John (known as Jack) and Walker Sayes were the sons of John George Sayes and Mary Eliza Sayes (nee Kilburn). Jack was born in Holbeck on 4th September 1893, and Walker was three years his brother’s junior. There were no other children born to the marriage, however Mrs Sayes’ mother lived with the family and took care of the domestic work while Mary Sayes helped her husband in the family jeweller’s and watchmaker’s business which operated from premises at 65 Beeston Road, Holbeck. The family lived at 22 Cambrian Road, Holbeck at the time of Jack’s birth, however, by the time the 1901 census was taken, the family had moved to 6 Noster Hill, in Beeston. A further move prior to 1911 took the family back to Holbeck and an address at 9 Cambrian Terrace. The family address when Jack joined the Army in December 1915 was given as 3 Badger Terrace, Scholes. This terrace of houses still exists and stands opposite the original Anglican Church in Scholes on what is now called Main Street. Badger Terrace gets its name from the badger which features in the crest of the Gray family of Morwick Hall (York Road), which was an influential Wesleyan family in the village and the driving force behind the building of the Methodist chapel, also on Main Street. It is interesting to note that the badger motif is also depicted in the stonework of the large window in the chapel’s frontage.
Jack Sayes was educated at Cockburn High School in Leeds and he took up employment as a clerk, later becoming a heating engineer. He attested for the Army on 3rd December 1915 aged 22 years. The fact that the Military Service Act 1916, which brought with it conscription, came into being on 27th January 1916 may have had some bearing on his decision to join the Army of his own volition and retain some degree of freedom of choice as to which unit he joined. If he had waited and been conscripted he would have been sent where the Army needed him most. Instead he volunteered and was placed on the Army reserve with Leeds University Contingent of the Officer Training Corps (OTC) until he proceeded to No. 8 Officer Cadet Battalion in Lichfield on 31st March 1916.
Jack Sayes was commissioned into 3/6th Battalion, (The Prince of Wales’ Own) West Yorkshire Regiment on 5th August 1916 and the following notice appeared in the London Gazette to confirm his probationary commission:
SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 17 AUGUST, 1916.
War Office,
17th August, 1916.
TERRITORIAL FORCE.
INFANTRY.
West Yorkshire Regt.
Cadet John Sayes to be 2nd Lt. (on prob.).
5th Aug. 1916.
The commission was confirmed in the November of the same year in the following terms, again taken from the London Gazette:
SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 29 NOVEMBER, 1916.
War Office,
29th November, 1916.
TERRITORIAL FORCE.
INFANTRY.
West Yorkshire Regt.—
J. Sayes.

Walker Sayes was a soldier in the 9th (Service) Battalion, The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment). Service battalions were raised in response to the appeal from the Secretary of State for War, Lord Kitchener for 100,000 men to join the colours and bolster the army for the long war he envisaged. The 9th Royal Fusiliers were part of the first army raised in this manner. It appears that Walker Sayes did not originally belong to the 9th Battalion as he has the PS/ prefix to his service number and this is indicative of service with one of 4 Public Schools battalions within the Royal Fusiliers, namely the 18th – 21st Battalions. The Public Schools battalions can be seen as ‘Pals’ battalions as they were made up of men with a Public School background who preferred to serve together amongst friends than serve as officers and be split up from one another. As the war progressed however the Public Schools battalions became an obvious target for the authorities who needed to replace officer casualties and these battalions lost many men as they left to take commissions in other battalions. They were replaced by ordinary volunteers and in time, conscripts, but the Public Schools title lived on.

It will never be known if Walker Sayes’ body was recovered following the attack or not, but if it was it was either not identified as his or it was lost in later fighting. To that end his name is now inscribed, with 73,000 others on the vast Thiepval Memorial to the Missing. He died aged just 19 years and was unmarried.