Lieutenant

THOMAS BUCKLEY, M.C.

Royal Engineers

Lieutenant Colonel Edward De Santis

Thomas Buckley graduated from East London College prior to the outbreak of the Great War of 1914 to 1918, after earning a Bachelor of Science Degree. He participated in the Senior Division of the University of London Officers’ Training Corps (O.T.C.) and was commissioned a 2^nd Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers (Territorial Force) upon graduation. He was called to active service on the 1^st of August 1915 and was assigned to the 1/1^st West Riding Field Company, 29^th (West Riding) Divisional Engineers.[1] On the 8^th of December 1915 he arrived at the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force Base at Sidi Bishr in Alexandria, Egypt.[2] By the time that he arrived in Egypt, his unit already had been withdrawn from Gallipoli, so he did not see any action in that campaign.

2^nd Lieutenant Buckley moved with his company to the Western Front in March of 1916. By this time the 1/1^st West Riding Field Company had been re-designated as the 455^th (West Riding) Field Company, Royal Engineers. On the 1^st of June of 1916 he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant.[3]

Lieutenant Buckley saw a lot of action during his time with the 455^th Field Company. The following table summarizes the major battles and campaigns in which he and the unit took part with the 29^th Division:[4]

Locations	Dates
The Somme	1-13 Jul 1916
Scarpe	9-14 Apr 1917
Scarpe	23-24 Apr 1917
Pilckem	31 Jul to 2 Aug 1917
Langemarck	16-18 Aug 1917
Menin Road	20-25 Sep 1917
Polygon Wood	23 Sep – 3 Oct 1917
Broodseinde	4 Oct 1917
Poelcappelle	9 Oct 1917
Cambrai	20 Nov – 3 Dec 1917
Estaires	9-11 Apr 1918
Messines	10-11 Apr 1918
Hazebrouck	12-15 Apr 1918
Bailleul	13-15 Apr 1918
Kemmel	17-19 Apr 1918

Buckley served with gallantry and great devotion to duty while in France and Flanders. On the 7^th of April 1918 he was mentioned in the Despatches of Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig for his “gallant and distinguished service in the field.”[5] Lieutenant Buckley was next rewarded for his service by receiving the Military Cross on the 11^th of April 1918. On this same date he was also awarded two certificates from the commander of the 29^th Division commending him on his gallant conduct and devotion to duty in the field at Neuf Berquin and Cambrai.[6] Second Army Orders dated the 16^th of May 1918 authorized the immediate award of the Military Cross to Lieutenant Buckley. The order reads as follows:[7]

Under authority delegated by His Majesty the King, the Field Marshal Commanding-in-Chief has made the following awards for gallantry and devotion to duty in action:-

The Military Cross

Lieutenant T. Buckley, Royal Engineers (T.F.)

The publication of this order was followed on the 20^th of May 1918 by the award of a certificate signed by General Sir Herbert Plumer, Commanding the British Second Army.[8] The certificate reads as follows:

Headquarters, Second Army

To Lieut. T. Buckley, Royal Engineers

I congratulate you on the gallant act by which you have won the

MILITARY CROSS

On the 21^st of May 1918, Lieutenant Buckley’s mention in despatches was published in the Supplement to the London Gazette (No. 30693).

Lieutenant Buckley returned to England in July of 1918. The reason for his return to the United Kingdom prior to the end of the war is not known. He may have been wounded or simply transferred to a unit a home, although details of his service up to the time of his demobilization are not known.[9]

Buckley’s award of the Military Cross was published in the London Gazette dated 16 September 1918. The London Gazette citation reads as follows:

“For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. This officer, returning from work, found the enemy advancing along a road between two important villages. Realizing the seriousness of the situation he, with another officer, dug two strong points with his sappers and checked the advance. Outflanked on both sides, and suffering many casualties from shell and machine-gun fire, they held on until the infantry had had time to consolidate behind them, when they were withdrawn.” Based on the table above, this action must have taken place in the vicinity of Estaires or Messines or perhaps as early as the action at Cambrai.

For his services during the Great War he also was awarded the 1915-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.[10] His Medal Index Card indicates that Buckley applied for his 1914-15 Star on the 19^th of August 1920. His name had appeared on a list of officers, dated the 4^th of February 1919, forwarded to the War Office by the Colonel Commandant of the Royal Engineers, showing his eligibility for the medal. At the time of his application for the medal his address was listed as Morfa Camp, Conway (Conwy). However, prior to the medal being sent to him his address had changed by 27 September 1920 to c/o Messrs. Cox & Co, Bankers, Calcutta, India. This latter address appears to be a postal address rather than a residence. Presumably, Buckley had emigrated to India either to live or to work following his demobilization from the army.

REFERENCES:

1. University of London Officers Training Corps Roll of War Service, 1914-1919. Military Education Committee, University of London, 1921.

2. Battle Honours of the Royal Engineers. The Royal Engineers Journal. The Institution of Royal Engineers, Chatham, Kent, 1925-1932.

3. The Monthly Army List, June 1919.

4. Documents:

a. Army Orders, Second Army, 16 May 1918.

b. Mention in Despatches Certificate, War Office, Whitehall, S.W., 1 March 1919.

c. Headquarters, Second Army Certificate, 20 May 1918.

d. 29^th Division Certificate, 11 April 1918 (Neuf Berguin).

e. 29^th Division Certificate, undated (Cambrai).

f. Medal Index Card.

g. London Gazette, 4 August 1915, p. 7658.

h. London Gazette, 21 May 1918, p. 5986.

i. London Gazette, 16 September 1918, p. 10928.

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