Source: Michael Doyle Their Name Liveth For Evermore: The Great War Roll of Honour for Leicestershire and Rutland.
He was the son of Robert Garner, a brick labourer, born 1861 in Burbage, Leicestershire (son of John Garner) and his wife Emma (Emily) Garner (nee Powell, married on the 25th October 1884 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, Leicestershire), born 1864 in Hinckley (daughter of Philip Powell). Alfred was born in the October quarter of 1895 in Hinckley and baptised as Alfred Shirley on the 24th November 1895 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, his siblings were, Robert William, a shoe trade machinist, born on the 3rd March 1885 and baptised on the 29th November 1885 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, Edith Annie, a shoe trade errand girl, born on the 26th November 1888 and baptised on the 28th July 1889 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, Charlotte Elizabeth, born in the October quarter of 1892 and baptised on the 27th November 1892 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, John Sydney, born in the January quarter of 1891 and baptised on the 22nd February 1891 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, Harold, born in the October quarter of 1897 and baptised on the 31st July 1904 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley and Arthur George, born on the 17th February 1900 and baptised on the 31st July 1904 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley, all his siblings were born in Hinckley, in March 1901 the family home was at 4, Mill Street, St. Mary’s, Hinckley. In April 1911 Alfred was employed as a shoe trade packer and was residing in the family home at 132, Factory Road, Hinckley, together with his father, a bricklayer’s labourer, his mother and siblings, Edith, a shoe trade packer, John, a shoe trade finisher, Elizabeth (Lizzie), a hosiery trade linker, Harold, a hosiery trade needle maker, Arthur, a schoolboy and Emma, a schoolgirl, born in the April quarter of 1902 in Hinckley and baptised on the 31st July 1904 in St. Mary’s Church, Hinckley.
Alfred’s army service enlistment documents do not survive, therefore the currently available information pertaining to his military service has been obtained from the following sources: - 1921 HMSO Publication, Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914 - 1919, WW1 Service Medal and Award Rolls, Army Registers of Soldiers’ Effects, WW1 Medal Rolls Index Cards, WW1 Pension Ledgers and Index Cards and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Registers.
Enlisted/Attested in Hinckley into the Territorial Force. Date not known.
Joined. At Leicester. Date not known.
Posted. To Leicestershire Regt. Pte. Date not known.
Allotted the Regimental Service number 4355.
Posted. To 1/5th Bn. Leicestershire Regt. Pte. Date not known.
First entered the theatre of war in France. 11/12/15.
Under the Army Council Instruction (A.C.I. 2414/1916), published on the 23rd December 1916, that promulgated a new numbering system for all Territorial Force units, Alfred was allotted the regimental service number 241556.
Killed in action. In the Field. 28/4/17.
Buried in Bully-Grenay Communal Cemetery British Extension, Pas de Calais, France.
Awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.
In the event of his death, Alfred nominated his father Robert, as his sole legatee.
The War Diary records: 28 Apr-17 - TRENCHES. At 11.30pm a party from “C” Company under 2nd Lieutenant G. E. BANWELL raided an enemy post near church at N.7.a.70.37 but found it unoccupied.
The War Diary records: 29 Apr-17 - TRENCHES. At 2.10am gas projectors were fired on enemy trenches on our front, 250 on CITE ST. LAURENT and CITE ST. EDOUARD, 50 each on HILL 65 and FOSSE 3. Our artillery carried out an intense bombardment on enemy trenches in conjunction with this. Retaliation was very heavy especially with heavy trench mortars but we had no casualties, though the Battalion had 32 casualties during this tour, chiefly from shelling (22 in “D” Company). At night Battalion was relieved by the 4th Battalion LEICESTERSHIRE REGIMENT and marched to rest billets in cellars in CITE ST. PIERRE.
On Friday July 14th, 1916, The Leicester Daily Mercury published the following article on page 4, under the heading. – LOCAL CASUALTIES. – Hinckley Casualties. – Pte. A. GARNER, of the Leicestershire Regiment, whose father is a Hinckley tradesman, has been seriously wounded in the left arm, and is now in a Devonshire hospital.
[recognitum XI-VI-MMXXIII]