Prescot Roll of Honour

Service Details

Daniel is also commemorated on the St Helens Rolls of Honour http://www.sthelensrollsofhonour.co.uk/index.php?cas=1214

Daniel Stanley had served with the King's (Liverpool Regiment) as Private 14052 before transferring at an unknown date into the 10th Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment.

The Battle of Messines took place in June 1917. Planning for the battle had been underway for over twelve months. It was intended as a preliminary move to occupy high ground which runs from Armentieres to Dixmude and which overlooked the Allied positions in the Ypres Salient. Detailed preparations had been in hand for some time - road-making, water supply, dressing stations, aid posts, telephone exchanges, machine gun emplacements, etc - all had to be built, together with miles of communication and assembly trenches. The 10th Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment was involved in one excellent piece of construction when , on the night of 30/31 May, a front line assembly trench was dug only 150 yards away from the enemy. They dug down four and a half feet in only three hours.

A key to the success of the operation would be the explosion of 20 mines under the German defences. Tunnellers had been digging for months and everything was now ready. At 3.10am, the mines were detonated and the leading wave of British troops, including the 10th Battalion, went over the top. Moving across the 150 yards of No Man's Land, they kept just behind the British artillery's "creeping barrage". The leading companies swept over the German front line and pressed on to their objective - the second line of trenches, reaching it by 3.17. The following troops now leap-frogged the leading troops to press on to the German support line where some prisoners were captured. They quickly dug-in and consolidated their position in what was now the new British front line.

Meanwhile, the men of 10th Battalion assembled in Martin Trench and were issued with tea and rum, at 2.15am. They also attacked at 3.10, keeping close behind the "creeping" artillery barrage. On the way to their objective, the leading left-hand company captured a position known as Hell Farm, but the company following was counter-attacked form Hell Wood (or L'Enfer Wood). The Regimental History records that "A grim struggle ensued, in which our men gradually gained the upper hand, and killed or captured all the German defenders of the wood and farm." The Battalion's War Diary confirms that the rest of the unit captured the other objectives - Occur Trench, Occur Support Trench, Nathan Drive and Styx Farm "without much opposition". They captured 14 machine guns and took nearly 120 prisoners.

The attack had been a complete success.

The three Battalions, 9th, 10th and 11th, had between them suffered a total of 86 fatalities. Amongst these was private Daniel Stanley. His body was recovered and he rests in Messines Ridge British Cemetery.

Daniel Stanley's Medal Index Card. His arrival in France on 19th December 1915 entitled him to the 1914-1915 Star in addition to the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

David Stanley's grave in Messines Ridge British Cemetery