**He immigrated to Canada after having been a professional soldier

**He  immigrated to Canada after having been a professional soldier,  

decorated for his bravery in the face of enemy fire, and returned to his  homes on wounds... He re-enlisted and died at the front a few months  later... James William Dames**

James William Dames is born 20th November 1871 in London to John Ambrose Dames (1845-???) and Mary Ann Raysbrook (1847-???)

He  has 3 brothers - John (1867-???) - Frank (1873-1977) - Albert Edward  (1878-1944) and 3 sisters and 3 sisters - Annie Elizabeth (1869-1949) -  Kate (1876-???) - Zoe (1880-???)

He was educated in the public school of London.

He was 14 years old when the time came for him to enter the working world and start earning a living.

He chose to join the army and enlisted in the Sherwood Foresters (Notts and Derby Regiment) in 1885.

He  spent several years in this regiment as a professional soldier and rose  through the ranks until he reached the rank of serjeant.

He married Florence Coneybeer (1874-1961) 26th July 1897 in East Stonehouse - Devon - England.

The couple will subsequently have two sons - Frank Coneybeer (1899-1949) - Harold Victor (1902-1982).

Shortly after his marriage, he was sent to India as a Serjeant in charge of a draft for the 2nd Battalion Sherwood Foresters.

There,  he participated in the Tirah Campain which took place from September  1897 to April 1898 in a mountainous tribal area corresponding today to  Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in present-day Pakistan.

He was on his way back to England and stopping in Malta when the Boer War broke out.

He volunteered directly for military service and enlisted in Malta Mounted Infantry.

He spent his entire engagement in this unit.

He  was mentioned 3 times in Dispatches during the conflict and won the  Distinguished Conduct Medal for his behavior during the conflict.

His bravery and courage brought him not only a decoration but also less pleasing events like 2 wounds in action.

The  third injury was more serious and the accumulation with the previous  injuries led to him being sent back disabled at home in England.

He resumed his duties in the army but no longer in an active field unit.

He served as a clerk and the war office for 8 years.

In  1909, he decided to change his life and take his little family beyond  the ocean to try their luck in the hope of having a better life.

The  family thus settled in Derby town - Alberta and began to build a  sustainable and prosperous life there without it being possible to know  the profession that the parents held to earn their living.

The outbreak of war in Europe turned James's life upside down.

He,  the soldier who had already participated in two military campaigns,  been decorated and wounded in combat decided to return to the flag and  enlisted in Princess Patricia's Light Infantry.

He  therefore joined a military training camp in the region so that new  recruits without experience could follow a basic military training.

James, for his part, followed training to refresh the skills they had acquired during his previous engagements.

His  military past was recognized and it was with the rank of Sergeant Major  in Princess Patricia's Light Infantry that he embarked in December 1914  among the 1st contingent of Canadian soldiers to cross the ocean to  fight on European soil.

He was first assigned to a calm sector of the front to acclimatize and prepare for war in the European winter.

His  unit was then directed to the Ypres sector in preparation for the  second battle which was brewing for the spring in the sector.

James was manning the front lines trenches near Bellewaerde Lake 8th May 1915 when he was wounded in action.

Unfortunately this one was more serious than the one he had known before and had fatal consequences.

He was 43 years old.

He now rests in peace in Hagle Dump Cemetery.

James picture from veterans.gc.ca