Thomas H. Bashton KX/145

Thomas Henry Bashton was twenty-three and a coalminer from Felling, Co. Durham, when he enlisted at the outbreak of war in 1914. He was the seventh child of Thomas Henry Bashton (b.1849) and Jane Meggison, who had nine children in total, two of whom died in infancy. The Bashton family had a long history of mining, originally being Cornish tin miners, before moving north during the North East miner's strikes in the 1840s. Originally enlisting with the Durham Light Infantry, Thomas was transferred to the newly formed Royal Naval Division on 7th September. He entered Howe Battalion as an Ordinary Seaman with the service number KX/145. He would see his first action less than one month later at the defence of Antwerp, after which the Division returned to England to continue training.
Benjamin Bashton Illustrated Chronicle 18th June 1915	On 28th February 1915 Thomas was appointed Able Seaman, and Howe embarked for its eventual destination of the Dardanelles, first being stationed at the Kantara Suez Canal defences. Whilst Thomas was practising landings on Scyros for the forthcoming campaign, his elder brother, Benjamin, was killed whilst serving with the Northumberland Fusiliers at Ypres.
	After the Gallipoli landings Thomas would see action in both the Second and Third Battles for Krithia. Despite the Division suffering terrible losses in these three actions, Thomas came through unscathed. In late July, however, he was diagnosed with influenza and evacuated from the peninsula, rejoining Howe Battalion two days before Christmas. On 2nd January 1916 Thomas sprained his ankle and was again evacuated from the peninsula, rejoining his unit at Lemnos.
	With no immediate role for the Royal Naval Division, the Second Brigade was deployed to the Salonica defences between February and April, before the whole Division was moved to France and the Western Front in May. Following an initial period of training, the RND entered the trenches at Bully-Grenay. On 11th August Thomas received his first wound, a shrapnel injury to his chest inflicted by the recently introduced Wurfgranate-16 (“Taube”). After recovering in hospital, Thomas was sent to a convalescent billet for duty before rejoining Howe Battalion in February 1917.
Howe Battalion Diary, 11th August 1916 Courtesy of the National Archives, ref ADM 137/3065
After carrying Beaucourt the previous November during the Battle of the Ancre, the RND returned to the Somme in the new year and captured the village of Miraumont, the operations forcing the enemy’s withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line. The action saw Howe Battalion suffer heavily, but Thomas again came through unscathed. In mid-March, however, he was diagnosed with trench fever. Thomas would prove to be one of the ‘bad cases’ and was evacuated back to England, this being the first time he had been home since embarking for Gallipoli. Before rejoining Howe Battalion in August, Thomas married Dora Valentine Mitchell.
11th Casualty Clearing Station Sick Convoy, 19th March 1917
After rejoining his unit, Thomas was attached to the 176th Tunnelling Company, which was engaged in constructing deep dugouts in the Gavrelle–Oppy sector. He received his first good conduct badge and a one penny pay rise. A request was put in by the Canadians for the Royal Naval Division to be at their side for the forthcoming action in the Ypres sector. On 26th October Howe Battalion was in the ‘second wave’ on the opening day of the Second Battle of Passchendaele. With the Division wading through mud up to their thighs, Thomas received two bayonet wounds: one to his wrist and a severe wound to his thigh. He was again evacuated back to England and would not return to the Western Front until the following May. When Thomas rejoined the Division in 1918, Howe Battalion had been disbanded and he was transferred to the Divisional Employment Company. It is impossible to know what roles Thomas undertook during this period, but with the Division at the forefront of the advance during those final days, he would not have had an easy life. Thomas and the Division saw their final action on 11th November 1918 as Givry was carried. The timeline of Thomas' service with the Royal Naval Division: 1914 September      7 Entered RND as Ordinary Seaman, Howe Battalion, KX/145 October      4 The Siege of Antwerp 1915 February    28 Appointed Able Seaman April    25 The Gallipoli Landings May      6 The Second Battle of Krithia June      4 The Third Battle of Krithia July    13 The Action of Achi Baba Nullah    28 Diagnosed with Influenza December    23 Rejoined unit 1916 January      2 Sprained ankle    26 Rejoined unit Feb-Apr 2nd Brigade at Salonica Defences June    26 Diagnosed with I.C.T. leg injury July      5 Rejoined unit    17 Entered trenches at Bully Grenay August    11 Received shrapnel wound to left side of chest    25 To convalescent billet for duty 1917 February    12 Rejoined unit    17 The Actions of Miraumont March    16 Diagnosed with trench fever April    16 Transferred to A Reserve Btn. June      2 Transferred to 2nd Reserve Btn. July    16 Drafted back into Howe Btn. August    11 Rejoined unit September      5 Attached to 176 Tunnelling Company      6 Awarded 1st Good Conduct badge    23 Rejoined unit October    26 The Second Battle of Passchendaele Received a severe bayonet wound to the left thigh and a bayonet wound to the left wrist 1918 April    22 Transferred to 2nd Reserve Btn, Regimental Depot, Aldershot (Police) May      2 Drafted to the Divisional Employment Company. Embarks England      3 Disembarked France    16 Transferred to the Divisional Employment Company June    21 Entered trenches at Auchonvillers August    21 The Battle of Albert September      2 The Battle of Drocourt-Queant    27 The Battle of the Canal du Nord October      8 The Battle of Cambrai November      5 The Passage of the Grand Honelle December    30 To Calais Dispersal Centre for demobilisation 1919 January    11 Demobilised    29 Paid £26/-/- May      5 Awarded 1914 Star July    11 Awarded British War and Victory Medals August    28 Wills despatched Being considered a key worker, Thomas was demobilised in early January 1919. He returned to his wife and his work down the pits, where he would be buried up to his neck twice by falls. Thomas and Dora would have four children, the eldest, Thomas Henry (b.1919), later dying from wounds received on active service during the Second World War. Thomas died in 1970 and was interred in the burial ground of St Mary the Virgin at Horton Kirby, Kent. For many years the youngest son, Ronald, had wondered about his father's service during the war. As a surprise present, research was underaken and a book produced detailing this service. As Thomas' service history covered virtually the entire timeframe of the RND, RoyalNavalDivision.info was 'born' shortly after.