Armenian-British soldier killed at Battle of the Somme
The Somme remembers: An Armenian son lost in the First World War
Second Lieutenant Aganoor John Aganoor, born in London to an Armenian father, was killed in action on September 15, 1916, during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. Aganoor, 25, was the son of Petrus Basil Aganoor, a successful businessman and secretary of the Anglo-Armenian Society. After attending Christ's Hospital boarding school, Aganoor worked at London County & Westminster Bank before enlisting with the Queen's Westminster Rifles in 1914. He rose to the rank of Second Lieutenant and later served with the 17th Battalion London Regiment. He was killed by enemy fire in the High Wood sector while leading his unit. Initially buried near the battlefield, his remains were reinterred in 1920 at Caterpillar Valley Cemetery in Longueval, France. Aganoor is commemorated on war memorials at Christ's Hospital and his bank's sports club.
