Name
Cecil William Collings
9 June 1898
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
24/04/1918
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
266649
Bedfordshire Regiment
7th Battalion
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
POZIERES MEMORIAL
Panel 28 and 29.
France
Headstone Inscription
N/A
UK & Other Memorials
Hemel Hempstead Town Memorial, Hertfordshire Regimental Memorial, All Saints Church, Hertford, St Mary's Church Memorial, Apsley End, Not on the Abbots Langley memorials, Not on the Wheathampstead memorials, We are not aware of any memorial in Nash Mills (*1)
Pre War
Cecil William Collings was born on 9 June 1898 in Wheathampstead, Herts, the son of Charles and Florence Collings and one of six children. He was baptised on 28 August 1898 at Wheathampstead.
On the 1901 Census, the family were living at Nash Mills, Abbots Langley, Herts and his father was working as a Store Keeper in an engineering works.
His father died in late 1911, aged 48, when Cecil was 12 years old and his brother Walter died in Watford in November 1916 following a long illness.
Although the 1911 Census could not be found, the Summary book shows a Collings family living in Nash Mills. His father died in late 1911 and his mother remarried in 1926 to William Puddepha
Wartime Service
At the outbreak of war, Cecil was too young to enlist, but in June 1915 at the age of only seventeen he was accepted into the Hertfordshire Regiment (reg. no. 5059) and sent for basic training..
It is not known when he was sent to France, but it was probably in June 1916, when he was posted to the 7th Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment, and just in time to fight in the Battle of Albert at the start of the Somme offensive on 1 July 1916. This was followed by the Battle of Bazentin in July, leaving the Battalion's losses at almost 300 men killed, missing or wounded. There were more casualties in 1917 beginning with the Operations on the Ancre, Third Battle of the Scarpe and lastly Passchendaele in October.
In March 1918 the Battalion were preparing for action in the Somme and again sustained heavy casualties at the Battle of St Quentin. The following month Cecil was involved in the Battle of Villers-Bretonneux where they came under heavy machine gun and fire and fierce enemy opposition. Although they captured over 200 German prisoners and many enemy dead were observed, the action resulted in more than 190 men killed sand 70 missing or wounded. Cecil was wounded on the first day of the action and died shortly afterwards on 24 April 1918.
Cecil Collins was listed in the Absent Voter Records for Abbots Langley in Autumn 1918, Spring 1919 and Autumn 1919. Which is confusing because he died in April 1918. Given that it was not until 6th December 1919 that his effects were authorised to be transferred to his mother Florence, with a note saying "Death accepted", perhaps he was Missing in Action and considered dead until December 1919.
He was initially identified from the Absent Voter Records and was not recorded elsewhere in the Abbots Langley Parish records so any connection to Abbots Langley would seem tenuous.
These records confirm that Alfred was listed serving with the 7th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment, and his address was given at Nash Mills, Abbots Langley.
Biography
Additional Information
His mother received a war gratuity of £16 10s and pay owing of £16 12ds 7d. She also received a pension of 5 shillings a week.
Acknowledgments
Brenda Palmer
Roger Yapp - www.backtothefront.org, www.hemelheroes.com., www.bedfordregiment.org.uk
