495265 Corporal Norman Nicholas Hutchins, R.E.

Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Edward De Santis, MSCE, BSAE P.E., MinstRE
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(May 2025)

Figure 1. Corporal Norman Nicholas Hutchins, R.E.
(Image from a postcard in the author’s collection)

Norman Nicholas Hutchins was a young man who volunteered to serve in the Territorial Force during the Great War of 1914 to 1918. He enlisted in the Royal Engineers and served from 1915 to 1919 when he was discharged due to illness. Unfortunately he died two years later at home at the age of 24, probably as a result of a service-connected illness.

Based on information found in a family tree on Ancestry.com, it appears that Hutchins was born in Truro, Cornwall in 1897. His father is listed as one Samuel Christopher Bray (1835-1916) and his mother as Harriet Bray, née Morcom (1837-1919). The family tree is rather confusing with regard to the relationship between the Hutchins family and the Bray family. In the 1901 Census of England Norman is listed as a 4-year old child, the grandson of the head of the family, and Samuel Bray is listed as the son-in-law of the head of the family. The family is shown as living on Lanner Moor in Gwennap, in the Rural District of Redruth, Cornwall and the head of the family is shown as 66-year old Eliza Hutchins, obviously Norman’s grandmother.

Norman Hutchins enlisted in the 1^st South Midlands Field Company of the Royal Engineers Territorial Force (T.F.) on 16 March 1915. Upon his enlistment he was issued the T.F. Regimental Number 4644 and was posted to duties as a Driver. The company was under the command of Major Harry Clissold, R.E.

Figure 2. Major Harry Clissold, R.E.
(Image from Wycliffe College and the War)

In March 1915 Hutchin’s company joined the 3^rd Division briefly and in April 1915 it was assigned to the 5^th Division, again for a very short time. On 11 April 1915 the company went to France to join the 48^th (South Midland) Division and it would remain with this division for the duration of the war. It did not see much action until the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

During 1916 the 1^st South Midlands Field Company, in support of the 48^th Division, took part in the following actions:

The Battle of Bazentin Ridge was part of the Battle of the Somme. On 14 July, the British Fourth Army (General Henry Rawlinson) made a dawn attack against the German 2^nd Army (General Fritz von Below) in the Brown Position (Braune Stellung), from Delville Wood westwards to Bazentin le Petit Wood. During this battle the 48^th Division captured the town of Ovillers.[1]

This battle took place in northern France around the village of Pozières, during the Battle of the Somme. The costly fighting ended with the British in possession of the plateau north and east of the village, in a position to menace the German bastion of Thiepval from the rear. In the fighting around Pozières the 48^th Division suffered 2,700 casualties from 16–28 July and 2,505 more from 13 August.[2] Hutchin’s company did not suffer any fatal casualties during this battle.

The Battle of the Ancre Heights is the name given to the continuation of British attacks after the Battle of Thiepval Ridge from 26 to 28 September during the Battle of the Somme. The battle was conducted by the Reserve Army (renamed Fifth Army on 29 October) from Courcelette near the Albert–Bapaume road, west to Thiepval on Bazentin Ridge. British possession of the heights would deprive the German 1^st Army of observation towards Albert to the south-west and give the British observation north over the Ancre valley to the German positions around Beaumont-Hamel, Serre and Beaucourt. The Reserve Army conducted large attacks on 1, 8, 21, and 25 October and from 10 to 11 November.[3] Although the 48^th Division did not take a prominent part in this battle, Hutchin’s company lost one man, 3088 Sapper Stanley Frederick Pasker, who was killed in action on 13 October.[4]

The Battle of the Ancre was fought by the British Fifth Army (Lieutenant-General Hubert Gough), against the German 1^st Army (General Fritz von Below). The Reserve Army had been renamed the Fifth Army on 30 October. The battle was the last of the big British attacks of the Battle of the Somme. After the Battle of Flers–Courcelette (15–22 September) the Anglo-French armies tried to press their advantage with smaller attacks in quick succession, rather than pausing to regroup and give the Germans time to recover.[5] The 48^th Division provided a supporting role in this battle. Hutchin’s company did not suffer any fatal casualties in this battle.

