MOD Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre – The NEN

Graves of two unknown World War 1 officers ‘named’ 111 years after their deaths

The previously un-named graves of two officers who gave their lives during World War One have been identified in Belgium. Captain (Capt) Gordon Cuthbert of Sunbury, Middlesex, and Lieutenant (Lt) Leslie Harvey, originally from Windsor, both served with 1/8 Battalion Duke of Cambridge’s Own, Middlesex Regiment and both died near Ypres on 25 April 1915.

Two ‘unknown soldier’ headstones have been replaced with ones bearing the names of the men who lay there after investigation work by the MOD’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC), also known as the ‘War Detectives’.

Rededication services for Capt Cuthbert and Lt Harvey were organised by the team, and services were held for Capt. Cuthbert at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s (CWGC) Tyne Cot Cemetery and for Lt Harvey at Sanctuary Wood Cemetery yesterday (29 April 2026).

JCCC Caseworker, Alexia Clark, said: “I am grateful to the independent researcher who put such a lot of effort into discovering the stories of these two men, and the records behind the un-named graves and who ultimatly submitted the cases for their identification.

“Their work has led us to recognise the final resting places of Captain Cuthbert and Lieutenant Harvey, and to restore their names to them.

“It has been a privilege to have contributed to these cases and to have organised the services of rededication today.”

Captain Gordon Cuthbert

14 August 1876 – 25 April 1915

In 1894, Gordon Cuthbert joined the London Rifle Brigade, and he was gazetted 2nd Lieutenant in the 2nd Volunteer Brigade of the Middlesex Regiment in February 1900. He transferred to the Territorial Reserve in 1908 and was appointed captain in command of the Twickenham Company in 1911.

On the outbreak of war in August 1914, he rejoined the Middlesex Regiment and proceeded to Gibraltar for garrison duty until February 1915 when he was sent to northern Europe. He was killed on 25 April whilst leading a storming party which retook a trench near Ypres. In the chaos of war immediate burial was impossible, and following the war Gordon’s name was added to the Menin Gate Memorial to the missing in Ypres.

In 1920 the body of a Captain of the Middlesex Regiment was recovered on the southern side of the Ypres-Roulers railway line – his rank and regiment were determined from elements of his uniform, but his personal identity was impossible to tell and so he was buried as an unknown Captain at Tyne Cot Cemetery.

Detailed research has now allowed the unknown Captain to be identified as Gordon Cuthbert.

Military personnel salute, and Standards are dipped, as Last Post sounds at the service for Captain Cuthbert (Crown Copyright)

Lieutenant Leslie Harvey

3 January 1884 – 25 April 1915

Leslie Harvey joined the Inns of Court Officer Training Corps, and on the outbreak of war volunteered immediately, being given a commission in the Middlesex regiment on 28 August 1914. Leslie was sent to Gibraltar with the regiment in October 1914 and was promoted to Lieutenant in February 1915. Following a short period of leave in England he was sent to France, in late February – early March 1915.

By April 1915 Leslie had reached Belgium and was engaged in fighting in the Zonnebeke area. On 25 April 1915 he was killed whilst leading a bayonet charge. Although he was buried by his men at the time – near a railway crossing – the records of his grave were lost and following the war he was named on the Menin Gate Memorial to the missing at Ypres.

In early 1929, the body of an unknown Lieutenant of the Middlesex Regiment was recovered from a location just south of the Ypres-Roulers railway – identified by a shoulder title, and his badges and buttons. It was impossible to determine his personal identity, and he was buried as an unknown Lieutenant at Sanctuary Wood Cemetery, alongside two other men recovered at the same place and time.

Archival research has now connected this unknown Lieutenant to Leslie Harvey and allowed us to identify his final resting place.

Padre Victoria Day leads the service for Lt Harvey (Crown Copyright)

The services today were supported by serving soldiers from the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment and led by Padre Victoria Day of 26 Royal Engineer Regiment.

The headstones were replaced by CWGC.

Polly Brewster, Commemorations Case Officer at CWGC, said: “On the 25th April 1915, Captain Gordon Cuthbert and Lieutenant Leslie Harvey were engaged in fierce fighting near Ypres and made the ultimate sacrifice.

“It feels very poignant that 110 years later, almost to the day, we are now able to commemorate them by name at their final resting places. The Commission will continue to care for their graves in perpetuity, ensuring that they can rest in peace and dignity, their sacrifice remembered.”

Three members of RAF Lancaster crew buried in The Netherlands

A burial service was held in The Netherlands on Thursday for three previously missing WW2 RAF Airmen – crew members of Lancaster ED 603 – which was tragically shot down over the IJsselmeer in The Netherlands, resulting in the death of all seven on board

Members of the airmen’s families, and of the Dutch military were present for the service (Crown Copyright)

Relatives of three Royal Air Force airmen gathered in The Netherlands yesterday to witness their burial with full military honours, 82 years after they were killed in action during the Second World War.

Pilot Officer Charles Sprack DFM (Distinguished Flying Medal), Pilot Officer Arthur Smart DFM, and Pilot Officer Raymond Moore DFM were laid to rest at Workum (Spoardyk) General Cemetery, following the recovery of their remains from the wreckage of AVRO Lancaster MkIII ED603. The aircraft crashed into the IJsselmeer near the village of Workum on the night of 12/13 June 1943 during a bombing raid on Bochum, Germany.

