06 October 2022
Great War Black officers’ stories you need to know
It’s Black History Month and to celebrate the huge contribution black people made to the Great War, we’re shining the spotlight on some officers you may be unfamiliar with.
World War One Black Officers
Who were the black troops of World War One?
The British Empire stretched to every corner of the globe at its height. Colonies were established in the Caribbean and all over Africa.
A mixture of conscription and volunteering lead to thousands of black troops from these regions joining the war effort. Their contributions ranged from transport and logistics services, such as in the South African Labour Corps, to frontline troops.
Did you know that over 15,000 West Indian troops volunteered and fought in key engagements around the world? Whether it was on the Western Front, Middle East or battles in Africa, black troops were there.
We’ve selected three black officers to shine a spotlight on their contributions to World War One.
Lieutenant Euan Lucie-Smith
Image: Euan Lucie-Smith
Jamaican-born Euan Lucie-Smith holds the unique distinction of being the first British officer of mixed background to die in World War One.
Euan came from a distinguished background. His father, John Barkly Lucie-Smith, was Jamaica’s postmaster, while Euan’s grandfather served as an attorney, solicitor, and member of the House of Assembly.
Before the breakout of war in Europe in July 1914, Euan had been commissioned into the Jamaica Artillery Militia so already had some experience leading men before his exploits in France.
At the onset of the war, Euan joined the Royal Warwickshire Regiment. He reached England in 1914 and trained on the Isle of Wight before joining the 1st Battalion of his regiment on the continent on 17th March 1915.
In just over a month, Euan was in action. It would be his first and only time.
The Royal Warwickshire’s War Diary for 24-25th April 1915 reads: “Orders were received to advance at 4 pm [on the 24th] via Vlamertinghe and halted outside Ypres from 8 pm to midnight. Started to rain. Ypres was heavily shelled and on fire.”
Such terrible visions of war had become commonplace along the Western Front. Battlefields had turned into charnel houses, full of mud, blood, and wire.
At 4.30 am the Warwickshires were given the order to attack the fiery landscape. As with many attacks it proved costly in human terms and its gains were limited.
The Royal Warwickshire war diary describes the action: “We attacked the wood on the left of the line with the 7th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, the Seaforth Highlanders, Royal Irish Fusiliers, Royal Dublin Fusiliers, attached to our right on St Julien.
“Owning to the German trenches being insufficiently shelled and support unable to come up the line retired at about 7 am to trenches near the farm. Our casualties were very heavy: 17 officers, 500 other ranks, killed, wounded, or missing.”
Unfortunately, Euan was amongst the 17 officers listed as casualties during the attack. According to the Royal Warwickshire war diary, Euan was recorded as “Missing, probably killed.” An eyewitness report suggests Euan died after being shot in the head.
By the time of his death, Euan had reached the rank of Lieutenant, one of the first black officers to serve during World War One.
Euan’s service also inspired his brother, John, to join up. John served as a Second Lieutenant with the Royal Field Artillery 47th Brigade, eventually rising to the rank of Lieutenant. Unlike his brother, John survived the war, with his service running from November 1915 to the end of the war.
Euan’s body was never recovered. He is commemorated on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial alongside more than 50,000 other missing Commonwealth soldiers who fell fighting in and around the Ypres Salient.
Second Lieutenant George Edward Kingsley Bemand
Image: George Bemand
Like Euan Lucie-Smith, George Bemand was born in Jamaica to a British father and a Jamaican mother. By 1908, his father George Sr. had returned to England, and his mother, Minnie and her four children joined him.
The Bemands’ journey took them from Jamaica to New York and finally across the Atlantic to England.
Interestingly, George and his family made the journey aboard the Lusitania, which was famously sunk carrying US citizens by German U-boats in May 1915.
George attended Dulwich College before moving to University College London to study engineering. Amongst his peers, George was known as a good cricketer and “a cheery soul, always inclined for a joke.”
Following the outbreak of war, George spent the Autumn of 1914 at the University of London Officer Training Corps. His training took him to Grantham, Lincolnshire, and following its completion, George was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery.
George took on more training at the School of Artillery at Larkhill on Salisbury Plain. After a quick period of leave to visit his family, George took up his posting in France in late 1915.
