Duhallow ADS Cemetery, near Ieper
NEWS ITEM in Jersey Evening Post of Saturday 16
September 1916
More Casualties in the Royal Irish Rifles.
The list of casualties in the Jersey Contingent which
we have published during the last few days and from
names which still continue to come through show that
the gallant Jerseys were in the thick of the fighting
in the Great Push. Sergeant C Laugeard, a former police
constable, is another local lad who has been wounded
recently.
JEP,
2/10/1918
NEWS ITEM in Jersey Evening Post of Saturday 20
January 1917
Sergeant C Laugeard DCM - Public Presentation
Tomorrow. Tomorrow at 8.30pm at the Town Hall a public
presentation of a gold watch will be made to Sergeant
C Laugeard of the Jersey Company Royal Irish Rifles,
who was recently awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
The gallant Sergeant was, until he volunteered for active
service, a member of the Paid Police and this body and
the St Helier Fire Brigade will parade in full force
to do honour to the hero. NCOs and men of the Royal
Irish Rifles and all other military men in the Island
are specially invited to attend, whilst it is hoped
that the general public will be present in large numbers.
NEWS ITEM in Jersey Evening Post of Monday 22 January
1917
Presentation to a Jersey Police Constable
DCM - Huge Crowd Honours the Gallant PC. The Town Hall
was filled to overflowing last evening when Sergeant
C Laugeard, Royal Irish Rifles, a member of the Jersey
Police Force who, leaving here with the Jersey contingent
in March 1915 and who has won the coveted Distinguished
Conduct Medal, was made the recipient of a gold watch
by his fellow Islanders. The gathering was fully representative
in character, including as it did prominent tradesmen
and residents. Members of the Police Force lined the
staircase and between their ranks the Constable with
Sergeant Laugeard passed into the hall, cheers being
raised for the gallant Sergeant as he passed up to his
seat on the platform. The Constable opened the proceedings
calling upon Deputy J Cory of St Helier to speak. Deputy
Cory said that he considered it an honour to add a tribute
to one of Jersey's brave sons at the biggest assemblage
he had ever seen at the Town Hall. Sergeant Laugeard,
as a Police Constable, had been a tip-top one and he
felt he was speaking for the whole Force when he said
they were pleased that their old comrade had distinguished
himself on the field of battle - he had volunteered
to go, he had not waited to be pushed and they were
deeply grateful to him for what he had done. He thought
that all Jerseymen were convinced in their minds that
the Germans had to be beaten and would do their utmost
to bring about the great, though delayed, victory which
had to come. He wished to offer congratulations to Sergeant
Laugeard on his splendid achievement. The Constable
then spoke as follows "Mr Dean, Ladies and Gentlemen,
we are again assembling here this evening after 2 years
& 5 months struggle to honour another of our brave
fellow Islanders and personally tonight's ceremony gives
me especially great pleasure as the hero we are called
upon to honour belongs to the Police Force and I am
sure his colleagues are also very proud of him. Charles
Laugeard joined the Police Force on 10 March 1912 and
3 years later, that is in March 1915, he answered his
Country's call. After training in Ireland he proceeded
to France with 7th Battalion Royal Irish Rifles and
served 10 months at the Front. Laugeard almost at once
became under the notice of his immediate superior officers
for the marked courage he displayed. May I here also
render homage to the memory of a valiant and brave soldier
who belonged to the Royal Irish Rifles who by his valour
and numerous deeds of bravery would, if he had been
spared, have been awarded a Distinguished Conduct Medal
if not a Victoria Cross, the last that was seen of this
soldier was in the enemies trenches fighting against
great odds, I refer to Stephen Brint, he has given his
life for his Country, no man could do more. The prowess
of Laugeard was so quickly recognised that when bombing
parties were formed he was chosen to take part in them
and his intrepidity and powers of leadership soon gained
for him the rank of Sergeant Bomber. In August 1916
he was awarded the Divisional Parchment for the gallantry
he displayed in destroying a machine gun which was cleverly
concealed and which in consequence was doing great damage
in our ranks. Laugeard was chosen to head a party whose
duty it was to silence the gun, he and his party crawled
to the German trenches under cover of darkness, and
before they returned they had smashed the gun and killed
all the gunners. The special act of bravery for which
Sergeant Laugeard has been awarded the Distinguished
Conduct Medal is for the manner in which he led a certain
important attack at Givenchy, at the same time keeping
up the supply of bombs and generally displaying great
courage which under the horrific conditions of the moment
was an almost superhuman task. As Sergeant Bomber Laugeard's
motto is "Come On Follow Me" he is always
first over the top into no mans land, and his fine example
inspired all those with whom he came into contact. It
is common knowledge, learned from soldiers home on leave,
that Laugeard's vocabulary contains no such word as
fear and that his acts of bravery were the admiration
of his comrades, many of whom are emphatic in stating
that he has won the DCM several times over. On 9 September
our hero received a bullet wound in the right breast,
but he is as tough as he is brave and judging by the
man we see before us this evening he seems to have thoroughly
recovered and is again fit to do more useful work. Sergeant
Laugeard, it is now my pleasing duty to present you,
on behalf of the inhabitants of your native Island,
with this gold watch as a memento of your gallant acts
of bravery". The Constable, amid applause, then
handed the watch to the recipient and concluded his
speech by saying "may your life be spared and may
you, in years to come, remember with pleasure and pride
this evening's proceedings. I am only voicing the feelings
of every Jerseyman and Jerseywoman when I say we are
all proud of you". Sergeant Laugeard, after the
applause had subsided said that he was not the only
one in the Jersey Company who had deserved the Distinguished
Conduct Medal, every man in the Company had won that
distinction, if not the VC, they had all fought with
their hearts and had all done well. On the call of Deputy
John Cory cheers were then given for Sergeant Laugeard,
the members of the Jersey Company Royal Irish Rifles,
for the King, Empire and Victory and the proceedings
concluded with the singing of the National Anthem.
