Pte 204132 Charles Jones

• Age: 25
• From: Liverpool
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 17th Btn
• K.I.A Tuesday 31st July 1917
• Commemorated at: Menin Gate Memorial
  Panel Ref: Panel 4 & 6

Charles Jones was born on the 01st June 1892 in Liverpool, the son of Charles Jones and his wife Alice (nee Lomax) who were married in St Simons Church, Liverpool in May 1882. His baptism record and his parents marriage certificate say that his father is a house painter and that the couple lived in Kilshaw Street. Everton.

At the time of the 1901Census the family lived at 22 Holborn Street, Kensington, Liverpool. Charles senior and his wife Alice are both 39 years old, Charles is a house painter and Alice is at home with the children. The couple have six children – James is 12 years old. Margaret 14, John 11, Charles 8, Sarah 5 and 3 year old Hannah. All the family have been born in Liverpool.

Charles married Ann Osborne in 1909 at West Derby Register Office. He was just 17 years of age.

The 1911 Census shows the couple living at 4 Horwich Street. Charles is working as a labourer in an oil cake mill (Bibby's on Derby Road), Ann is aged 20, and the couple have a son called Charles who is aged 1 year and 1 month and was born in 1910. Also living with the couple is Ann’s widowed father James Osborne aged 60, who is a plasters labourer. Two boarders are also living in the house.

Charles’s parents are living at 63 Holborn Street in 1911. The Census records that the couple have been married for 28 years and that Alice has borne 10 children, of which 5 have sadly died. Only their two youngest children are living at home – Sarah is now 15 and is working as a laundress and Hannah aged 13 is at home.

Charles and Ann have three more children, as well as young Charles. Alice was  born in 1912, John was born in 1914, and Ivy Ann was born in 1917 when Charles was overseas and in all porobability, he never saw his daughter.

Charles enlisted in Liverpool originally serving with the 5th Battalion of The King's Liverpool Regiment as Private 7448. Following a transfer on 17th June 1917 he was serving in the 17th Battalion of The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Private No 204132 when he was killed in action on the 31st July 1917, aged 25 on the first day of the Third Battle of Ypres, better known as the Battle of Passchendaele. He had served for less than a year.

On that day, the 89th Brigade was to follow up the attacks of the 21st and 90th Brigades and once their objectives had been taken, to go through them and secure a line of strong points on the German third line. The 89th Brigade line of attack was from the South West corner of Polygon Wood, to the Menin Road. The 17th Battalion The King’s Liverpool Regiment was on the left of the attack, and the 20th to the right, with the 19th Battalion and the 2nd Battalion The Bedfordshire Regiment, in Divisional Reserve.

The Battalion moved into assembly positions east of Maple Copse between 05.00 and 05.20am, they were heavily shelled and suffered many casualties. At 07.50 they began to advance with the 17th Battalion on the left, and the 20th on the right, the whole time under heavy shell fire. On reaching their position which was the Blue Line , troops of both the 21st and 90th Brigades were still pinned down and thus any attempt at further progress were futile.

Despite this they pushed on until their flank was just touching Clapham Junction. They then dug in and awaited the inevitable bombardment which hit them soon after. Despite this, they held onto the ground.

During the action and their time in the line the 17th Battalion lost three officers and 79 men killed or died of wounds, and four officers and 198 men wounded. They were eventually relieved on the night of 3rd -4th August.

Charles' body was not recovered or was subsequently lost as he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial at Ypres, Belgium.

The site of the Menin Gate was chosen because of the hundreds of thousands of men who passed through it on their way to the battlefields. It commemorates casualties from the forces of Australia, Canada, India, South Africa and United Kingdom who died in the Salient. In the case of United Kingdom casualties, only those prior 16 August 1917 (with some exceptions). United Kingdom and New Zealand servicemen who died after that date are named on the memorial at Tyne Cot, a site which marks the furthest point reached by Commonwealth forces in Belgium until nearly the end of the war. New Zealand casualties that died prior to 16 August 1917 are commemorated on memorials at Buttes New British Cemetery and Messines Ridge British Cemetery.

The YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL now bears the names of more than 54,000 officers and men whose graves are not known. The memorial, designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield with sculpture by Sir William Reid-Dick, was unveiled by Lord Plumer on 24 July 1927.

Sadly Charles’s wife Ann died on the 26th January 1918, less than a year after him, aged only 27, leaving four young children without a father or mother. She was buried on the 02nd February 1918 in West Derby Cemetery.

The Army Register of Soldiers Effects show that Charles’ mother Alice took on the guardianship of young Charles, Alice and Ivy and a relative of Ann’s called Martha Osborne took on young John. The pension of 26/- , poignantly called the motherless rate, was divided between the two women for the children . 19/- to Mrs Jones and 7/- to Mrs Osborne.

His mother died, aged 56, in the September quarter of 1918. 

His father died, aged 71, in 1933, and was buried on the 27th July 1933 at West Derby Cemetery.

We currently have no further information on Charles Jones, If you have or know someone who may be able to add to the history of this soldier, please contact us.