The third child of Samuel Taylor and his wife Margaret (née Hamer), my grandfather married Ellen Lowe on 26th March 1910 at Sacred Trinity Church, Salford. Sam was a typewriter mechanic and worked at the Smith Premier Typewriter Company of 70 Bridge Street, Deansgate, Manchester. Enlisting in the army in Broughton, Salford he first joined the Lancashire Fusileers [41566], although later he was transferred to the King's (Liverpool) Regiment [50488]. Sailing to France to join the British Expeditionary Force, he left behind his wife and daughters, Lilian (my mother) and her younger sister Jessie at the family home at 14 Buckley Street, Lower Broughton. Serving with the 12th Battalion of the King's, he took part in several campaigns in France before arriving by train at the French village of Bapaume at around 10am on 3rd October 1917. The 12th King's were part of the 20th Division of the British Army and were scheduled to take part in the forthcoming offensive at Cambrai. After breakfast in a nearby field, the Battalion left at 11.45am and marched to Ytres where they billeted for the night. This was only a temporary stop, for on the following day they left Ytres at 12.50pm for another march through Etricourt, Manancourt and Moislains before reaching their new camp near Haut-Allains. They were to remain at Haut-Allains for three days, spending their time training for the battle ahead, although the weather frequently halted the training. On 8th October Sam and his comrades were transported by bus to a new camp at Heudecourt where they spent that night. The following day the Battalion left their camp at 2pm to take up reserve positions, two companies in Heudecourt village itself and two companies in trenches to the east of the village. They were to occupy these positions for six days, before moving to front line positions on the 15th October. These positions were trenches near Honnecourt, and this tour of duty was, in the main, uneventful until it ended on 23rd October. Moving back into support positions, two companies took over trenches near Gonnelieu whilst another two remained at Battalion Headquarters in Cemetery Road. It was during this time that rumours began circulating amongst the men that some sort of 'unusual' attack was in the offing. On 5th November the King's were relieved from these support positions and marched to Sorel-le-Grand, where they were joined by 141 newly drafted soldiers - 8 of these being officers. During the next few days they learned exactly what was being planned. Moving on foot and then by train, the Battalion reached Bray-on-Somme where they had the luxury of accommodation in an old German prison camp. Near the camp was a 'Tankodrome', and the men trained for joint attacks with the tanks. They were also treated to a demonstration by the tanks on trench crossing and wire cutting. By 3am on 10th November the Battalion had moved up to the front line near Villers-Guislain, and at that stage things were very quiet. The main German activity was in the air, and twelve planes were observed flying low over the trenches. Sporadic shelling took place but there was little response to this from the German trenches. The weather was also favourable for the preparations in progress - thick mists provided good cover for the British operations. On 15th November the Battalion was relieved and once again moved back into support positions at Battalion Headquarters in Cemetery Road. The following day brought detailed orders for the attack to come. The 20th Division which included Sam Taylor's Battalion was to take part in the initial attack on 20th November at La Vacquerie and storm the strong defences of the Welsh Ridge. This was a section of the formidable Hindenburg Line, and Sam Taylor's Division were to go into battle with 36 tanks. On 18th November the 12th King's Battalion left their support position on a cross country march to Railton, near Heudecourt. The following day they left the camp at 4-47am to go to their start position at Le Vacquerie. Zero Hour for the attack was 6-20am on 20th November, but Sam Taylor had been at his assembly position for many hours before that. Unlike earlier battles in which he had fought, there was no preliminary bombardment of the enemy positions. This time, precisely at 6-20am, thousands of guns opened up simultaneously and the tanks began to lumber forward. Following in the wake of the tanks, infantryman Samuel Taylor moved across No Man's Land, and must have thought it was his lucky day as all their initial objectives were achieved remarkably quickly. Heavy resistance was experienced in taking the main Hindenburg Line, and although this had been captured by 10am the 12th King's suffered heavy casualties. Sam was recorded as having been killed in action in this offensive. His body lies in Fifteen Ravine British Cemetery at Villers-Plouich, and the headstone (although not marking the exact location of his burial place) is in the section of the cemetery known as Special Memorial A 12. Sam was later awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal. Sam's brothers George and Herbert also served their country during WW1. George, the eldest of the Taylors was also killed in 1917 and is buried at Outtersteene. Herbert, the youngest, survived the war but died shortly afterwards. A sad period in history for the family.

John Purdy