An account of one man's experiences of the First World War compiled by the work experience students of the Fusilier Museum London 2015.

1. Alexis Ectos Maffuniades

2. Alexis Ectos Maffuniades
 Alexis Ectos Maffuniades was a Private in the 10th Battalion of the Royal
Fusiliers during the First World War.
 He had Turkish ancestry from his father Alexander and he had English
heritage through his mother Jane.
 Maffuniades served for two years in the Royal Fusiliers, winning the
distinguished conduct medal for his bravery under enemy fire.
 Unfortunately, “Muffins”, as he was called, died from his wounds inflicted by
a German sniper on the frontline of the trenches on the 28th May 1916.
 This is the story of his experience during “The Great War”.

3. Enlistment
 Maffuniades answered the call at the outbreak of
war to serve his country and thus enlisted on the
27th August 1914, 23 days after war was declared.
 He joined the 10th Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers
also known as the Stockbrokers Battalion. This was
a Pals Battalion primarily made up of workers in the
city, however Maffuniades himself worked in his
fathers printing business.
 Before commencing their training at Colchester,
Maffuniades and the 10th Battalion swore an oath
of allegiance, and also had a parade through the
ditch surrounding the Tower of London.
 The City Press reported:
‘Thousands of Citizens lingered in town last Saturday to
witness the formal inauguration. Formed into eight
columns the recruits mustered in Temple Gardens and
were inspected by Earl Roberts.’
Private Maffuniades (1st row,
2nd from the left) with his
comrades

4. Training
 Maffuniades training lasted from September to December 1914.
 In September, Maffuniades settled into his new accommodation , he became
used to being away from home and adapted to the routines of army life.
 Training included : drills , marching and practicing shooting to get them
prepared for war.
 In November and December, training occurred despite wet and windy
conditions where they did marches and cross country exercises
 Maffuniades also helped to dig up trenches and put together plans for attack
and defence using these.
Private Maffuniades
(bottom right) with his fellow
soldiers training

5. The 10th Battalion’s Experience in War
 Maffuniades himself did not participate in
any major offensives but was involved in
numerous skirmishes.
 The 10th Battalion was fortunate not to have
fought in the Battle of Loos, as despite
being reserves for ‘the Big Push’ the
advanced forces were unable to create a
breakthrough. As Lieutenant Maurice
Sharp, a friend of Maffuniades, put it:
‘From 23rd to the 27th September we were
constantly on the move in case we were
required in the Battle of Loos. This was only a
limited success so we were not needed and
could come back to Foncquevillers.’
 The Battle of Loos alone suffered 61,000
casualties for virtually no gains.
 It was also the first time that British forces
deployed toxic gas against the Central
Powers and was the first major test for the
volunteers that had been raised by Lord
Kitchener.
Private Maffuniades (2nd
row, 3rd from the right)
with his comrades

6. Winning the Distinguished Conduct
Medal (DCM)
 In March 1916, Private Maffuniades won the Distinguished
Conduct Medal whilst serving on the front line.
 The incident began with a raiding party travelling out under
the cover of darkness to cut through the German lines of
barbed wire.
 While carrying out this action, the Germans became aware of
their presence and began firing and hurling grenades at the
British forces.
 Unfortunately, a grenade landed at the feet of Captain
Roberts and exploded, shattering his hand. In the words of
another member of the raiding party, this is what happened
next:
‘Although suffering great agony, the Captain uttered no sound
which would reveal the position of the bombing party and Private
Maffuniades was struck on the head by a bomb, which fortunately
did not explode and only stunned him for a few minutes. On
coming to, he discovered Captain Roberts lying so badly
wounded, that he was unable to move. The others of the party
were some distance off by this time, and it was impossible for
Private Maffuniades to attract their attention without shouting, so
under a hail of rifle fire and bombs, he half carried and half
dragged the Captain back towards the British lines. A minute or
two later, when firing died down, the Germans came out hoping to
secure prisoners, but Maffuniades with the Captain on his back,
managed to evade them, and eventually reached the British lines
in an exhausted condition.’
Captain
Roberts
Private
Maffuniades

7. A newspaper
clipping
detailing the
incident

8. What is the Distinguished Conduct
Medal?
 This was established on 4
December 1854 (during the
Crimean War) by Queen Victoria
for the act of gallantry in the field.
 It was awarded to 29,800 people,
with 25,000 of them being
awarded during World War I
 The medal was also regarded as
second only to the Victoria Cross
in prestige.
 However, the medal was
discontinued in 1993, and was
replaced by the Conspicuous
Gallantry Cross

9. The Death of Maffuniades
“It is with deep regret that I write to sympathise with you in
the loss of your brother Private Ectos Maffuniades. He was
killed about 8:30pm on May 28th. He had been looking over
the parapet when a German sniper spotted him and shot
him through the head. He lost consciousness at once and
died shortly afterwards. Death was therefore painless. His
Platoon officer and I attended his funeral yesterday evening
at 6pm in the village, where we go when we are out of the
trenches. It was a beautiful summers evening and it was a
most impressive ceremony. A funeral party of members of B
Company, and nearly 100 other mourners were present. He
was buried in the military cemetery on top of a beautiful hill
by the side of other brave men of the tenth and some
French comrades. For myself, I can only say that I have lost
one of my best men. It will also be your pride that he
obtained the Distinguished Conduct medal for his gallantry
and devotion and I know that Captain Russell Roberts will
feel his loss very keenly. In short, he was beloved by
officers and men alike and I ask you to accept the sincere
sympathy and regret of all soldiers of B Company 10th Royal
Fusilers”
A letter from B Company to Private Maffuniades’
brother detailing his death on May 28th 1916

10.  Private Maffuniades was
buried at Berles-au-Bois

11.  By Harry Clarke
 James Inchbald
 Nawal Azman