A Branston Pickle?

John Thomas Branston and John Thomas Branston Woodward – two soldiers from Rutland who both died in the First World War. But the question that has perplexed us for some time is how two soldiers had such similar names. Was it coincidence or were they related? The answer is the yes – they were cousins. John Thomas Branston Woodward was the eldest son of John and Mary – and Mary’s maiden name was Branston which they gave as one of his middle names.

Mary’s brother Richard was the father of John Thomas Branston. John Thomas Branston Woodward had one of the most extraordinary war careers – he saved the life of his Colonel, had his wristwatch shot off and was shipwrecked twice while being invalided home.  He died in the Battle of the Somme. Just seven months after his death his younger cousin John Thomas Branston enlisted as soon as he turned 18. He fought around Cambrai before dying in France in the great ‘flu epidemic just a week before the Armistice.