Percy George Armes

A Private with 2nd Battalion, Percy died on 7th of May 1916 at the age of 24. 

Percy was born at Lowestoft in 1892. Commonwealth War Graves records show that he was a son of Caroline Susanna Armes and Athol Burroughs. Percy’s mother died in 1894 and he became the foster son of Mark and Harriet Carver. In 1901 the family lived at Fern Villa, 2 Commodore Road, Oulton Broad, later his foster parents lived at 2 Jasmine Terrace, Commodore Road..

Percy enlisted in the Norfolk Regiment, as a boy soldier, at Norwich, in late 1907/early 1908. In 1911 he was serving with the 2nd Battalion in India. Percy was in India, with the 2nd Battalion Norfolk Regiment, when the First World War began. The Battalion went straight to Mesopotamia and Percy arrived there, with the rest of the Battalion, on 15 November 1914. 

Percy would have been present at the Battle of Shaiba in April 1915. 

On 21 November 1915 the 2nd Battalion were in a night march moving into position ready for an attack at Ctesiphon at dawn on 22 November 1915. The Battalion suffered 267 casualties during the Battle of Ctesiphon, around half their fighting strength.  

On 29 November 1915 the British, including the 2nd Norfolks, were ordered to retreat to Kut-al-Amarah. The forced march lasted 46 hours and they managed to reach Kut on 3 December 1915. From 7 December the British and Indian Army garrison was besieged by the Turkish Army. 

The siege lasted 147 days and the garrison suffered terribly during that time. On 29 April 1916 the garrison surrendered. The garrison was marched into captivity at Aleppo. Percy was taken prisoner at Kut-al-Amarah. 

Percy died from ‘sickness’, at Shamran, on 7 May 1916. 

Less than 90 of the Norfolk men survived the siege at Kut.