Pte 19516 Thomas John Glassey

• Age: 32
• From: Whitchurch, Salop
• Regiment: The King's (Liverpool Regiment) 19th Btn
• K.I.A Sunday 30th July 1916
• Commemorated at: Thiepval Memorial
  Panel Ref: P&F1D8B &8 C.

Thomas John (known as Jack) Glassey was born on 23rd July 1884 in Whitchurch, Shropshire the son of John Glassey and his wife Sarah (nee Beddow). He was baptised on 30th July 1884 in Whitchurch.  John was born in Market Drayton, Shropshire, and Sarah in Bronington, Flintshire, west of Whitchurch. They married at St. Oswald's Church in Malpas, Cheshire, on the 29th January 1884. John was a 23 year old labourer of Iscoyd, father Samuel, whilst Sarah was aged 22 also of Iscoyd, father John a sexton. They had seven children, two of whom died in infancy. Thomas (Jack) was their eldest child.  He had younger siblings Martha and Samuel who were born in villages east of Whitchurch (Martha died in infancy), and Mary Alice (Mollie), born in Whitchurch. The family then moved to Tintwistle, on the edge of the Peak District, where Selina was born, then to Godley, Hyde, Cheshire, where two more children were born, Vincent (who died in infancy) and Percy.

At the time of the 1891 census the 6 year old Jack was living with his parents, 3 year old brother Samuel, and 1 year old sister Mary at Meadow Cottage, in Tintwistle near Ashton Under Lyne. His father, John, aged 33 was working as a stone carter, his mother, Sarah, is aged 29. 

By 1901, the family is living at 47 Fountain Street, Godley. His father, John, aged 42, had a job as a platelayer on the railway where 16 year old Jack was also working. His mother, Sarah, is aged 38. He had another two siblings; 6 year old Selina and 3 month old Percy at this time. Sadly his brother Samuel had died in 1892 aged just 4.

His sister, Selina, died in 1908 at the age of 13.

The 1911 Census finds Jack boarding with another railway worker at 8 Stowell Street in Hyde, Manchester, with the Dawson family. Thomas is aged 26, and a railway shunter.

His parents are at 305 Hyde Road, Denton, near Manchester, with Mary, 21, who works as a weaver in a cotton mill, and Percy, 10, who is at school. His father is 52, still working as a plate layer for the railway, and his mother is 48. The Census records that John and Sarah have had seven children, with only three surviving childhood.

Jack enlisted in Manchester on 07th September 1914, joining the King's Liverpool Regiment (Depot). On the day of enlistment he was transferred to the Army Reserve and rejoined the Colours (KLR Depot) on September 18th. On 02nd October 1914 he was posted to the 13th Bn. K.L.R. At enlistment he gave his age as 30 years old and his occupation as a railway brakesman for the Great Central Railway, Traffic Department at Ardwick. He was living at 37 Beech Street, Gorton, Manchester. He was described as being five feet five and a quarter inches tall, weighed 128lbs, 34" chest, with a fresh complexion, brown eyes and brown hair. He stated his religion as Wesleyan and advised that he had lived out of his father's house for at least three years, and gave, as his next of kin, his father at 16 Norris Bank Terrace, Didsbury Road, Stockport. 

His service records show:

26.9.15: Embarked for France. 

02.12.15: Sick (appendicitis) in the field. 

19.2.16: Bronchitis in the field, and was sent back behind the lines to 3 D.R.S.(Divisional Rest Station). 

24.2.16: Returned to duty. 

11-12.3.16: To 7 F.A. 10 C.C.S., 23 A.T. with renal cal. 

?.3.16: To 23 G.Hosp. at Etaples with renal calculi. 

12.4.16: Transferred to Convalescent Depot, Etaples. 

25.4.16: To 251 B.D., Etaples. 

04.5.16: To 3 ...? in the field. 

24.5.16: Posted to 19th Battalion KLR. 

His mother had suffered the loss of her husband when John died on 26th June 1916, just a month before Jack was killed. 

John's death was reported in the Stockport County Express on Thursday 06 July 1916: 

GLASSEY At 2 Eadie Street, John, the beloved husband of Sarah Glassey, aged 56 years. The interment took place on Saturday at St George's Church, Hyde, following service in the home conducted by the Manchester and Stockport branches of Mormons, who also officiated at the church where a number of relatives and friends assembled. The chief mourners were - Mrs Glassey, wife; Miss Mary A. Glassey, daughter; master Percy Glassey, son; Messrs. William and Thomas Glassey, brothers. Floral tributes from - Sorrowing wife and family; brothers and sisters; the neighbours of Norris Bank Terrace; Hyde Branch of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints; Members of the Stockport Branch; the neighbours and friends. 

