Angelo Joseph Dania

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For some reason I am fascinated by this man. Perhaps because he volunteered for the South African Forces during the Great War, or perhaps because he never came back from that war. Who knows!

Personal details
Date of birth: 1893
Place of birth:
Father: Lorenzo Dania
Mother: Charlotte Dania
Last known residence: 17 Burness Street, Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Occupation:
Date of death: 18 July 1916
Place of death: Delville Wood, Somme, France
Grave: Unknown

Soldier of the 2nd SA Infantary A soldier of the 2nd SA Infantary

Angelo's grave site is unknown, like many of the soldiers who died at the battle of Delville Wood. There is a monument at Thiepval, France which commemorates all these fallen soldiers. Angelo's epitaph reads:

In Memory of

Private ANGELO JOSEPH DANIA
1st Regt., South African Infantry
who died aged 23 on Tuesday, 18th July 1916.

Private DANIA was the son of Lorenzo Dania and the late Charlotte Dania.

Remembered with honour
THIEPVAL MEMORIAL, Somme, France.

Below is a short account of the battle where young Angelo died. The information comes from an article written by Ian Uys called "The South Africans at Delville Wood".

The 1st South African Infantary Brigade was divided into 4 regiments:

  1. 1st South African Infantary Regiment (Cape of Good Hope Regiment)

  2. 2nd South African Infantary Regiment (Natal and Orange Free State Regiment)

  3. 3rd South African Infantary Regiment (Transvaal and Rhodesia Regiment)

  4. 4th South African Infantary Regiment (South African Scottish Regiment)

The Brigade numbered 160 officers and 5648 other ranks of which about 15% were Afrikaans speaking soldiers. This may be due to the fact that the Afrikaner military tradition favours cavalry and not infantary. It is also to be noted that by the end of the war, this percentage had increased to 30%.

The Somme, France - June 1916 The Brigade arrived in the Somme area on the 4 June 1916 after a 72km long march. Their first duty was to move supplies, shells and other materials. The ill-fated Somme offensive opened on 1 July 1916. The first day saw 54000 casualties of whom over 19 000 were killed. On 7 July, the 9th Scottish Division, which included the 1st South African Infantary Brigade, was called to the front line for an assault on Longueval. The 2nd SA Regiment (2 SA Reg.) relieved 2 battalions of the 27th Brigade in Bernafay Wood, incurring over 200 casualties in the process. On July 10, the 4th SA Regiment (4 SA Reg) relieved 2 SA Reg. While B and D Companies were engaged in Bernafay Wood, A and C Companies were fighting for Trones Wood.

Longueville: 14 July 1916
On the dawn of 14 July, the 26th and 27th Brigades formed up near Montauban to attack Longueville,

where bitter hand-to-hand fighting ensued. The intensity of the fighting led Maj Gen Furse, commander of the 9th Division, to offer the assistance of the 1st SA Infantary Regiment (1 SA Reg.) in support of the 27th Brigade. After the capture of Longueville, the plan was to attack Delville Wood. However, the village was not completely captured and the assault on Delville Wood was postponed until 0600 the following morning.
Delville Wood: 15 July 1916
Two hours before dawn, the 2nd and 3rd SA Reg. left Montauban for Delville Wood followed by the 4th Reg which was supposed to support the attack. The northern part of Longueville and the woods adjoining the streets were still strongly held by the Germans.

 

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