A WELL DOCUMENTED PAIR AND PLAQUE TO PRIVATE ERNEST EARP TOMPKINS- ESSEX YEOMANRY-KILLED IN ACTION ON 18th AUGUST 1918-WITH HIS ACCOUNT OF BEING WOUNDED AT MONCHY-LE PREUX

British War and Victory Medals,named to:
1899 PTE.E.E.TOMPKINS.ESSEX YEO
Bronze Memorial Plaque, named to: ERNEST TOMKINS.
Medals good very fine, on original ribbons,plaque in good order.
80704 Private Ernest Earp Tompkins,Essex Yeomanry, was killed in action on 10th August, 1918.The Son of Herbert W.and Martha Tompkins of 8, Cromer Road, Southend. He lived at Southend and enlisted at Colchester. He is buried at The Warvilliers Churchyard extension.Research with the group shows that he was attached to the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars at the time of his death.
Ernest Tomkins was born at Stoke Newington in 1898 and moved with his parents to Southend, in 1902.
Comes with a photo and potted biography of Tompkins from The Southend Standard (see photo ) and an account from "The Essex Yeomanry" of him being wounded at Monchy-Le-Preux:
Sub-titled "DIGGING-IN"
The experiences of trooper E.E.Tompkins of "A" Squadron are those of others: "We dodged and threaded our way towards a walled garden and there set about digging ourselves in,piercing the wall for our own pt shots.From above these walls a furtive glance showed in the wood below,the crouching and creeping forms of innumerable Bavarian's grey green against the darker masses of twig and stem.That wood was alive with them,as close as the Kaiser could wish-someone said there were 3,000 of them-and they were pushing and poking about with machine guns, their batteries were somewhat behind the ridge beyond.I drove my own hole through the bricks; then,for a few breathing moments,sat and enjoyed a smoke,wondering what the people were doing at home.Just then, to my surprise, a god sized lump of shrapnel dropped two inches from my right foot and buried itself deep in the ground.This made me edge closer to the wall,but just then another fellow and I were sent to the opposite side of the garden.There we had to make a large hole in a wall big enough for men to dive through.We were in a warm corner and just as we reached it a shell burst in the road without warning.Not far above the tree-tops came a Hun aeroplane and we were fired at from it by a machine gun,as we were also the troops round the near walls.But we soon turned our rifles on the visitor and he passed.A moment after, as I was striking my pick into the wall, a Bosch shell struck it on the other side, making a big hole much quicker than I could have done.Some fragments of metal struck me in the face-pat, pat: one on the left cheek bone,another just below that, whilst a third lay open my upper lip.The shell exploded with a force blew large pieces of the wall against me; the heaviest caught me in the right shoulder; another bit found me under the left ear.I spun round and dropped'I had just time to be aware that my Adjutant was dragging me into a shell hole by my tunic,and then I knew no more"
Comes with a large wad of research, includes War Diaries,Newspaper cuttings, a piece, written by his Father, H.W.Tompkins "Killed in Action" used as a forward for The Southend Roll Of Honour.

Code: 54671