AT the outbreak of World War I, 20-year-old Moses Johnson, worked in a Clayton-le-Moors pit — he hewed the coal out of the seams.

One day in April 1915, so the story in the family tells, he walked to Manchester at the end of his shift, to enlist, along with a group of fellow miners.

His grandson, David Cornwell, told us: “The doctor who examined them was said to have complained how dirty they were, with little regard for the fact they had walked some considerable distance directly from work.”

Despite his appearance, Moses was enlisted in the Royal Marine Medical Unit RND, and it seems that this division, after being involved in the defence of Antwerp in 1914, was later shipped to Egypt, prior to serving in the Battle of Gallipolli, where it fought on both the Anzac and Helles fields of war.

By the end of the Dardenalles campaign, in which Moses served, casualties were such that it was designated the 63rd Division, after the original Territorial unit was disbanded.

The division was than sent to the France for the remainder of the war.

David said: “Moses later told his daughters that when they left the Dardenelles, they punctured all the tins of Nestles condensed milk that couldn’t carry, to prevent them falling into the hands of the Turkish forces.”

In France the RND took part in the final phase of the Battle of the Somme, advancing along the River Ancre to capture Beaumont Hamel.

In one such action at Welch Ridge, Moses went out into no man’s land to rescue a wounded French officer while under enemy fire. “ He was crying out ‘merci, merci’, as he was being carried back to safety and my grandfather replied ‘just keep still, I’m giving you as much mercy as I can at the moment.”

For his bravery he was awarded the Military Medal, with the date of the action, cited as November 11, 1917 and a report appeared in the London Gazette in February 1918.

At the end of September 1918, Moses was wounded in his right hand and one of the few pictures the family has of him, is this one, taken while recuperating.

He was discharged from active service in January 1919, having been demobilised, with a rating of ‘very good’ for his character.

Now almost 25 years old, he returned to Clayton-le-Moors, where he married Elsie May Kilby on December 6, 1919 – his marriage certificate listed him as a miner still.

The family know he was a member of the local British Legion, from 1929 and also a member of the Altham Collieries welfare sports club.

During World War Two he was a member of the local Home Guard and was presented with a commemorative certificate from King George VI.

At some later point he was seriously injured in a pit explosion, when he was peppered by flying pieces of coal. For the rest of his life small pieces of coal worked their way to the surface of his skin.

Said David: “ This event and no doubt his earlier experiences in the trenches and a working life down the pit had a chronic effect on his health and he died in 1949 at the age of 1955, from, we think, pneumonia.

“He was too ill to attend my mother’s wedding though he did write her a very moving letter, in which his courage, modesty and dignity are clear to see.

“Having sadly never met him, I am mindful not only of him, but of all the others whose memory we should continue to cherish, after all they did during their service for their country in WWI.

“In common with Moses Johnson, they served their country bravely when needed, in distant and foreign lands, under difficult circumstances.”