On 13 January 1917 Major Clissold was called up to act as the Commander Royal Engineers for the 48^th Division while his company was at Pont Remy. His stay at division headquarters was a short one and he returned to the company on 17 January.[6]

On 13 March 1917 Major Clissold was attached to the staff of the Commander Royal Engineers at 48^th Division headquarters. The reason for this attachment is not known, but presumably it was to assist the CRE in developing plans for operations of the divisional engineers. During this period his company was involved with the construction of a heavy trestle bridge at La Mire, a bridge that Clissold had designed. Clissold returned to his company from 48^th Division headquarters on 13 April and assumed his normal command duties. He moved the company headquarters to Le Bucquieres on 17 May and on 25 May he left on leave. He returned from leave on 8 June, but while he was away his company lost another man due to enemy action. On 4 June 1917, 494848 Sapper Albert Ernest Arbury was killed. It should be noted that by this time the 1^st South Midland Field Company had been redesignated the 474^th (South Midland) Field Company, thereby giving it a numerical designation in line with the Regular Army field companies. The men in the company also were given new regimental numbers in the range 494XXX to 496XXX, as was the case with Corporal Hutchins, who was issued number 495265 at that time.

Although the 48^th Division was not heavily involved again in action against the enemy until mid-August, the 474^th Field Company was not without casualties. On 7 July 1917, 494334 Driver Charles George Lansdown was killed in action and on 18 July 179093 Sapper Frank Hayton was killed.[7] These isolated casualties were probably caused by enemy artillery fire on the company’s work sites.

The Battle of Pilckem Ridge was the opening attack of the Third Battle of Ypres. The British Fifth Army, supported by the Second Army on the southern flank and the French 1^reArmée (First Army) on the northern flank, attacked the German 4^th Army, which defended the Western Front from Lille northwards to the Ypres Salient in Belgium and on to the North Sea coast. On 31 July, the Anglo-French armies captured Pilckem Ridge and areas on either side, the French attack being a great success. After several weeks of changeable weather, heavy rain fell during the afternoon of 31 July. The heavy rain caused mobility problems for the British, giving the divisional engineers and good deal of work to contend with.

In the XIX Corps area in the centre and on the right of XVIII Corps, three reserve brigades advanced to the main objective and pressed on towards forward to the furthest position that exploitation on local initiative had been allowed for in the plan. It began to rain, cutting off the advanced British troops from view, just as German regiments from specialist Eingreif (counter-attack) divisions advanced over Passchendaele Ridge. To avoid being rolled up, the reserve brigades retreated, suffering many casualties. The German infantry were prevented from advancing further by massed artillery and small-arms fire.

A substantial amount of ground had been captured by the British and French, except on the Gheluvelt Plateau on the right flank. A large number of casualties were inflicted on the German defenders during the attack and 5,626 prisoners were taken; the German Eingreif divisions recaptured some ground from the Ypres–Roulers railway northwards to St Julien, forcing the British back. For the next few days, both sides made local attacks to improve their positions, much hampered by the deluges. The rains had a serious effect on operations in August, causing more problems for the British and French, who were advancing into the area devastated by artillery fire and partly flooded by the unseasonable rain.

A local British attack on the Gheluvelt Plateau on 2 August was postponed several times because of the weather until 10 August and the second big general attack, due on 4 August, did not begin until 16 August. The objectives on the Plateau were not captured until the Battle of the Menin Road Ridge on 20 September, after the principal role in the offensive was transferred to the Second Army and three weeks' sunshine and fresh breezes dried much of the ground. The Third Battle of Ypres became controversial while it was being fought, with disputes about the predictability of the August deluges and for its mixed results, which in many histories is blamed on apparent misunderstandings between Gough and Haig and on faulty planning, rather than on the resilience of the 4^th Army.

