Henry Pursey Died 27th October 1914
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Henry’s father, Charles Pursey was born in early 1852 in Barkham, Berkshire. From his census records Charles was a farm labourer for most of his life. He married local girl Mary Cannon and with her had four sons and five daughters. Tragedy was to touch the Pursey family when in 1891, two sons Charles (1883) and John (1889) were to both die in the same year.
Charles was not to see his other two sons be killed in the war as he died in 1909 in Berkshire, aged about 57. His wife Mary was born in Finchampstead in 1859 and was to watch her five girls Louisa, Elizabeth, Laura, Alice and Edith grow up to have families.
Their 4th child and first son Henry was born in July 1887 in Barkham, Berks. Mary remarried in December 1909 to Thomas Alexander and she was to watch four of her step sons also go to war. Mary and Thomas were to see only two of the six sons return home. Mary died in December 1928 in Wokingham, Berkshire, England aged about 69.
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Although in 1901 Henry had joined his father in farming, by the age of 24 he was a regular soldier with the Second Battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment. By the start of the war he had been transferred over the First Battalion and saw immediate action in France.
He was involved in the Retreat at Mons, when the BEF were heavily outnumbered but were able to slow the German advance down significantly.
By October 1914, the Germans were on the attack at the First Battle of Ypres and it was here on the 27th October when Henry died.
We are not sure if he was involved in earlier action, but it is believed on this day he died from his wounds. Other names from the Wokingham Memorial such as Sadler, Warwick and Brant were also killed during these days. Henry Brant, Henry Sadler and Alfred Warwick (of the Wokingham Memorial) were also killed during this action.
Name: PURSEY, HENRY
Rank: Private
Regiment/Service: Royal Berkshire Regiment Unit Text:1st Bn.
Age: 34
Date of Death: 27/10/1914
Service No: 7827
Additional information: Son of Mary Alexander (formerly Pursey), of Brookside Cottage, Barkham Rd., Wokingham, Berks, and the late Charles Pursey.
Grave/Memorial Reference: A2. 6. Cemetery: YPRES TOWN CEMETERY
Brookside Cottage, Barkham Rd., Wokingham, Berks.