No.5829967, Fusilier, Ernest Charles BRIDGEMAN
Aged 24
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Ernest Charles Bridgeman was born in Soham in 1919,(Newmarket Q3-1919 3B:662), son of Robert Henry and Sarah Elizabeth BRIDGEMAN (née BADCOCK).
CWGC have his age wrong, he was 24, not 30 years old. In he 1939 register, at Qua Fen Common, Soham were his father Robert H BRIDGMAN [11-6-1888] general land labourer; his mother Sarah [4-9-1888] and brother Kenneth R [13-9=1928] There is one closed record. |
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The 1st battalion, Royal Fusiliers were part of the 17th Indian Infantry Brigade. These Indian Brigades had one British battalion and two native (one possibly
a Gurkha) battalions On 18th October the 17th Indian Brigade relieved a British brigade at Larino, 4 miles SE of the river Biferno (which runs SSE of Termoli on the Adriatic sideof Italy). On the night of the 20th October 2 companies of Royal Fusiliers crossed the river Biferno and seized the high ground north of the river. They spent the next three days working patrols forward towards the river Trigno, only encountering sporadic patrols of the enemy. On the 22nd only Ernest Bridgeman is recorded as dying of the Royal Fusiliers, but it is not currently known if he had been wounded earlier or killed in action that day. It is more than likely he was wounded earlier and died in one of the many hospitals around Bari, since there is a large War Cemetery at Sangro nearer to the action. |
River Trigno and Biferno locations
photo: Commonwealth War Graves Commission
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