William George Bryant

Memorial: Kingswood - Holy Trinity Church

Regiment: Gloucestershire Regiment

Medals: 1914–15 Star, British War Medal, Next of Kin Memorial Plaque 1914 - 1921, Silver War Badge, Victory Medal

Rank and number: Private 25115

Parents: Elizabeth Stiddard

Home address: 3 St. James Street, Mangotsfield, Bristol

Date of death: 07/07/1916

Buried/Commemorated at: No known burial site but commemorated on Basra Memorial Iraq and Kingswood Holy Trinity Memorial.

Further information:

William’s mother Elizabeth was born in Mangotsfield, she was employed as a servant and remained single after William was born. William’s actual birth does not appear on the usual registers. According to the 1901 census when Elizabeth was aged 30, she was working as a housemaid for a retired Wine Merchant called William Bryant in Durdham Park Bristol, who could possibly have been William’s father. When William died, he left all of his effects to his mother Elizabeth Stiddard. William’s uncle Sidney Stiddard died two years after William.

In March 1915 William’s battalion mobilised to Gallipoli and fought in the Battles of Suvla. In February 1916 they were sent to Mesopotamia and fought in the battles of Kut Al Imara. William’s records state that he died from accidental drowning. The roads in Mesopotamia were extremely poor so that all transport had to be by river, therefore it is possible that this is how he met his death. The Basra Memorial where William is remembered, commemorates more than 40,500 members of the Commonwealth forces who died in the operations in Mesopotamia from the Autumn of 1914 to the end of August 1921 and whose graves are not known.

By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):

This information has been provided by Sarah Hands, Volunteer Researcher for the South Gloucestershire War Memorials Web Site.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
https://www.cwgc.org/
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/
https://www.findmypast.co.uk/
https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/