Lt John Jones Savin was mentioned in an earlier post on the formation of 16 Corps Cyclist Battalion (09/12/2016). It was a name I was familiar with, having read the war diary of 28th Divisional Cyclist Company many times. The post notes how Lt Jones Savin and a number of NCOs returned to the base depot, not being required in the new cyclist battalion and with that, I must admit, I didn’t give him a further thought. Afterwards I was pleased to hear from Nigel Birch, who has researched Jones Savin for the magazine of Merchant Taylors’ School, where he was a pupil. He completed his story which, tragically, was cut short just a few months later with his death on the Doiran front with 11/Royal Welsh Fusiliers.
‘Our fellows got a devil of a mauling from rifles and bombs attempting to fight their way out. Survivors bring back the news and another patrol organised to bring in the missing. They too, by worse luck are ambushed and suffer considerable loss. A black day in patrol records…’
Lieutenant John Savin Jones Savin was killed in action on 27 March 1917 and is buried in Karasouli Military Cemetery (grave reference D. 879). He is commemorated at St John’s College, Oxford and his death was reported in a local paper as follows:
Close by is the grave (D.873) of another young officer of 11/RWF who died the following day (28/03/1917), Second Lieutenant David Jeffreys Meecham, a native of Swansea.
Salonika Campaign Society, 1915-1918 