Charles Robert Old

  General Notes:

In Memory of
CHARLES ROBERT OLD
Rifleman
20560
4th Bn. 3rd, N.Z. Rifle Brigade
who died on
Thursday, 7th June 1917. Age 22.
Additional Information: Son of Robert and Susie Old, of Pukeokahu, Taihap e, Wellington.


Commemorative Information
Memorial: MESSINES RIDGE (N.Z.) MEMORIAL, Mesen, West-Vlaanderen, Belgi um
Location: The Messines Ridge (New Zealand) Memorial to the Missing is sit uated within Messines Ridge British Cemetery, which is located 9.5 kilomet res south of Ieper town centre on the Nieuwkerkestraat, a road leading fr om the Rijselseweg, N365, which connects Ieper to Wijtschate, Mesen a nd on to Armentieres. From Ieper town centre the Rijselsestraat runs fr om the market square, through the Lille Gate (Rijselpoort) and directly ov er the crossroads with the Ieper ring road. The road name then chang es to the Rijselseweg. Nieuwkerkestraat is a right hand turning from the N 365 in the town of Mesen. The memorial lies 250 metres after this right ha nd turning, on the left hand side of the road. The Memorial consis ts of a circular rubble wall, five feet eight inches high, built round a m ound on which the Cross of Sacrifice is erected. It is approached by a pav ed path and steps, at the top of which is a covered seat. The names of ov er 800 soldiers of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force are recorded on Por tland stone panels let into the circular wall, and on the back of the shel tered seat is the dedicatory inscription: HERE ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OF O FFICERS AND MEN OF NEW ZEALAND WHO FELL IN OR NEAR MESSINES IN 1917 AND 19 18, AND WHOSE GRAVES ARE KNOWN ONLY TO GOD. A short distance south-we st of the village, on the road to Ploegsteert, stands The Battle Exploit M emorial which was erected by the New Zealand Government. It takes the fo rm of a white stone obelisk surrounded by a small terrace and garden, a nd was unveiled by the King of the Belgians on the 1st August, 1924.


Historical Information: The New Zealand Division spent the winter of 1916 -17 on the Lys, within sight of Messines; and they took their part in t he long and methodical preparations for the Battle of Messines. From the m iddle of May to the 6th June, raiding, bombardment, tunnelling and the imp rovement of communications went on incessantly. On the early morning of t he 7th June, the II Anzac, IX and X Corps attacked; and by the morni ng of the 8th, 7,200 prisoners, 67 guns, the villages of Messines and Wyts chaete and the Oosttaverne Line had been taken. The New Zealand Division a ttacked on the North side of the Douve river, with the 25th Division on th eir left flank and the 3rd Australian Division on their right. The II Anz ac Corps Mounted Troops took part in the attack; they consisted of t he II Anzac Corps Mounted Regiment (one squadron of which were New Zealand ers) and the New Zealand Cyclist Battalion. The Rifle Brigade, on the righ t, took La Petite Douve Farm; the 2nd Brigade took the Moulin de L'Hospic e, Birthday Farm, and the Au Bon Fermier Cabaret. The supporting battalio ns of the two Brigades cleared the heavily fortified village of Messin es by 7 o'clock, capturing its Commander and his staff in the dug-outs und er the Institution Royale. The 1st Brigade came through, and captured Blau wen Molen and Fanny's Farm. By 3 O'clock in the afternoon the Division's i mmediate task was done, and the 4th Australian Division continued the adva nce. At a cost of 3,700 casualties the Division had captured 438 prisoner s, a howitzer, 10 field guns, 39 machine guns and 13 trench mortars. On t he night of the 13th-14th June the attack was renewed, and ground was gain ed in the direction of La Basse-Ville; and fighting continued until the e nd of June, when the Division went into rest until the middle of Jul y. On the night of the 26th-27th July, the Hawkes Bay Company of 2nd Welli ngton attacked and cleared the village of La Basse-Ville, but on the 27 th it withdrew after severe fighting with superior forces. On the morni ng of the 31st July the village was regained and held by 1st Auckland a nd 2nd Wellington. At the end of August the Division withdrew to the Seco nd Army rest area at Lumbres. It had carried out every task allotted to i t; and it now prepared for the fighting at Gravenstafel and the Bellevue S pur, which is summarised in the Register of the Tyne Cot (New Zealand) Mem orial. A brigade of the New Zealand Field Artillery, the Cyclist Battali on and the 2nd Entrenching Battalion served in this area in April, 191 8, in the Battles of the Lys, and some of their dead at that time are nam ed on this Memorial.

  Noted events in his life were:

• Military: Missing in Action WWI. Served as Rifleman, NZ Rifle Brigade 4th Bn 3rd N Z E F, Bef 7 Jun 1917.