Description
(British Army) First Day of the Somme 1 July 1916 – 1914-15 Star
Named to Private William Joseph Geldart,service number 13525, Royal Welsch Fusiliers.
Privat William J. Geldart was wounded on 1 july 1916 during the First day of the Somme Battle. His medical report states he got a gunshotwound to the hand, at La Bondelle (?).
The 1914-15 Star is on the reverse engraved with Pte W. J. Geldart. R.W. Fus. and servicenumber 13525.
The medal comes with several pages of research, among which copies of Geldarts medical reports.
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Background:
The First Day of the Battle of the Somme was to be the first mass offensive mounted by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the first battle to involve a large number of New Army divisions, many composed of Pals battalions that had formed after Kitchener’s call for volunteers in August 1914. In total this day 57,470 casualties suffered by the British, including 19,240 killed, which were the worst in the history of the British Army.
More background:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_day_on_the_Somme
and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Somme
