David Edgar Evans – Welsh Regiment, 11th Battalion

 Lieutenant David Edgar Evans – Welsh Regiment, 11^th Battalion

Birth and Family Background

David Edgar Evans was born in 1886 at Morriston, the son of William Evans and Margaret Evans. Only limited official records relating to his early life have survived.

Military Service

David served as a Lieutenant with the Welsh Regiment,  11^th Battalion, a unit that saw prolonged service on the Salonika (Macedonian) Front during the latter years of the First World War.

Welsh Regiment, 11^th Battalion — 18^th September 1918

On 18^th September 1918, the 11^th Battalion, Welsh Regiment was engaged in active operations during the opening phase of the Second Battle of Doiran (18^th–19^th September 1918). This formed part of a wider Allied offensive aimed at breaking the strongly fortified Bulgarian defensive line in the Doiran sector.

The battalion took part in frontal attacks and sustained pressure operations against enemy positions entrenched on rocky ridges and steep, exposed slopes. Bulgarian defences were formidable, incorporating concrete bunkers, extensive barbed wire, and well-sited machine-gun positions. Despite preparatory artillery fire, resistance was intense and casualties were heavy.

Throughout the day, the 11^th Welsh advanced and attempted to consolidate ground under continuous artillery and machine-gun fire. Officers were especially vulnerable, as they were required to lead assaults, direct movement across open terrain, and maintain unit cohesion in extremely difficult conditions.

Although the attacks in the Doiran sector did not achieve an immediate breakthrough, they played a crucial role in pinning Bulgarian forces, contributing to Allied successes elsewhere along the front. These wider operations soon led to Bulgaria seeking an armistice later in September 1918.

It was during this severe fighting on 18^th September 1918 that David Edgar Evans was killed in action.

Death and Commemoration

David Edgar Evans has no known grave and is commemorated on the Doiran Memorial, which records the names of officers and men who died in the Salonika campaign and whose resting places are unknown.

His death reflects the sacrifice made by Welsh soldiers in one of the war’s most demanding and often overlooked theatres, during the final decisive months of the First World War