UK Archives

The Great War: Vimy Ridge
George Van Wyck Laughton, M.C.

Canadian - Serving in the British 3rd Army, 34th Division,  
26th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (Tyneside Irish)

                               


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This page last updated on April 04, 2008

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UK NATIONAL ARCHIVES

In April 2005 our updated research on the London Gazette directed us to a previously unknown site for archive material at the PRO which instead took us to the United Kingdom National Archives.  It was here that we learnt that the PRO site is no longer available.  The site states as follows:
The content, catalogues and registers of the PRO and HMC websites have been transferred to this website
All our content, catalogues and registers are listed in the A to Z index at the top of each page
If you have trouble finding your favourite items, let us know and we'll point you in the right direction
The old PRO and HMC websites have been removed from the Internet

  

You can follow the links on the new site directly to Officers in the British Army for the  World War One period:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/militaryhistory/army/step2.htm

You can do a search for a specific person, apparently to find if a record exists (i.e. LAUGHTON 1917-1918, WO "for War Office") at:

 http://www.catalogue.nationalarchives.gov.uk/search.asp

This would lead us to two (2) sets of records for G. Laughton

There is a considerable amount of information that details what is available at the United Kingdom National Archives, however my initial analysis suggests provides on the details of what is available and not the records themselves.  For example, a search for the lists of the Military Cross yields the following:

http://www.catalogue.nationalarchives.gov.uk/RdLeaflet.asp?sLeafletID=35

The site to search the First World War Medal Rolls was active and finally we were able to get a hit on "George Vanwyck Laughton" (Vanwyck was used as one word). The reference shows it is in the series from "Langley to McGrath" and that it can be purchased for £3.5, a task that was quickly completed and the medal card was downloaded within a few moments.  The record does not give any clarification as to the M.C. (Military Cross) award, rather it is listed as belonging to LAUGHTON, M.C. (an existing condition) and appears to be for a VICTORY MEDAL for which he became eligible on April 22, 1918 (a year after the M.C. was awarded). Click on this link for the MEDAL CARD that was downloaded in PDF format.  As this document contains other information, a cropped version of the card is provided at CROPPED MEDAL CARD and illustrated below:

 

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Richard V. Laughton
582 Hawthorne Crescent, Milton Ontario CANADA  L9T 4N8
Royal Canadian Legion Member, Branch 136 (Pte. U.J. Waters)
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