St Mary
Wednesday, 31 August 2016 (15–0–7)
1320 Kent Treble Bob Minor
1 Nigel Gale
2 Andrea Alderton
3 Lesley Steed (C)
4 Maureen Gardiner
5 David Steed
6 Stephen Dawson
Rung half-muffled on the 100th anniversary of the death of Harry Gordon Nicolls. Harry was born in December 1897, the fifth of eight children. He enlisted as a trooper in the West Kent Yeomanry in early 1916 and was drafted along with others to the 13 Bn Middlesex Regt which went into the front line on 30 August, relieving 4 Bn Suffolk Regt. The relief began at 1.00pm with an 8 mile march in heavy rain. The trenches were knee deep in mud and blocked in many places. Relief was completed by 3.00am. At 8.00am that morning heavy bombardment commenced on all trenches up to 2.00pm when the German attack began with the front trenches overrun. During this engagement Harry was killed aged 18 years and 8 months. His body was never found. Harry Nicholls was the uncle of John Biles, a resident of Buxhall, whose mother was Harry's older sister and aged 20 when he died; she had vivid memories of him, until she died in 1976.

This performance is linked to the event Buxhall, Suffolk: In memoriam our fallen (1914-1918)