Name
Frank Pulley
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
19/11/1914
28
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Private
1911
Hertfordshire Regiment
1st Bn.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL
Panel 54 and 56.
Belgium
Headstone Inscription
NA
UK & Other Memorials
Royston Town War Memorial, Hertfordshire Regimental Memorial, All Saints Church, Hertford
Pre War
Son of Mrs. Fanny Pulley, of The Mount, Royston, Herts.
Wartime Service
He was a former member of the Hertfordshire Volunteer Battalion prior to the formation of the Territorial Army, and worked as a House Painter for William Hinkins of Royston for 15 years before the outbreak of the Great War.
Following his mobilisation Frank was posted to Flanders on the 6th November 1914.
Frank was among a group of soldiers who were buried alive in a shallow dug out when it was struck by a shell on the 19th November 1914 in Shrewsbury Wood, on the outskirts of Ypres, Belgium. Privates 2504 William BUTTS aged 29 (Son of Issac & Emily Butts) 2747 George Haslear CATLIN aged 21 (Son Of Thomas Haslear Catlin & Martha Catlin, Of 5, Hertingfordbury, Hertford.) 2518 George Edward ELLIS aged 30 (Son Of William Ellis, Of The Hen And Chickens, 51, Clarke's Lane, Baldock, Herts.) 2426 Walter William FLANDERS aged 19 Brother Of Mrs. Agnes J. Large, Of 2, Ridge Rd., Letchworth, Herts. 2428 Joseph William JOHNSON aged 19 Son Of Joseph And Ada Lucy Johnson, Of 7, Cromwell Rd., Letchworth, Herts. 1911 Frank PULLEY aged 28 Son Of Mrs. Fanny Pulley, Of The Mount, Royston, Herts. 2746 Henry WEST aged 26 Son Of Daniel And Eliza West, Of Priors Wood, Hertford Heath, Herts.
All those killed on this day have no known grave and are commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Belgium.
A lengthy article appeared in the local paper on the 5 December 1914, with variations on other local papers later. It was based on an interview with a wounded Letchworth soldier, Arthur Garner, part of which describes the death of ‘Pelly’ (Pulley *1).
“On Thursday the cold became more intense, and snow began to fall until about three inches lay on the ground and on Thursday, at dinner time, their acquaintance with shelling began. Some of the shells would bury themselves in the ground and burst, hurling the earth in all directions and burying the men in dirt. They knew when they were coming by the whiz they made through the air, and they all went down and waited until safe. The noise of their bursting deafening them for five or ten minutes. Then a shell burst in their midst, he was knocked over and felt a sharp pain in his right arm and knew he had been hit. At the same time Weston(*2) and Stoughton, of Royston, and Foster, of Hitchin were wounded, and Pelly(sic), of Royston, was killed. He (Arthur Garner ) looked round and saw one man literally covered from head to foot with blood; another man, Cross, of Hertford, had his jaw broken. They lay in various states of injury, until about six o’clock, when the ambulance men came with stretchers and conveyed the worst cases to hospital. He was able to walk. The men, wounded or not, were all in high spirits. There was very little rifle firing, but he saw one man “pot” three Germans and another, a Royston man, pick off one as clean as a whistle.”
*1 Private 1911 Frank Pulley.
*2 Probably Private Tom Weston who was killed on 31 July 1917.
Additional Information
He is mentioned in the story of William Sell, which can be found here in the Archive at: Archive - Hertfordshire Men & Women - Individuals Stories - William Sell (MM) - Biography Include others from the Herts Reg
Acknowledgments
Paul Johnson, Jonty Wild
