Two pictures of Alfred Cleall and an aerial photograph of the area where he died in combat(Zwarte Leen).
Alfred Ernest Cleall (Alf to those who knew him) was my great-great uncle. He served in the First World War as a sergeant with the North Somerset Yeomanry. He arrived in France on 3 November 1914 and marched on to Ypres in Flanders. He reached there on 13 November towards the end of the First Battle of Ypres. On his fifth day, 17 November, he was killed as a result of fighting around Zwarteleen, south of Zillebeke. He was initially reported as wounded or missing, and his death was not confirmed for more than a year. Alfred was mentioned in the list of names following Field Marshall French's dispatch of 20 November 1914 for 'gallant and distinguished service in the field'. His grave was subsequently lost or destroyed in four more years of fighting at Ypres and he is one of the 55000 missing men commemorated on the Menin Gate there. Alfred was born on 27 December 1873 in Leominster, Herefordshire. He was eventually to have four brothers and five sisters. His father, Hugh, a solicitor’s clerk, had been declared bankrupt in October 1869 and died on 9 January 1876 at the early age of 36. The family then moved to Bath; in fact, they moved back to Bath, as Alf’s parents had originally come from there, moving to Leominster after their marriage in Bath in 1861. By 1891, Alfred was training as a lithographer’s apprentice; his brother Wilfred was a baker’s assistant. Both of these young men joined the army soon after and, from 1893/94 to 1902, they served in the Dorsetshire Regiment in the UK, in India and in South Africa. Back in Bath after the Boer War, Alfred and Wilfred became landlords of two pubs in the city and also managed a billiard saloon there. In 1906, Alfred joined the North Somerset Yeomanry, part of the Territorial Force (later Territorial Army). Alf was also a keen sportsman. He played rugby for Bath Rugby Football Club’s ‘A’ team and sometimes for the First XV; he captained the ‘A’ team in the 1908-09 season, when the team played 24 matches, winning 12 of them, losing seven and drawing five, scoring 193 points and 90 against. Alfred ultimately became Vice-Chairman of the club. He also played for Bath Thursday Association Football Club (a club that played in the city’s Thursday league), and for the Bath Second XI cricket team. Alfred married Winifred Marshman in December 1911, and the couple had a daughter, Evelyn, in December 1912. The Bath Chronicle had followed Alfred’s disappearance with interest, and the mystery was finally resolved when, on 11 December 1915, just over a year since he went missing, it published the following fine tribute to him, concluding with his obituary. Sergeant Alf Cleall’s Fate Officially Returned as Killed After a Year’s Suspense His ‘Gallant and Distinguished Service’ By the many friends of sergeant Alfred Ernest Cleall, of the North Somerset Yeomanry, it had been sadly realized for a long while past that he had made the supreme sacrifice on the battlefield in Flanders. But it has just become permissible to write of a popular Bath sportsman as being no more. His widow, Mrs Cleall, of 16, Kipling Avenue, had received a notification from the War Office confirming the only practical view to be taken, that her gallant husband was killed near Ypres when his regiment, or a portion of it, held the British trenches so tenaciously against assault of a vast force of Germans. How valiantly the North Somersets behaved on that memorable 17th November, 1914, has been made pretty apparent in letters from those who witnessed their conduct – some day the full tale may be told. How sergeant Cleall fell was graphically related in a letter from his comrade, sergeant Charles Gibbs, published in these columns a few weeks after the action. They were firing as rapidly as possible at the oncoming Germans while two comrades handed up the rifle ammunition, when sergeant Cleall was pierced through the throat by a German bullet. sergeant Gibbs tended him as best he could to staunch the bleeding, and was then wounded himself. At first sergeant Cleall was reported to be wounded, but that was obviously an error. Every inquiry was made by his wife, but without any definite information being secured. There has been sent to Miss Gibbs, a lady taking the deepest interest in the NSY, with which her fathers sic and brothers have been, and are, so closely associated, a letter from the War Office, which says: With reference to your inquiry concerning No 942 sergeant A. E. Cleall, NSY, I am directed to inform you that no further news having been received relative to this soldier, who has been missing since November 17th, 1914, the Army Council have been regretfully constrained to conclude that he is dead, and that his death took place on the 17th November, or since the 17th November, 1914. I am to express the sympathy of the Army Council with the relatives of the deceased. This was forwarded to Mrs Cleall, who almost simultaneously received a letter from the Record Office, Exeter, notifying her of the same conclusion on the part of the military authorities, and giving information on other technical matters. Alfred Cleall, as he was always called by his numerous friends, was forty years of age when he fell. Having associations with Bath through his mother, he and his brother, Mr Wilfred Cleall, settled in the city, after serving together for some years in the Dorset Regiment, much of their soldiering being done in India. They became landlords of the Rising Sun, Grove Street, and subsequently succeeded Mr E Ogburn at the Full Moon, Upper Borough Walls. The brothers afterwards took over the reconstructed billiards saloon in Union Passage, formerly known as ‘Beaupin’s’. As a sportsman Alfred Cleall was closely identified with the most popular games in Bath. He was proficient at Association football, but was principally identified with the Rugby code. Possessed of extraordinary speed, he made a good half-back and three-quarter. Many a try he has scored on the Recreation Ground for the Bath ‘A’ team, of which he was the genial captain for some seasons. He was always ready to assist the 1st XV, when they were short, and had done valuable service for the premier team. He had a big hand in winning a memorable match for Bath. It was in the semi-final of the Somerset Rugby Cup, the first season that trophy was put up, and Bath had to meet Bridgewater on the latter’s ground. Bath were in arrears a few minutes from the finish – when the Bath forwards heeled out and Cleall at half made a brilliant opening, which enabled the left wing three-quarter to score. The try was goaled, and Bath won. For many years on the Committee of the Bath Club, Mr Cleall was Vice-Chairman when he was killed. For the Bath Thursday AFC he was a valuable performer. In the cricket field deceased was a capital bowler, and he has headed the bowling averages for Bath 2nd and for the Bath Butchers. Of the latter team he was one of the mainstays. As a batsman he was a terrific hitter, and it was generally 6 or out with Alf. Of a genial nature, he was very popular. To look at him – for he was not tall, had a spare frame and pale complexion – few would judge him to be a keen and capable athlete and a brave soldier. He joined the North Somersets about eight years ago. His former military knowledge, though as a foot soldier, stood him in good stead, and he rose to be sergeant. That was his rank when the regiment was called up for war service. Sergeant Cleall was one of the ardent spirits of the regiment. His desire was to ‘get at’ the Germans. The last words he spoke to the writer embodied a hope that he would be soon fighting them. His wish was gratified sooner than most expected. Alfred Cleall was a fine marksman, his successes at Box range had proved that, and comrades who survive testify to the execution he did with his rifle on that final day. He ‘did his bit’ in real earnest. Many a Hun was laid low by the brave Bath Yeoman’s unerring aim, and he, we know full well, would not grumble at his luck if he, in turn, perished for King and country.