On the morning of June 25, 1916, Bradford war artist Harry Robinson’s 9th Battalion disembarked from the Arcadian at Alexandria docks, Egypt.

They arrived in Marseille on Saturday, July 1 – the first terrible day of the Somme battle – and proceeded by train and route march to St Pol near Arras, Northern France.

Training in a new kind of trench warfare was undertaken throughout the next six weeks in various camps to the west of Arras. With the help of Tricia Platts, Secretary of Bradford’s World War 1 Group, and Harry Robinson’s drawings, we can trace what may have happened to him over the next two-and-a-half months.

A ruined house, dated August 1, 1916.

Tricia said: “On this day, the 9th Battalion moved from billets at Dainville to trenches at Agny – which is on the outskirts of Arras.

Both these villages had suffered shell damage and, incidentally, are mentioned in the letters of the poet Edward Thomas who served in the Royal Garrison Artillery here.

“Harry may well have visited the centre of Arras which, by this time, had suffered several German bombardments. This photo shows troops gathering to hear an army band play.

August 1 a section of the line held by "B" Company, was hit by a rifle grenade or grenades resulting in the death of one Other Rank and the wounding of three more. As well as the use of rifle grenades, the enemy was also reported as being very active with his trench mortars.”

Fed-up August 23, 1916 (dugout in France) and popular song sketch ‘Why can’t we have the sea in London?’ dated September 2.

“The dugout is remarkably tidy but the open tin of jam (mostly plum but all varieties tasted very similar), two pieces of hard biscuit and a billycan are evidence of a soldier's diet. Fed-up could be a play on words “The trench is remarkably undamaged although the man is standing in several inches of water. An un-covered rifle would result in a charge.

Cartoon of an officer in the blown up sentry post. Also his backview on a small scrap of paper with the veiled woman and a third cartoon on yet another piece of paper.

“Captain Bertram Saxelbye Evers led the evacuation from Gallipoli in December 1915 and remained with the Battalion throughout the stay in Egypt and training in France.

“Evers was leading “B” Company on the left flank during the assault on the 'Wonder Work' trench and it is believed that he died under shell fire during the assault on September 14.”

On September 2, 1916, Harry's company had moved to billets at Rebreuviette a small, peaceful village on the banks of the River Canche. There are many watermills along the banks of the river, for example at Frevent.

A “Blighty” one, September 3, 1916.

Tricia said: “The official history of 6th West Yorks says: ‘The seriously wounded lay outside in rows and the less severe cases poured down in hundreds to the tramway line in the valley and the First Aid Station there.’ “The September 3 attack across the Authuille marshes up the hill to Thiepval had proved extremely costly to 49th Division – which included the Bradford Territorials. Harry Robinson's Battalion was not far away and would witness the terrible toll of casualties.

“Late in the afternoon of September 3 Harry's Battalion marched to Frevent and then, by route march and train, eventually reaching front line trenches at Authuille on September 7.

“The Battalion war diary records that on September 8, as the men settled into an unfamiliar position, German artillery commenced a sporadic bombardment. Shells smashed into the parapets resulting in the deaths of four men and the wounding of nine others.

“Feverishly the men worked to repair the damaged trenches but ultimately this baptism of fire must have had, one would presume, a demoralising effect on the men as this was the greatest loss of life in one incident as yet experienced by the Battalion on the Western Front.

“Enduring further bombardments that luckily resulted in no further casualties, the West Yorkshire's were relieved at 8am on the morning of September 10.”

We can only assume that Harry was one of the nine men wounded on September 8 but the War Diary does not record these names.

Harry would be evacuated to a Regimental Aid Post and then to a Casualty Clearing Station. One of these was located in Blighty Valley, adjacent to the cemetery where the four men who were killed were buried.

Bigger trees near water, France. On September 11, 1916.

Harry pencilled a picture of a house and trees near water, presumably the place where Harry was sent after being wounded.

That was the last picture Harry drew for on the next day, September 12, he died of his wounds at the age of 22. His name is included on the Thiepval Memorial, the Somme memorial.

At the Armistice in November 1918, there were 212 burials in this cemetery but a further 784 bodies were recovered from the battlefield and interred here.

There are now 1027 burials of which 536 are unidentified. Could one of these be Harry Robinson?