We will remember them

The death toll in the First World War was so great that every family lost someone whether son, brother, father, uncle or cousin. I was lucky that my maternal grandfather just missed being sent to the front as he was just 18 in 1918. My paternal great grandfather survived the war after being promoted from the ranks.

However my grandfather's cousin Howard Greaves was one of the unfortunate ones. Five months after being shipped over to the front he was killed in action. This is the certificate from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission showing the information from his grave:

One of the most poignant bits of his military record was this list of his personal effects sent back to his grieving parents:

 

It really makes the loss seem personal even today 95 years on.