Prescot Roll of Honour

Service Details

It seems likely that William Moore was a reservist with the King's and was called up to the colours on the outbreak of war.

The regimental history for the 1st Battalion states that they were quartered in Talavera Barracks in Aldershot in August 1914 and that mobilising the battalion took three days, all being "ready for anything" by 8th August. But then the reservists joined them and a further few days were spent in bringing these men up to date with items such as the new short rifle, which they had not used before.

Eventually, the battalion left Aldershot on 12th August at 6 a.m. and marched to Farnborough Station were they entrained for Southampton at 8 a.m. , arriving at 9.30. They embarked aboard the S.S. Irrawaddy and steamed away at mid-day, arriving it Le Havre at dawn the following day. Private Moore was not one of those who sailed with this initial force, and he in fact only arrived in France on 29th November.

On first arrival in France in August, the battalion was in the midst of the fighting at Mons, and the retreat from there in late August, moving on to the Battle of the Marne in early September. It was at this point that the troops settled into what became know as Trench Warfare, digging in for the first time. The initial German assault had lost steam slightly by this time, and the regimental history records several days of inactivity.

The battalion fought on the Aisne and also in a series of minor actions in the same areas between mid-September to mid-October, all of which led up to the First Battle of Ypres.

This battle consisted of the Battle of Langemarck (21st to 24th October) followed by the Battle of Gehuvelt (29th to 31st October) with many smaller actions in between the two.

The battalion diary for the 1st November finally recorded 'All quiet during the night'. The German attempt to break through on to Ypres had been defeated and bloodily repulsed. The days now consisted of constant shell-fire and even without any set piece actions, the casualties continued to mount, with 17 men killed or wounded on the 1st.

This continued daily, with the battalion forming the line along the southern edge of Polygon Wood. During the night of 10th/11th November, the signs indicated an enemy attack was forthcoming, with an extremely heavy German bombardment continuing throughout the night, lifting at 6 a.m. - this was the day of the Prussian Guard attack. When the shelling ceased at 9 a.m. twenty five battalions of the Prussian Army, some 17.500 men, moved forward on the Menin Road, faced by less than 8,000 allied troops including the 1st Battalion of the King's.

When the roll was called at nightfall, the battalion had lost 29 men killed and wounded, but had inflicted dreadful losses on the enemy.

William's Medal Index Card shows that he arrived in France on 29th November 1914, presumably as part of a reinforcement draft.

The battalion spend their first winter in the trenches, being billeted at Locon on New Year's Day 1915. They were now truly engaged in trench warfare, with grenades, trench mortars and shrapnel the greatest enemy. They went back into the line of 24th January. On the 27th, there was lots of German activity to mark the Kaiser's birthday and this continued to the end of the month.

Private Moores was a victim of this trench attrition, being killed in action on 28th January. He is buried at Le Touret Military Cemetery.

Pte Moore's death recorded in the Manchester Courier

The Register of Soldier's Effects showed William's widow, Elizabeth, as next of kin

Prescot Reporter 14th September 1917. It is noted that the last of the entries form his parents has his date of death incorrectly recorded.

William Moore's Medal Index Card.

Private Moores grave at Le Touret