Thomas Weston. Died 19 July 1917.
Thomas Weston was born in Mortimer, Berkshire in 1882 and was part of a large family that grew to eight over twenty five years. His Mother and Father, Mary and Andrew lived in various places, including Stratfield Saye, Bramley, Mortimer, Hurst and finally, 7 Havelock Road in Wokingham. Stand on Wokingham railway station and look across the Oxford Road and you will see Havelock Road in front of you. We believe Thomas as a 34 year old, joined the 5th Battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment sometime after late 1915, it was a newly formed unit to accomodate the new recruits who joined as a result of Lord Kitchener’s national call to arms.
As part of the 5th he would have seen service in the Battle of Loos, stepped on the bodies of the 2nd regulars at the Somme and finally in 1917, broke out of Arras and onto more fighting in Battery Valley. From this point, our knowledge of Thomas’ fate begins to fade. Although we know he was killed on the 19th July 1917, the 5th Battalion were not at that time involved in any major battles although skirmishes were constantly taking place over this part of the front. Thomas’ short time in service would have seen some of the worst experiences of the war and in his quiet way represents the true character of Wokingham’s fallen heroes.
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