Wilfred John Besant
Memorial: Wickwar - Holy Trinity Church
Regiment: Grenadier Guards
Medals: 1914 Star, British War Medal, Next of Kin Memorial Plaque 1914 - 1921, Victory Medal
Rank and number: Private 16295
Parents: James and Alice Besant (nee Woodruff)
Home address: Wickwar, Glos
Pre-war occupation: Farm Labourer in 1911
Date of birth: 1893
Place of birth: Wickwar, Glos
Date of death: 11/09/1914
Buried/Commemorated at: Guards Grave (Ref. I. 2.), Villers Cotterets Forest, Aisne, France
Age: 21
Further information:
Wilfred John Besant was born in 1893 in Wickwar. His surname is also spelled as Beasant although at birth he was registered as Besant. He was the son of James and Alice Besant. His mother’s maiden name was Woodruff. His sisters were Annie, Gladys and May. He also had a brother Fred who died in 1906 aged 12. His father worked as a grocer’s van man and was born in Wickwar. His parents lived at Cromhall near Charfield. Wilfred was working as a farm labourer in 1911
Wilfred enlisted in Bristol and joined the 2nd Battalion of the Grenadier Guards as a private. The date of his death is uncertain. Different records have the date as 1st, 11th and 20th September 1914. He was 21 when he died. He is buried in Guards Grave in Aisne in France
He is remembered on the Wickwar War Memorials and the Chipping Sodbury Cottage Hospital Memorial Board which is now at Yate and District Heritage Centre. He is also remembered in Du Ruvigny’s Roll of Honour. He was awarded the Victory, British War and the 14 Star medals
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
Yate and District Heritage Centre and the book 'Lest We Forget' by Arthur Threlfall Searson.
Forces War Records and CWGC