James was born in Aughton on 12th June 1885 and was baptised at St. Michael’s Church. He was the son of William and Anne Louisa and spent his childhood living in Scarisbrick. The family initially lived on Southport Road but afterwards moved to Pinfold and Midge Hall. James’ father was a farmer and James worked on his father’s farm as a labourer and subsequently as a horseman. James emigrated to New Zealand in 1912 and farmed at Fordell, near Wanganui. He enlisted with 2nd Battalion, Canterbury Regiment in February 1917 having been previously rejected due to an ear infection. The regiment was part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force that set sail for France and the Western Front, arriving in September 1917 (less than 3 weeks before his death). …show more content…
Commonwealth forces had made little progress due to fierce opposition and heavy rain turning the battlefield into a muddy quagmire. The New Zealand Division became involved on 4th October when they attacked Gravenstafel Spur. Having advanced a thousand metres through deep mud they secured their objective and took more than a thousand prisoners. This encouraged the high command who resolved to push on immediately. On 9th October an attack by British and Australian troops was intended to open the way for the ANZAC Corps to capture Passchendaele, but in rapidly deteriorating conditions it failed with heavy casualties. Artillery movements in preparation for an attack on Bellevue Spur on 12th October, the day of James’ death, were held up by mud and were not completed in time. Artillery support was therefore ineffective. Enemy barbed wire and machine-gun posts were left untouched and some of the Allies’ shells dropped short onto the New Zealand