1710: Henry Greer Cree
Contributor: Terry Cree on his father's cousin, Henry Greer Cree, 1894-1914 Please see the document for full story. A brief overview is included below. Henry Greer Cree was born on 17 April 1894, in West Street Bangor, the third child of Henry (a bricklayer) and Hannah Jane Cree. The family moved to Belfast in the early 1900s, where they lived at 52 Chadolly Street.
Young Henry Greer Cree worked as a labourer in the city, perhaps for his father, before he joined the Army . He enlisted in Belfast with The Royal Irish Rifles, and served as a Rifleman with the 2nd Battalion, Service No. 10011. In August 1914 the 2nd Battalion was stationed at Tidworth, from where the battalion proceeded to France, landing at Rouen on 14th August as part of the British Expeditionary Force under the Anglo-Irish Commander-in-Chief, Sir John French.
In September 1914 he passed through Orléans, and at the station he met Madame Villeneue and her family from the department of Loiret. Mme Villeneue, obtaining his name and home address, thoughtfully wrote an encouraging letter to Henry's mother, Hannah Jane, in Belfast. (see full story document). He told the Villeneue family 'the story of the first part of the campaign on the Belgian border', which he describes as 'his baptism of fire'. The action Henry speaks of is known to history as the Battle of Mons in which Henry's 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles played a central part. Casualties at the Battle of Mons, 22nd-24th August, were high: 1,600 of all ranks killed, missing or wounded, but practically half of these came from just two battalions, the 4th Middlesex, and from Henry Cree's 2nd Battalion of the Royal Irish Rifles, where RIR casualties numbered three hundred. The battalion fought also in the rear guard action at Solesmes, in the desperate Battle of Le Cateau, and in the strategically critical First Battle of the Marne (5th to 12th September 1914) where the RIR occupied the centre of the British line. Over two million men fought in the First Battle of the Marne, of whom more than 500,000 were killed or wounded.
The BEF and the French Army sought to advance northwards from the Marne to press home their advantage, but the retreating Germans began to dig in along the heights above the River Aisne.
Between the 12th and the 15th September Henry Cree's 2nd Battalion RIR was again in action (7th Brigade, 3rd Division, II Corps) in a determined attempt to storm the German positions on a well wooded high ridge 300-400 feet above the river valley, the so-called Chemin des Dames plateau. There is no exact date for this September encounter between Rifleman Cree and Mme Villeneue, but the mood of uplift and high morale implied by her re-telling of the conversation may suggest a date no later than the middle of the month, following the decisive victory of the First Battle of the Marne. By the end of September, however, the fighting on the Aisne had reached a stalemate. The British Expeditionary Force, including the 2nd Battalion, RIR began to move from the Aisne to Flanders on 5th October. In late October, at Neuve Chapelle, Henry's battalion faced severe German attacks. Despite resilient defence, the situation became dire, leading to heavy casualties and loss of officers.
On 26 October, Henry Cree was killed in action, aged 20.
A month later, on the 25th November The Irish Times reported the action at Neuve Chapelle in these very limited terms: The Irish Times says that the officer commanding No. 11 District, Dublin, has received a copy of the following order by the Corps Commander, relating to the Royal Irish Rifles, through the General Officer Commanding 7th Infantry Brigade:- During an attack by the enemy on the 7th Infantry Brigade last night the enemy came to close quarters with the Royal Irish Rifles, who repulsed them with great gallantry with the bayonet, and made several prisoners. The Corps Commander wishes to compliment the regiment on its splendid feat, and directs that all battalions of the corps shall be informed of the circumstances and of his high appreciation of the gallantry displayed.
Rifleman Cree (No. 10011) has no known grave. His sole legatee was his mother, Hannah Jane. No doubt she cherished that letter from a mother in France which gave her a glimpse of her son enjoying a brief moment of autumn sunshine and telling her how he had been welcomed into a French home.
Rifleman Cree (No. 10011) is commemorated on the Le Touret Memorial (Panel 42 and 43) in France and in the Belfast Book of Honour (Page 128).