The Ministry of Defence’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC), known as the ‘MOD War Detectives’, organised the service in collaboration with Dutch authorities and organisations supporting the National Programme for the Recovery of Aircraft Wreckage with Missing Crew.

The excavation, funded by the Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, was featured in a national documentary titled ‘Guy Martin’s Lost World War Two Bomber’, highlighting the scale and significance of the operation.

Of the seven-man crew aboard ED603, four were recovered and buried shortly after the crash. The remaining three Sprack, Smart, and Moore were listed as missing and commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial.

In 2023, their remains were recovered and now they have been laid to rest alongside two of their fellow crew members. DNA testing was not required, as it was confirmed that three bodies were recovered. They were buried together in a single coffin with full military honours.

Mrs Gail McCord, Niece of Pilot Officer Smart said: “Today was closure for the families, it is nice all three crew have been laid to rest together – they flew, served and died together. We would like to thank the RAF King’s Colour Squadron for supporting the burial today.“

The military party pictured with the new headstones for the three airmen (Crown Copyright)

Tracey Bowers, MOD War Detective, said: “It is lovely so many family members have made the journey to see their relatives laid to rest.

“Working with the many organisations in The Netherlands is always a pleasure and we are grateful for all the help that has been given to us.”

The service was conducted by The Reverend Dr (Wing Commander) Philip Wilson and included readings chosen and delivered by family members. The RAF King’s Colour Squadron provided the bearer party.

Padre Philip Wilson said: “All of the three Airmen had over 40 sorties in Bomber Command and we have laid to rest young Aviators of valour whose sacrifice won our freedom. It was an emotional farewell.

Head of Commemorations at the Commonwealth War Graves CWGC, Dr James Wallis, said: “It is an honour for the Commission to have facilitated the reuniting of three crew members from Lancaster ED603 with two of their fellow crew historically buried in Workum (Spoardyk) General Cemetery.

“Enabling adherence to our principle that war dead should, where possible and practical, be buried with their comrades, we are grateful for the support from municipal authorities in making this happen.

“We will now care for these graves in perpetuity – indeed, today’s ceremony speaks to the shared work of ensuring that those who gave their lives in both world wars continue to be remembered.”

Soldier of World War 1 buried with Full Military Honours

The remains of Private (Pte) John Tame of 2nd Battalion The Royal Berkshire Regiment were laid to rest on 8 May in Belgium, nearly 108 years after his death

The burial service for Pte Tame was organised by the MOD’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC), also known as the War Detectives, and took place at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s (CWGC) New Irish Farm Cemetery.

The service was supported by serving soldiers from 2nd Battalion The Rifles and was attended by Keith Brooks, the great nephew of Pte Tame, who aided JCCC by providing the DNA sample used to identify him.

Keith Brooks said: “John and his brothers Alfred and William have been remembered by the family from just photographs and vague memories from those who have now long passed.

“Now, after finding John’s remains, he is more than just a distant photograph. This has made him more real along with his story for future generations.

“This has all been achieved because of the excellent work the MOD do with all the research and investigations, giving missing people who have served their country the funeral they all greatly deserve.”

Pte Tame was identified after his remains were found during road works at Zonnebeke near Ypres in May 2018. Nearby artefacts included a cap badge and shoulder title of The Royal Berkshire Regiment.

The body also appeared to have been previously wounded around his left shoulder, which led to DNA matching confirming his identification.

Pte Tame was from Windsor, Berkshire, and the third-eldest of 7 children. His elder brothers Alfred and William George also enlisted and served with 2nd Battalion The Royal Berkshire Regiment which, though stationed in India at the outbreak of the World War 1, arrived on the Western Front on 5 November 1914.

John’s brothers Lance Corporal Alfred Tame and Corporal William George Tame were both killed on 9 May 1915 during the Battle of Aubers Ridge. They are still missing and are commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial.

On Friday 9 May, the 110th anniversary of their deaths, the family of Pte Tame and a party from 2nd Battalion The Rifles visited the Ploegsteert Memorial to remember his missing brothers.

Soldiers of 2nd Battalion The Rifles visited the Ploegsteert Memorial with Keith Brooks to remember Private Tame’s brothers, killed 110 years ago today (Crown Copyright)

JCCC Caseworker, Rosie Barron said: “It has been an honour to work with The Rifles to give Pte Tame the full military funeral that he deserves and to have conducted the research which led to his identification.

“It has also been a privilege to meet Keith, and to have shared this experience with him and his family.”

The grave will now be cared for in perpetuity by CWGC.

Commemorations Casework Manager at the CWGC, David Royle, said: “It is an honour to have been involved in the research that led to the formal identification of Private Tame and to have assisted his family with their choices for his Commission headstone.

“He is now at rest alongside his comrades in New Irish Farm Cemetery, where we will care for his grave in perpetuity.”

The service was conducted by the Reverend Stephen Cassells CF, Chaplain to 2nd Battalion The Rifles. Reverend Cassells said: “I count it a privilege to be involved in the proper burial of Pte Tame.

“It is right that his remains should be laid to rest with dignity and in a place where his service will be properly honoured.

“I pray that his family will find peace in knowing that their relative has been found and buried properly and that those connected with his army regiment would draw renewed commitment through his service for King and country.”