Private James Elliot

Private James Elliot, 1st Battalion, Scots Guards. He was killed in action in Belgium, aged 31, on 11th November 1914 and is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium.  He had been born in 1883 in Innerleithen and was the son of George and the late Euphemia Elliot of Barnhill, Denholm. He had been a ploughman before enlisting in 1904 in the Scots Guards where he served for three years  before leaving and joining the Derbyshire Police. As a Reservist he was recalled to his Battalion and landed in France in August 1914. On that date the Battalion were holding trenches near Gheluvelt Wood and bore the brunt of overwhelming German attacks as they tried to break through the British lines. The defences held but the Battalion was practically destroyed. At that time the Battalion was part of 1st ( Guards ) Brigade which also included 1st Coldstream Guards, 1st Black Watch, 1st Cameron Highlanders and the London Scottish. After the Battle the whole Brigade mustered only 2 Officers and 300 unwounded Other Ranks. The photographs show British troops in defensive positions during the Battle.