Pte William Stenhouse, 200962, 1/5th Battalion Bedfordshire Regiment, was killed in action on November 3rd, 1917, during the climax to the Third Battle of Gaza.

The death of the Scottish-born soldier went unreported in Luton newspapers, but the 1911 Census reveals that he was then living with the family of his brother Thomas, along with his widower father John, at 40 Clifton Road, Luton. He was an iron dresser in a foundry.

By the time William enlisted in the 5th Beds (Reserve) Regiment (No. 4510) in October 1914 his address was given as 36 Clifton Road. His initial military career lasted just 96 days, after which he was discharged as medically unfit with defective eyesight.

It seems that William was determined to fight and about a month after his discharge he was listed as having joined the East Anglian Royal Engineers. That resulted in him being charged at Bedford Borough Petty Sessions on March 23rd, 1915, with unlawfully and knowingly making a false answer to a question put to him by Capt Wilson, E.A.R.E., when being attested as a recruit to HM Forces. He pleaded guilty.

Capt Wilson said that William swore that he had not served in the Army before, but a document produced was his previous attestation on joining the 5th Bedfords. The court discharged William, with the advice that he should go to the barracks and tell the truth there - they might be glad to have him.

He was presumably gladly received back into the 1/5th Bedfords at Kempston to have been fighting with the regiment in the Egyptian/Palestine campaign, during which he met his fate.