Dignitaries gathered as the military band heralded Julian<\/em>\u2019s arrival. The event was part of the \u2018tank bank\u2019, a nationwide tour to raise funds for the war effort through the sale of war bonds and savings certificates. Children queued up to donate pennies, and towns competed to raise the most money. Over \u00a32 million was donated \u2013 a vast sum for the time.\u00a0<\/p> Driving the tank in Walsall that day was retired teacher David Stokes\u2019 relation George Harrington, a decorated war hero whose valour could have been forgotten had it not been for David\u2019s enthusiasm for genealogy.<\/p> \u201cGeorge is my first cousin once removed<\/a> on my father\u2019s side,\u201d David explains. \u201cI knew a lot about Mum\u2019s family, thanks to the research of Sue Bentley, the wife of my cousin Roy on my mother\u2019s side. My dad Sidney was a reticent man, and what I knew of his extended family could be summed up in five sentences. It was like shining a light into darkness.<\/p> \u201cI was born in Walsall, West Midlands, and the trail there led to my great grandfather James Stokes, a remarkable man who started out as a blacksmith. He set up a buckle-making business, ran two pubs, and bought a large amount of property.\u201d<\/p> In 1848, James married Sydonia Gnosill and they had 11 children, including David\u2019s grandfather Frank Stokes and his great aunt<\/a> Paulina. In 1878, Paulina married George Harrington and a year later they had a son, also named George \u2013 our future tank hero.\u00a0<\/p> David discovered that George had a difficult start in life. \u201cIn 1892, Paulina died of a heart condition at the age of 40. For the previous decade, she had lived with her parents James and Sydonia at the Crown and Malt Shovel pub in Walsall. Paulina and George senior had separated when George was an infant, In 2019, David began researching James Stokes using the collection of old newspapers<\/a> on Findmypast<\/a>. \u201cWhat I discovered was totally unexpected and amazing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p> The 12 December 1914 issue of the Walsall Observer<\/em> mentioned James\u2019 name, but he wasn\u2019t the main subject of the article. The headline read, \u201cRecommended for DCM: Sergt-Major Twice Mentioned in Despatches.\u201d\u00a0<\/p> \u201cThere was a small photograph of a man in uniform, with dark hair and sporting a wide moustache. It was George Harrington \u2013 James\u2019 grandson, Paulina\u2019s son and my father\u2019s cousin.<\/p> \u201cThe article explained that George had returned from the Western Front after being wounded in the foot. He was a regular soldier in the Durham Light Infantry, and had served \u2018sixteen years in the colours\u2019.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cI\u2019m a real First World War<\/a> buff, and have been on four tours of the battlefields with my pupils. This was before I discovered George. To find out that there was a war hero in our family was a total surprise.<\/p> \u201cA friend of mine, Edward Wild, is very interested in the First World War and the Durham Light Infantry. Edward mentioned that George\u2019s war record might be online, so I had a look on Findmypast. There it was, many pages of records covering George\u2019s 21-year career as a soldier. I was astonished.\u201d<\/p> George joined up in 1899 when he was 20 years old. That year the Second Boer War<\/a> broke out and George was sent to South Africa, where he saw action over three years and suffered a leg injury. He was mentioned in dispatches for bravery and awarded the Queen\u2019s South Africa Medal.\u00a0<\/p> His battalion spent a year in India<\/a> before returning to Britain, where George attended courses, gained certificates and was swiftly promoted to sergeant.\u00a0<\/p> However, it wasn\u2019t all plain sailing. \u201cGeorge and the peacetime Army didn\u2019t know what to make of each other,\u201d David reveals. \u201cA remarkable war record from October 1913 reads \u2018Quick-witted. Rose to rank of Colour Sergeant, but did not prove himself equal to the responsibilities of that rank. Unreliable.\u2019<\/p> \u201cAnother document states that in 1913 he was court-martialled<\/a> for drunkenness. It\u2019s amazing to reflect that these damning words were written less than a year before his remarkable feats of bravery on the Western Front.<\/p> \u201cSearching through George\u2019s war record, I discovered that the newspaper report I had read was right. In 1915, he had been awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal<\/a>, or DCM. The citation was \u2018for conspicuous gallantry on September 20, 1914, at Troyon, valley of the Aisne, in voluntarily rescuing wounded men under heavy fire. The following morning, he went out to the enemy trenches at dawn and brought back information of great value to our artillery.