the Royal Naval Division) from the United Kingdom. No fewer than 815 of these are unidentified, and special memorials are erected to three soldiers who fell in 1916 and are beleived to be buried among them. Other special memorials are erected to three soldiers from the United Kingdom, buried in Divion Road Cemetery No.1, whose graves were destroyed by shell fire.

Number of Burials by Unit

Duke of Wellington - West Riding Regiment
92
   West Yorkshire Regiment
54
Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers
49
   Royal Irish Rifles
43
Black Watch Regiment
19
   Queen's - Royal West Surrey Regiment
19
Queen's Own - Royal West Kent Regiment
18
   Royal Sussex Regiment
18
Notts. & Derbyshire Regiment
16
   Bedfordshire Regiment
15
Cambridgeshire Regiment
12
   Northumberland Fusiliers
10
Cheshire Regiment
8
   East Surrey Regiment
8
Buffs - East Kent Regiment
7
   Dorsetshire Regiment
6
Gloucestershire Regiment
6
   King's Royal Rifle Corps
6
Leicestershire Regiment
6
   Machine Gun Corps
6
Suffolk Regiment
6
   Oxford & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
5
Royal Berkshire Regiment
5
   Royal Navy Division - Infantry
5
East Yorkshire Regiment
4
   King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry
4
Lancashire Fusiliers
4
   Rifle Brigade
4
Durham Light Infantry
3
   Hampshire Regiment
3
Loyal North Lancashire Regiment
3
   Norfolk Regiment
3
Royal Warwickshire Regiment
3
   Welsh Regiment
3
Royal Field Artillery
2
   Royal Irish Fusiliers
2
South Lancashire Regiment
2
   East Lancashire Regiment
1
Green Howards - Yorkshire Regiment
1
   King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment
1
Lincolnshire Regiment
1
   Manchester Regiment
1
Monmouthshire Regiment
1
   Royal Fusiliers
1
South Staffordshire Regiment
1
   Worcestershire Regiment
1
York & Lancaster Regiment
1
      
Identified burials
489
      
Unidentified burials
815
      
Total burials
1304
      

Awards/Mentioned in Despatches

Lt. E. V. Ellis M.C., "Howe" Bn. Royal Navy Division, K.I.A. at Grandcourt 7th Feb. 1917 aged 32. XVI. D. 10

Lt. D. F. M. Hackett M.M., 1st Bn. Leicestershire Regiment, died 22nd Aug. 1918, aged 35. XI. A. 3

Pte. D. Jones M.M., 5th Bn. Black Watch, died 14th Oct. 1916, aged 22. XIV. A. 2

Capt. A. McLintock, twice Mentioned in Despatches, 5th Bn. Duke of Wellington's Regt, died 3rd Sept. 1916, aged 31. XIII. C. 2

C.S.M. W. Rawley, Mentioned in Despatches, 9th Bn. Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Died 1st July 1916, aged 41. XV. A. 9