Private William Gilchrist

Private William Gilchrist, 1st Battalion,. Scots Guards. He was posted wounded and missing on 27th September 1915, during the Battle of Loos aged 24. He was the son of George and Jessie Gilchrist late of Bogangreen, Coldingham and is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, Dud Corner, Loos, France. Before enlisting in November 1914  he had been a farmer and arrived in France in April 1915. He was six foot five inches tall. This attack was the first appearance in the field of the Guards Division as an independent military unit. The Division consisted of  1st ,2nd,3rd Battalions Grenadier Guards, 1st, 2nd, 3rd Battalions Coldstream Guards, 1st, 2nd Battalions Scots Guards, 1st, 2nd Battalions Irish Guards and 1st Battalion Welsh Guards. ( The Welsh Guards had just come into existence on 26th February 1915 to give Wales a component in the Foot Guards ).   He fell in the attack on the “Chalk Pit”. As ever casualties were heavy.  2  Officers were killed and a further 12 Officers were wounded. 27 Other Ranks were killed and 324 wounded with a further 98 missing. The photos show the Scots Guards during the Battle and the artist’s nightmarish illustration depicts an attack at Loos with the troops wearing their gas hoods and using primitive grenades.