\u2019 \u201d<\/p> George survived this mission by hiding beside the bodies of dead men, some of which had been there for three weeks.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cIt\u2019s hard to imagine the danger of George\u2019s mission at Troyon, or to describe his bravery. I was so proud to read that he had received a DCM, which is second only to the Victoria Cross when it comes to military decorations.\u201d\u00a0<\/p> In July 1915, George\u2019s battalion was posted to Hooge, in the Ypres Salient. By this time he had been reinstated as a sergeant-major. A hellish battle raged around an old ch\u00e2teau at Hooge where the German forces deployed flame-throwers for the first time. According to a report in the Walsall Observer<\/em>, George \u201cdistinguished himself by special work\u201d during the attack, although it cost him dearly.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cHe had 15 pieces of shell removed from his head after Hooge, and was quoted as saying that there were still some very small bits left. He knew he was lucky to be alive.\u201d<\/p> George spent most of 1916 in Britain where he must have undertaken training. He returned to the Front as a driver in the newly formed Tank Corps.<\/p> \u201cIn July 1917, the company was in the Ypres Salient, preparing for the Battle of Passchendaele. As usual, George was at the forefront of the action.\u201d<\/p> Tanks had proved successful in previous battles, but they remained unreliable and were liable to break down. George\u2019s tank soon ran into problems.\u00a0<\/p> A newspaper report stated that \u201calthough wounded in head and leg, he [George] assisted while under fire in fixing the unditching gear, and carried on with his duties with great coolness and energy. Although in considerable pain, he volunteered for all work and kept up the spirits of his crew.\u201d Following Passchendaele, he was awarded the Military Medal, which recognised acts of gallantry in battle on land.<\/p> Discovering such a wealth of detail has helped David to build a picture of George the man. \u201cCoolness under fire, volunteering for dangerous tasks, leading from the front \u2013 these were the qualities he displayed as a sergeant-major. He risked his life time after time.<\/p> \u201cGeorge was a regular, an \u2018old sweat\u2019 who was a veteran of armed combat. Men like him made up the heart of the British Army, and they were vital in leading inexperienced young officers and soldiers. He seemed to thrive on the intensity of war, and it brought out the best in him.\u201d<\/p> In November 1917, George returned to Britain with comrades from the Tank Corps to join the propaganda drive. The Tank Weeks were f\u00eated occasions, and the crowds were entertained by acrobats, marching bands and sporting events. The vehicles would demonstrate their powers by driving over obstacles created for the occasion.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cGeorge must have been so proud to drive Julian<\/em> before the excited crowds in his home town of Walsall. Their arrival was described in the Walsall Observer<\/em>. \u2018Out sprang the crew \u2013 Sgt Harrington and two men\u2026 grimy and perspiring, and no doubt glad to escape from the hot and foetid atmosphere of Julian<\/em>\u2019s bowels.\u2019 Pride of place was given to \u2018gallant Sgt Harrington\u2019.\u201d<\/p> George left the British Army in 1920, and his references spoke a very different language to that of 1913. He was \u201cof very good character. Performed very meritorious service. Highly spoken of for his work as RSM\u201d (regimental sergeant-major).\u00a0<\/p> \u201cGeorge\u2019s life becomes misty after the war, although he worked as a \u2018pensioner recruiter\u2019 for the Army and applied to join the St John Ambulance in 1939. He died of tuberculosis in 1941 at Walsall Manor Hospital<\/a>, where I was born seven years later. His uncle Charlie Stokes was with him when he died.\u00a0<\/p> \u201cIt\u2019s a pity that no one in the family knew of George\u2019s bravery, and that there is no memorial to him in Walsall. I hope that will change one day. However, when I consider Company Sergeant-Major George Harrington DCM, MM, the most important thing to say is that his mother would have been proud of him.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>![\"Black](\"https:\/\/c02.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/52\/2024\/04\/Tank.jpg\")