Monday 2nd December 1918

Billets at Arzignano

At some point whilst at Arzignano (the precise date is unknown) the Battalion celebrated the Armistice; in the words of Pte. Harold Charnock (see 23^rd November), “Here we had a Victory Dinner followed by a performance of ‘The Dumps’ (the Divisional concert party) in the local theatre”. Pte. Charnock also recalled that, “The education scheme was started here and quite a number of men attended.  There was a daily ceremonial Guard Mounting in the square”. In the words of the official Divisional History, “Military training was not made strenuous, but no relaxation in the smartness of drill or soldierly turn-out was allowed; the strong esprit de corps of the units of the Division was alone sufficient to maintain this. But it was felt that the opportunity should also be taken to replace training for war by preparing men for their future struggle in civil life. It was to this end that the Education Scheme was introduced. Battalion, Brigade and Divisional Education Officers were selected and classes held to give the instruction which the younger men had missed owing to the war. Lectures were arranged on various subjects”.

Pte. Albert Edward White (see 5^th September) was briefly admitted to hospital (details unknown).

Pte. Alfred Fishlock (see 22^nd June) departed on two weeks’ leave to England.

CSM Albert Blackburn DCM (see 15^th November) and Ptes. Albert Greenwood (see 27^th October), Arthur Holden (see 27^th October) and Herbert Unwin (see 27^th October) all of whom had been wounded on 27^th October, and Charles Walton (see 11^th September), who had been wounded on 11^th September, were evacuated to England. CSM Blackburn was fit enough to be posted to Northern Command Depot at Ripon; Pte. Holden would be admitted to Bradford War Hospital and Pte. Walton to the Scottish National Red Cross Hospital, Bellahouston. The details of admission for both Ptes. Greenwood and Unwin are unknown.

Ptes. Ernest Jones (see 29^th October) and John James Pickering (see 20^th November), both of whom had been wounded on 29^th October, were evacuated to England; on arrival in England Pte. Jones would be admitted to Chester War Hospital and Pte. Pickering to 1^st Western General Hospital, Fazakerley, Liverpool.

Pte. Tom Lister Ellison (see 20^th November), who had been suffering from influenza, was evacuated to England; on arrival he would be admitted to the Military Hospital in Lichfield.

Sgt. John Whalley (see 2^nd November), who was under treatment for an abscess to his abdominal wall, was evacuated to England from 57^th General Hospital in Marseilles, onboard the Hospital Ship Grantully Castle. On arrival in England he would be admitted to a Military Hospital near Nantwich.

Pte. George Bernard Hardy (see 6^th August 1918), serving in France with 2DWR, was discharged from one of the convalescent depots at Etaples and posted one of the Base Depots (details unknown).

Capt. Frank Redington MC (see 11^th April), who had been taken prisoner while serving with 25^th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps, was repatriated to England.

L.Cpl. Joseph Simpson (see 21^st September), serving in England with 14^th Training Reserve Battalion at Welbeck, was formally transferred to 52^nd (Garrsion) Battalion, Notts. and Derbys. Regiment.

The London Gazette published official notice of the award of the Distinguished Service Order to Capt. John Edward Lennard Payne MC (see 25^th November), awarded for his part in the events of 26^th August. There was also notice of the award of a Bar to the Military Cross, arising from the same action, to Capt. Dick Bolton MC (see 22nd November), and of Military Cross awards to 2Lt. Keith Sagar Bain (see 26^th November), 2Lt. William Johnson Simpson (see 5^th November), 2Lt. Wilfred Frederick John Thomson (see 26^th November), 2Lt. Mark Allan Stanley Wood (see 20^th November) and A/CSM Frank Shelah Gilleard (see 14^th September).