Sergeant Leonard John Neal

D.O.B: 9th April 1892Lived: Hendon, London

Service: Royal Fusiliers, 3rd City of London

Early Life & Enlistment• Leonard John Neal was born to

Robert and Sarah Neal, with four brothers and two sisters, being the second oldest of his siblings .

• Before the war, Neal worked as a fitters mate at the Gas Light and Coke company in the Kilburn branch.

• He enlisted in 1911 when he was nineteen into the reservists, the 3rd City of London Regiment.

(above) Gas Light and Coke Company factory, Beckton, in the 1920s, and (below) a memorial

medal commemorating centenary of the company (found in Neal’s archives).

3rd City of London Regiment • In 1915, the regiment landed at Marseilles on January

6th, being initially destined for a station in Malta.• On the 11th March, the leader of the battalion,

Lieutenant C.W. Crichton, led a charge on a German position in the face of heavy machine-gun fire and were successful, even at the cost of Lieutenant Crichton sustaining two fatal bullet wounds.

• One Indian army officer from the Gharwal Brigade remarked;

“It was the finest charge I have ever seen.” • They were then ordered to the front line for the

beginning of the Somme offensive, where they led a feint attack across no mans land. This concluded with the loss of 2 officers and 23 other rank soldiers.

• During the rest of 1915 and throughout 1916 they were stationed in France continuing to work with the Indian colonial troops, participating in few major battles and being involved in some skirmishes, resulting in limited casualties.

(left) London Regiment cap badge, and (below) photograph of Neal’s regiment.

The Battle of Langemark• The Battle of Langemark began on

the 12th August 1917 and lasted to the 26th as part of the Third Battle of Ypres.

• The Third Battle of Ypres was an English-led attack headed by Captain Douglas Haig. The offensive aimed to destroy German submarine bases on the north coast of Belgium.

• The attack from the battalions’ point of view was seen as a disaster due to the high number of casualties.

• One officer and 26 other ranks were killed. 3 officers and 53 other ranks were missing. The missing included Leonard.

Map found in Neal’s archive showing location of Langemark

Capture• During the Battle of Langemark, on the 14th August,

Leonard took a gunshot to the left forearm. • He was then captured by the Germans and taken as a

prisoner of war to Bayreuth Prisoner of War Camp, Bavaria.

Neal’s payment book, detailing his gunshot wound(on the left page).

“Gunshot wound. Left forearm (slight)”

Life in a Prisoner of War Camp• From the start of WW1 the German

authorities found themselves with an unexpected influx of prisoners.

• By 1917 conditions of all German camps had greatly improved. The camps were no longer such harsh places.

• One thing that was always in short supply was food due to the devastating British naval blockade of the country. Because of this, they were mainly fed soup and put on starvation rations.

HMS HOOD built during WW1 to be used in the Royal navy’s blockade of Germany, 1914-1919.

Leonard’s Life in the Camps

Neal (right) with friend, Budge , in POW camp Neal (right) with friend,

Budge , in POW camp

Ration cards from Neal’s time in the POW camp

Five Mark note found with Neal’s possessions

Release from Bayreuth• During his time in the camp, Leonard

planned a detailed and daring escape;

“… as a general principle keep to the open country near the frontier.

Because (1) one is more likely to see the sentries + it is therefore easier to avoid them, (2) one makes less noise

in the open than in the woods.”• Yet he never carried the plan

through and Neal was released In 1918. Later that year, he received a letter from the King expressing the crowns’ respect for Neal's service to his country. Extract from Neal’s escape plan (quote

taken from last four lines)

Leonard’s Post-War Life• Leonard returned to England and

began working again for the Gas Light and Coke Company.

• He married Hilda Miriam Vezey in June 1919, whom he had remained in contact with throughout the War.

• He went on to live a long life, dying in Ealing in 1977.

(above) Neal’s invite to a welcome home dinner at his old company, and (below and left) postcard he sent to Hilda during the War

“Dear Hilda, This is us.Leonard xxx”

DrawingsIn Neal’s archive a series of drawings were found. It is unclear when Neal drew these pictures but they provide a humorous insight into Neal’s life during the war