On 10 August 1917, while Hutchins company was preparing for the Battle of Langemarck, 494404 Driver Frederick Charles Lawrence was killed in action.[9] Drivers were vulnerable to enemy artillery fire while moving supplies on open roads. But Lawrence death was only the beginning of the large number of casualties to be suffered by the company.

The Battle of Langemarck was the second Anglo-French general attack of the Third Battle of Ypres. The battle took place near Ypres in Flanders against the German 4th Army. The French First Army had a big success on the northern flank from Bixschoote to Drie Grachten (Three Canals) and the British gained a substantial amount of ground northwards from Langemark to the boundary with the French.[10]

The attack on the Gheluvelt Plateau on the right (southern) flank captured a considerable amount of ground but failed to reach its objectives. German counter-attacks recaptured most of the lost territory during the afternoon. The weather prevented much of the British program of air co-operation with the infantry, which made it easier for German reserves to assemble on the battlefield.[11]

The 48^th (South Midland) Division, under XVIII Corps, attacked at 0445 hours on 16 August with one brigade, capturing Border House and gun pits either side of the north-east bearing St Julien–Winnipeg road, where they were held up by machine-gun fire and a small counter-attack. The capture of St Julien was completed and the infantry consolidated along a line from Border House to Jew Hill, the gun pits and St Julien. Troops were fired on from Maison du Hibou and Hillock Farm, which was captured soon after, then British troops seen advancing on Springfield Farm disappeared. At 0900 hours German troops gathered around Triangle Farm and at 1000 hours made an abortive counter-attack. Another German attack after dark was defeated at the gun pits and at 2130 hours a German counter-attack from Triangle Farm was repulsed. On 17 August a 48^th (South Midland) Division attack on Maison du Hibou failed.[12] During the battle 494090 2^nd Corporal Albert Edward Edmonds was killed.[13]

In actions subsequent to the battle the 474^th Field Company lost five more men killed in action. They were, on 21 August:[14]

On 24 August, 496751 Sapper W.E.D. Townsend was killed in action and on the following day Major Clissold was slightly wounded and was admitted to the 61^st Casualty Clearing Station (2/1^st South Midland) (Territorial Force).[15] This CCS had arrived by rail at Proven on 5 June 1917 and had set up at Dozinghem. On 17 and 20 August 1917 the site came under enemy aerial bombardment, with the unit sustaining total 34 casualties.[16] The 474^th Field Company’s wounded at Langemarck in August 1917 included 41 Other Ranks and on 8 September 494899 Sapper Arthur Cocks died of wounds.[17]

On 17 September 1917 Major Clissold and Lieutenant Watson, one of his company subalterns, went to Zutkerque to attend an engineer training course. They returned to the company in time for the opening of the Battle of Polygon Wood on 26 September.[18]

The Battle of Polygon Wood took place during the second phase of the Third Battle of Ypres. The battle was fought near Ypres in the area from the Menin road to Polygon Wood and thence north, to the area beyond St Julien. Much of the woodland had been destroyed by the huge quantity of shellfire from both sides since 16 July and the area had changed hands several times.[19]

During the battle the 474^th Field Company was in the reserve line. On 28 September Major Clissold was at California Trench in Peselhoek, near Poperinge sheltering in a dug-out during a heavy German artillery barrage on his position. A large shell scored a direct hit on the shelter, penetrated the roof and exploded inside. Major Harry Clissold, age 46, was killed along with four Sappers and 17 others were wounded by the same shell, two of them fatally.[20] The men of the company killed with Major Clissold were:[21]

The Battle of Broodseinde was fought near Ypres in Belgium, at the east end of the Gheluvelt plateau, by the British Second and Fifth armies against the German 4^th Army. The battle was the most successful Allied attack of the Third Battle of Ypres. Using bite-and-hold tactics, with objectives limited to what could be held against German counter-attacks, the British devastated the German defence, prompted a crisis among the German commanders and caused a severe loss of morale in the 4^th Army. Preparations were made by the Germans for local withdrawals and planning began for a greater withdrawal, which would entail the abandonment by the Germans of the Belgian coast, one of the strategic aims of the Flanders Offensive.

