Current Information:

Age-24

14, Trederwen Road, Dalston

Bethune Town Cemetery, France

The 1/7th London battalion arrived in France on 18th March, 1915 as part of 4 (London) Brigade of the 2nd London Division which in May was renamed 140 Brigade, 47th Division. On 2nd April, Thomas Wade was wounded while the battalion was undergoing trench warfare instruction at Festubert and he died from his wounds on the following day. The battalion diary does not provide any further information concerning his death but the attrition rate among British soldiers on the Western Front was on average 300 each day and 60% of these were as a result of shellfire. When not involved in an actual battle it was either shell fire or a sniper’s bullet that caused most deaths and injuries.