Corporal Charles William Bridges
Corporal Bridges was born in Lincolnshire, he along with is family appear on the
1911 census living at 49 Beach Lane, Bawdsey.
Charles then aged 17 was employed as a farm labourer, working with cattle,
sadly the census does not tell us who he worked for.
Charles lived with his father, Charles, mother Frances, they had three children
other than Charles, John, Alice and Cyril.
Charles joined the Norfolk Regiment and was killed in action just two weeks
before the Armistice, on 21st October 1918. He is buried at Le Cateau Highland
Cemetery in France.
The Commonwealth War Grave Commission records the following details about
le Cateau Highland Cemetery, “After the Battle of Le Cateau (26 August 1914),
the town remained in German hands until the middle of October 1918.
The original cemetery (Plot III) was made by the 50th (Northumbrian) Division
after the fighting of 17 October; the name of Highland Cemetery is suggestive at
once of the comparatively high ground on which it stands and of the 32 graves of
the 13th (Scottish Horse) Battalion, Black Watch, found in this plot. The cemetery
was greatly enlarged after the Armistice when graves of October and November
1918 were brought in from isolated positions on all sides of Le Cateau.
Highland Cemetery now contains 624 First World War burials.
The cemetery was designed by Charles Holden.”