40982 Private
17th Battalion, (Rosebery) Royal Scots, 106th Infantry Brigade, 35th Division
Age: 32
Date of Death: 30.9.18
Buried: Tyne Cot Memorial Panel 11 to 14
Family history: Son of Mrs Margaret Langley, 133 Lumley Street, Grangemouth. At the time of the 1911 Census John was working as a labourer in a chemical works in Denny. He was a lodger staying at Broodline Cottage, Denny.
Recruitment - Bantam Battalions
The 17th Battalion, Royal Scots was a bantam Battalion. The War Office attempted to assert some form of control over the recruiting process by implementing new height requirements for those enlisting. The limit had previously been 5ft 3in on 8 August and this was raised to 5ft 6in. The age limit was also raised from nineteen to thirty years to a new upper limit of thirty five years. This change resulted in 10,000 men being rejected on arrival at their units and it is clear this had an effect on recruitment. In October the War Office lowered the height limit to 5ft 4in and further extended the age limit to thirty-eight years, and for former soldiers to forty-five years. In November, they dropped the height again this time to 5ft 3in and in July 1915 to 5ft 2in and extended the age limit to forty years. The first Bantam battalions began to appear in November 1914, one of which was the 17th Battalion, Royal Scots which was also one of the seven ’Pals’ Battalions recruited in Scotland.
The action leading to his death
During the night 29/30 September orders were received for an attack by the Brigade on the northern outskirts of Werviq. The War Diary records the events:
Medals Awarded
Victory Medal, British War Medal
