Private Alfred Ell

19838 Private Alfred Ell
1st Battalion Middlesex Regiment
Age 33
Killed in Action 24 October 1918
Buried at Romeries, France.

Son of George Ell, of London; husband of Lilian Daisy Ell, of 151, Offord Rd., Barnsbury, London.

Private Ell was killed during the actions prior to the Battle of the Sambre, just three weeks before the war ended.

On 23 October, the 1st Middlesex attacked the village of Forest near Le Cateau. Zero hour for the attack was 2am and at 2.45am a message was received by Battalion Headquarters from Captain Tate, commanding 'B' Company. This said: 'On outskirts of Forest. Everything going splendidly. Enemy retiring. Very few casualties.

At 4am on the 24th the advance was continued. The 1st Middlesex was on the left of the line and ran into lethal machine gun fire.

At 6.50am Captain Francis Broad MC reported that the enemy's machine-gun fire was extremely heavy, but he believed that, although he could not get touch, some of the Battalion were ahead of him, though the enemy also was in front.

At 7.25am he reported that he had 'D' Company with 'C' Company – a total of just 50 men.

At around 9.15am the battalion reorganised. There were just 90 other ranks present, with Captain Tate in command.

During the two days' fighting Captain Broad, Lieutenant ACT Kroenig-Ryan and 2/Lieutenant RE Holland were killed. Lieutenant AAT Harris was fatally wounded. 2/Lieutenant CE Cade was missing.

Captain Broad was 23 and from Watford.

2/Lieutenant Holland was 22 and from Mitcham in Surrey.

Lieutenant Kroenig-Ryan was 24, the son of a vicar from Braintree in Essex and a graduate of Cambridge University. He had a wife, Mabel, and lived at Alameda House, Vange, Pitsea, Essex. He had originally served with 8th Battalion the Middlesex Regiment.