Charles was born in Brighton in 1889, the eldest of three boys and three girls. By 1911 he was working as a harness maker at Mr Evans’ Equine Supplies at 19 Peach Street. He was a keen cricketer and footballer, a member of Wokingham Town Band and a bellringer in St Paul’s Church. The family home was 41 Easthampstead Road.
He volunteered very early in the war and went to France with the 8th Battalion of the Royal Berkshire Regiment. As he left he said to his sisters: “Look after Mum and Dad, because I won’t be back.”
After over a year of training, the Battalion landed in Le Havre in France on the 8th of August 1915.
Charles Rideout was killed in action on the 25th of September 1915 during the Battle of Loos at the age of 25. He has no known grave and is commemorated on the Loos Memorial.
The associated photograph taken in 1905 shows Charles Rideout on the right outside Evans leather shop..
Wokingham Town Museum Unique Identifier: WTH0399