Current Information:

Age-24

12, Hedgley Street, Lee

Born-Kennington

Vis-en-Artois British Cemetery, Haucourt, France

Long Trench, which lay to the east of Monchy-le-Preux near Arras, was the scene of heavy fighting in mid-July, 1917, involving some of the battalions of 12th Division. One of these was 6th Royal West Kent of 37 Brigade who had been involved in defending it from the German attack on 11th July, when sections of it were lost to the enemy, and then played a part in its recapture on 17th July, along with 9th Essex of 35 Brigade and 6th Royal West Surrey (Queens) of 37 Brigade. The three battalions attacked at 4.45am and despite suffering some heavy casualties, mainly from German machine-gun fire, they managed to gain a foothold in Long Trench, where they hung on with varying fortune until the arrival of reinforcements in the evening which swung the balance in their favour. The main attack on Long Lane had been delivered by 6th Royal West Kent supported by a company of 6th Queens and despite the final success of the attack, they inevitably suffered a number of casualties. One of these was George Ringe of 6th Royal West Kent who was killed during the fighting.