The Vice-President at War

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Major John Simpson Foulkes

(b. 1890 in Stockport d. 1946 Liverpool)

Written and researched by David Bohl, with the kind help World War 1 historians world wide.

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J.S.Foulkes was born in Stockport 1890 and moved across to Liverpool with his parents, living in Sandringham Drive, Waterloo. He joined the King's Liverpool Regiment in 1908 as a Territorial and after the outbreak of war earned the 1914 Star in France.

He transferred to the Manchester Regiment as a Temp. 2nd Lieutenant early in 1915.

The 23rd (8th City) Battalion of the Manchester Regiment was raised in Manchester in November 1914 by the Lord Mayor and City as a Bantam Battalion, comprised of troops who were under the normal regulation minimum height of 5 feet 3 inches. After initial training close to home, they moved to Morecambe in December 1914. In June 1915 they joined 104th Brigade in 35th Division at Masham, North Yorkshire. The Division moved to Salisbury Plain for final training in August. They were ordered to Egypt in late 1915, but the order was soon cancelled and they proceeded to France in the last week of January 1916, landing at Bologne and the division concentrated east of St Omer. They were in action during the Battles of the Somme at Bazentin Ridge, Arrow Head Copse, Maltz Horn Farm and Falfemont Farm. The division received new drafts of men to replace losses suffered on the Somme, but the CO. soon discovered that these new recruits were not of the same physical standard as the original Bantams, being men of small stature from the towns, rather than the miners and farm workers who had joined up in 1915. A medical inspection was carried out and 1439 men were transferred to the Labour Corps. Their places being taken by men transferred from the disbanded yeomanry regiments, who underwent a quick training course in infantry methods at a Divisional depot set up specifically for that purpose. In 1917 they were in action during the pursuit to the Hindenburg Line, at Houthulst Forest and The Second Battle of Passchendaele.

[ The War Memories Project ]

The Battles of Ypres 1917 ("Third Ypres")

The award of the DSO which was Gazetted on the 26th September probably puts his heroics in one of the following battles:-

Phase: the Battle of Pilkem, 31 July - 2 August 1917

Phase: the Battle of Langemarck, 16 - 18 August 1917

Phase: the Battle of the Menin Road, 20 - 25 September 1917

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In early 1918 the army was reorganised and the 23rd Manchesters were disbanded in France on the 16th of February 1918 with the troops transferring to other units.
This officer qualified as a "Transfer to the RFC/RAF" from the 14th Manchesters. It would appear that he joined the RAF on 14.8.1918 and was stationed at RAF Eastchurch, Kent on the 13.7.1919., leaving that unit on 1.9.1919. It would seem too, that whilst at Eastchurch he graduated as a flyer..

Major Foulkes was present at the auction of the deceased officers kit and equipment and bought the following items:-
Sleeping bag £1
Trench coat with lining £2.10.0
Pair khaki breeches £3
Khaki tunic £3.2.6
6 packets Gold Leaf cigarettes 10 shillings
There were various other items sold and the total came to £31.16.6 which was handed to his next of kin.

[Manchester Regt forum]

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DSO History

The Distinguished Service Order was instituted originally to reward junior officers in the Army for distinguished service or acts of gallantry against the enemy. While the Order of the Bath had been available for senior officers and the Distinguished Conduct Medal for the other ranks, no award below the level of the Victoria Cross (VC) had existed for junior officers. The DSO was also made available to junior officers of the other services.