Walter P.Blakesley, Middlesex Regiment

[Ian Blakesley]

I am trying to complete the life story of my great-uncle Walter, who was commissioned as a 2nd. Lieutenant in the Middlesex Regiment on 1 September 1917. He was serving in India; his World War I Service Card appears to indicate he had signed up to serve until 21 January 1935. I would like to see the Regimental records, because I understand he was an Army boxing champion. Can anyone confirm this? How can I reach the Regimental records, or I have to approach Veterans-UK?

[scrimnet]

Have you been through the London Gazette??

http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/

You should be able to follow him on there, or in the Army List, published normally yearly but almost monthly in WW1

[corisande]

You probably need to bite the bullet, and shell out the £30 for his service record from Veterans UK. You need to send a photocopy of his death cert too.

As Scrimnet says you can follow via London Gazette, but the records are not necessarily complete, they use OCR software and it is not that reliable in picking up all entries. You can try using the Time archives too, as they published the LG information, but you tend to get different answers as the Times uses OCR software too. The Times may give you boxing entries if they were "worthy" of mention

I would add that the LG is an "acquired" skill to be able to get the info you want out of their database, and you just have to persevere.

[forester]

Ian,

21/1/35 looks like the date his medals were issued. Officers had to apply for them.

As he was awarded the British War Medal, without the Victory, he served in India throughout probably . He was also awarded the Territorial Force War Medal.

Looking at his 6 digit service number, it is 10th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment and 1/10th were the battalion that arrived in Bombay on 2/12/14 and remained there throughout the war.

I'll have a look as soon as I get the chance to see if his service record is held at Kew. If it has survived and he left the army before the mid-1920's, there is a possibility of finding it.

Phil

[forester]

Ian,

What was his middle name?

There is a service record for a Walter Pearson Blakesley in WO 339/139075.

However, the Territorial records should be in WO 374, so I think that this is probably him in WO 374/7050. Unfortunately, there is no entry in WO 338 to confirm it.

http://www.rootschat.com/links/09oj/

Promoted Lieutenant, 10th Middlesex, 1/3/19
http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/31269/supplements/4375

Phil

[Ian Blakesley]

Thank you all , Corisande, Forester and Scrimnet , so much for all the information about Walter Blakesley you've given me so quickly and fully. It has answered pretty well all my questions. I 'm uncertain as to whether I want to go through the hoops that Veterans-UK impose (and the cost), but I'll try the London Gazette sometime. I've got enough to update Walter's profile (his middle name was Pearson), but I want to be quite sure of the date of 10th. Battalion Middlesex's arrival in Bombay: is it 12 February or 2 December 1914? I appreciate the showing of dates in digits varies between US and UK. I hope that further reseach at Kew might reveal Walter's sporting prowess in the Army; when he joined Thomas Cook Ltd. in Calcutta in October 1922, he was a fine rugby player, according to the Company Archivist. Thank you all, again.
                  Best wishes                   Ian Blakesley

[corisande]

Ian

As I am kind 

http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/31269/supplements/4375

http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/34138/pages/1470

http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/32553/supplements/10360

http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/34075/pages/4974

But I do not see anything in Times on sport for him

[forester]

Ian,

Forget Veterans-UK and save yourself the £30. His records are at Kew, although now you have confirmed his middle name, not where I thought.

My dates are in the British system. 

http://www.1914-1918.net/msex.htm

Phil

[forester]

Ian,

This is the link that you want for the service record of Walter Pearson Blakesley.
If I have attached the extract properly, you will see that the long numbers match.

http://www.rootschat.com/links/09p3/

Phil