Remembering Private Percy Feltmate—KIA November 7, 1918

Percy Feltmate was born at Hazel Hill, Guysborough County, on September 20, 1893. His parents’ names remain a mystery to genealogical researchers familiar with the Feltmate family tree. Adam and Mary Alice (Rhynold) Feltmate adopted Percy at an early age. The couple also raised a second adopted boy and three children of their own in their Hazel Hill home.

Private Percy Feltmate

On December 1, 1915, Percy enlisted with the 94th Victoria Regiment (Argyll Highlanders), a Cape Breton-based militia unit whose soldiers guarded several strategic locations in the Canso area throughout the First World War. Within months, an opportunity to serve overseas presented itself when recruiters for the 193rd Battalion visited the small fishing community. Percy attested with the unit on April 1, 1916 and departed for Camp Aldershot with other local volunteers in late May 1916.

The 193rd was one of four battalions that formed the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade. The 85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders), 185th (Cape Breton Highlanders) and 219th Battalions completed the Brigade’s ranks. The four units departed for England on October 12, 1916. Their overseas arrival coincided with the Canadian Corps’ service during the Battle of the Somme. The high number of casualties incurred at Courcelette (September 1916) and Regina Trench (October 1916) created a pressing need for reinforcements and resulted in the dissolution of two of the Brigade’s units—the 193rd and 219th Battalions—before year’s end.

On December 29, 1916, Percy was transferred to the 185th Battalion, one of two Brigade battalions to avoid dissolution. He spent several months with the unit before receiving a transfer to the 25th Battalion (Nova Scotia Rifles) on May 27, 1917. Percy immediately crossed the English Channel to France and joined his new unit in the forward area in mid-June.

Throughout the summer and autumn of 1917, Percy served a regular rotation in the line with the 25th. The battalion participated in the Canadian Corps’ successful August 15, 1917 attack on Hill 70, near Lens, France, and occupied support positions during the final stage of the Corps’ successful capture of Passchendaele Ridge, Belgium, in early November 1917.

The 25th spent the winter of 1917-18 in sectors near Lens, France, and was unaffected by a series of German spring offensives that commenced in late March 1918. Following a month-long, early summer break from the line, the 25th travelled southward to the outskirts of Amiens in late July and prepared for its role in an imminent Allied counter-offensive.

On the morning of August 8, 1918, the 25th occupied support positions while its 5th Brigade mates participated in the second stage of an attack on German positions east of Amiens. The following day, its soldiers continued the attack, securing the villages of Vrély and Méharicourt before days’ end. The battalion remained in the line until mid-month before retiring to a nearby camp. While Percy enjoyed a welcome two-week leave to the United Kingdom, his comrades returned to the Arras area, where they participated in an August 26 attack on German positions east of the town.

Percy rejoined the unit on September 2 and trained alongside his mates for several days before returning to the trenches at mid-month. While no major combat occurred during a tour near Inchy-en-Artois, both sides wrestled for control of No Man’s Land, with almost daily skirmishes resulting in daily casualties. While the 25th retired from the line on September 26, it assumed positions near the recently captured Canal du Nord two days later.

After spending a week and a half in support positions near Sailly, the unit participated in a successful attack on Canal de l’Escaut, north of the city of Cambrai, on October 9. Personnel remained in the line for five days before withdrawing to billets at nearby Tilloy. In subsequent weeks, the 25th’s 5th Brigade advanced northeastward toward the Belgian border, following in the wake of attacking Canadian Corps units.

On the night of November 6/7, Percy and his comrades returned to the front line near Rombies-et-Marchipoint, France. The following day, the 25th crossed the frontier into Belgium and advanced through the villages of Baisieux and Élouges. At day’s end, the unit’s war diary reported eight Officers wounded, 10 “other ranks” (OR) killed and 41 OR wounded.

While Percy had managed to escape injury during the first two months of the Allied counter-offensive, he was among the 25th’s November 7 fatalities. According to his “circumstances of casualty” card: “ During an attack on Élouges, he was shot through the head by an enemy sniper’s bullet and instantly killed.” Private Percy Feltmate was laid to rest in Élouges Communal Cemetery, Belgium.

Percy’s story is one of 64 profiles contained in Bantry Publishing’s "First World War Honour Roll of Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, Volume II: 1918 - 1937," available for purchase online at bantrypublishing.ca .