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R/31643 17th Battalion, King’s Royal Rifle Corps
Percy Wright, known as Charles was born around 1885 in Castle Acre, Norfolk, the son of William and Elizabeth Wright. His father was a miller journeyman and the family lived at Mill Cottages, Westacre, near Kings Lynn in Norfolk. Charles was employed as a bricklayer’s labourer, he married Mary Ann Pearson in Sudbury in 1910 and they lived at 2 Inkerman Row with their children.
Charels enlisted at Woolwich and the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Gloucester Regiment was based at Woolwich in 1915. It is believed that he may have served initially with this battalion before transferring to the King’s Royal Rifle Corps which formed part of 117th Brigade, 39 Division.
In the summer of 1917 the battalion saw action in the opening attack of the Third Battle of Ypres (often known as Passchendaele) at the Battle of Pilckem Ridge (31 July - 2 August).
The battle began at 3.50am on 31 July 1917, when 2,000 Allied guns opened fire on German lines and the Allies attacked along 15 miles of the front. In the afternoon rain began to fall on the battlefield and over the following days the shell-damaged ground became a quagmire. After three days, the Allied advance was half of what had been planned. The British Army had suffered some 27,000 casualties wounded, killed and missing of which one was Charles.
Charles was killed in action aged 32 on 31 July 1917 and lies buried in Poelcapelle British Cemetery, near Ypres, Belgium. A Cross of Remembrance was laid by his grave in April 2006.
He was awarded the British War Medal and Victory Medal.
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