Pte 300229 Joseph Coulthard

• Age: 28
• From: Wigton
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 18th Btn
• K.I.A Monday 29th April 1918
• Commemorated at: Voormezeele Cem Encl No. 3
  Panel Ref: XVI.A.26

Joseph Coulthard was born in 1889 and was the son of Jared and Sarah (nee Steel) Coulthard, who married December 1888 in Wigton, Cumberland.

(CWGC should state he was the son of Jared and the late Sarah Coulthard, of Park View, Cardew, Dalston, Carlisle) 

On the 1891 Census they are living with Jared's father at Blencogo, Wigton. His father Jared aged 27 was born in Seymour, Cumberland, and his mother, Sarah, aged  24 was born in Abbeytown, Cumberland. They have the one son Joseph aged 1 who was also born in Abbeytown. 

His mother Sarah died in March 1898 aged 31.

Joseph's father, Jared, remarried in September 1900 to Hannah Trimble.

After their mother's death, on the 1901 Census the children are still at Blencogo, father Jared is not present. Hea dof the household is George Coulthard (Jared's brother) aged 55 a farmer, nephew Joseph 11, niece Mary Jane 9 b.Bromfield, niece Margaret 7 b.Bromfield. 

On the 1911 Census Joseph is 21 years old and working as a horseman on the Jefferson family's farm at Langrigg, Carlisle.

His family are now living at 13 Peel Street, Newtown, Carlisle. Father, Jared, is now shown as 47 years of age and is a Corporation carter, wife Hannah 45 b.Dalston, children Mary 19 a clerk b.Wigton, Jared 5 b.Wigton.

Joseph originally served in the Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry, but following a transfer he was serving in the 18^th Battalion, The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Private No 300229 when he was killed in action on the 29^th April 1918 aged 28 during the German Spring Offensive.

On the day of his death 29th April 1918, the Battalion was serving on the Ypres Salient and was in the front line at Elzenwalle, near Ridge Wood, awaiting a renewal of the German assault on that front.

At 02.30 am the attack began with a devastating bombardment along the whole battle front, from the forward positions back to a depth of over a mile. At 6am the enemy Infantry attacked, the main force of the assault being directed at a position near Ridge Wood, where one of the Battalion’s forward listening posts was captured and held. Then, 16999 Company Sergeant Major G Sutton of No.1 Company gallantly drove out the attackers with Mills Bombs, an action for which he was later awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal. After a strong defence along the Battalion frontage, the Germans withdrew. They continued their artillery barrage throughout the rest of the morning and afternoon, however, and at about 17.00 began to mass once more for another Infantry attack. This was contained by Rifle and Lewis Gun fire, until a large British Artillery barrage at 18.00 finally broke up all enemy activity.

Joseph now rests at Voormezeele Cemetery Enclosure No 3, Belgium.

The Voormizeele Enclosures (at one time there were a total of four, but now reduced to three) were originally regimental groups of graves, begun very early in the First World War and gradually increased until the village and the cemeteries were captured by the Germans after very heavy fighting on 29 April 1918.

Voormezeele Enclosure No.3, the largest of these burial grounds, was begun by the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry in February 1915. Their graves are in Plot III, the other Plots from I to IX are the work of other units, or pairs of units, and include a few graves of October 1918. Plots X and XII are of a more general character. Plots XIII to XVI were made after the Armistice when graves were brought in from isolated sites and smaller cemeteries to replace the French graves (of April and September 1918) that were removed to a French cemetery. These concentrated graves cover the months from January 1915 to October 1918, and they include those of many men of the 15th Hampshires and other units who recaptured this ground early in September 1918.

There are now 1,611 Commonwealth servicemen of the First World War buried or commemorated in Voormezeele Enclosure No.3. 609 of the burials are unidentified but there are special memorials to 15 casualties known or believed to be buried among them. Other special memorials record the names of five casualties whose graves in PHEASANT WOOD CEMETERY could not be found on concentration.

The cemetery was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.

He is also commemorated on the War Memorial in Caldewgate Church, Queen Street/Wigton Road junction, Carlisle, Cumbria, CA2 5YL and St Mungo's Church, Bromfield, Allerdale, Cumbria.

Soldiers Effects to father Jared, Pension to step-mother Hannah and father Jared Coulthard. 

His father died in September 1939 aged 74.

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