1/4TH   BATTALION
Alexandra,  Princess   of   Wales's   Own
YORKSHIRE   REGIMENT

Telegrams of the day reporting A/Capt Alan Goring missing and then taken prisoner.
[All the items on this page have been kindly contributed by his Great Nephew Richard Marshall of Gerrards Cross, Bucks.]
A/Capt Alan L Goring MC.

A/Capt A L Goring was taken prisoner on May 27th 1918 at Craonnelle when the whole 150th Brigade was decimated on the River Aisne.
See page 61 of this website for the details.
He had been awarded the Military Cross for previous service as shown in the newspaper cutting below. This also shows how men and particularly officers were frequently moved from unit to unit to replace the huge losses that were being suffered in the early months of 1918.




Leaving Buckingham Palace after receiving the Military Cross.
An example of the telegram that was received by families at the time reports on the 8th of July that A/Capt Goring is missing on the 27th of May.

And a telegram dated the 11th July that confirms the Germans treated officers well by allowing a postcard to be sent not long after his capture confirming that he is a POW.


A/Capt Goring survived the War. The only facts known about him are the few memories recorded by his niece.

"I can’t remember much about my father in my very young years – in fact I can remember my Uncle Alan [A/Capt Goring] better. He was the apple of Nannies eye. He had been taken prisoner during the war – he ended up as a captain and won the M.C. – she was immensely proud of him. He was married in our Bedhampton church – I think I can just remember his wedding. His wife’s name was ‘Olive’ - but we always called her ‘O’. Nannie didn’t like her much – she came from a small village called Shrewton (in Wiltshire?) and had been a NAAFI girl during the war. They had a flat in Havant so we saw quite a lot of them.
During the war my mother contacted Uncle Alan again. Anyway, I was very happy to hear from him again. He couldn’t get into his old regiment and joined the RAOC and finished up in Egypt as a Lt. Colonel. He wrote regularly and he was Moose’s godfather, as he was mine. Once he got home we lost touch again. I think ‘O’ wouldn’t let him write. I’ve tried several times to find him, Red X, Salvation Army etc., but never had any luck. He’d be over 100 now anyway!"


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