This British War Medal arrived in the post one day with no information about who sent it. The medal was awarded to 2176 PTE George Henry Phillips of the Hampshire Regiment who was a little difficult to pin down as he had three numbers during his WWI service; 2176, 7/2176 and 305852.
Once I had this last number, 305852, all became a bit clearer. George was killed in action on 21 January 1916 in Mesopotamian, now Iraq, He is memorialised at the Basra Memorial.
What I haven't been able to find out is the exact circumstances of George's death while serving with the Hampshire Regiment. However, this link is to a history of the regiment's campaign in Mesopotamia. Specifically, this is what is recorded as having occurred on the date George was killed:
On 21 January the Relief Force attacked at El-Hanna in atrocious conditions. Thick mud made the movement of troops and equipment difficult and the Turks had had time to improve their defences which were a mile in depth. Among the attacking British force were 345 men of the 1/4th Hampshires who were particularly eager for success given that many of their comrades were trapped inside Kut.
The attack was a disaster. After shelling the Turkish positions, the British and Indian troops advanced in heavy rain over flat ground which afforded neither cover nor surprise. The 9th Brigade, which four 1/4th Hampshires had managed to infiltrate, attempted reinforce a group of around 60 men who had got within 50 yards of the Turkish trenches. However, they were quickly driven back.
On a day of heavy casualties, the Hampshires suffered particularly badly. They went into battle with 16 officers and 339 other ranks and came out with three and 64 respectively.
George was 24 years old when he died. He had two brothers and three sisters. I looked at all these siblings and all but one remained in England where they died. One brother, William, emigrated to New Zealand where he died in 1965. I've been unable to find any link as to how this medal ended up in Australia.
I've been in touch with a descendant of George's sister Alice who I will send the medal to in the near future.
The returned medal tally is now 3043.
