A LOCAL historian is calling for the gravestone of the first East Lothian casualty of the First World War to be restored.

James Cyril Baptist Crozier, known as Cyril, was one of the first men killed in the Great War.

His death was not reported in the Courier until late October, 1914, despite dying in August that year, as until then he had been officially “missing”.

His gravestone is in Etreux, France, but his details are inscribed on his mother’s grave in St Mary’s, Haddington.

Although he is not mentioned on the Haddington War Memorial, his name is on the Yester Memorial, as well as in Trinity Church, Haddington.

Historian and solicitor Alastair Shepherd added: “The grave is dilapidated and the inscriptions barely legible.

“Crozier was unmarried, and as both his sisters were also unmarried – his surviving sister died in Haddington in 1964 – there does not seem to be any surviving family to look after the grave. His regiment were disbanded in 1922 when Ireland gained their independence, so they also have ceased to exist.

“I feel strongly that East Lothian owes a debt to Cyril Crozier, and I would love to see the gravestone restored and Crozier remembered properly.” Although born in Cheshire, Crozier had strong family connections to East Lothian and was educated at Loretto School, spent some of his childhood staying with Captain Johnstone (Retired) at Somnerfield, Haddington, and also stayed with his sister at Longyester, Gifford.

Mr Shepherd has discovered that Crozier was staying at Longyester with his uncle while he studied medicine at Edinburgh University in 1911 and also enjoyed playing golf at Yester Golf Club.

He was no stranger to loss as his mother died when he was six, his sister drowned in Gifford the year before, and his father died when he was eight.

Despite studying medicine, Crozier decided to pursue a military career and in 1912 joined a territorial battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers, based in Ayr, before becoming a regular officer in the Royal Munster Fusiliers in June 1914.

The Munsters were based in Cork, and in joining an Irish regiment Crozier was paying tribute to his family’s Irish ancestry.

The Munsters formed part of the famous Guards Brigade and were among the first troops who landed in France on August 14. Within a fortnight, the Regiment virtually ceased to exist.

After the battle of Mons on August 23-24, the Munsters were ordered to hinder the German advance and not to retreat until ordered to do so.

They formed a defensive position in the orchards of Etreux, a small village just south of Mons.

Irish reservists had brought the battalion up to strength, and on the hot afternoon of August 27, 27 officers and 971 other ranks awaited their fate.

Cyril Crozier died a hero’s death.

According to a book published just after the war: “Lieutenant Crozier, showing the greatest gallantry, crossed a narrow lane, and exposing himself recklessly to enemy fire, shouted: ‘Here they are, come on men!’ and fell, killed instantly.” Two failures damned the Munsters; firstly intelligence had hugely underestimated the Germans advancing on Etreux, and secondly the message to retreat never got through.

Throughout the day, the Munsters held up an entire German Army Corps – it is estimated they were outnumbered by 50 to 1. They only surrendered when their ammunition was expended – when they regrouped later only nine officers and 87 other ranks remained.

However, these brave men had halted the German advance for 14 hours and gave the retreating British Army valuable breathing space.