George Hatfield

Gunner George Hatfield, enlisted at Hucknall and served with “A” Battery, 91st Brigade Royal Field Artillery. He landed in France on 24th July 1915 and was killed in action on 27th October 1917 when his post was hit by counter-battery fire. He is buried in Fins New British Cemetery, Sorel-Le-Grand.

Article published in the Hucknall Dispatch on 15th November 1917 :- Killed at his Post. “Another of Hucknall’s brave boys has fallen in the person of George Hatfield, of 14 Church drive. He enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery in January 1915, and in the following July was sent to France, where, with the exception of a week’s leave of absence, he has been hammering the Huns ever since. He was daily expected home on another furlough, but, alas the news came through on November 9 that he had made the supreme sacrifice for his country. Prior to enlistment he worked at Linby Colliery, where he was recognised as a steady and capable workman. “He was a member of the Hucknall Baptist Church, and was a most valued worker in connection with the Young Worshipper’s League. Although he had not much to say he could be relied upon to do his duty. Those who knew him, loved him, and heard with a pang of pain that they would see his face no more. “It is evident from the following extracts out of the letters his father has received that George Hatfield had in him that stuff of which heroes are made. “Lieut. Laing writes: “On behalf of the officers and men of the whole battery, I would offer you our sincerest sympathies in the irreparable loss you have sustained. I personally had a great deal to do with him, and I admired him immensely. He did not know what fear was, and he was one of the finest signallers I have ever come across. I can assure you we miss him greatly, and his place will be hard to fill. He and I have been in many tight corners together, and it is sad to think that, after having come through so much, he has been taken. He suffered no pain, being killed by a shell. He was at his post at the time, doing his duty like the soldier and man he was. The funeral was attended by all the battery, and all military honours were rendered.” “Amongst other fine tributes, Sergt. Welch D.C.M.,thus writes of him: “Your gallant son, George, was killed in action on October 27, sitting at his post... Four dear lads were in the telephone hut together. Two were killed outright; one was wounded; and the other uninjured. George was one of the killed, and his comrades mourn his death from the highest to the lowest, for he was a nice, civil, honest, and his bravery was known and recognised through all the battery. The major thought a great deal of him, and was wont to remark that George was his best signaller. He was with me during the gas attack at Ypres on August 8, 1916, and carried out his duties as if nothing was the matter. He was with my when I was awarded the D.C.M. a couple of weeks ago. I am looking forward to seeing his name on another roll, for he won the Military Medal a week ago, but whether he will be awarded one we do not know, but we all thought he had earned it, and are hoping to see it come through. I could write pages of things about him, for he was jovial under the best and worst conditions. I am writing the feeling of the whole battery, who are sorry to lose such a gallant comrade as George.” “Indeed, these are splendid tributes, and show that such brave lads as George Hatfield are the backbone of the British Army.” Above is courtesy of Jim Grundy and his facebook pages Small Town Great War Hucknall 1914-1918