George Edwin Ellison
 Pte. George Edward Ellison | |
| Birth name | George Edwin Ellison |
|---|---|
| Born | 1878 Leeds, England |
| Died | 11 November 1918 (Aged 40) Mons, Belgium |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service |  British Army |
| Years of service | ????-1912 1914–1918 |
| Rank | Private |
| Unit | 5th Royal Irish Lancers |
| Battles / wars | First World War |
George Edwin Ellison (1878 – 11 November 1918) was the last British soldier to be killed in action during the First World War. He died at 0930 hours (90 minutes before the armistice came into effect) whilst on a patrol on the outskirts of Mons, Belgium.
Biography
Ellison came from Leeds, England. Early in his life, he joined the army as a regular soldier, but had left by 1912 when he got married to Hannah Maria Burgan and had become a coal miner. Sometime just before the outbreak of war he was recalled to the army, joining the 5th Royal Irish Lancers, serving in the army at the start of the war. He fought at the Battle of Mons in 1914, and several other battles including the Battle of Ypres, Battle of Armentières, Battle of La Bassée, Battle of Lens, Battle of Loos, and Battle of Cambrai on the Western Front.
Ellison, stated to be aged 40, is buried in the St Symphorien Military Cemetery, just southeast of Mons.[1] Coincidentally, and in large part due to Mons being lost in the very opening stages of the war and regained at the very end (from the British perspective), his grave faces that of John Parr, the first British soldier killed during the Great War.[2][3]
He was survived by Hannah and a son, James Cornelius, just 5 days short of his fifth birthday when his father was killed. At least two grandchildren of his were alive as of 2008.[4]
See also
References
- ^ "Casualty Details: Ellison, George Edwin". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 13 November 2010.
- ^ John Lichfield, Two soldiers linked in death by a bizarre coincidence, The Independent, 8 November 2008. Retrieved 24 April 2011
- ^ "The Last Day of World War One". Timewatch. Season 2008-2009. BBC.
- ^ Michael Palin, The grandfather we never knew, BBC News, 29 October 2008. Retrieved 24 April 2011
Further reading
- Michael Palin, Remembering Private Ellison, BBC News, 29 October 2008. Retrieved 24 April 2011
- Peter Lazenby, Leeds soldier who was last to die in Great War, Yorkshire Evening Post, 7 November 2008. Retrieved 24 April 2011