Albert James Chattings was the husband of Eliza Chattings of Number 9, Stafford Street in Dudley.

Thankfully, Albert's attestation papers survive, and they tell us that he was born in Netherton and had joined the 2nd Worcesters in March 1905 at the age of 19; it seems he had previously joined the Army but had purchased his release, and it is not known why he decided to join once more. 

Originally joining on a Short Service engagement, comprising three years with the Colours and a further nine years with the Reserves, this time he found Army life to his taste and he changed his engagement to nine and three respectively.

The 1911 census finds Albert with his battalion on Imperial duty in Jhansi, India; he subsequently left the Army in March 1914. 

As a pre-war Regular, he had seen service in Ceylon and the East Indies, where he'd fallen prey to the usual diseases and infestations to be found in such parts (full details are available to read on his papers which can be found on a popular genealogical website - if you are not squeamish!) 

Albert married his fiancée, Eliza, on the 22nd of March 1914 and was recalled to the Colours on the outbreak of the war. He was in France within the week, serving with the 3rd Battalion in 'B' Company. As it had been only a few months since he left regular service, he would still have been physically fit and would be an efficient soldier. Many other recalled Reservists, who had enjoyed the fruits of civilian life for several years, were in no state to embark on operational service and would spend several weeks at the Regimental Depot regaining their physical fitness.

Albert was killed in action on the 5th of July 1916, during the fighting for the Leipzig Salient in the Battle of Albert (the opening phase of the seemingly never-ending Battle of the Somme); according to a contemporary newspaper report, quoting a letter from the battalion’s chaplain, he was bringing rations up to the front line when he was killed by a shell.

Albert James Chattings is buried in the Military Extension to the communal cemetery at Bouzincourt, a small village to the north-west of Albert on the road to Doullens. The personal inscription on his headstone reads: “THY WILL BE DONE”. 

Albert's papers contain some interesting correspondence: in June 1914 he was asked to explain why the name on his Marriage Certificate, "Albert James Chattins," was different to that on his military records, "Albert Chattings."

Albert gave the entirely reasonable explanation that he had never spelled his name with a “g”, and the only time he spelt it that way was when ordered to do so when signing his Discharge papers. He was also unaware that he had a middle name until told by his mother that he had one, when he got married.

It would appear that when Albert joined the Army in 1905, the forms were completed erroneously by the recruiting Sergeant. The Army’s response was that he would have to sign his name with a “g” from now on. In support of his assertion, his Birth documentation is spelt "Chattin," as indeed was the first 'In Memoriam' notice, posted by his widow in the Dudley Herald. However, bowing to the inevitable, all subsequent 'In Memoriam' notices are spelled “Chattings”.

Albert left behind a widow and a young daughter, May. He is remembered on the walls of Dudley's civic war memorial in Priory Street.

(This story is based on his entry in the book “Dudley’s 1914-1918 War Memorial and the Men commemorated – 2nd Revised & Expanded Edition” by J. B. E. Hale. The book is published by Amazon, and there is also a Kindle version available.)