After the period of unsettled but drier weather in September, heavy rain began again on 4 October and affected the remainder of the campaign, causing much work to be done by the 474^th Field Company and other divisional engineer units. The rain worked more to the advantage of the German defenders, being pushed back on to far less damaged ground. The British had to move their artillery forward into the area devastated by shellfire and soaked by the autumn rains, restricting the routes on which guns and ammunition could be moved, presenting German artillery with easier targets. At the Battle of Poelcappelle on 9 October, after several more days of rain, the German defence achieved a costly success, holding the approaches to Passchendaele village, the most tactically important ground on the battlefield.

The Battle of Poelcappelle was fought by the British Second Army and Fifth Army against the German 4^th Army. The battle marked the end of the string of highly successful British attacks in late September and early October, during the Third Battle of Ypres. Only the supporting attack in the north achieved a substantial advance. On the main front, the German defences withstood the limited amount of artillery fire achieved by the British after the attack of 4 October. The ground along the main ridges had been severely damaged by shelling and rapidly deteriorated in the rains, which began again on 3 October, turning some areas back into swamps.

Dreadful ground conditions had more effect on the British, who needed to move large amounts of artillery and ammunition to support the next attack. This required much work on the part of the men of the 474^th Field Company and other companies of the 48^th Division. As a Driver, Hutchins found his work more difficult when trying to traverse the swampy areas in an effort to supply his section with tools and materials.

The battle was a defensive success for the German 4^th Army, although costly to both sides. The weather and ground conditions put severe strain on all the infantry involved and led to many wounded being stranded on the battlefield. Early, misleading information and delays in communication led Plumer and Haig to plan the attack of 12 October (the First Battle of Passchendaele) under the impression that a substantial advance had taken place at Passchendaele ridge, when most of the captured ground had been lost to German counter-attacks.

48^th Divisional Headquarters received orders on 10 November 1917 for a move to Italy. Entrainment began on 21 November and all units had detrained around Legnano (Adige) by 1 December. The division them moved north to the area allotted to XI Corps.

The 48^th Division relieved the 7^th Division to hold the front line sector at the Montello between 1 and 16 March. It then moved west to the Asiago sector. The division took part in the fighting on the Asiago Plateau (15-16 June) and the Battle of the Vittoria Veneto (1-4 November) but in the Val d’Assa rather than the Vittoria Veneto itself. The 474^th Field Company was credited with participation in the following actions:

The Second Battle of the Piave River (or Battle of the Solstice) was a decisive victory for the Italian Army against the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as Italy was part of the Allied Forces, while Austria-Hungary was part of the Central Powers. Though the battle proved to be a decisive blow to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and by extension the Central Powers, its full significance was not initially appreciated in Italy. Yet Erich Ludendorff, on hearing the news, is reported to have said he 'had the sensation of defeat for the first time'. It would later become clear that the battle was in fact the beginning of the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The Battle of Vittorio Veneto was fought from 24 October to 3 November 1918 (with an armistice taking effect 24 hours later) on the Italian Front. After having thoroughly defeated Austro-Hungarian troops during the defensive Battle of the Piave River, the Royal Italian Army launched a great counter-offensive: the Italian victory marked the end of the war on the Italian Front, secured the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and contributed to the end of the Great War just one week later. The battle led to the capture of over 5,000 artillery pieces and over 350,000 Austro-Hungarian troops, including 120,000 Germans, 83,000 Czechs and Slovaks, 60,000 South Slavs, 40,000 Poles, several tens of thousands of Romanians and Ukrainians, and 7,000 Austro-Hungarian loyalist Italians and Friulians.

The 48^th Division had the distinction on 3 November of surrounding and capturing the commander of the Austrian III Corps (General von Ritter-Romer), three Divisional commanders and about 14 battalions. By the Armistice (which here was at 1500 hour on 4 November), the Division had pushed forward into the Trentino and was eight miles northwest of Levico. In so doing the Warwickshire Brigade also took the distinction of being the first British formation to enter into what had been European enemy “home ground” before the war.

