Alfred Cuthbert Gash was born in Boxmoor, Hertfordshire on Tuesday, 5th October 1897, the oldest son Robert George Gash and Lizzie Wise. He had an older half-brother Robert William, from his father’s first marriage to Alice Kempster and three younger sisters and a younger brother. These were: Clara Katherine, Leonard Cecil, Mary Elizabeth and Dorothy Beatrice. His parents had two other children who died in infancy, but their names are not known. His brother Robert served with the Machine Gun Corps and was killed only five months before Alfred. His biography also appears on this site.

He started school at Bury Road in 1902 before moving to Boxmoor JMI School which he entered on the 8th February 1904. He was at Boxmoor for six years before he left, two weeks after his thirteenth birthday on the 14th October 1910, when he went to work for John Dickinson & Co. Limited. He joined the firm in the Book Binding Department at Apsley Mills where he worked as a "Box Corner Cutter". He would remain at Dickinsons until he went to war in 1915.

On the outbreak of war his brother Robert immediately enlisted and his father also did his bit by joining the newly formed Volunteer Training Company (the WW1 version of WW2 Home Guard) in early 1915. Alfred like so many other young men, was determined to enlist and in March 1915 he attempted to join up whilst still only seventeen. He was unsuccessful however, and had to be patient until in November 1915 he was accepted for service with the Hertfordshire Regiment. He was sent for basic training and when he reached his nineteenth birthday in 1916, he was sent overseas and posted to the 6th Battalion Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Royal Berkshire) Regiment. Shortly afterwards he was transferred to the 1st Battalion Royal Berkshires.

He joined his unit in France on the 7th November and not long afterwards went into action at the Battle of Ancre, the final phase of the Somme Offensive. Throughout 1917 he fought in the First and Second Battles of the Scarpe, the Battle of Arleux and finally the Battle of Cambrai at the end of the year and fortunately came through these actions unscathed. His luck ran out however, in March 1918 when the 1st Royal Berkshires were in reserve at the Battle of St Quentin. Th Battalion War Diaries recorded the confusion and disorganization of the battle and the uncertainty of not knowing whether they would be called into action or not. This was against a backdrop of increasingly heavy enemy shelling over the 21st, 22nd and 23rd March.

Finally, on the 24th, at the start of the Battle of Bapaume, the 1st Royal Berkshires went into action and during the next two days fought to resist the relentless attacks by the Germans, before being compelled to withdraw for fear of being outflanked. This pattern continued until the end of the month when the War Diaries recorded the casualties as follows: “Casualties during the month of March – OFFICERS Killed 2 Wounded 16; O.R. Killed 23 Wounded 439 Missing 62”.

Alfred was one of the men posted ‘Missing’ and subsequently confirmed as ‘Killed’ during the fighting.

He died on Monday, 25th March 1918.

He is commemorated on the John Dickinson & Co. Limited War Memorial at Apsley End. His regiment is incorrectly recorded as the Royal Bucks and not the Royal Berks.

Alfred is Remembered with Honour on the Arras Memorial, Pas-de-Calais, France, Bay 7.

He was 21 years old when he died.

Alfred was eligible for the British War Medal and the Allied Victory Medal.