Monday 27th July 1914

Gilbert and Geraldine Tunstill arrived in St Petersburg; they would remain in Russia until 11th August. The Tunstills witnessed at first hand the preparations of the Russians for war and this clearly made a major impression on Gilbert. On his return to England, he would begin his campaign to raise a Company of 100 men to volunteer to serve together in the army.

Richard (known as ‘Dick’) Bolton celebrated his twenty-second birthday; he was to become one of Tunstill’s original fellow officers with ‘A’ Company, 10^th Battalion, Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding) Regiment.

Dick Bolton is also the source of many of the photographs which accompany this account as he kept his own collection of photographs and was also given, at some point, a further collection which Gilbert Tunstill himself had assembled. Together these two albums have been invaluable in ‘re-building’ the story of “Tunstill’s Men” and I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Henry Bolton for his generosity in allowing me to use and make reference to the collections.

Dick Bolton had been born on 27^th July 1892 at 6a, The Square, Fairfield, Droylesden. He was the second of four children born to Henry Bolton and his wife Lucinda (nee Lee). Henry was a cotton manufacturer and bleacher and the family continued to live in Droylesden, with Dick attending Hulme Grammar School, until 1904 when they moved to The Grange, Elslack, nr. Skipton. Dick then attended Ermysted’s Grammar School in Skipton from September 1904; he represented the school at rugby and was described as, “An honest worker in the scrummages; fast in the loose, but passes badly”. On leaving school he worked alongside his father in the family business. His mother, Lucinda, died on 20^th December 1910 and was buried at All Saints Church, Broughton-with-Elslack.

Dick Bolton (circled) as a private soldier with other territorials.

Dick joined the 6^th (Territorial) Battalion West Riding Regiment as a private soldier and, in September 1911 applied, successfully, for a commission. For the next two and a half years he served as 2^nd Lieutenant including a one-month secondment to a regular battalion. However, he had resigned his commission in February 1914 “simply for business reasons”.

Dick Bolton (circled) as 2nd Lieutenant with 6th West Riding territorials