796: Sgt James Cassells (certificates; photographs)

<p dir="ltr">Sergeant James Cassels, the grandfather of Professor Ronnie Mulryne, joined the British Army in September 1914. He joined up as a volunteer, belonging to the Ulster Volunteer Force, and may have done so in response to an appeal. He was born in 1891 in Belfast, so was 23 at the time. </p><p dir="ltr">In June 1917, he lost an eye during the Battle of Messines and was therefore "honourably discharged", or invalided out, to Clopton House War Hospital in Stratford-upon-Avon. Between joining up and his discharge he had been promoted to a sergeant.</p>