By 10 November the 48^th Division had withdrawn and was at Granezza and five days later it was at Trissino.

The demobilization of the 48^th Division began in early 1919 and the service of the division came to an end on 31 March when the final cadres left for England. The division reformed as part of the Territorial Army in April 1920.

Corporal Hutchins was discharged from the Army on 21 January 1919 due to illness. At the time he was serving at the 20^th Territorial Force Depot. His illness was noted to be neurasthenia, which was an ill-defined medical condition characterized by lassitude, fatigue, headache, and irritability, associated chiefly with emotional disturbance. Basically, he was suffering from combat fatigue. Because of this medical condition he was awarded the Silver War Badge, number B78734. For his service in the war he was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

NOTE: The medals and badge shown above are not those of Corporal Hutchins. They are presented here for illustrative purposes only.

It appears the Hutchins was married either before the war or during the war. His wife was Rosina Alice Hutchins and she resided with him at 1 Jumpers Road in Christchurch, Hampshire after the war. Norman Nicholas Hutchins died on 6 November 1921 at the age of 24 from pulmonary tuberculosis.

Figure 6. The Pension Card of 495265 Driver Norman Nicholas Hutchins, R.E.
(Image courtesy of Fold3)

It should be noted that the card above shows Hutchins as a Driver after his discharge from the Army. The postcard photograph of him in Figure 1 shows him as a Corporal and a notation on the reverse of the postcard identifies him.

ANNEX A
Fatal Casualties of the 474^th (1^st South Midland) Field Company, Royal Engineers From 1915 to 1920[24]

2. Wikipedia and The Long, Long Trail web sites were used extensively for the descriptions of the battles presented in the text.

[1] Wikipedia.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC).

[5] Wikipedia.

[6] Company War Diary.

[7] CWGC. It should be noted that Hayton’s regimental number 179093 is out of sequence with the majority of the numbers issued to men of the company. This indicates that he was a replacement from another unit.

[8] Ibid.

[9] CWGC.

[10] Wikipedia.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Company War Diary.

[14] CWGC.

[15] Company War Diary.

[16] The Long, Long Trail.

[17] Company War Diary.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Wikipedia.

[20] Clissold Family Tree.

[21] CWGC.

[22] Wikipedia.

[23] Ibid.

[24] CWGC.

Name	Regimental Number	Rank	Cause Of Death	Date of Death
Parsons, William Edward	1052	Sapper	KIA	15 Feb 1915
Pasker, Stanley Frederick	3088	Sapper	KIA	13 Oct 1916
Arbury, Albert Ernest	494848	Sapper	KIA	4 Jun 1917
Lansdown, Charles George	494334	Driver	KIA	7 Jul 1917
Hayton, Frank	179093	Sapper	KIA	18 Jul 1917
Lawrence, Frederick Charles	494404	Driver	KIA	10 Aug 1917
Edmonds, Albert Edward	494090	2^nd Corporal	KIA	16 Aug 1917
Bent, Thomas William	554407	Sapper	KIA	21 Aug 1917
Dore, Reuben	551154	Sapper	KIA	21 Aug 1917
Parsons, Sidney Charles	494539	Sapper	KIA	21 Aug 1917
Relph, Percy	477022	Sapper	KIA	21 Aug 1917
Townsend, W.R.D.	496751	Sapper	KIA	24 Aug 1917
Cocks, Arthur	494899	Sapper	DOW	8 Sep 1917
Allen, Alfred Arthur	546782	Sapper	KIA	28 Sep 1917
Barber, William John	494158	Sapper	KIA	28 Sep 1917
Bubb, William Joseph	494182	A/Corporal	KIA	28 Sep 1917
Clissold, Henry		Major	KIA	28 Aug 1917
Meager, Laurence (Bob)	446962	Sapper	DOW	28 Sep 1917
Venable, Thomas Christopher	188153	Sapper	DOW	30 Sep 1917
Heath, J.H.	494169	Driver	Died	20 Mar 1920