More about William Prain

William was the brother of Guardsman Alexander Prain, 10825, 1st Bn Scots Guards, who was killed in action, 11.10.1918.

Enlistment: 7 December 1915, Barcraigs, Lochwinnoch, Renfrewhire, where William was living and
working at the time
Regiment: assigned to the 3rd Reserve Battalion Scots Guards at Wellington
Service Number: 15257
February 1916 – January 1917: Guards Depot, Caterham, Surrey
1 February 1917: Transferred to the Guards Machine Gun Battalion at Epsom
Service Number: 941
17 March 1917: The Guards Division moved to France. William was assigned to the Machine Gun Guards
4th Company which departed Epsom and travelled to Southampton and then sailed to Le Havre on SS
Duchess of Argyll and SS Siptah disembarking on 18 March and to No. 1 Rest Camp
22 March 1917: Company entrained to Plateau Bray on the Somme and on 23 March marched to
Banfray Camp where it remained until 27 March 1917
3 May 1917: Company moved to Dessart Wood to support an attack against enemy positions in the area
of La Vacquerie west of Cambrai. After several unsuccessful attacks on the Hindenburg Line the
Company moved back to Combes in the Somme area on 8 May.
Mid June 1917: The Guards Division moved to Flanders in preparation of the offensive i.e Third Battle of
Ypres. The 4th Company was involved in a number of battles including:

31 July – 2 August 1917: Battle of Pilkem
20 – 25 September 1917: Battle of Menin Road
9 October 1917: Battle of Poelcapelle
12 October 1917: 1st Battle of Passchendaele
20 November – 3 December 1917: Battle of Cambrai
After a period the Company moved back into the front line and participated in a number of battles in the
coming months
21 – 23 March 1918 : Battle of St Quentin
24 – 25 March 1918: Battle of Bapaume
28 March 1918: 1st Battle of Arras
21 – 23 August 1918: Battle of Albert
31 August – 3 Septemer 1918: 2nd Battle of Bapaume
12 September 1918: Battle of Harrincourt
27 September – 1 October 1918: Battle of Canal du Nord
8 – 9 September 1918: Battle of Cambrai
9 – 12 October 1918: Pursuit to the River Selle
17- 25 October 1918: Battle of the Selle

4 November 1918: Battle of Sambre which was the final large scale battle
11 October 1918: William’s Machine Gun Company was in the village of St Hilaire on 11 October in
support of the infantry which included the 1st Battalion of the Scots Guards in whch his brother
Alexander was serving. The retreating enemy shelled the village in the morning and sadly Alexander was
killed. It’s not known if the brothers had an opportunity to meet. Alexander is buried in the British
Cemetery in the village of St Hilaire
11 December 1918: The Guards Division marched across Belgium into Germany on 11 December and
formed part of the Army of Occupation
7 to 21 February 1919: William was granted a period of home leave. On 10 February he was admitted to
Dundee War Hospital with influenza, possibly Spanish ‘Flu
21 February 1919: William was transferred to the 5th Reserve Battalion of the Guards Machine Gun
Regiment at Pirbright, Surrey.

27 March 1919: William was demobilised at the Dispersal Unit at Kinross following which he returned
home to Dundee
29 December 1920: William married Lavinia Kinmond in Dundee
!972: William died in Kircaldy aged 79 years old