THE Royal British Legion is seeking any surviving family members of a Skelsmergh soldier who died 100 years ago in the infamous Battle of Passchendaele.
Corporal James Blezard was one of 60,083 British men who fell amid torrential rain and a quagmire of mud in the conflict, also known as the Third Battle of Ypres.
Thousands of poppy pins made from British brass artillery shell fuses found on battlefields have been made to pay tribute to each fallen British soldier.
The Kendal branch of the Royal British Legion has bought the tiny brass poppy commemorating Cpl Blezard, of the Border Regiment. It is now seeking any surviving relatives, so the pin can be presented "as a small way to say thank you".
Cpl Blezard and his elder brother John are both remembered on the war memorial in Kendal Market Place. Before enlisting, he lived in Skelsmergh and worked with his father at Oak Bank Mill.
His brother, Private John Blezard, joined the Border Regiment some years before James was old enough to enlist. Sadly, he was killed in action in 1914, leaving a wife and two children.
After enlisting, James Blezard served at the second battle of Passchendaele and was wounded in action twice, once in 1915 and again in 1916, before being promoted to Corporal.
He was killed in action in 1917 when his regiment was attacked by enemy machine gunners after getting stuck in the thick mud that covered the battlefield.
Buried at the Tyne Cot cemetery, in Belgium, he was unmarried and had no surviving dependants.
If you have any information, please contact Gazette reporter Rachel Garnett on 01539-790265, email rachel.garnett@nqnw.co.uk
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