Charles Smith

In memoriam

Casualty of the Great War,Charles Smith was born in Ashdon in 1894, the son of Catherine and Joseph Smith of Mill Cottages, Steventon End. His mother was widowed when he was young. He enlisted in the Essex Regiment, Service No. 21901, and subsequently transferred to the 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment, Service No. 5679. He was sent to Salonika, arriving early in 1916. The Salonika Expedition was undertaken for both military and political reasons, and it became a ‘lost cause' rather in the same way as the Gallipoli Campaign had done previously. It did not prevent Serbia being attacked by the Central Powers and occupation in 1915. The allies found themselves locked into a self made ‘concentration camp' for 12 months and were unable to break out decisively to the north until September 1918. The force was effectively ‘guarded' by Bulgarian land forces. The 1st Leinsters formed part of the 10th Irish Division, which attacked the formidable Bulgarian positions of ‘P' Ridge and Petit Couronne near Doiran in night attacks on the 24th/25th April and 8th/9th May 1917. The Battalion incurred heavy losses fighting in the dark across rugged ground. It was on Monday 28th May 1917 that Charles Smith was wounded. He was removed to the 40th Casualty Clearing Station at Struma where he later died of his wounds. He was 23 years of age. Struma Military Cemetery contains 937 graves, mostly of men who died fighting around the Serrai Railway Station in the spring of 1917 and 1918.Struma Military Cemetery is 65 kilometres north-east of Thessaloniki, before the village of Kalokastro and on the way to Serres town. Access is by a sign-posted track. He is commemorated on the war memorial in the church at Ashdon and on the village war memorial.(bio by David Green of Ashdon)

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