14502 Private Matthew Thomas Hamilton, 4th Bn,The King's Liverpool Regiment
- Amanda T
- May 25, 2020
- 3 min read
Identification
The fact that there were two Hamiltons on the memorial suggested that they were brothers and this helped in the identification.
Family Information
According to his baptismal record Matthew Thomas Hamilton was born on 15th April 1895 to parents William (a blacksmith) and Margaret. They lived at 84 Rathbone Street and Matthew was baptised on 16th June 1895 in St Michael's church, Toxteth.
In the 1901 census Matthew and his family were living at 94 Rathbone Street and his father William was a blacksmith's striker. The household consisted of William and Margaret with their sons William (11) Frederick (9) and John (7) Matthew (5) and daughter Margaret (3).
Matthew’s mother Margaret died in 1903.
At the time of the 1911 census Matthew was single and living with his father and siblings at 10 Sand Street (which ran between St James' Street and Rathbone St). This census shows that there were 6 surviving children from 8 – the children from the 1901 census plus another son named Arthur (born around 1902) Matthew was working as a chemist's porter for J Thompsons Ltd (his brother John also worked for this company as a warehouse porter)
Military Information
Information from the King’s Liverpool Regiment Database at the Museum of Liverpool shows that Matthew Hamilton volunteered in September 1914 and spent his 19th birthday in the trenches. The medal card for Matthew shows that he was a private in the Liverpool Regiment with the regimental number 14502.
He entered the theatre of war: France on 4th March 1915 and earned the Victory medal and the British War medal.
Death and Commemoration
Soldiers Died in the Great War shows that Matthew was in the 4th Battalion KLR and he died of wounds. The register of soldiers’ effects (available on Ancestry.co.uk) shows that he died at the 57th Field Ambulance on 3rd January 1916.
Private M.T. Hamilton was buried in St Vaast Post Military Cemetery at Richebourg-L’Avoue. His family (living at 21 Mordred St, Toxteth) paid for the words ‘God is Love’ to be inscribed on his headstone. The image below is of his grave with a wooden cross, these were the original grave markers, replaced by the CWGC with the white headstones we recognise today.
Thanks to a relative of Mathew Hamilton for sharing these images
WAR DIARY for the 4th Battalion The King’s Liverpool Regiment.
1.1.16
In trenches and billets – fine day occasional showers, very windy. Enemy Machine Guns active during night. Enemy quiet by day. Our Machine Guns were active at night on hostile working parties and suspected M.G. emplacements. Patrols went out by night as usual. One hostile light field gun was located at S.11.c.5/2 much work done on defences and drainage. Some hostile shelling chiefly light field guns on PORT ARTHUR, OXFORD ROAD & LA BASSEE ROAD. 6/Wilts Rgt on our right 9/Cheshire Rgt on our left. One man from hospital.
2.1.16
In trenches and billets. Windy and showery. Hostile artillery more active – OXFORD ROAD twice shelled and our front line heavily shelled by light field guns especially in vicinity of POPES NOSE where one shell burst through a M.G. emplacement doing much damage. An attempt was made to destroy an enemy listening post behind barricade on OXFORD ROAD and capture the sentries but they were found to have evacuated the post. The main defences are in the ORCHARD further back which is strongly fortified and wired. One man killed (No 25793 Private R Gorst) 4 men wounded.
3/1/16
In trenches and billets. Enemy very quiet all day and night. Our front line was shelled by light field guns between 11.30am and 12 noon but without result. Windy and showery. One man died of wounds (No 15402 Private M Hamilton) 2 men from hospital. One man to base for discharge.
It is very unusual for ‘other ranks’ to be mentioned in the War Diary. Private Hamilton’s name does not appear on the Battalion’s casualty list for December (which is included in the War Diary) and he is listed as died of wounds on the January list so we can deduce that he was one of the 4 men wounded (probably by shelling) on the 2nd February and died the following day.
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