British Airmen-Watou Churchyard

Watou Churchyard. Authors image

Watou Churchyard was used at intervals from April 1915 to April 1918. The village was well behind the front lines and much of the 18th and 19th century buildings are intact. The village was used for billeting troops as well as the many camps and dumps that surrounded the village. The troops were entertained with theatrical shows and other entertainment. Today, every July the Watou arts festival takes place. The region around Watou was termed by the local population as de Vrije Vaderland (Free Fatherland) which allowed the civilian population to move around and agricultural work to continue under Allied control. The current church is 16th Century Gothic that replaced the original 12th century Romanesque church with the brick section of the nave and the lower part of the tower the remnants of the original 12th century church.

Watou Churchyard has the grave of one British Airman.

Sgt Albert John Clayton. Authors image

Royal Flying Corps

5781 Serjeant Albert John Clayton, 20th Squadron and 1st Battalion King’s Royal Rifle Corps. Killed in action 26 April 1917, age 33. Grave 3. He was the oldest of two sons and a daughter of William and Harriet Clayton, of "Woodrow Lodge," Redditch Road, Studley, Warwickshire. He was married to Ellen on 25 December 1911 and she died on 27 March 1915 from tuberculosis. He was working as a Labourer when enlisted in January 1904 age 21 in the King’s Rifle Corps on a Short Service. This meant serving three years with the Colours and nine years in the Reserve. The 1911 census lists him as working as a Cycle Worker. On the declaration of war he rejoined his Regiment and was posted on 3 December 1914 on Home service and went to France on 11 March 1915 and was promoted to Sergeant on 2 December 1915. He was wounded, gunshot wound to the hand on 29 July 1916. He was due for discharge but was retained in the service under the Military Service Act on 5 January 1917 and joined the RFC on 24 March as an Aerial Gunner with the rank of 2nd Class Air Mechanic and died of wounds, gunshot wound to the thorax, on 26 April 1917. He was flying in an FE2d (A6393) piloted by Lieutenant  F D Stevens in a combat patrol. April 1917 became known as Bloody April with the RFC losing 245 aircraft and 211 aircrew killed or missing. The FE2d was a two seater fighter-reconnaissance aircraft and replaced the FE2b in 20th Squadron in June 1916 and this was replaced in September 1917 by the Bristol fighter. The Squadron was part of the RFC 2nd Brigade working with 2nd Army in the Ypres sector and its tasks included offensive patrols, photography, reconnaissance, and bombing by day and night. One of the combat victories of 20th Squadron that was most notable was that accredited to Second Lieutenant Woodbridge on 6 July 1917, who was the first British airman to wound Manfred von Richthofen when a 20 Squadron patrol was attacked by Richtofen Jagdgeschwader 1. Albert’s younger brother Arthur was to be killed in action on 24 August 1916 and is listed on the Thiepval Memorial.