During his time on the continent, George served in an ammunition column during the Battle of the Somme. His unit helped keep the artillery guns equipped with ammunition. For context, the British army alone fired 1.5m shells in the week before the 141-day battle commenced. George and his men had a tough, unforgiving, dangerous job, but one that was essential for the battle plan.
George was transferred to a Trench Mortar Battery in October 1916. A fellow officer described George’s work as “dangerous and lonely, though extremely important”. In this role, George gained praise for his remarkable courage under fire.
December 1916 came around and George was looking forward to heading home on Boxing Day to see his family. Unfortunately, his leave was cancelled.
A second wartime Christmas in France beckoned. It would be George’s last.
On 30th December 1916, George’s mother Minnie received a tragic telegram. It read her eldest son, George, had been wounded in action on Christmas Day 1916.
Despite being wounded, George stayed on duty. His unit was ordered to keep a bombardment up on the enemy’s frontline trenches. George was killed during a spate of counter-battery fire on 26th December 1916.
Writing to his mother, George’s commanding officer wrote: “Your son 2nd Lieut. G.E.K. Bemand was serving under me in this battery & he was in action yesterday when a German shell got a direct hit on the dugout in which he and one of my Corporals were sheltering.
“Both your son and the Corporal were killed immediately I am very sorry to say. Will you please accept the very deepest sympathy of the whole battery, officers, and men?
“He was a fine fellow and a brave and fearless soldier, always most cool and exemplary under fire. My best officer, I feel his loss very much.”
George was taken behind the lines to be buried. The makeshift cemetery where George was laid would eventually grow into Le Touret Military Cemetery where he and over 900 fellow Commonwealth servicemen are buried.
Lieutenant David Louis Clemetson
Image: David Louis Clemetson
David Louis Clemetson was also born in Jamaica, this time the son of an ex-slave and plantation owner Robert.
Robert was freed by his father, who owned the plantation on which he worked, and inherited his estates. As such, David and his family were part of the Jamaican elite and afforded many opportunities usually unavailable to black or multiracial people.
David was studying law at Cambridge University when Britain declared war on Germany. He was amongst the first Jamaicans to voluntarily enlist. David’s cousin Cecil was at home, attempting to recruit his fellow countrymen to serve abroad.
Drawing on his background as a keen rugby player, David joined the Sportsman Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers. Known for their motto “tough as nails”, The Sportsman Battalion demanded soldiers over 6ft and an athletic build. David fit right in. He didn’t just play rugby; he was a cricket devotee and rowed at Cambridge.
David was transferred to the Pembroke Yeomanry in early 1915 to become an officer.
He would have a varied wartime experience that ultimately ended in tragedy. His unit was posted to Egypt and fought at the Second Battle of Gaza.
While on service in the Middle East, the Pembroke Yeomanry was subject to extensive artillery fire.
This proved too much for David’s nerves. He was struck down with “shell-shock”, what we would now call Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and evacuated to a military hospital in Malta. While there, David was declared physically fit but in need of psychiatric care.
David was then sent back to Britain aboard the Dover Castle hospital ship. After a day at sea, the ship was struck by a U-boat torpedo and sank off the coast of North Africa in May 1917.
Fortunately, David was rescued. However, he was diagnosed as suffering from “neurotic depression” and “stress of service” and was invalided to Craiglockhart psychiatric hospital in Scotland. While at Craiglockhart, David underwent therapy alongside his fellow officers, including famous war poet Wilfred Owen.
While being treated, David received a letter in July 1917, informing him he had been promoted to Lieutenant.
David returned to the frontline in March 1918, this time serving on the Western Front.
David was killed near Péronne on the Somme in September 1918. The war was just 52 days away from ending at the time David died. He is buried, alongside 1,000 or so other Commonwealth servicemen, at Unicorn Cemetery, Vendhulle.
The CWGC Non-Commemoration Report
For almost two years the CWGC Non-Commemoration team has been working hard to address historical inequalities in how our war dead were commemorated during the organisation's early days.
Our team continues to work to address and rebalance these historical inequalities. Read more about their work today and learn more about how we’re pursuing equality for all our war dead.