Royal Garrison Artillery

[Angel]

Hi everybody

Iv'e found my GGrandfather Charles Daniels on the CWGC site, info as follows:-

Charles Daniels (Gunner)

161789, 445th Siege Bty, Royal Garrison Artillery.

Died aged 30, 16 December 1918.

in Mikra British Cemetery, Kalamaria, Greece.

I am trying to find out any info on where he might have been Based/Fought/Died.

Can anybody help as I can find no reference to the 445th Siege Bty.

Any help or advice would be great.

Thanks

P.S. No other info is known about him at present as he died when my nan was only 5

[Tony]

Hello Angel,

I don't envy your task, it looks like a few trips to Kew are in order. Have a look at the NA site here http://www.catalogue.nationalarchives.gov....%2Ehtm&lBack=-1

It might help

Have you checked the 1901 online census? You might find out where he lived, there were only 19 Charles Daniels aged 13 +/- 2 years and one of them lived were I grew up.

Tony

[Angel]

I don't envy your task, it looks like a few trips to Kew are in order.

Hello Tony nice to hear from you.

You guessed what I'm trying to do.. get as much info as poss on all these soldiers/ancestors before I go to London, then I might know what I'm looking for...

Had a quick look at the Site looks very helpful, will check over the weekend. Not checked the 1901 Census yet, as it would be a complete guess which one could be him..Will have to try the family again see if anybody can come up with an area at least.

Did the 445th Siege Bty mean anything to you?

Thanks for your help

Angel

[Tony]

Did the 445th Siege Bty mean anything to you? 

Thanks for your help

Angel

←

No the 445 Siege Battery doesn't mean anything to me but I'll have a dig in my books over the weekend. I might turn up something, you never know.

Tony

[Tony]

Hello Angel,

I didn't find anything on the 445th, sorry.

I have scanned a pic from a book showing a Canadian battery in action, at least this'll give you an idea of what he did and how deaf he must have been. Just look at the size of the shells, they must have weighed a ton.

Tony

[Angel]

Hello Angel,

I didn't find anything on the 445th, sorry.

Hi Tony

The pic is brilliant, I was under the impression he was in the trenches with a Gun !!!

Silly me...

The shells were huge... can't imagine the sort of noise they would have made.

Good News:

Contacted the Royal Artillery today and the 445th did exist, and they are holding some war diaries there, Just in case anybody else is interested they are dated Sept 1917-Mar 1918 and June 1918-Dec 1918.

Iv'e to contact them again next week to talk to the archivist, he can probably give me more info on them.

So looks like another place to try to visit.

Thanks for your help as usual..

Angel

[Gunner 1]

The personnel of one section (without guns) of 445th Siege Battery, RGA went to the Western Front on 23 Sept 1917 and on 30 Sept 1917 were posted to 308th Siege Battery, RGA in First Army.

All the guns and the rest of the personnel of 445th Siege Battery, RGA went to Egypt on 24 Sept 1917 via France and Italy. It arrived at Alexandria on 20 Oct 17 and remained at Gabrari Camp until 23 Dec 17. It then moved to Sidi Bishr until returning to Alexandria on 1 Jan 18. On 23 Feb 18 the Right Section of the Battery (personnel only) joined XX Corps Heavy Artillery and were split up with A Subsection attached to 383rd Siege Battery, RGA and B Subsection attached to 10th Heavy Battery, RGA until 18 Mar 18. The Right Section then rejoined the Left Section that had remained at Alexandria and the complete Battery joined 61st Heavy Artillery Group (HAG) on 18 April 18. It moved to Salonika with 18 HAG. arriving on 16 May 18 and remained in that theater for the remainder of the war.

The Battery's war diary is available at the National Archives; the portion for the period Sep 17 to Mar 18 is at WO95/4485 and the portion for the period May 18 to Jan 19 at WO95/4796.

Regards. Gunner 1

[Angel]

Hello Gunner 1

Many thanks for the reply it is extremely helpful. Iv'e got something to search for now..

If I have got this right it, as he was a Gunner, I'm assuming he would have been with the following;-

445th RGA

B Section - attached to 10th Heavy Battery RGA

joined 61st HAG

became 18 HAG

Please correct me if this is wrong as I'm still trying to understand this Army system.

Can you recommend any good books on this subject, a trip to the library might help?.. Thanks for the info re the NA

Many Thanks

Angel

[Gunner 1]

Angel: Actually, he could have been in either section since both had Gunners. Gunner 1

[leigh kitchen]

Have you any more details about grandad?

I can only find 3 men of his name listed as artillerymen in Soldiers Died, although a total of 10 are listed altogether.

The 3 artilleryman all died in France & Flanders, so they won't be buried in Greece, although some of the infantrymen of that name would be.

For some strange reason the CWGC site is telling me that it has no men of your grandads name listed.

[mickj]

Hello Angel, I realise it's the end of 2007 but have only just seen this thread. My Grandfather was in the same unit as your GT Grandfather.

Mine was Gunner/Signaller 142011, Ernest JOHNSON 445th Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery. The war diary details fron "Gunner1" are the same as those from my grandads' war diary. He died on 25th Dec 1918 from pneumonia as a result of the flu epidemic at the time. He was in 60th General Hospital on Mt Hortiach which was moved to winter quarters down near the town of Kalamaria where he died. He is also buried at Mikra Cemetery.

I have been fortunate enough to have a recent photo of his headstone taken by a nice man I came in contact with on another site. I have a lot of other photos which I have collected of the Salonika campaign at the time of their involvement.

I hope you are still monitoring your thread.

Best wishes

Mickj