Edgar George Archer (1899-1917)
Labourer, The Regent's Park
Edgar was born in 1889 at Corsham, Wiltshire to George, a farm labourer, and his wife Mary Archer. By 1901 George, now a stockman on a farm, had moved to Sedgemore, Finchley in Middlesex with his wife and two children, Edgar and Bessie. In 1911 Edgar had taken up employment as a domestic gardener and was boarding at 46 Sulina Road, Brixton. In March 1915, he married Gertrude M Dollamore in West Ham and in September 1916 they had a son called Stanley W G Archer.
Edgar worked for the Office of Works in The Regent’s Park as a labourer before being called up into the 2/2nd (City of London) Battalion the London Regiment. At 2.50 am on 15 June 1917 Edgar’s battalion attacked the Hindenburg Line near Bullecourt as part of the Arras Offensive. Its initial objectives were soon achieved and they pushed forward further than anticipated into the enemy’s support line where they “suffered very heavy casualties from our own standing barrage”. During the day, several enemy counter attacks were repulsed and the line was held. The next day orders were given to form a defensive flank and at 3.45 am men of the battalion advanced under machine gun and artillery fire and established themselves in the enemy’s support line. However, men of the battalion had overrun their objective set in the battle plan and found themselves being heavily counter-attacked and at 7.30 am the situation became critical, after a day of fighting and reinforcing the line held. The enemy then ceased attacking and “contented himself with Rifle and Machine Gun fire” until at dusk “a most intense bombardment of the HUMP [their military objective set out in the battle plan] took place and the enemy made an attempt to advance”.
Following this action Private 233793 Edgar George Archer was reported missing, presumed dead, on 16 June 1917. His body was never found and his name appears on the Arras Memorial (Bay 9).
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