Born: 27 January 1995
Died: 1 July 1916, Somme
Buried:
Address: Police Station, 22 Bromet Place, Eccleshill
Parents: John & Emma
Spouse:
Siblings: Alfred, John, Fred, Lillian, Arthur, Evelyn, Edwin, Frank
Occupation: Parcels Office, Bradford Tramways
Organisations/clubs:
Military
Rank: Signaller
Medals/awards:
Rolls of Honour: Eccleshill, Park & St Luke’s; Thiepval Memorial
Children:
Regiment: 1/6 West Yorkshire
Robert Helliwell
On 14 May, 1915, The
Shipley Times & Express
published a story which
read:
Police Sgt Helliwell of
Bromet Place, Eccleshill
received a letter from his
son Robert who is
signaller in the 6th West
Yorkshire on the front
line.
‘I suppose you will know
by now that we have
been in the trenches. I
was just behind the real firing line
at headquarters in a dug-out,
working the phone, which is a
pretty safe job unless a wire gets
broken.
‘Now the worst thing about being
at headquarters is that they are
generally shelled by the enemy. As
soon the first shell dropped in the
yard of the
farmhouse where we
were stationed we
got into the dug-outs
or “funk holes” as
they are called.
‘Once inside you are
fairly safe for rifle
shots seem to be
nothing after shelling.
‘Though the
Germans were only
about 150 yards
away, we hardly ever
saw one all the time but we were
only in the trenches for 24 hours.
‘I have seen one or two of the
tramway drivers since I came out
here and they were surprised to
know that the 6th were on the field.
‘We can purchase papers two
days after publication but they
charge three times the ordinary
price for them.
‘The weather out here has been
lovely and you may guess how
warm it is when I tell you we have
all had to cut our trousers just
above the knee. That has proved a
very good idea.
‘We were soon dubbed the
“Bradford Scottish” so we gave our
christeners exhibitions of the sword
dance. The novelty soon grew
stale and no one seems to note the
difference now.
‘As things are now there seems to
be a good prospect of getting back
to the old spot safe and sound.’
A further report, published on 11 February
1916, gives a vivid picture of life on the front
line:
Signaller Robert Helliwell, who has been with
the 1/6 West Yorks at the Front for 10 months,
has now completed his enlistment term as a
“Terrier.” He has volunteered again and is now
at home on a month’s leave before rejoining
his regiment.
In relating some of his experiences to an
Express representative, he said his regiment
was sent to the Front on April 15th of last year.
On one occasion four of them were wading
through mud and water to get back to their
billets and when they had reached dry land
once more they made the discovery that the
last one of the party had disappeared.
The three went back to see what had
happened and they found him stuck in the
mud at the bottom of the trench. They tried to
release him but it took nine of them over an
hour to get him out and even then his long-
legged boots and socks had to be left still
sticking in the bottom of the trench.
One of their men was buried three times by
the parapet of the trench being blown in by
shells but each time he was dug out with all
speed and was able to resume his duties.
The aeroplane duels provide them with
excitement. Once a British machine was
being pursued by a German Taube. They
darted up and down in the air like swallows
and as the machines were coming nearer
and nearer to the German lines it looked as if
the British machine was coming to grief.
When the hostile aeroplane was just behind
the other, the British pilot let of a stream of
gas or liquid which caught the pursuing pilot
full in the face and the British machine made
good its escape amid the ringing cheers of
the excited Tommies who had watched the
contest.
The pluck of a Bradford surgeon is worthy of
note. One of the men had received terrible
injury to one of his legs by the bursting of a
shell and to save his life an operation was
necessary immediately.
A surgeon was telephoned for and on arriving
performed the operation under shell fire and
was awarded the military cross for his
bravery.
A member of the 1/6 West Yorks had the
proud record of being the first in the 49th
Division to earn the D.C.M. and now the
battalion have the additional honour of one of
its members being the first to be awarded the
V.C.
There are at least ten men belonging to this
battalion who have been decorated with the
Distinguished Conduct Badge.
His most dangerous work was that of having
to repair the broken telephone wire while a
bombardment was in progress.
Two months later, another article
appears and with hindsight we
know that Robert was talking
about the preparations for the
Battle of the Somme:
After acknowledging his grateful
thanks for a parcel, L Cpl Robert
Helliwell, who is with the 1/6 West
Yorks at the Front, says: “We are
all out of the trenches at present
and are going through some very
severe training to be ready for
open warfare. Before long we shall
be having another go at them.
“It is just a year ago today since
we left England. Since then we
have been to many places which
we had little knowledge of before
the war began.
“What strikes me most are all the
fresh faces that are to be seen on
parade now, for they are almost
entirely different from those which
left Gainsboro.
“Alas! This is the price of war. I am
glad to say that my brother and I
are going on very nicely.”
But Robert’s luck was to run out
on the first day of the Somme,
one of 19,240 British soldiers to
die that die. The news was
broken to his parents in a letter
from his brother Alfred:
‘Our regiment has had some
terrible fighting this last few days
and we have had to so a lot of
bayonet fighting.
‘You will perhaps have guessed
now what I am trying to tell you. I
got with our Bob in the fight and I
saw him kill three Germans and
then we got the order to retire. We
were just getting into our own lines
when Bob was hit. He had no pain.
‘He said; “Tell mother and father
not to take it too much to heart for
the sake of the others. I have done
my duty.” He was buried by the
Rev R Whincup of Windhill.’
Within six weeks, Alfred was dead
too.
