John Whitmore is William Bernard's nephew, and the son of Jack. He joined the 10th Worcester Battalion which was absorbed by the 3rd battalion on 22nd June 1918. Both these battalions were part of the 57th Brigade of the 19th (Western) Division. He arrived in France on 19th July 1915, and during his service on the Western Front was awarded the Military Medal and bar. The medal was awarded on 1st November 1917, probably for service on 20th September during the battle on Menin Road, in the Ypres Salient. The bar was probably awarded for service in August 1918, during the British advance in Flanders. We hope to check out these details in the PRO shortly.
Other battalions in the 57th Brigade were:
10th (Service) Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment
8th (Service) Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment
8th (Service) Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment
The 19th Division was involved in the following action: Please note: as with all tables like this one, remember that it lists only engagements with the enemy. Troops would spend considerable amounts of time each year in the trenches, and within firing range of the enemy. Shelling and sniping would be a permanent danger, which lessened (but did not disappear) when there was no major engagement.
You'll notice that William was also engaged in the Attacks on High Wood, the battles of Polygon Wood, Poelcapelle, and Broodseinde, the second battle of Passchendaele, and the battle of the Selle. However, in each of these engagements, William and John were assigned to different Corps.
| Campaign | Battle | Dates Present |
| Battle of Loos | 29 Sept. - 8 Oct. 1915 | |
| Battle of the Somme | Battle of
Albert (including the capture of La Boisselle) |
1 July - 13 July 1916 |
| Attacks on High Wood | 20 July - 25 July 1916 | |
| Battle of Poziers | 23 July - 3 Sept. 1916 | |
| Battle of Ancre Heights | 1 Oct. - 11 Nov. 1916 | |
| Battle of Ancre | 13 Nov. - 18 Nov. 1916 | |
| Operations on the Ancre | 11 Jan. - 13 Mar. 1917 | |
| 3rd battle of Ypres | Battle of Messines | 7 June - 14 June 1917 |
| Battle of Menin Road | 20 Sept. - 25 Sept. 1917 | |
| Battle of Polygon Wood | 26 Sept. - 3 Oct. 1917 | |
| Battle of Broodseinde | 4 Oct. 1917 | |
| Battle of Poelcapelle | 9 Oct. 1917 | |
| First battle of Passchendaele | 12 Oct. 1917 | |
| Second battle of Passchendaele | 26 Oct. - 10 Nov. 1917 | |
| 2nd battle of the Somme | Battle of St Quentin | 21 Mar. - 23 Mar. 1918 |
| First battle of Bapaume | 24 Mar. - 25 Mar. 1918 | |
| German offensive in Flanders | Battle of Messines | 10 Apr. - 11 Apr. 1918 |
| Battle of Bailleul | 13 Apr. - 15 Apr. 1918 | |
| First battle of Kemmel | 17 Apr. - 19 Apr. 1918 | |
| German offensive in Champagne | Battle of the Aisne | 29 May - 6 Jun. 1918 |
| Advance in Flanders | 18 Aug. - 6 Sept. 1918 | |
| Final advance in Picardy | Battle of the Selle | 17 Oct. - 25 Oct. 1918 |
| Battle of Valenciennes | 1 Nov. - 2 Nov. 1918 | |
| Battle of Sambre | 4 Nov. 1918 | |
| Passage of Grand Honelle | 5 Nov. - 7 Nov. 1918 |
Taken from The British Army in the Great War, and The Regimental Warpath.