William Percy George Pauley
- Family History
- Military history
- Extra information
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He was the son of Edward (who died from TB in 1920 having been discharged from the Royal Engineers in 1917) and Susannah Pauley (1877-1947). He was the brother of Ethel, Doris, Edward, Florence and Stanley Pauley. In 1911, the family lived at 10, Maltby Yard, Water Street, Stamford, St Martins, Northamptonshire. By 1921, they had re-located to Strelley, Nottinghamshire. In 1939, the family home was at 8, Chapel Street, Kimberley, Nottinghamshire.
HEVERLEE WAR CEMETERY 12. A. 4.
The 2nd Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment shipped to France with the 2nd Infantry Brigade, 1st Infantry Division at the outbreak of the war in September 1939.They crossed into Belgium on May 11, 1940, to take up defensive positions along the River Dyle. The battalion war diary (WO 167/830) details a rapid, fighting retreat across Belgium during mid-May 1940, moving from positions on the River Dyle toward the French border following the German breakthrough. Between May 16 and 19, the battalion engaged in heavy rearguard actions, suffering casualties while under relentless Luftwaffe attacks. Military records place Pauley’s death between May 16th and May 19th.
Pauley was found by locals having initially been laid to rest by his comrades alongside a fellow battalion member, Private Jack Samuel Robinson, in the Ninove Churchyard near Korbeek-Dijle. After the war, following formal identification, his remains were moved to the Heverlee War Cemetery in Belgium.
His birth registration name was Percy William S Pauley (Stamford, J/A/S/1910). However, census data suggest that he was soon known within the family as William.
The origin of 'George', his army middle name, is unclear. However, it seems possible that S may have been a mis-transcription of G and that he enlisted as William George Pauley.
William Pauley's brother Stanley served with the Sherwood Foresters during World War Two and survived the conflict.
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