Private Jeremy Buckley
This North Irish Horseman was probably the Jeremy Buckley born on 24 January 1895 at Ecclesall Bierow, Sheffield, Yorkshire, one of five children of farm manager Jeremy Buckley and his wife Sarah Alice (née Buckley). By the time of the 1911 Census he was living at Leicester Villa, Troway, Marsh Lane, Chesterfield, with his parents and his three surviving siblings, and working on the family farm.
Buckley enlisted or was called-up for military service at some point between 1914 and 1917. In February 1918 he was transferred to the Nottinghamshire Yeomanry (Sherwood Rangers) Cyclist Regiment (No.276783).
On 11 or 12 September 1918 he was one of 56 men from various English yeomanry regiments who were compulsorily transferred to the Corps of Hussars – he was issued regimental number 81259. They embarked at Folkestone for Boulogne on 12 September, where they were posted to the 1st North Irish Horse Regiment, which at the time was serving as corps cyclists to V Corps. They joined the regiment in the field on or soon after 18 September, taking part in the fighting during the Advance to Victory offensive in the final weeks of the war. It is probable that Buckley was posted to E Squadron.
Buckley was wounded soon after he joined the regiment, probably on 3 October, when E Squadron was camped east of Epehy, near the German defences on the St Quentin Canal. The squadron war diary recorded:
[1-2 October] Attached 100th Inf Brdge 33rd Division. Sent out a patrol under 2/Lt Downey to reconnoitre Canal de St Quentin ... preparatory to small raiding operations on following night which however never took place.
[3 October] 15 ORs Gassed by gas shelling. Sqdn moved forward to Battn H.Q. owing to report that enemy were retiring. This did not prove to be the case, so Sqdn moved back to previous location and were engaged in afternoon on salvage work.
Buckley was disembodied (discharged) on 6 March 1919.
After the war he returned to Chesterfield, marrying Florence Thorpe on 22 April 1919. At the time of the 1939 Register they were living at the Mappin Buildings, Norfolk Street, Sheffield, Jeremy working as a caretaker. He died there on 8 January 1968.