Private Thomas Ellis
16934 · 11th Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment
Thomas Ellis was a son of Stoke-on-Trent, one of the many men of the Potteries who answered the call during the First World War.
He enlisted locally and served with the North Staffordshire Regiment, joining the 11th Battalion during a time when the regiment was deployed far from home, in the harsh and unforgiving conditions of the Mesopotamian Campaign.
In January 1917, Thomas was seriously wounded while on active service. After weeks of medical treatment, he died of his wounds on 3rd March 1917, aged 35. He is laid to rest at Amara War Cemetery, a place that became the final resting ground for many British soldiers who never made the journey home.
Thomas’s story is one shared by countless families across Staffordshire and beyond — a life rooted in a close-knit community, shaped by duty, and ended far from home. This page exists to remember him not just as a name on a memorial, but as a man whose sacrifice continues to be honoured and remembered.
Soldiers of the North Staffordshire Regiment
More than a century after his death, Private Thomas Ellis is remembered not only through military records and memorials, but through family.
In this video, Thomas’s great-grandchild shares how he discovered the story of his great-grandfather — a man from Stoke-on-Trent who served with the North Staffordshire Regiment and died of his wounds in 1917, far from home.
Moved by that discovery, he chose to sponsor a tree in Thomas’s memory, creating a living memorial here in the UK. As the tree grows, so too does the story — connecting past and present, and ensuring that Thomas Ellis is remembered not just as a name, but as a member of a family whose legacy continues.
A Story Passed Down
Original plaque words
PRIVATE 16934 THOMAS ELLIS
7th BTN. NORTH STAFFORDSHIRE REGIMENT DIED OF WOUNDS, 3RD MARCH 1917. AGE 35 AMARA WAR CEMETERY, IRAQ
