10th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment
Edward Hampton Moss was born in Yokohama on 13 August 1878.
He was the son of C D Moss, a member of the Diplomatic Corps, and Mrs E J Moss, who later lived at Sussex House, Pittville, Cheltenham.
Edward attended Cheltenham College as a day boy between January 1893 and April 1895, where he was a member of their Cadet Force. After completing his education, he joined the Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank and became the Manager of their branch in Malacca, one of the trading centres in the British Crown Colony of Straits Settlements (Singapore was another).
Upon the outbreak of war, he was granted a year’s furlough from the bank and on 14 September 1914 enlisted at Cheltenham Drill Hall into the 2nd Public Schools Battalion, which became the 19th Royal Fusiliers. He was aged 36 at the time but, perhaps fearing he would be considered too old, he stated his age as 30.
He was commissioned into the 10th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment on 23 December 1914 and went to France with the battalion on 8 August 1915. On 11 September he was promoted to Temporary Captain.
The 10th Glosters, formed part of 1 Brigade, 1st Division and at 6.30am on 25 September 1915, the opening day of the Battle of Loos, they went into action south of Bois Carre, attacking the German Front Line to the west of the Loos – La Bassee Road.
Despite being badly affected by the British gas blowing back into their trenches and intense German artillery and machine gunfire the battalion took the German Front Line and parties of men even reached the third supporting line. However, the advance was at great cost – 459 casualties in all.
What happened to Captain Moss is uncertain. There were reports that he had been wounded, suffered a direct hit by a shell and that he had been taken prisoner (which turned out to be false). He was never seen again and an identifable body never recovered. Consequently, he is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, Dud Corner and also on the Malacca War Memorial and the Singapore Cenotaph.
By way of another Gloucestershire link, in 1921 a faculty was granted for the placement of a memorial tablet to both Edward and his father, inside South Cerney Parish Church.
Loos Memorial, Dud Corner