Cpl 16706 Thomas Leonard Cromwell

• Age: 26
• From: Grassendale, Liverpool
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 18th Btn
• K.I.A Wednesday 18th October 1916
• Commemorated at: Thiepval Memorial
  Panel Ref: P&F1D8B &8 C.

Thomas Leonard (Len) Cromwell was born on the 01st June 1890 in Grassendale, Liverpool and was baptised on the 29th June, 1890 at St Mary’s Church of England Church, Grassendale. He was the son of Benjamin Cromwell and his wife Ann (nee Turton) of The Hollies, Willaston, near Chester who were married in 1871 at All Saints Church, Childwall, Liverpool.

The 1911 Census shows the family living at Greenbank, Higher Road, Halewood, Liverpool. His father Benjamin is aged 62, born 1849 and is a Horticulturist and was born in Shifnal, Shropshire. His wife Ann is aged 60, born 1851 in Halewood, Liverpool. They have three children all being born in Liverpool. Sydney Dawson who is a widower aged 28, born 1883 and occupation shipping clerk, John Reginald aged 25, born 1886 a Joiner and Thomas aged 20, occupation banking clerk. They also have a grandson Leslie aged 4, born 1907 at the address.

Len was working as a bank clerk at Parrs Bank in Chester prior to his enlistment.

He enlisted on the 03rd September, 1914 at St George's Hall in Liverpool joining the 18th Battalion of The King’s Liverpool Regiment, He was aged 24 years and sixty days, and he gave his occupation as a Clerk. He was described as being 5 foot 5 and quarter inches tall, weighed 122lbs, 35" chest of fresh complexion, with grey eyes and brown hair. He stated his religion as Church of England and his father as next of kin at Greenbank, Hunts Cross.

From the 23^rd September 1914 he was billeted at Hooton Park Race Course and remained there until 03^rd December 1914 when they moved into the hutted accommodation at Lord Derby’s estate at Knowsley Hall. On 30th April 1915 the 18th Battalion alongside the other three Pals battalions left Liverpool via Prescot Station for further training at Belton Park, Grantham. They remained here until September 1915 when they reached Larkhill Camp on Salisbury Plain. 

18.09.15: Appointed unpaid Lance Corporal.

06.11.15: Appointed paid Lance Corporal.

07.11.15: Embarked for France.

21.08.16: Appointed Corporal.

03.09.16: Granted Class 1 Proficiency Pay.

He was serving in the 18th Battalion (3^rd Company, 9^th Platoon), of The King’s Liverpool Regiment as Corporal 16706 when he was killed in action on the 18th October 1916, aged 26, during the Battle of the Transloy Ridges which was part of the ongoing Somme Offensive.

18^th Bn Diary

18^th October 1916

Attacked German trenches commencing 3.40 am. Relieved by 19^th Manchester Regt. Took up position in support Bn trenches W. of Goose Alley.

Graham Maddocks in his book Liverpool Pals gives an overview of the events of the day:

“At 3.40 am the whistles blew, and the Battalion left its assembly trenches, in three waves, approximately fifty yards apart, and began to cross No Man’s Land. Almost immediately, the German Barrage fell on the first wave and halted its advance, so that the second wave soon caught up with it. This was not a great problem at first, and the two combined waves were able to advance together for about 300 yards, whereupon they encountered the German Grid Trench system. On the right of the advance, it was found that the wire was largely intact, apart from a few gaps, and the Germans bombed and machine gunned these gaps, which prevented any further progress. Elsewhere along the trench, however, the wire was cut and there did not seem to be any serious opposition. Nevertheless, the men hesitated to jump down into the German trenches, and instead, began to filter back across to the safety of their own lines.

By this time the third wave had caught up, as had a fourth wave, which had been detailed to mop up any opposition once the trenches had fallen, and all four waves became intermingled which added to the confusion. No less than three attempts were made to try to get the men to go forward again, but each attempt became markedly less successful than its predecessor, and eventually the attack came to a standstill. Although the British assembly trenches had received the attention of the German guns, the attackers in No Mans Land had not come under any great intensity of fire up until this point.

However, once it became obvious to the Germans that the attack was disorganised and faltering, they began to fire into the massed men from the flanks. It was probably this that finally settled the issue and convinced the Pals that they could no longer gain the enemy trenches, and all four waves, now merged into one, began to retreat to their own lines. The whole attack had been an abysmal failure, and no ground had been gained at all”.               

Len's body was not recovered or was subsequently lost as he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial in France.

The Thiepval Memorial, the Memorial to the Missing of the Somme, bears the names of more than 72,000 officers and men of the United Kingdom and South African forces who died in the Somme sector before 20 March 1918 and have no known grave. Over 90% of those commemorated died between July and November 1916. 

On 01^st August 1932 the Prince of Wales and the President of France inaugurated the Thiepval Memorial in Picardy. The inscription reads: “Here are recorded the names of officers and men of the British Armies who fell on the Somme battlefields between July 1915 and March 1918 but to whom the fortune of war denied the known and honoured burial given to their comrades in death.”

Thomas is also commemorated on the following Memorials:

Halewood Civic Memorial

Willaston Civic Memorial

Willaston Royal British Legion

St Hilda’s C. of E. Church, Hunts Cross

St Nicholas’ C. of E. Church, Halewood

St Peter’s C. of E. Church, Woolton

Victoria Schools, Grassendale

National Westminster Bank, Eastgate, Chester  

Grateful thanks are extended to Jean King and her daughter Bridget Bryson of Alpharetta, GA, USA, and the Willaston Residents and Countryside Society for permission to use the photograph of Len now shown on the website. 

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