AIRE COMMUNAL CEMETERY
Aire
Pas de Calais
France
General Directions: Aire is a town about 14 Kms south-south-east of St. Omer. The Communal Cemetery is 750 metres north of the town, on the road to St. Omer and the four Commonwealth plots are on the east side.
From March 1915 to February 1918, Aire was a busy but peaceful centre used by Commonwealth forces as corps headquarters. The Highland Casualty Clearing Station was based there as was the 39th Stationary Hospital (from May 1917) and other medical units. Plot I contains burials from this period. The burials in plots II, III and IV (rows A to F) relate to the fighting of 1918, when the 54th Casualty Clearing Station came to Aire and the town was, for a while, within 13 kilometres of the German lines. The cemetery now contains 894 Commonwealth burials of the First World War and a few French and German war graves. There are also 21 Second War burials, mostly dating from the withdrawal to Dunkirk in May 1940. The Commonwealth plots were designed by Sir Herbert Baker.
Casualty Details: UK 868, Canada 15, Australia 6, New Zealand 1, India 4, Germany 7, France 3, Total Burials: 904
15/700 Private
Henry Richard Pugh
15th Bn. Royal Warwickshire Regiment
19/04/1918, aged 27.
Son of Richard Henry and Olga Pugh, of Dawley, Salop. Enlisted in Sept., 1914, in 2nd Birmingham City Bn.
Plot II. D. 32.
Henry was badly wounded by Shrapnel on April 15th 1918, dying of his wounds four days later on April 19th at No. 39 Stationary Hospital in France.
Picture courtesy of Dave Shaw
30802 Private
Richard Standley Barkway
1st/4th Bn. East Yorkshire Regiment
21/04/1918, aged 18.
Son of Richard and Kate Ellen Barkway, of 53, Robinson St., Llanelly, Carmarthen.
Plot II. E. 13.
He died of wounds on Sunday the 21st April, 1918 at a Casualty Clearing Station in France, he had only been in country for a month. Previously he and his parents had resided at the Grove Hotel and the Royal Hotel in St David’s Pembrokeshire, his brother, suffering from Gas inhalation in October of 1917 was in hospital at the time of Richard’s death.
Picture courtesy of Owen Vaughan
Plan of the cemetery
Cemetery plan courtesy of Barry Cuttell
Latest additions to the site | Belgian Cemetery Index | French Cemetery Index
Other Cemeteries and Memorials around the world | British Cemeteries and Memorials | 1939-1945 Cemetery Index
Cemeteries with Victoria Cross burials | Cemeteries with "Shot at Dawn" burials | Regimental Badge Archive | Roll of Honour
Information on how to submit a photograph or image to the site | Book Reviews | About Us and our task | Links
Site Map | Miscellaneous articles