Daniel Aloysius Gill

War Service

At the outbreak of the war, Daniel Aloysius would have been 17 years old. One of the thousands of young men caught up with the fervour of patriotism and the need to “do their duty”.
Precisely when and where Daniel Aloysius enlisted is unknown; however, he initially joined the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry as Lance/Corporal 3/1580 Gill D A.
As was the practice at the time, if the father of the recruit was a doctor, solicitor or had any profession, then consideration was automatically given to awarding the recruit with a rank of a junior officer. Possibly because Daniel Aloysius had reached the age of eighteen and his father was a colliery under-manager, in 1915 Daniel Aloysius was awarded the rank of 2nd Lieutenant and transferred to the 18th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales’s Own), known as the Bradford Pals. Formed in Bradford in January 1915 “The Pals” came under orders of 93rd Brigade, 31st Division.
In December 1915 the battalion moved to Egypt, but it was not there for very long. The battalion was ordered back to Europe, arriving at Marseilles, France in March 1916. In the spring of 1916 troops were assembling and training for “the big push”. Later “the big push” would become known as “The Battle of the Somme”.
In 1974 a BBC North television crew accompanied some of the surviving Bradford Pals on what was to be their last trip back to the Somme.
A Bradford Pal remembered the opening hours of the Battle of the Somme:
“Half-past seven in the morning of the first of July 1916 and the whistles were blowing and the shells were coming over and it was hell upon earth and everybody dashed out of the trenches and everybody was doing the best they could. It was the machine gun fire that caused all the damage. It wasn’t the shell fire. And there were no gaps in the wire emplacements and we had to find the best way we could, you see. The other battalion had come over before us. There were so many dead lying about and it was almost impossible because the other battalion had come over before us. There were so many dead lying about scattered all over the place. I was a member of the 18th West Yorkshire1, 2nd Bradford Pals, on that particular day and out of the battalion strength of 800 there were only 147 left at the end of the day.”
We cannot be sure if Daniel Aloysius was one of the 147 lucky men to survive or one sent to replace the 800 who were lost. After a short break, the battalion regrouped and it was back in action throughout the remainder of the summer.
The following extracts from the War Diaries for the period 23rd to 26th October 1916 state when and how Daniel was killed:
Date Summary of events and information
“23rd Drafts came up to trenches from ROSSIGNOL FARM on night of 23.10.16 and occupied support lines on right of B Coy. supplying working parties.
Casualties: (other Ranks) – wounded 2 (artillery); 1 accidental (rifle).
24th to 25th Enemy rather more active than usual. From 11pm to 11.15pm enemy opened rapid fire on orchards E. and SE. of Battn. HQ, apparently searching for one of our own batteries.
About 500 shells fired including 4.2 HE (High Explosive), tear and gas shells. Gas shells caused several casualties. Some damage was done during day to SONIS, RUALT and PASTURE.
Own artillery very active all day.
Patrols consisting of 2nd Lieu. D. A. Gill, 18/1492 Sgt G Quigley and 40255 Pvt H. Sutcliffe left own lines at 8.45pm to investigate German wire. Patrol proceeded E. to German wire and about 100 yards southwards to K.17 & 1.3 where a clear gap about 30 ft wide was discovered and reconnoitred to within 10 yards of enemy parapet. Patrol was here observed by enemy sentry who fired three shots, mortally wounding 2nd Lieu. Gill. Machine guns also opened fire. Sgt. Quigley and Pvt. Sutcliffe succeeded in bringing the officer’s body back to own lines.
26th Heavy artillery very active on our front and supply lines and around Bn. HQ. Battalion relieved by 18th Durham Light Infantry (completed 2 – 10pm).”
Young, 19 years old, Daniel paid the ultimate price in the trenches in an area near Hebuterne. The battalion had moved there from the village of Sailly-Au-Bois. Daniel would never leave that small village again. He is one of the 239 Commonwealth burials of the First World War buried in Sailly-Au-Bois Military Cemetery between Arras and Amiens, France.
Sometime after 1911 Daniel’s family had moved from Lee Brigg to live at “Elmwood”, Station Road, Altofts. It was here, in late September 1916, the family received the formal notification of Daniel’s death.
Daniel’s name also appears on the World War One Memorial Plaque in St John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church in Normanton.

Family Life

Daniel Aloysius was born during July 1897 in Killamarsh, Derbyshire to Daniel and Charlotte Gill. In 1901 Charlotte and Daniel and their young family: Mary aged 7 years, young Daniel Aloysius aged 3 years and baby Catherine just one year old were living at 28, Green Lane, Killamarsh. Daniel (senior), now 42 years old, was a colliery deputy (foreman). Sadly, later in 1901 tragedy was to strike the family when young Daniel’s older sister Mary died – she was only seven years old.
While still living in Killamarsh, Charlotte gave birth to three more children: Joseph, Aiden and Winifred. Sometime after the birth of Winifred the family moved from Derbyshire to live in Yorkshire.
In April 1911 the family lived at 1, Lee Brigg, Altofts. Young Daniel Aloysius was now 13 years old, Catherine 11, Joseph 10, Aiden 6 and Winifred was 4 years old. All the children were attending school. Their father had gained promotion to colliery under-manager.
Sometime after 1911 Daniel’s family moved from Lee Brigg to live at “Elmwood”, Station Road, Altofts.
It is clear from the family history that Daniel’s father, Daniel made his career in the coal mining industry – progressing from “pit boy” to “colliery under-manager” with the latter part of his working life centred in the Altofts / Normanton area.
Joe Gill was a senior manager at St John’s Colliery (Newland) around the time the coal industry nationalisation in the late 1940s. Perhaps if Daniel had survived the war, he too would have forged a career in the mining industry – sadly we will never know.