PHILLIPS, Benjamin

Benjamin Phillips was the son of Emmanuel and Louisa Phillips of 15 Fletcher Street, Wollescote, and attended Wollescote school. He was a member of the Bethel Chapel and a tee-totaller. He was employed by Charles Willetts of Cradley and volunteered for the Worcesters in 1914. He joined the 9th (Service) Battalion, which spent the next few months in training and was then sent out to Gallipoli to break the stalemate against the Turkish forces on the peninsula. They landed successfully at Suvla Bay on the 6th August and on the 8th attempted to seize the crest of the ridge. Turkish defence was fierce and, though close by the 10th, the Worcesters were driven back by the defenders. Private Benjamin Phillips was killed in action on this day, just four days after he had arrived. He was 18 years of age and is commemorated on the Helles, Lye and Wollescote, Lye church and Wollescote school Memorials. His brother, Bert, was killed in 1918.