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Rifleman William Snow

11th Battalion, Rifle Brigade 1894 - 1916
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William Snow has been a major inspiration in my life for quite a few years and

for a number of reasons. To begin with, he is my great Uncle. Secondly, he
was a soldier during the Great War. He succumbed to injuries following
the Battle of Delville Wood on 1st September 1916. Those military
historians will know this particular battle saw the first action of the
South African military during the war. Thirdly, he has provided the
inspiration for my novel, ‘The Spirit of Christmas 1940’. This month
I would like to tell you the story of the real William Snow. From his
birth to his death. Understanding this real British Hero has to be a

‘must’ in our ongoing saga of ‘The Spirit of Christmas 1940’.
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To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die
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Delville Wood, 1916

or the majority of a century, William Snow laid in a We do know, however that William enlisted into the army in
grave only visited by those who tended to the British 1914 and as far as records show, he was trained at good old
FWar Cemetery in La Nueville, Corbie, France. That was Blackdown Camp and then on to Hamilton Camp, Stonehenge.
until my sister stumbled across his name during a search of the His unit was 11th Battalion, The Rifle Brigade (Prince Consorts
family tree. Own).

At the time of the discovery in 2003, I was serving my final On 21st July 1915, the unit sailed from Southampton to
tour in Northern Ireland with 2nd Battalion, Princess of Wales’s Boulogne to begin its service in the First World War with 20
Royal Regiment, an amalgamation of the Queens Regiment and Division, 59th Infantry Brigade. The movements of the Rifle
my original unit, the Royal Hampshire Regiment. Thankfully, Brigade has been well documented as ‘The Long, Long Trail’.
the troubles were in the past and that particular tour was The 11th Battalion would remain in France until the end of the
relatively peaceful. This left me with plenty of time to pick up war in 1918.
the research on William and dig deeper into another military
family member. I must admit, it has taken me quite a few years William was involved in a number of battles over the next year.
to piece together the story of William Snow to the point where I Almost immediately his unit took part in the ‘Attack towards
can speak with a good degree of accuracy. Fromelles’ where he sustained injuries. He also took part in the
‘Battle for Mount Sorrell’ shortly before being sent to Delville
To begin with, William was born to Henry and Jessica Snow Wood.
in Smethwick, Staffordshire in 1894. Smethwick, situated
just West of Birmingham City centre was an up and coming Delville Wood, or Devil’s Wood was a strategic position which
industrial area home to predominantly working class people. had to be taken at all costs as it provided a vital channel to
Not a great deal is known about Williams upbringing other than allow Allied troops to pour deep into enemy territory. The
being a normal Black Country existence. Battle would last from 15th July 1916 to 3rd September. The 1st

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