| Privates Walter and Bertie de la Mare of the
R.G.L.I. are the only victims of the Great War commemorated
on the Torteval war memorial. Their names also appear on
the St Pierre du Bois memorial. My great aunt, Elise Le
Poidevin, married their brother George, and my aunt, Ada
Le Poidevin, visited Bertie's grave in France in about 1919,
hence my interest in their story. |
|
According to the 1901 census, Bertie and Walter were
sons of Nico de la Mare and his wife, Eliza née
Queripel who farmed at Les Cambrées, Torteval.
Walter was born on 23rd November 1893 while Bertie was
born on 10th May 1895. There were two older brothers,
John, born in 1876 and George, born in 1891. Subsequent
reports suggest that the family moved between Les Cambrées,
Torteval and Rocquaine Place or Villa, St Peter's, explaining
why the boys' names are included on both parish memorials.
When the Royal Guernsey Light Infantry was formed in
December 1916, the brothers joined up together and were
both in the 1st (Service) Battalion. Bertie was number
1515 and Walter was 1516. Walter went over to France with
the first reinforcement on 24th October 1917, but it is
not known whether Bertie went at the same time. Soon after
their arrival, the R.G.L.I. were involved in the Battle
of Cambrai, where, in the first attack on 20th November,
large areas were captured with relatively few casualties.
However on 30th November they took part in fierce fighting
for the village of Les Rues Vertes and also covered the
retreat from Masnières during the following night.
A letter from Sir George Cave, Home Secretary, to Sir
Reginald Hart, Guernsey's Lieutenant Governor, commemorated
the "splendid conduct of the Guernsey men" and
"the great part taken by them at a critical time".
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Torteval Parish Memorial - more
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| However R.G.L.I. losses were heavy, and included
both de la Mare brothers. In January 1918, their names were
included in the long list of Guernsey men missing after
Cambrai. Then, in April 1918, The Star reported that Mr
N. de la Mare of Rocquaine Villa, St Peter's, had been officially
informed that his youngest son, Pte Bertie de la Mare, R.G.L.I.
had been killed in action in the battle of Cambrai, and
buried at Seranvillers. However the situation was still
unclear. The same newspaper also says that Mr. H.W. Le Ray,
of Smithfield, Torteval had received a communication from
the British Red Cross informing him that Pte B. de la Mare
had died a prisoner of war in Germany. Bertie is on the
official list of those killed in action on December 1st
1917, published in the Weekly Press of April 20th 1918,
and Parks states that he was killed in action on that date
and buried at Point du Jour Military Cemetery near Arras. |
