Description
(British Army) First Day of the Somme 1 July 1916 – 1914-15 Star
Named to Private Martin Oates, service number 5001, 5th Bn., North Staffordshire Regiment.
Died 01 July 1916 at the First Day of the Somme.
Private Martin Oates is buried at the Foncquevillers Military Cemetery, buried at section I. L. 31.
-> https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/196961/m-oates/
The 1914-15 Star is on the reverse engraved with Pte M. Oates name and servicenumber 5001.
The medal comes with several pages of research.
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Background:
The First Day of the Battle of the Somme was to be the first mass offensive mounted by the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and the first battle to involve a large number of New Army divisions, many composed of Pals battalions that had formed after Kitchener’s call for volunteers in August 1914. In total this day 57,470 casualties suffered by the British, including 19,240 killed, which were the worst in the history of the British Army.
More background:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_day_on_the_Somme
and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Somme
