Bertie John Whaite Burwood

A Lance Sergeant with the 9th Battalion, Bertie died on 16th of September 1916 at the age of 30. 

Bertie was born at Lowestoft in 1886, a son of George Vempley and Martha Burwood. He was baptised at Saint Margaret’s Church on 7 October 1886. In 1891 his family lived at Lindfield Cottage, Mariners Score, and this was still their home in 1901, when Bertie worked as an errand boy. In 1911 his family were living at Lindfield Cottage and Bertie worked as an export marker for C. and E. Morton at Lowestoft. Later his parents lived at The Grange, Rant Score.

Bertie enlisted in the Army, at Lowestoft, during the early stages of World War One. The Lowestoft Journal of 2 January 1915 lists him among those who have volunteered for Kitchener's Army. Bertie arrived in France, as part of the 9th Battalion Suffolk Regiment, on 31 August 1915 and by that time he was already a Lance Corporal.  

On 13 September 1916 the 9th Battalion were in trenches near Guinchy on the Somme. At 6.20 a.m. they attacked the German lines and were able to capture two lines of German trenches, however, the enemy artillery and machine-gun fire inflicted heavy casualties. The situation could not be cleared up and so, at 7.30 a.m. A Company made an attack on the German strongpoint known as The Quadrilateral, but they failed to reach their objective due to enemy machine-gun fire. By the end of the day two officers and 15 men had been killed and 10 officers and 185 men wounded. 

On 15 September the Battalion made an attack on the enemy trenches with a final objective between Lesbouchs and Morval. The Battalion were to advance at 7.50 a.m. There was heavy enemy artillery and machine-gun fire and half of C Company could not even leave the trench. The rest of the Battalion were held up by heavy machine-gun fire from The Quadrilateral. There were many casualties, including Lieutenant-Colonel Mack. During the day the Battalion lost four officers and 35 men killed, seven officers and 99 men wounded, and two officers and 93 men missing. 

The Army Register of Soldiers' Effects shows that Bertie was killed in action between 13 and 16 September 1916. But the 9th Battalion war diary states that there were no casualties on 16 September. Bertie's body was discovered at map reference 57c.T.14.d.9.4. Bertie was exhumed and reburied at Guillemont Road Military Cemetery in 1921. 

Bertie is shown as B Burwood on Commonwealth War Graves and Bert Burwood in Soldiers Died in the Great War.