De Ruvigny Roll of Honour Vol 3 page 174

Wedding Photograph of the Liddle Family 1903

Newcastle Journal Monday 21/12/1914

Northern Echo Monday 21/12/1914

Liddle Headstone West End Cemetery, Darlington

Alix Oliffe Liddle was born in 1889 at Darlington, son of James [born, 1849, Sadbergh, died December 28 1930 in Middleton Tyas, North Yorkshire], and Frances nee Middleton, [born 1848 Colchester, died March 27 1942]. His father was a domestic coachman to the Peases of Hummersknott, for many years.

His brothers were Sidney Middleton, Bertram, William [Percy] Percival, and Arthur Raymond, sisters Frances Mary (Gainford), Winifred Annette (Bailey) and Rose Elizabeth, (unmarried).

In 1891 he was at Tees Grange Cottages, Darlington.

In 1904 Alix was living at Hummersknott Lodge, Carmel Road, West Cemetery, Darlington.

He was employed as a clerk in the accountants’ office of Pease and Partners, and worked at 92 Northgate office, in Darlington.

In the 1911 census, Alix, on his own, age 22, had moved out of the lodge and was boarding with Mrs Mary Brownless, a widow, 49 years of age, Arthur Main, 18 years of age, railway Clerk and F. Val Brownless, age 16, unemployed, in Elms Cottage, Darlington.

On the 27th April 1914, Alix married at Holy Trinity church Clara Main, the daughter of an engineer, and they went to live in Sylvan Grove, off Linden Avenue, in Darlington’s West End.

Alix was an accomplished bell ringer at St Cuthbert's in Darlington, and he is remembered on the St Pauls Ringing to Remember Roll of Honour.

On the 16th December 2014, "A plethora of ringing took place on Tuesday 16th December 2014 to commemorate the life of Darlington ringer Corporal Alex Oliffe Liddle and the Hartlepool Bombardment. The St Cuthbert's Darlington band rang a commemorative quarter peal of 1260 Plain Bob Triples in memory of Corporal Liddle." Source: Darlington and Stockton Times, June 2015, Issue 1.

Alix enlisted in September 1914, and on the 16th November 1914, orders were received to send two companies to Hartlepool, under the command of Major F. T Tristam. The Commanding Officer only chose those who had fired a course on an open range. The detachment entrained at Leamside and proceeded to Hartlepool, being billeted at Hart Road.

Later, one company moved to Old Hartlepool. The work mainly consisted of providing guards at various tactical points and places of importance. This included the improvement of the trenches. On December 15th Colonel P. H. Hammond, who was in command of the Tyne and Tees Defences, received information from the War Office of the probability of a raid by enemy warships on the East Coast on the following day at about 8.30am.

The trenches were manned as usual and the rest of the detachment stood to.

Most unfortunately, one of the first rounds burst near one of our guards which was being relieved, and the Battalion suffered its first casualties, losing 5 Killed and eleven wounded, of whom one died later.

One of these 5 killed was Alix. The other four were, Lance Corporal C. S. Clark, Private Theo Jones, Private L. D. Turner and Private Walter Rogers.

[Wounded at the time were Lance-Corporal H. A. Scott, Private Thomas Rutherford, Robert Garratt, J. A. Simpson, L. A. Robinson, R. B. Brown, G. J. Wanless, J. W. Dees, Thomas Minks, D. Lamb, and G. H. Powell.] Newcastle Journal Friday, 18/12/1914. Some of the wounded were taken to the RVI at Newcastle.

Private Walter Rogers from Bishop Auckland, was in the act of covering over Alix Oliffe Liddle body, when he got hit by shrapnel in the chest. He died just over three hours later.

Acknowledgements: S. Nicholson

The caption for the wedding photo reads Frances Mary Gainford, Winifred Annette Bailey, William (Percy) Percival Liddle, James Liddle, Joseph Gainford, Rose Elizabeth Liddle, Frances Mary Liddle, Alix Oliffe Liddle and Arthur Raymond Liddle. Wedding of Joseph Gainford and Frances Mary Liddle.

Thanks to: Alison Claire Brown and Michael Gainford

Alix Oliffe Liddle is included in a list of Bellringers in St.Paul's Cathedral.

Alix Oliffe Liddle is remembered in Newcastle NUT098, at West Hartlepool in W111.77, also in Darlington on D40.034, in D40.039 page 6, D40.041 and D40.067 and at Durham in D47.013d page 333

Durham & Newcastle Diocesan Association of Church Bellringers
Heugh Gun Battery
Liddle Family Tree
The Northern Echo story The North East Remembered
The CWGC entry for Acting Corporal Liddle