William Cochrane likeness

William Cochrane cap badgePrivate William Cochrane

1st Battalion Seaforth Highlanders
Service No: 225

William Cochrane grave

1641

0

4

0

11
Click here for a frameable A4 print
Personal details

Family Information

Son of James (1861 - 1951) and Mary Ann Hastings Cochrane (1863 - ). Williams older brother Sergeant John Cochrane of the 18th (Service) Battalion Highland Light Infantry was Killed in Action on the 25/03/1918 at the Somme. His brother-in-law Private George Cummings of the 12th (Service) Battalion Highland Light Infantry Died of Wounds on the 20/05/1916 aged 27. From the 1901 Census - Address - 9 Comet St, Bellshill - James Cochrane aged 40, Andrew Cochrane aged 13 and William Cochrane aged 11. Brothers - John Cochrane (1883 - 1918), George Cochrane (1885 - ), Andrew Cochrane (1888 - ). From the 1891 Census - Address - 27 Watsons Land, Coatbridge - James Cochrane aged 30, Mary Ann Cochrane aged 26, John Cochrane aged 8, George Cochrane aged 6, Andrew Cochrane aged 3, William Cochrane aged 1.

Born / Resided

Coatbridge / 37 Whifflet St, Coatbridge.

Died

Killed in Action on the 05/11/1917 at the Battle of Tikrit

Enlisted

Hamilton 1914

Employed

Clifton Iron Works / Reservist.

Age

28

Buried / Remembered

Basra Memorial (Panel 37 and 64), Iraq.

Cemetery / Memorial Information

The Basra Memorial commemorates more than 40,500 members of the Commonwealth forces who died in the operations in Mesopotamia from the Autumn of 1914 to the end of August 1921 and whose graves are not known.

Additional Information

In August 1914 the Battalion were in Agra, India and were part of the 19th (Dehra Dun) Brigade, 7th (Meerut) Division. On the 21/09/1914 William and the Battalion moved to France arriving at Marseilles on the 12/10/1914. They moved to Mesopotamia in December 1915 landing at Basra late in the month. Formation was by now renamed 21st Brigade, 7th Indian Division. On the 04/02/1916 owing to heavy casualties, they formed the Highland Battalion with 2nd Battalion Black Watch. On the 12/07/1916 they resumed their former title. The Battle of Tikrit, 05/11/1917 : Major-General Stanley Maude's forces in Mesopotamia continued to consolidate their position around Baghdad. General Allenby's offensive in Palestine meant that the Turks were unlikely to threaten Baghdad in the near future, but also gave the British the opportunity to strike at any Turkish forces that were retreating to consolidate their own positions. On November the 5th, they did just that near Tikrit. However, the Turks, despite being in the process of withdrawing, were able to put up a spirited defence, repulsing multiple attacks and inflicting heavy casualties with artillery and enfilading machine-gun fire. While the British eventually pushed through and secured the town, they took heavy casualties (1800 more than the Turks suffered), captured few prisoners, and found that the Turks had already evacuated or destroyed all useful war material in the town. Conditions in Mesopotamia defy description. Extremes of temperature (120 degrees F was common); arid desert and regular flooding; flies, mosquitoes and other vermin: all led to appalling levels of sickness and death through disease. Under these conditions, units fell short of Officers and men, and all too often the reinforcements were half-trained and ill-equipped. Medical arrangements were quite shocking, with wounded men spending up to two weeks on boats before reaching any kind of hospital. These factors, plus of course the unexpectedly determined Turkish resistance, contributed to high casualty rates : 11,012 Killed, 3,985 Died of Wounds, 12,678 Died of Sickness, 13,492 Missing and Prisoners (9,000 at Kut) and 51,836 Wounded. William was a Reservist and spent 2 years in India. See Directory for William's brother Sergeant John Cochrane and his brother-in-law Private George Cummings' pages. William is also remembered on the St. John's Church Roll of Honour (see photos). See photos for William's Medal Index Card, his Army Register of Soldiers Effects x 2, his Service Medal and Award Rolls, his CWGC Grave Registration, his name on the Basra Memorial Panel List, the CWGC Basra Roll of Honour x 3, William's name on the CWGC Basra Roll of Honour and the Seaforth Highlanders Cap Badge. Finally, see photos for Newspaper clippings x 3 (Coatbridge Express x 1, Coatbridge Leader x 1 and Airdrie and Coatbridge Advertiser x 1) and a photo of wounded Turks being tended at an Indian Advanced Dressing Station after the action at Tikrit on the Tigris river, Mesopotamia, November 1917. During the assault on a well dug-in enemy British, Sikh and Punjabi troops distinguished themselves.

Photos
William Cochrane Medal Index CardWilliam Cochrane remembered at homeWilliam Cochrane remembered at homeWilliam Cochrane remembered at homeWilliam Cochrane remembered at homeWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photoWilliam Cochrane additional photo

Creative Commons License

We have made this information and the images available under a Creative Commons BY-NC license. This means you may reuse it for non-commercial purposes only and must attribute it to us using the following statement: © coatbridgeandthegreatwar.com

Comments

There are no comments yet for Private William Cochrane. Be the first to leave one.

Do you have any information about or memories of Private William Cochrane that you would like to share?

Or even if you would just like to leave a message to say you've been here, please leave a comment below.

*Please note that all comments are verified by a moderator before appearing on the site. All fields are required except links to photos.