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George William Pendrey: Thursday 4th October 1917

George enlisted as Private T/201576 in the 3/4th Batt Queen’s Royal Surrey’s.  He was killed in action aged 25.  He is commemorated on the Tyne Cot Memorial.

The Regimental war diary gives an idea of what he may have been doing and how he met his death: On 4 October the Battalion had a planned attack at Zillebeke.  Assembly was complete at 4:30 am.  At “zero hour”, 6:00 am the Battalion advanced with the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry on their right and the 1st Staffordshire’s on the left.  They had difficulty crossing the Polygon Beck and then encountered hostile defences.  The objective was captured on time and quickly consolidated.  At zero hour plus 130 mins, the barrage advanced towards the second objective.  This was captured and the Battalion withdrew to “Jetty Warren” and dug themselves in.  The enemy made a counterattack at 9:00 am, dispersed by artillery fire, and maintained a continuous barrage until 4:00 pm.  There was great difficulty in clearing the wounded.  Enemy shelling continued through the night.  Battalion casualties were 3 officers killed and 6 wounded and 49 other ranks killed, 184 wounded and 19 missing.  It is likely George was among these casualties. 

George’s parents Frederick Henry and Alice Louisa lived on 58 Calbourne Road.  In 1911 the family lived at 2 St Paul’s Road Thornton Heath.  There were six children, Francis Fredrick, 23, a joiner, Gilbert James, 21, also a joiner, George William,18, a grocer, Minnie Emily, 15, Ethel Winifred, 13, and Isabel Alice,5.