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Key dates over July 1917

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Lives lost on this day: 13

5th July 1917 - Recruits wanted to tend Heroes’ Graves

Rolling casualty count: 6717

War Front:

1st Batt: Batt relieved at 10pm under heavy fire, by the 2nd Royal Berks Reg. They proceeded to Winnepeg Camp which is on the Ouderdom to Vlamertinghe Road. 2nd Lt Kent and 8 other ranks were killed and 38 were wounded including the RS Major.

2nd Batt: At 4.10 am, Batt marched to Picquigny arriving at 10.30 am, having halted for I hour for hot tea. Batt marched well and only 1 man fell out. Billets not good and very dirty.

1/8th Batt: Monchy being out of the Brigade area, the Batt moved to Adinfer.

2/8th Batt: Batt in training attack on the woods and fighting at Wail.

Yeomanry /Cavalry: Regimental Sports were organised in football, cricket, polo and even tennis on an indifferent mud court.

Home Front:

The Pram Parade in connection with Baby Week took place on Pitchcroft this afternoon. It was an unqualified success. There were hundreds of perambulators (a safe estimate would be 600) and many children walking, and many others were carried in arms. The mothers were marshalled on the Croft and marched in procession past the Mayor and Mayoress. The Mayor was presented with an album containing the signatures of the mothers present and the Mayoress with a picture of “His Majesty’s King baby,” a view of London traffic held up at a crossing while a baby crosses. The Mayor addressed the assembly and he and the Mayoress were afterwards photographed holding babies belonging to the mothers who had handed the Mayor and Mayoress their gifts. These mothers were Mrs. Webb (mother of 25 children, 14 living) and Mrs. Llewellyn (mother of 11, all living).

Accident: On Wednesday an accident occurred in Foregate Street. A motorist was coming out of the garage at the Star Hotel and three soldiers were cycling up the street in the direction of the railway station. When the car was halfway across the street the first cyclist collided with it and was thrown from his machine. The second who was following him closely endeavoured to jump off his bicycle and fell over the first man; and the third, to avoid a collision, rode upon the pavement into the open door of an office opposite the hotel. None of the men was hurt, but the first man’s cycle was badly damaged and rendered unridable.

Recruits wanted to tend Heroes’ Graves: The graves of the British soldiers in France are to be tended by women from home. Twenty girls will leave England next week to work as gardeners in the military cemeteries in France. These girls will be part of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps and will be under the War Office instructions. The work which they will undertake has been arranged for them by Mr. Hill, the Assistant Director at Kew. The care of these sacred gardens should make a very strong appeal to the hearts of the gardeners and any women and girls, between the ages of twenty and forty, who consider that they have the necessary aptitude and experience, are asked to apply without delay for terms and conditions to Mrs. Tennant, Director of Women’s Services, Westminster.

Information researched by The Worcestershire World War 100 team