Charles William Gant (1849 - 1935)

There is a harrowing letter from his mother to the then headmaster of De Aston School:

Dear Sir,

It is very nice of you to mention my dear boy in your school paper and I thank you also for your kind letter. We have two nice letters from his Company Major in which he tells us Frank would suffer no pain as he was killed instantly by a bomb which fell short of its object and struck Frank's position in the daytime while the whole five were asleep and killed them all and they all are buried together in the place where they fell near Paquit Wood. We seem to know very little about him since he was here at the end of November, and he told us very little; he did not appear to like recalling the horrors he had seen.

Frank joined the King's Royal Rifles in February, 1916, and was billeted at Banbury, and there he was chosen with one other as a machinegunner, and sent up to Grantham on St. Patrick's day, and in June was sent across to France with the 2nd section 123rd Machine Gun Brigade, 41st Division, which went onto Armentieres and then on to Fricourt. He was some time at Deville wood. He was wounded in the arm and leg and rendered deaf at Fleurs, and was three months in a Canadian hospital, afterwards joining the 90th Division. On Christmas Eve, 1916, he went into the line, but had to be sent back to the base, the cold being so intense he could not stand it.

After that he was some time at Havringcourt Wood, until the German retirement. He was at the capture of Combles, and remained in that district and Arras the greater part of 1917, during which year he was hit in the shoulder and another time in the hand. He was granted leave in November, and when he returned at the beginning of December he joined B Company 4th Machine Gun Corps.

Since then he had seen a great deal of fighting in the neighbourhood of Robecq. Poor boy, his was not a fighting nature, but he felt it his duty to go, although he did not like leaving us to the strain of all our business.

The future to us seems quite blank, although we are proud to know he has done his duty so well. He has more than once been asked to take a commission, but he said he would rather remain as he was.

His papers had gone through, and if he had lived only a few hours longer would have been on his way to England. He was awarded the Military Medal on April 14th, but had not mentioned that to us. The Major told us this after his death.

I see you mention Frank Burkitt in your school paper. I have no doubt he will know more about my Frank than I do, as they corresponded regularly.

With thanks for your paper.

I remain, yours sincerely,

LOUISA GANT.

Corporal Gant, was killed, most likely when a heavy shell rather than a bomb hit his position, killing four others at the same time. One of these, who shares the same grave (presumably the two were manning the machine gun together, corporal and private, and their remains were indistinguishable) is my great uncle, Harry Homewood, from Newick in Sussex.