James Henry PEEL

27 April 1917

PEEL – Died from shell shock in France, April 14th, Pte. James Henry Peel, of the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, husband of Mrs. Peel, of 3, Railway Terrace, Skipton.

27 April 1917

SKIPTON SOLDIER DIES FROM SHELL SHOCK

Mrs. Peel, of 3, Railway Terrace, Skipton, has received official information from the Infantry Records Office, York, that her husband, Pte. James Henry Peel, of the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, died from shell shock at the 13th Casualty Clearing Station, France, on April 14th. Pte. Peel is a native of Crosshills, coming to Skipton about two years ago. At Crosshills he was employed for ten years by Mr. Fred Smith, tailor, Station Road, Crosshills, and prior to enlisting he followed a similar occupation with Mr. Leathley, of Otley Street, Skipton. He joined the army on the 15th of September last, and had been out in France since January. He leaves a widow and two children to mourn their loss.

27 April 1917

ANOTHER BRADLEY SOLDIER KILLED

Mr. and Mrs. Walker Blades, of Prospect Terrace, Bradley, received the following letter last week from Lance-Corpl. J. Littlewood, of the Duke of Wellington’s West Riding Regiment:– “ It is with deepest regret and sympathy that I beg to inform you of your son’s death. He was killed by shrapnel yesterday, the 14th, and was buried last night. He was a good workmate, and I sincerely regret his loss. He was buried in an English grave and had a proper funeral service.”

Pte. Albert Blades, of the West Yorkshire Regiment, who was 22 years of age, was the only son of the above, and enlisted on March 28th, 1916. He went to France on Jan. 12th. The lad was of a quiet and retiring disposition, but all his letters breathed a love of home and parents, for whom the deepest sympathy is felt. He was formerly employed as shoemaker by Mrs. Walker, of Skipton.

The following letter was received by Pte. Blades’s parents yesterday morning from Private Joe Harry Mawson, another Bradley lad:–

“I beg to extend to you and your family my deepest sympathy in your sad bereavement, and I most sincerely pray that God will comfort and sustain you until that day dawns when you will be re-united in the Better Land. The news came as a great shock to me this morning. I made enquiries about him and learnt that he was wounded in the back and died in hospital. I have seen the place where he is buried, and let me assure you that he has been buried respectably. At present there is nothing but a bottle with his name, number, and date of funeral, ‘Pte. A. Blades. No. 4604, 14/4/17,’ but in the course of a few days there will probably be a small wood cross put up to mark the place. I have been talking to his sergeant, and he told me he was a good soldier. There is only one consolation for you, that is that he has done his duty, and paid the highest sacrifice for the sake of humanity.”

A memorial service was held in the Wesleyan Chapel on Sunday morning, conducted by Mr. Herbert Thornton, who said that it was their painful experience to have to record the passing away of another of their lads on the field of battle. Never surely in the history of mankind was there so much anguish and heartbreak on account of loved ones who had been prematurely cut off. Rachel’s weeping for their children because they are not. Well might they cry out “How long, O Lord, how long?” When would the toll for human misunderstanding, avarice and inordinate ambition be expiated. They little thought a week ago, when paying a tribute to Sydney Mattock, that even then Albert had found a last resting place upon a foreign shore. Yet, so it was, and his death made the sixth of their lads who had laid down their lives in their country’s cause, viz., Willie Brayshay, while in training on Salisbury Plain; Robert Henry Mawson, Leonard Throup, John Sydney Mattock, James Henry Peel, and lastly, they hoped, and so far as they knew, Albert Blades. Albert was of a quiet disposition; he didn’t wear his heart upon his sleeve, his innermost thoughts and aspirations were rarely, if ever, expressed. He was diligent and plodding, kind-hearted and considerate, strongly attached to all at home, purposely avoiding in his letters anything calculated to give uneasiness or anxiety. Consequently, it was not known definitely whether he was killed in action or hit with shrapnel behind the line. He attested on his 21st birthday, and joined the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment. He was one of their own lads, having passed through the Sunday School, and previous to enlisting was connected with Mr. Bray’s Young Men’s Class. He was also a frequent attender at public worship, and in your name and my own I extended to the bereaved relatives their sincere sympathy. It was some consolation to know that his death brought no remorse, that his end had not been hastened by fast and profligate living; he has died fighting your cause and mine. Death met him in the discharge of his duty. What worthier end? In the words of Mazzini, I would say “Life is a mission duty its highest aim,” for unselfish actions never die. May some comfort come to all those who were bitterly mourning the loss of loved ones at this time, from the thought that their life was given up in the most momentous struggle in history, and that they sacrifice their all in order that right and freedom should triumph and the world be made a brighter and a happier place in which to live.

All through life I see a cross
Where sons of God yield up their breath,
There is no gain except by loss,
No life – except by death.

At the close of the service ‘O rest in the Lord’ was played by the organist, Mr. Chapman.

12 April 1918

In loving remembrance of Pte. James Henry Peel, died of shell shock at a clearing station in France, April 11th, 1917.

“Till the day breaks.”

– From Aunt Maggie.

19 April 1918

In ever loving remembrance of my dear son, Pte. James Henry Peel, who died from shell shock in France, April 14th, 1917. He was a kind and affectionate son and brother.

– From Mother. 11, Victoria Buildings, Bradley.