Frank Rupert Joyce was born in about January 1897 in St Ives, Huntingdon.\u00a0 Frank was the middle child of five children born to Frank Joyce and Mary Annie Pilgrim.<\/p>\n
At the time of the 1901 Census, records show Frank, his parents and siblings had moved to 169 Maidstone Road, Rochester.\u00a0 His father was working as a Railway Agent for the GNR.\u00a0 Father Frank continued to work for the railway at the time of the 1911 Census and the family remained at this address during this time.<\/p>\n
Frank enlisted in Chatham.\u00a0 He entered the Theatre of War in France on 15 November 1915 serving as a Private in the 24th Battalion, London Regiment of the Royal Fusiliers. Regiment no SP\/2615.<\/p>\n
The 24th Battalion was formed in London on 20 November 1914.\u00a0 The battalion moved to Hornchurch in March 1915.\u00a0 By June 1915 the Brigade was under the command of the 99th<\/sup> Brigade, 33rd<\/sup> division.\u00a0 In November 1915 the Brigade landed in Boulogne.\u00a0 Frank Rupert would have with his Brigade when they landed.\u00a0 On 13 December 1915, the brigade transferred to the 5th<\/sup> Brigade in 2nd<\/sup> Division.<\/p>\n On 1 July 1916, supported by a French attack to the south, 13 divisions of Commonwealth forces launched an offensive on a line from north of Gommecourt to Maricourt.\u00a0 Although the bombardment last 7 days, the German defences were barely touched and the attack met fierce resistance.\u00a0 Losses were catastrophic.\u00a0 In the following weeks, huge resources of manpower and equipment were deployed in an attempt the exploit the modest successes of the first day.\u00a0 The German Army resisted and repeated attacked and counter attacks.\u00a0 The village of Thiepval was finally captured at the end of September.<\/p>\n On 31 July 1916, Frank was killed in action.\u00a0 Like many of his fellow soldiers he is remembered in The Thiepval Memorial Cemetery.\u00a0 This cemetery is a Memorial to the Missing of the Somme and bears the names of more than 72,000 officers and men of the United Kingdom and South African forces who died before 20 March 1918 and have no known grave.\u00a0 The memorial also serves as an Anglo-French Battle Memorial in recognition of the joint nature of the 1916 offensive and a small cemetery containing equal numbers of Commonwealth and French graves lies at the foot of the memorial.<\/p>\n Frank was awarded three of the British campaign medals, the 1915 Star, British War Medal and the Victory Medal.\u00a0 Affectionately known as Pip, Squeak and Wilfred.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n References and links:<\/strong><\/p>\n Census 1901<\/p>\n Census 1911<\/p>\n British Army WWI Medal Roll Index Card 1914-1920<\/p>\n Find a Grave Index for Burials at Sea and other Select Burial Locations, 1300s-Current<\/p>\n Army Registers of Soldiers’ Effects, 1901-1929<\/p>\n Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919<\/p>\n Long long trail<\/p>\n WW1 Cemeteries<\/p>\n Findmypast<\/p>\n Ancestry<\/p>\n Photograph from ancestry.com<\/p>\n Research:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/strong>Karen Mapley, 2016<\/p>\n