Service number: 94504 | Rank: Driver | Regiment: 15th Division Ammunition Column, Royal Artillery Ammunition Corps
Killed in action, March, 30th 1917, in Flanders
Buried at grave ref. XXII. D. 4A, Etaples Military Cemetery, France.
WHAT I KNOW ABOUT FREDERICK …
Not much can be found about poor Frederick and research has been confused by the fact there were more than one Fred Wicks born at around the same time in Brandon or in surrounding villages. Two of them appear on Brandon’s war memorial.
Ammunition for the artillery would have required specialised limbered wagons to bring it from ammo dumps in the rear up to the guns along the front line. A team of six horses, in three pairs, would have pulled each of these wagons and usually the left hand horse in each pair would have had a driver sat upon it. This was Frederick’s job and at the time he was wounded Frederick would have been involved in bringing up shells and munitions in readiness for the Battles of Arras. It seems that Frederick must have got too close to the action when bringing the ammunition up and was hit by gunfire.
What is known is that Frederick’s mother, Amelia Wicks, of 54 London Road, received letters from his comrades stating that on 20th March he had received gunshot wounds and was recovering. A few days later she received an official War Office telegram informing her he had died from those wounds. The Thetford and Brandon Times stated he worked for his uncle in Ickburgh and he was just 18 days away from his 23rd birthday. Although the Commonwealth War Graves Commission stated he was 26 years old when he died.