ROLLASON, Arthur Gilbert

Arthur Rollason was the son of Arthur and Mary Rollason, of Dixon's Green, Dudley He attended Denstone College, Staffs, where he was a member of the Officers' Training Corps. He worked as an Articled Clerk in his father's office in Birmingham and was training to be a Solicitor. He joined the Worcester Territorials and entered on a military career, being commissioned in 1910 as 2nd Lieutenant in the 1/7th Battalion. He was promoted Lieutenant in 1913 and after the declaration of war in 1914 the Worcesters were on coastal protection duty. They moved to the Western Front in April 1915 and started training in trench warfare near Armenti?res. He was soon promoted to Captain and in May the battalion moved to Ploegsteert and on July 20th travelled by rail to the front line in the Somme sector. When they arrived the weather was cold and wet and they were obliged to bivouac in the Bois de Warnimont. It was a miserable experience and there were several casualties from exposure. After what must have been a minor action Captain Arthur Rollason went to a Field Ambulance where he died of wounds, complicated by appendicitis on the 30th July. He was 23 years of age and is buried in Louvencourt Cemetery (I B 22) and commemorated on the Dudley and St. John's, Kate's Hill, Dudley, Memorials. He was a regimental colleague of Lt Roland Leighton, fianc? of Vera Brittain. Roland Leighton is buried in grave I B 20.