Alexander William Sanders, always known as ‘Will’, was born on 11th December 1894 to William and Sarah Sanders (nee Matthews) in Shipton Gorge about two miles south-east of Bridport, Dorset. He had a twin brother named Joseph Henry who was known as ‘Harry’.
Sadly, the boys’ mother died at the age of 31 either in childbirth or very soon afterwards. She was buried in the churchyard of St Martin’s in Shipton Gorge on 14th December 1894. As was quite common in those days their father, a 57 year-old farm labourer, was working many hours a day, and so Will and Harry went to live with their 50 year-old Aunt Sabrina Matthews (Sarah’s sister) whose occupation is recorded as ‘net-braider’ and who also lived in the village. They are recorded as living in Vine Cottage in Cuckoo Lane at the time of the 1901 census.
By the time of the 1911 census the boys were sixteen years old, and both were employed in ‘twine manufacturing’. Rope and net-making was a very important industry in Bridport at that time. By now, the boys were living with their Uncle Henry and Aunt Alice Matthews in Chapel Street, Shipton Gorge. This would have been close to their previous home in Vine Cottage.
Around the time war was declared, Will enlisted as a volunteer in the Dorsetshire Regiment. It is very likely that he joined the 3rd Battalion of the Dorsetshire Regiment – the Regimental depot being at Dorchester. The 3rd Battalion was essentially a training regiment from which new recruits were given basic training before posting to one of the other battalions.His brother, Harry, in the meantime joined the Royal Marines Light Infantry.
On the outbreak of war on 4th August 1914, the 1st Battalion was based at Victoria Barracks in Belfast. By the 9th August 1914, the battalion had already received 572 reservists from Dorchester to bring it up to ‘war strength’. So, on 14th August 1914, the 1st Battalion boarded the SS Anthony and headed for France.
During his basic training at Dorchester, Will likely met a Corporal Ernest Shephard who was one of the training team at the depot. Shephard was promoted to Sergeant on 8 August 1914 and was later posted to the 1st Battalion and went to France in January 1915 as part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF).
After basic training, Will was posted to the 1st Battalion. It is currently unknown when he was posted but his medal index card (MIC) suggests he landed in France on 4th December 1914. Will would therefore have missed the early battles, including the retreat from Mons. Will was a keen bellringer at St Martin’s Church, and he joined in the ringing on the last Sunday he was in England before being sent overseas.
When Will landed in France, the 1st Battalion, part of 15 Brigade, was in billets in the small village of Danoutre – about 5 miles to the west of Messines in Belgium. Between the 7th and 8th December, the battalion, being in brigade reserve, relieved elements of the Bedfords and the King’s Own Scottish Borderers (KOSB) in trenches at Lindenhoek. This area is dominated by two key features – Mount Kemmel (at 500 ft) and the Messines Ridge (260 ft). Unfortunaly, it is not known when Pte Sanders arrived on the battalion’s location. Sometimes, on arrival in France or Belgium, further training was carried out to prepare new soldiers for the battlefield. Given the dates we do know, it is likely that Pte Sanders did not immediately join his battalion. Even Sgt Shephard, whom we have already met, with all his knowledge and experience in recruit training did not join the battalion until 9th February 1915 having arrived in France on 27th January 1915.
The 1st Battalion remained in the area of Lindenhoek – Messines – Wulverghem – Neuve Eglise for much of December 1914 before returning to billets at Bailleul at the end of the month. It is possible Pte Sanders became acquainted here with his new mates. The new year brought with it a familiar routine of duties whilst in reserve, punctuated by periods in the trenches and rest in billets. The Lindenhoek – Wulverghem area must have now been familiar territory to the men of Dorset. Casualties were relatively rare and small in number, but still the risk of a ‘Blighty’, or worse, was ever present. In early March, the Brigade, now part of 28 Division, received orders to march north to Vlamertinge – a busy little village on the route up to the trenches that now formed the salient to the east of Ypres (or Ieper in Flemish). From there, the battalion moved east, through the damaged town, to trenches where they were to relieve the Lincolns. Pte Sanders was, undoubtedly, one of those who made this journey, and the situation was about to take a serious turn. Sgt Shephard recorded the march up to relieve the Lincolns in his diary
“We drew rations on the [Ypres] road and gumboots. Had a terrible journey to the firing line. After leaving the road (we were heavily shelled coming along) we went across country 1½ miles, Johnson holes [150mm shell craters] everywhere, mud to the knee, telephone wires to trip over, etc. Had several narrow shaves, a bullet passed about an inch in front of my head, and we had bullets whizzing by the whole way. We went to trenches and relieved 1st Lincolns. We occupied one side of a hill facing west, a most peculiar position, as the enemy were on three sides of us on our front, right and rear.”
The battalion remained in the Ypres sector for the whole of March and most of April 1915. Casualties occurred almost every day, but the routine remained the same with occasional skirmishes, patrols, bombings and even the sight of aeroplanes! But this was about to change again for Pte Sanders and his mates.
