PITT, William

William Pitt was the youngest of the three sons of the Pitt family who lived at 2 Hall Street, Oldswinford. He attended Oldswinford CE School and was later employed by Thomas Wood of Hall Street. William Pitt was one of the early volunteers, enlisting on the 9th September 1914 in the Warwicks in the 15th (Service) Battalion, the 2nd Birmingham Pals. They crossed to France and soon joined the 5th Division, a pre-war regular Division, which had been involved in all the main battles since the retreat from Mons in 1914. In 1915 it was involved in the 2nd battle of Ypres and in 1916 it played a major role in the later stages of the Somme at High Wood, Gillemont and Morval. Already in 1917 it had fought at Vimy Ridge and Arras. In October it came into line for Third Ypres. In appalling rain and mud it attacked on the 9th October, the first day of the battle of Poelcapelle and was then engaged in the final advance on the village of Passchendaele. The attack of 26th October started yet again in rain but the German defences were stubborn. The advance gained a few more yards of mud but Private William Pitt was killed in action. He was 22 years of age and is commemorated on the Tyne Cot, Stourbridge, Oldswinford church and Oldswinford C of E School Memorials. His brother, Claude, was in the South Staffordshire Territorials and on 20th December 1917 died of wounds sustained in the battle of Cambrai. Another brother was in the Motor Transport section of the Army Service Corps but survived the war.