Name
Sidney Bullard
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
27/07/1917
30
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Private
8191
Bedfordshire Regiment
1st Bn.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 (Mons) Star, British War and Victory Medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
THIEPVAL MEMORIAL
Pier and Face 2 C.
France
Headstone Inscription
Not Researched
UK & Other Memorials
St Mary the Virgin Church, Therfield,
Non-conformist Chapel, Therfield
Pre War
Born on 5 Sep 1885 in Dane End, Therfield, Herts. fourth son of James and Lucy Jane (Hagger) Bullard and christened on 25 Dec 1885 in Therfield.
1891 census details
Father James was a hay binder aged 29 and mother Lucy 29 looked after James 13, Leonard 9, Albert Edward 7, Sidney 5, Walter T. 3 and Amelia E.1.
1901 census details
The family had increased and 5 more children had arrived! Florence 9, Mabel 7, William 5, Frank 2 and Ethel, 3 months.
1911 census details.
Sidney can be found in the army and based in Jamaica/Bermuda.
At some point he married Polly who, when he was killed was living in Wetheringsett near Stowmarket, they had no children.
Family note by Julie Hourihan (Great Granddaughter to Lucy
& James Bullard):
Lucy & James Bullard were my Great Grandparents (their
youngest son Frederick John was my Granddad). They actually had six sons serving
in the Great War (my six Gt Uncles), Frank was their 6th son to serve, he lost
his leg. I cannot find his war records or service number, however, his daughter
Doreen who is in her 90's has confirmed that he was in the Great War and he
lost his leg aged 17.
James the eldest son was also in the war, although he didn't
die in the war, he died some years later from his shrapnel wounds. Their cousin
Charlie Bullard (Noades) also lost his life in the Great War and is buried at Therfield
Church. I am so proud of my Gt Uncles and of my Gt Grandparents who suffered
their losses.
Wartime Service
He was a reservist in the Bedfordshire Regiment when war broke out and joined up on mobilisation with the number 8191 going over to France with the 5th Division on August 16th just 11 days after war was declared.
Sidney saw much action at the battles of Mons, The Marne, The Aisne, and the many battles around Ypres. Then in August 1915 his battalion was on the move down towards the Somme area in France. That winter gave them comparative peace with much training and trench repairing but with dreadful weather conditions at times at billets near Corbie and Bray. With the dreadful slaughter of the French at Verdun in early 1916 it was decided that the British and Commonwealth forces would be the main leaders in the new offensive which was planned to draw the Germans away from Verdun.
Thus started the Battle of the Somme on July 1st 1916 when 8 French and 16 British Divisions went ‘over the top’ and by the end of the battle in November practically every division on the Western Front had been engaged and over one million men had become casualties.
In mid July the Bedfords were moved up and were in reserve at the operations at High Wood then took over the line between High Wood and Delville Wood on July 23rd July. The 27th was a dreadful day for the Bedfords as they attacked the German held village of Longueval. Pressing through the village they encountered heavy attacks and gas shelling resulting in serious casualties of which Private Sidney Bullard was one. He was 30.
His body was not found so his name appears on the Thiepval Memorial Pier and Face 2c.
Additional Information
Six Bullard brothers served in WW1, four were killed, William Ralph, above, Albert Edward died 6 Aug 1915, Walter Thomas, died 15 Apr 1917 and Sidney, died 27 Jul 1917. They are all listed on this same memorial. James and Frank were injured but survived.
Acknowledgments
Malcolm Lennox, Jean Handley, Julie Hourihan
