Private Alexander Bell

Private Alexander Bell, 12th ( Service ) Battalion, Royal Scots. He was killed in action, aged 33, in France on the 21st October 1916 during the Battle of the Somme. He had been born in Ledgerwood, Berwickshire and was the son of David and Margaret Bell of Cathpair farm, Stow. He is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial, Somme, France. He had originally enlisted in the 7th/8th Battalion, K.O.S.B, but had been transferred to the Royal Scots. At that time the Battalion occupied front line trenches near the infamous Butte de Warlencourt in appalling conditions and suffered 96 casualties during this time until relieved on the 24th October. The photos give some idea of the conditions in late Autumn on the Somme where the rains had turned the shell cratered ground into a glutinous quagmire. The colour photo shows a peaceful Somme landscape today.