Current Information:

Age-20

46, Rokeby Street, Stratford

Meaulte Military Cemetery, France

18th Division, including 12th Middlesex of 54 Brigade, arrived in France at end of July, 1915 and after a period of training moved to the Somme area, recently taken over from the French Army. On 24th December, 1915, 12th Middlesex left their billets in Meaulte and moved into the nearby front line trenches, D1. The 29th December proved to be a difficult one for those in the front line with the enemy snipers active throughout. At 10am a considerable number of rifle grenades and trench mortars fell on a section of the trenches known as Rue Albert killing the Medical Officer.  At the same time a private was killed by a sniper’s bullet. Around 4pm, this shelling commenced again and on the right of the battalion’s front a man was decapitated. Samuel Smith was one of the 2 men from 12th Middlesex killed on this day but the Battalion Diary gives no indication if he was the man killed by the sniper’s bullet or if he was the victim of shelling in the afternoon.