J. L. Jennison photograph (copied with thanks from Yorkshire Indexers)
Remembering James Leonard Jennison, part of the Jennison family who ran Belle Vue Zoological Gardens, Manchester, who died 3rd May 1917 in the Vimy / Arras battles.
http://www.yorkshireindexers.info/wiki/index.php?title=JENNISON,_James_Leonard
Second Lieutenant J. L. Jennison served with the 15th Service Battalion (1st Leeds) (West Yorkshire Regiment) The Prince of Wales Own (The Leeds Pals).
James was the only son of James and Pauline Jennison (nee Mould) of Belle Vue, Manchester.
James entered Rugby School in 1909. He was awarded a Scholarship 1910, and obtained a Mechanical Science Scholarship at Trinity College Cambridge, in 1914. He left School in April 1915 and spent some months with Messrs. A. V. Roe & Co., Aeroplane Manufacturers.
He received his Officers’ Commission in January, 1916.
“After nine months’ service in France, during which he was recommended for a decoration for the capture, almost single-handed, of a German field gun, he was reported “Missing” in a small local attack at Gavrelle, Vimy Ridge, and later was presumed to have been killed in that action, on May 3rd, 1917, Aged 20 …
The gun that Jennison captured was sent to Leeds as a war trophy.”
From Jennison’s Yorkshire Indexers website entry
“Terrible indeed had been the losses of the 15th Battalion” on 3rd May 1917 (see postscript from their War Diary / Regimental History).
Second Lieutenant James Leonard Jennison has no known grave and is commemorated on the Arras Memorial to The Missing.
http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1574425/JENNISON,%20JAMES%20LEONARD
James Leonard Jennison was the son of James Jennison, one of the two Jennison brothers who owned Belle Vue Zoo.
His father James died later that year (1917), possibly hastened by this family loss. His cousin Norman, son of Angelo Jennison, also died on active service in Italy, 1918.
James Leonard Jennison and Ralph Stamp of Belle Vue Zoo are remembered on the Arras Memorial Wall amongst thousands of missing men with no known garves from this 1917 battle. (Image Source: CWGC)
Two of the ‘next generation’ died in WW1, members of the founding Jennison family who might have gone on to run Belle Vue Zoo, along with 17 other zoo gardens staff.
You can read more about them and the damaged Belle Vue Zoo war memorial in Gorton Cemetery, Manchester.
https://worldwarzoogardener1939.wordpress.com/2015/11/07/remembering-the-lost-ww1-staff-of-belle-vue-zoo-manchester/
Belle Vue Zoo in Gorton, Manchester closed in 1977/78. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belle_Vue_Zoological_Gardens
http://gortonphilipsparkcemetrywargrave.weebly.com/belle-vue-war-memorial.html
James Leonard Jennison and collegaues at Belle Vue Zoo and the Leeds Pals, remembered 100 years on, 3rd May 1917/ 2017.
Blogposted by Mark Norris, World War Zoo Gardens project, Newquay Zoo.
Postscript: 15th battalion War Diary / History (Page 65 – The-West-Yorkshire-Regiment-in-the-War-1914-1918-Volume-II)
Zero ” hour was 3-45 a.m. on the 3rd May 1917.
The 15th West Yorkshires (Lieut.-Colonel S. C. Taylor) numbered only 547 officers, N.C.O.’s and men when the battle opened, the battalion having to attack on a frontage of 250 yards from l.I.a. 9.9 to C.25 .a.6 .6.
“D” was right front Company with” A ” in support and ” B” left front Company with ” C” in support.
Each company went over in two waves of single line.
Battle Headquarters of the battalion were in the Cemetery, south of Gavrelle.
About 2 o’clock on the morning of 3rd the enemy appeared nervous and put down a very heavy bombardment on Gavrelle and its environments. For three-quarters of an hour he continued to plaster the village and the neighbourhood with shells of
all calibre, but all was quiet just prior to ” Zero. “
At 3-45 a.m. the British barrage opened and the troops at once went forward to the attack.
Up to 5-30 a.m. no information reached Battalion Battle Headquarters of what had happened in the front line …
at that hour wounded men began to dribble in, and from these it was learned that the first objective, an irregular line running through Gavrelle Trench, the Windmill and Windmill Trench, had been captured.
The attack had swept on towards the second objective, the line of Gavrelle and Windmill Support Trenches, but had been beaten back, and finally had had to abandon the first objective.
Definite news was, however, unavailable, and finally Colonel Taylor closed his Battle Headquarters, sent all his papers back and, with runners, signallers and all Battalion Headquarters’ Staff, manned the front-line parapet. Heavy fire was then opened on groups of the enemy’s infantry, who could be seen retiring, seemingly from trench to trench, over the top. All stragglers were collected and organised, and about 7-30 a.m. eighty men were available for the front line. But touch had been lost with flanking battalions on right and left; the trenches were therefore blocked and bombing parties stationed on each flank.
The Battalion Diary states that: “At this period it was quite evident what had happened. The battalion had got forward all right, and had driven back the enemy, but having no supports had lost all driving power, and the enemy, realising this, had turned on them and commenced organising to counter-attack.” The enemy, about 400 strong, could be seen advancing in extended order but an S.O.S. was sent up and the artillery soon broke up the threatened attack.
In answer to the C.O’s appeal to Brigade Headquarters for assistance, a platoon of K.O.Y.L.I. and two companies of D.L.1. were sent up, and these were used to reinforce the left flank of the 15th West Yorkshires, that flank being out of touch with the right of the 18th Battalion. Touch had, however, been obtained on the right
with the K.O.S.B.
About 8 p.m. the enemy opened a heavy bombardment, but the night was fairly quiet.
Terrible indeed had been the losses of the 15th Battalion.
Only three officers returned and reported to Battalion Headquarters,
and of these two had broken arms and the third was slightly wounded.
Capt. R. M. S. Blease and Capt. G. S. King, Lieut. D. Robinson,
Second-Lieuts. W. H. Jackson, F. W. Scholes, J. S. Thomas, A. S.
Parkin, J. L. Jennison, J . W. Lisle and A. T. Peek were killed;
Second-Lieuts. R. S. Tate and A. H. Riley were reported missing.
The total officer casualties was fifteen.
In other ranks the battalion had lost fifteen killed, 122 wounded and 262 missing, though during the night and early morning of 4th May 1917 a number of slightly wounded men crawled in from No Man’s Land.
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