Thomas was one of the many thousands of men who volunteered as soon as war was declared in August 1914. He arrived in France in May 1915 with the Royal Berkshire Regiment.

After coming under very heavy shellfire he was admitted to hospital in France with neurasthenia, or ‘shell shock’. His condition did not improve, so in October 1915 he was sent back to the UK.

A medical board eventually discharged him from the army in May 1916. Sadly, Thomas never fully recovered, dying in December the following year from the consequences of his service. Thomas was married to Mary Ann Hatton of Caversham, Reading.

Thomas’s Great Grandson, Mark Knight was undertaking family research and discovered Thomas was listed on the Caversham War Memorial. After much research, Mark then discovered that Thomas had been laid to rest in Caversham Cemetery.

Initially it was intended that the Commission would be responsible for the graves of those who had fallen in battle, but over time it became clear that many of those who died after returning home were also casualties of the war. However, CWGC was often not notified that recently discharged soldiers had died of wounds or sickness contracted during their service.

Mark contacted the CWGC to investigate Thomas’s case. Subsequently, it was agreed that Thomas had died of illness and injuries during his military service and therefore qualified for official commemoration. Thomas’s final resting place has now been marked with a CWGC headstone and his name has been added to the CWGC Roll of Honour so that he will be remembered by the Commission in perpetuity.