Fazackerley brothers

 

10577 PTE. A. FAZACKERLEY. L.N.LAN.R.

 

Arthur Fazackerley was born on 19 September 1889 in Leyland, and baptised at Leyland, St Andrew’s, on 6 October.  His father was Richard Fazackerley (b. 1854 in Tarleton), a farmer.  His mother was Ellen Pilkington (b. 1859 in Blackburn).  Richard and Ellen were married in 1879 and they had 8 (surviving) children: Mary Ann (b. 1880), William (b. 1882), James (b. 1885), Ellen (b. 1886), John (b. 1887), then Arthur, Robert (b. 1894) and finally Thomas (b. 1895).  Ellen died in 1895.  The following year, Richard married again, to Catherine Jane Peacock (known as Jane) (b. 1867 in Liverpool).  Richard and Jane then had (at least) 4 children: Joseph (1897-1902), Henry (b. 1898), Alice (b. 1906) and Jane (b.  1908).  Richard died before the 1911 Census date.  So in 1911, Jane Fazackerley (Arthur’s step mother) was living at Pear Tree Cottage, Kellett Lane, Bamber Bridge along with her stepson Robert and her own children, Henry, Alice and Jane.  Arthur is not living with them, as I believe he was in the Army, but this would have been his home address.  In a further family complication, in 1913, Jane married again to a Henry Caunce.

 

So Arthur was either still in the Army or immediately called up from the Reserve when War was declared, and he landed in France with 1Bn L.N.LAN.R. on 12 August 1914 and by 23 August, the Bn had assembled about 8 miles from Mons.  Over the next 13 days they were forced to retreat a distance of about 140 miles ‘as the crow flies’ though the men marched nearer to 200 miles.  The German advance was eventually halted and in early September the order was received that the troops were to march towards the River Aisne.  On 13 September, the Bn crossed the Aisne at Bourg.  The following morning, they took the village of Vendresse before their advance was halted by a German counter-attack and they ran out of ammunition.  In this, the Battalion’s first action in the War, losses amounted to 14 officers and over 500 other ranks, killed, wounded or missing.  85 officers and men were later confirmed dead, Arthur Fazackerley was among them; he was 24 years old.

 

Rank:  Private

Service No:  10577

Date of Death:  14/09/1914

Age:  24 (CWGC says 25 but it was 5 days short of his 25th birthday).

Regiment/Service:  Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, 1Bn.

Commemorated at LA FERTE-SOUS-JOUARRE MEMORIAL

Additional Information:  Son of the late Richard and Ellen Fazackerley.

 

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