Sydney Jeffries

Private Sydney Jeffries, enlisted at Nottingham and initially served with the service number 4563 in the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment later transferring to the 29th Divisional Cyclist Company, Army Cyclist Corps. He landed in the Balkans on 28th May 1915 and was wounded at Gallipoli. Later transferring to the South Wales Borderers, he was wounded and taken prisoner while serving with 16th Platoon, “D” Company, 2nd Battalion, on 7th July 1916. He died of wounds on 14th July 1916 and is buried in Cologne Southern Cemetery.

He told the story in a letter published in the ‘Mansfield and North Notts Advertiser,’ on 10th September 1915 :- ”I am going on champion. My arm is broken, but I hope soon to be better. I went to Cairo to have my arms X-rayed. It is about 120 miles from here to the capital of Egypt, which is a very nice place. But oh! isn’t it hot. I like this place all right, but as to the Dardanelles you cannot imagine what it is like. I went from England about the 2nd May. We got to a little island called Lemnos on the 17th May, and were in harbour there three days. Then we were sent up to the Gallipoli Peninsular, where the fun started. We were up there 24 hours trying to land. Well, we did at the finish, and when we got up on the top of the cliffs didn’t the Turks let us have it. They chased us off again right into the sea. There was I, with my bike on my back, going into the water. Then I got on board a mine-sweeper, which was going to Lemnos, so I went back once more. Next I was despatch-riding for headquarters, and enjoyed that a treat, but I had to go back to join my own lot on the Peninsular. Sixteen cyclists came out here with me, but when I went back three had been killed and four were missing. We got sent to different places, and one chap who came out with me went out with a message, and came back with two fingers missing, blown off. He has gone to England now.” Above article and information courtesy of Jim Grundy and his facebook pages Small Town Great War Hucknall 1914-1918