Driver Thomas Norman Bliss

Thomas was born in Camberwell in 1896. His father Thomas Richard Bliss was employed as a Stereo Electrotyper, probably for a printing company. In1891 before her marriage, Thomas’s mother Martha (nee Mitchinson) had been a Scullery Maid in the household of Augustus Fitzroy, 7th Duke of Grafton, at Wakefield Lodge. It was a large property, and Martha was just one of 47 servants.

In 1901 the family were living at 4 Graces Road, Camberwell. Thomas was aged 4, and his younger sisters were Jessie 3, and Marie aged 2. By 1911 the family had moved to the Mitcham area, at 9 Boscombe Road, Tooting, a modest 5 roomed house. The family had grown to include Alfred 9, and Horace aged 3. Thomas was now aged 14 and employed as an errand boy for a printer, possibly working alongside his father. The family later moved further along the road to 17 Boscombe Road, where they were living when Thomas enlisted with the army.

Thomas enlisted in Camberwell with the Royal Horse Artillery and Royal Field Artillery. He joined the 39th (Deptford) Divisional Artillery which was raised as part of Kitchener’s Army. He was a Driver with the Ammunition Column and would have been responsible for two horses in a six horse team driving the wagons. Recruited in Deptford, the unit served with the ‘Pals Battalion’ of the 39th Division. Deptford held a farewell parade for the 39th DA on Blackheath on 24 September 1915 and the units marched to Aldershot where the 39th Division was assembling for training. It is not know when Thomas enlisted, but in 1915 he would have been 18 years of age, and it is possible he was part of the parade.

The brigade would have seen action at various battles, including the Battle of the Somme (1 July – 18 November 1916), Third Battle of Ypres (also known as Passchendaele – 31 July – 10 November 1917) and the Battle of Avre (4 - 5 April 1918) during the German Spring Offensive. The Battle of Avre was described as ‘one of the finest artillery stories of the whole war’. After this battle, Wikipedia records that “the 39th Divisional Artillery withdrew to new positions to support the Australians at the ‘First Battle of Villers-Bretonneux’ during which the gunners caused considerable casualties on the German side. After a brief respite, the 39th DA came under renewed heavy bombardment on 8, 9 and 11 April, and by 13 April when the unit was relieved, they had lost 330 men of all ranks and 250 horses.

Thomas was one of those men who lost their lives, as he was killed in action on 12 April 1918. He is buried at the Adelaide Cemetery, Villiers-Bretonneux and is commemorated locally on the Mitcham War Memorial.

After his death, Thomas’s father received his last pay of £11.6.8 plus the War Gratuity of £13.10. The family continued to live in Tooting until Martha’s death in 1926 and Thomas Snr’s death in 1936.