At 8.30pm on 29th April 1915, the battalion marched to a new location named Hill 60. It was hardly a hill – in fact it was a spoil heap created several years before the war as a result of the excavation of a cutting for the new Ypres to Comines railway line. The spoil heap was marked on maps coincident with the 60 feet contour – hence its name. At least the move meant the end to digging the new trench, known as the ‘Hooge Switch’. The 1st Dorsets relieved the 1st Devons in the front-line trenches on 30th April 1915. This was a highly contested area. Whomever occupied the heights of Hill 60 enjoyed a commanding view of almost the entire salient. Not only that but any movement of men, artillery or equipment between Ypres and the front line could be observed. Naturally, the Germans wanted the hill. During the day 1st May 1915, Hill 60 was relatively quiet. The Dorsets held the allied line with the Devons in reserve. The Germans appeared content with their position with just the occasional volley of rifle fire and desultory shell. That all changed at precisely 7pm when an enormous artillery barrage erupted. The shells, rather than directed at the Dorset’s trenches fell to the rear and to the flanks. There must have been many a man fearing the worst as this was clearly designed to ‘box in’ the troops and deny the movement of support from the rear areas. At 7.17pm nozzles placed under sandbags on the enemy parapet began spewing a whitish green cloud of asphyxiating gas. The Germans had only recently started using gas and its full effects were still relatively unknown. Previously, gas had been used as a cover for an attack but on this occasion, it was clearly used as an offensive weapon. The Dorsets had little in the way of protection from this fiendish weapon – a cotton gauze pad, wetted and placed over the mouth and nose. This was effective to a degree in these early phases of gas warfare, but it was far from perfect. This gas attack caught many of the Dorset soldiers unprepared. However, as a result of some heroic efforts by those that survived the first waves, and the effective marksmanship, with a change in the wind direction the Germans did not follow up the gas – they thought it had failed to be effective. The action is well documented in the Battalion War Diary, which noted that by 10pm “The situation had now become practically normal and the firing had much abated.” However, the next few lines of the Diary summarise the impact on the Battalion:
“Casualties – One killed, one wounded.
Killed by gas poisoning – Lieut C G Butcher, 52 other ranks.
Admitted to Fd Ambulance Suffering from gas poisoning – Capt A E Hawkins, 2/Lt J H C Roberts (since died), 2/Lt J Hodgson, 2/Lt Sampson 3rd Dorsets, 2/Lt S R Weston-Stevens 3rd Dorsets, and 200 other ranks.
Missing – 32 other ranks”
The following day, at 5am on 2nd May 1915, B and C Companies were relieved by the Devons and withdrawn. At 4.30pm the remainder of the battalion were withdrawn to dugouts near another spoil heap named ‘The Dump’. The day’s casualties were recorded in the War Diary as “2 killed, 7 wounded”. We now know that Pte Alexander Sanders, the 21 year-old from Shipton Gorge, died in this short battle for Hill 60. His Medal Index Card records the date of 2 May 1915 and “Died of gas poisoning”. It is quite possible that Pte Sanders was one of the 200 that were admitted to the Field Ambulance on 1st May and that he survived the night, eventually succumbing to the effects of chlorine gas the next day, 2nd May 1915. However, he has no known grave which means it is also possible he could have been one of the 32 ‘missing’. It is quite rare that a soldier has no known grave after having been transferred to medical care unless he was buried immediately and the grave subsequently lost as a result of other battles. Pte Sanders is remembered on a plaque in St Martin’s Church Shipton Gorge with three other members of the village who didn’t return from the Great War. His name also appears on the Menin Gate to the Missing at Ypres – it is quite possible that Pte Sanders marched along the road where this memorial now stands.
The Keep Military Museum is proud to hold Pte Sanders’ medals in perpetuity and in honour of this man of Dorset.
The final words are those from Sgt Shephard’s diary of 1st May 1915:
“At 6pm started the most barbarous act known in modern warfare. We had just been given orders guarding against the gases the Germans use. These orders had just reached one platoon (No. 7) when the enemy actually started pumping out gas onto us. This gas we were under the impression was to stupefy only. We soon found out at a terrible price that these gases were deadly poison. First we saw a thick smoke curling over in waves from enemy trenches on the left. The cry was sent up that this was gas fumes. The scene that followed was heartbreaking. Men were caught by fumes and in dreadful agony, coughing and vomiting, rolling on the ground in agony. Very shortly after gas was pumped over to us, the enemy were seen running from their own trenches as a part of the fumes blew back to them. Had order reigned and this fact been generally known we should doubtless have charged and chanced consequences of new gas. As soon as cleared then enemy attacked, but were held off by those of us left, until the Devons came up from the support dugouts (Dump) and reinforced us. Men caught by fumes badly were at this stage dying, and we fully realised our desperate position ….. What a start for May. Hell could find no worse the groans of scores of dying and badly hurt men, the chaos which, however, soon gave way to discipline, the fierce fighting and anxiety.”
Ian Upshall
Bibliography
Various (2007). HISTORY OF THE DORSETSHIRE REGIMENT 1914 – 1919 Volume 1. Available HERE
Shephard, Ernest. 1988. A Sergeant-Major’s War. Available HERE