Harold Whalley M.M.
HAROLD WHALLEY M.M.
40603, Private, Harold Whalley, 21st Battalion Manchester Regiment formerly 3435, Cheshire Regiment.
Born 1895 at Macclesfield, son of shoemaker Harry and Helena (nee, Livesey) Whalley of 10 , Eastgate, Macclesfield. Harold was educated at St Pauls School and attended St Peters Church.
In the 1911 census, Harold was shown to be working in the silk trade as a silk piecer, and when he enlisted he was gainfully employed as a twister for Messrs Mottershead &Co
He enlisted at Macclesfield for the Cheshire Regiment; however he was transferred to the Manchester’s. Harold was initially drafted with the British Expeditionary Force to France; this then led to his unit being transferred to Italy for for nine months. Whilst here, his actions were rewarded with the award of the Military Medal for Bravery in the Field, the citation reads “on June 15th for conspicuous bravery for carrying messages under heavy shell fire”. Shortly after this incident the Manchester Regiment were redirected back to France. Soon after arriving, Harold suffered severe wounds which saw him evacuated back to England, there wounds proved fatal and he died at home, Wednesday 9 October 1918, he was aged 23 years. Harold was given a full military funeral at the Macclesfield Cemetery. A firing party from the local Volunteer Regiment fired a volley at the graveside. The buglers were Private H. Locke and Scout L. Hargreaves who sounded the last post.
Medals: 1914/15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
Private, Harold Whalley is buried at Macclesfield Cemetery, Cheshire
C.W.G.C. Ref: – Z. 18259
Also refer to
- Macclesfield Troops pre WWI
- Photos from Barnswood archive Macclesfield WW1
- ‘Big Hats, Shorts and Dyb Dyb Dyb’ – a history of Macclesfield and Congleton Scouts by Norman Gosling
- WWI List of Addresses Trevor Druce Macclesfield Reflects
