1/4th Battalion, Duke of Edinburgh’s (Wiltshire Regiment)
William George Andrews was born at Harnham, near Salisbury, Wiltshire in 1886 (he was baptised on 26 December of that year).
His parents were George (who died in 1917, aged 70) and his wife Mary Jane who died in 1904, aged 59). The 1911 Census records that they had seven children of whom only three were surviving at that time.
In 1911 William was employed as a domestic gardener and living at 10 Harnham Road, Salisbury, along with his widowed father, then aged 64 and employed as a roadman with the local council.
Very little documentary evidence has survived of William’s Army service. There is a Medal Index Card, which records that when he originally joined the Wiltshire Regiment he was given the number 4109. The 1/4th Wiltshires was a Territorial Force (TF) unit and in early 1917 all men serving with TF units were given new six digit numbers and William’s became 202032. The actual Medal Roll notes that he was discharged as NLPF (ie No Longer Physically Fit (for war service)). Following discharge, he was awarded a Silver War Badge (SWB) to denote his previous military service and the SWB records show that he enlisted on 10 December 1915 and served until 12 April 1918.
The 1/4th Wiltshires served in India from November 1914 until February 1917, when they transferred to Egypt (as part of 233 Brigade, 75 Division).
Other than the above, nothing further is known about Private Andrews or what connection he had with Cheltenham, where he came to be buried. There does not appear to be a particularly strong connection with the town or the surrounding area and he is not named on the town’s war memorial. The website findagrave.com states that he died of tuberculosis but this has not been verified (in the absence of sight of a death certificate).
He died on 25 October 1919, about eighteen months after discharge, aged 32. His grave in Cheltenham Cemetery is marked by a standard CWGC headstone.
It is possible that he married a Constance Finnimore in 1914 but this fact cannot be confirmed with any certainty.
Researched by Graham Adams 26 April 2020