Jack was killed in action on the 30th July 1916, aged 32, at the village of Guillemont, France, during the Somme Offensive.

19^th Battalion Diary 

MALTZ HORN FARM

BATTLE begun. ZERO hour 4:45 am. The Battalion reached its objective, but suffered heavy losses, and had to evacuate its position owing to no reinforcements.

Everard Wyrall gives details of the attack in his book The History of The King’s Regiment; 

"The 2nd Attack on Guillemont- 29th July 1916 the 89th Brigade the 20th King's were to attack on the right and the 19th on the left. During the evening of the 29th the night was dark and foggy when the Battalions moved off and the 19th with Lt Col G Rollo commanding, when passing the South east of the Briqueterie they were heavily shelled first with H E and then with a new kind of asphyxiating Gas shell which had curious results, at first it had no nasty effect but about 8 hrs later men began to fall sick with violent headaches and pains in the stomach. All ranks had to wear gas masks which in the darkness and mist made the going terribly difficult. It was indeed wonderful that they were able to reach their Assembly point at all. But they did and by 2.45 a.m. on the 30th July 1916 the Btn was assembled having suffered about 30 Casualties on the way up ready for the Zero hour at 4.45 a.m.

It is known that the two left Companies of the 19th under Capt. Dodd and Capt. Nicholson advanced in touch with the 2nd Royal Scots Fusiliers on their left although they suffered many casualties from Machine gun Fire did not encounter many Germans and reached their final objective about the time allocated, beginning at once to dig in south of the orchard on the South east corner of Guillemont.  

On the left of the 19th the Scots Fusiliers most gallantly forced their way through Guillemont to the eastern side of the village but were soon overwhelmed by the enemy and few returned. 

At 8 a.m. finding that the village was not held the two left Companies of the 19th received no word from the rear or either flank believed themselves to be totally isolated so were forced to fall back and dig in, their position being untenable.

At midday the effective fighting strength of the 19th Btn was just 7 Officers and 43 other ranks"

When darkness fell on the battlefield the 30^th Division held a line from the railway on the eastern side of Trones Wood , southwards and including Arrow Head Copse, to east of Maltz Horn Farm. On this line the division was relieved by the 55^th Division during the early hours of the 31^st July.

Casualties in the 19^th Battalion were 11 Officers and 435 Other Ranks 

The events of 30^th July 1916 were regarded at the time as Liverpool’s blackest day. There follows an extract from The History of the 89^th Brigade written by Brigadier General Ferdinand Stanley which gives an indication of the events of the day.

Guillemont

Well the hour to advance came, and of all bad luck in the world it was a thick fog; so thick that you couldn’t see more than about ten yards. It was next to impossible to delay the attack – it was much too big an operation- so forward they had to go. It will give some idea when I say that on one flank we had to go 1,750 yards over big rolling country. Everyone knows what it is like to cross enclosed country which you know really well in a fog and how easy it is to lose your way. Therefore, imagine these rolling hills, with no landmarks and absolutely unknown to anyone. Is it surprising that people lost their way and lost touch with those next to them? As a matter of fact, it was wonderful the way in which many men found their way right to the place we wanted to get to. But as a connected attack it was impossible.

The fog was intense it was practically impossible to keep direction and parties got split up. Owing to the heavy shelling all the Bosches had left their main trenches and were lying out in the open with snipers and machine guns in shell holes, so of course our fellows were the most easy prey.

It is so awfully sad now going about and finding so many splendid fellows gone.  

Jack was initially reported Missing.

His Casualty Form lists a report  from 11th Bn. King's Royal Rifles on 30th November:  Killed in action and buried east of Guillemont. 

This grave was subsequently lost or destroyed as he has no known grave and is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial, 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 01st 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.”

His mother was informed in March 1917 there were no personal effects of Jack's to be sent.

She received his outstanding Army pay and a War Gratuity of £8-10s. The pension card, giving her address as 2 Edie Street, Heaton Lane, Stockport, shows that she was awarded a pension of 5/- a week from May 1917.

In 1919 his mother was living at 6 Mount Pleasant, off Travers Brow, Stockport, with Mary and Percy.

The 1939 register finds his mother living with married daughter Mary in Windermere Road in Stockport. Sarah lived until 1950 and died at the age of 87.

Jack is commemorated on the following memorials -

Great Central Railway Memorial, Sheffield

Stockport Memorial Hall and Art Gallery

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