George Dignen

Second Lieutenant George William Dignen originally served (15859) in the 11th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers joining the BEF on 25th August 1915. He was commissioned in October 1917. He was reported as recovering from wounds in Manchester in April 1918. He was killed in action “whilst leading his men” on 24th October 1918 whilst serving with the 3rd Battalion of the regiment. He is buried in Romeries Communal Cemetery Extension, Nord, France Grave Reference: I E 26

On 12th November 1915 excerpts from a letter by Cpl. George William Dignen, 11th Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, appeared in the local press. “IN THE GERMAN TRENCHES.“HOW THE ENEMY PREPARED FOR WINTER. “In a letter to his parents in Nottingham, Corporal G. W. Dignen, of the 11th Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, gives an interesting account of the way in which the time is spent at the front, telling of the diversions there, and also of the rats and other inconveniences, apart from the dangers. The letter proceeds:“We are just getting nicely settled down in our new quarters now. Of course the late tenants were Germans. The first street was rather jerry built; in fact, it blew down, but the others are substantial places. They intended occupying them for a long period, only for that hasty notice to quit, and they were preparing for winter, for we found straw and stoves in them. Some of their dugouts go down 15 feet, with as many as ten steps to them.“I did not tell you much about the fighting, because the papers will do that best, and some of the pictures of the places are just real life, but the most remarkable thing about it was the people living underneath the fire of both our guns and the German guns. You would be surprised to see how they go about under shell fire, but I think myself they have a purpose for doing it. You know they are not to be trusted. There have been many casualties among the Nottingham lads on our left. My dugout chum wants me to give him a hand in reversing the door from front back, the opposite way to the Germans. This chum comes from Nottingham, close to Gotham.”Above extract from the Nottingham Evening Post 12th November 1915 courtesy of Jim Grundy and his facebook pages Small Town Great War Hucknall 1914-1918 Nottingham Post obituary (abridged), 3 November 1918: 'DIGNEN killed in action October 23rd (sic) Lieut GW Dignen Northumberland Fusiliers, eldest son of Mr and Mrs W Dignen, Belle Vue Cottage, Belle Vue Road, age 25'