The text below is an edited edition of information sent to me by Private Bywater’s grand-daughter, Marion.  He was, at one point, in the 10th Battalion York & Lancs, at the same time as my grandfather.

Given the size of the battalions (about 1,000 men), and the 1 in 4 chance that they were in the same Company, it would be nice to think that they knew each other. Marion was lucky in that her grandfathers records were among those not destroyed in the second world war bombing of the records office, so she has a fairly complete picture of his movements.

Elam Dufton Bywater, born 1893, and attested that he was prepared to serve on June 7, 1916.  He was then living at Moorhead, Gildersome, near Leeds; he was 23 years and 3 months old and working as a rag merchant manager.  He was already married with a small son. He had married May Guest of Little Dorton, Bradford, on August 18, 1915. Their first son, Leslie, was born on February 17, 1916.  (A second son, James Edward (‘Jim’), was born in May 1921.)

Elam Bywater was on reserve from June 8, 1916, to October 5, 1916, the date on which he was mobilised.

Private 37889 (or possibly 27889) was posted first to the 4^th Battalion, the West Yorkshire Regiment (the Prince of Wales’s Own).  This was an Extra Reserve Battalion, which remained in the U.K. throughout the war.

Active service in France

Pte Bywater transferred to the 11^th Battalion on December 27, 1916, upon embarkation for France. This Regiment was at that time part of the 69^th Infantry Brigade as part of the 23^rd Division. The Regiment had been in France since August 8, 1915.  The 23^rd Division was serving on the Western Front and the Battalion was in the Ypres Salient in the area of Hill 60. This part of the salient was quiet in the first part of 1917.  The Battalion divided its time between the trenches, the back line and camp.

While in France, Pte 37889 became Pte 32366 as a result of his transfer on April 14, 1917, to the 10^th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment, this was the last day of the First Battle of the Scarpe in which 37^th Division participated.  They participated again in the Second Battle of the Scarpe on April 23/24 and on April 28/29.

A Blighty one?

Pte Bywater remained on the Western Front until August 20, 1917, but was back in England on August 24, 1917. The date on which he was officially posted to Depot in England is not legible on the microfilm service record.  Possibly he was wounded in the Third Battle of Ypres, the service record makes mention of a wound stripe having been awarded, but does not say in which campaign or what was the nature of the wound.

Pte Bywater is recorded as having been with the 3^rd Battalion from September 22, 1917, four weeks after he returned to the U.K.   This could have been with his existing or future regiments as the 3^rd Battalion was in both cases a Reserve Battalion.

When he returned to active service on January 30, 1918, it was with the 1st Battalion of the East Lancashire Regiment as Pte 52288.

He was actually to have rejoined the regiment rather sooner, but overstayed his leave by ‘7 days, 20 hours, 35 minutes’.  This was regarded as a moderately serious offence which could be dealt with by the Commanding Officer without need for a trial.  Pte Bywater was confined to barracks for 3 days and deprived of 11 days’ pay.  This was a relatively mild punishment compared to the total number of days C.B. and days without pay, which commanding officers had discretion to impose.  Nor did it prevent a brief promotion subsequently or his service record showing his character as ‘Very Good’.

Active service in Greece

On rejoining at end-January 1918, Pte 52288 was sent to Salonika where he joined the British Salonika Force, where 1^st Battalion was was part of the 28^th Division.

Pte Bywater was made a Paid Acting Corporal on 14^th February 1919, but was returned to the rank of Private on March 19, 1919, the date on which he was attached to the 9^th Battalion, which was part of the 65^th Brigade of the 22^nd Division.

He remained in Greece with this Battalion from 30 January 1918 until November 5, 1919.

During this time he almost certainly saw action in the Battle of Doiran. At the beginning of 1918, the Allied troops in Salonika were preparing for a major offensive intended to end the war in the Balkans, having been there since 1915.  The troops on this front had a quiet time in 1916 and 1917 and were known as ‘The Gardeners of Salonika’. Malaria was the main, and very serious, enemy.

By 1918, the Greek Army had been reorganised and joined the Allied force. The offensive began in July 1918, but the British contingent did not play a significant part until early September. Then the British attacked a series of fortified hills. The final assault began along the whole front on 15 Sep 1918, the British being engaged in the Lake Doiran area.

This Battle was really on the 18th and 19th September 1918 and was a disaster for the British Divisions. They had to frontally assault 'Pip Ridge' which was a 2000 foot high heavily defended mountain ridge with fortresses built on some of the higher mountains, notably Grand Couronne. They sustained very heavy casualties

Demobilisation

Pte Bywater was demobilised in the U.K. on December 12, 1919 with a 30% disability pension, which was paid for 6 months.  There is no record of the nature of the disability (malaria?).

He was awarded the Victory Medal 1914-1919 (Ref: H/1/102b20 P4235B) and the British Medal 1914-1920 (same reference number).