AN Oxfordshire soldier who braved a hail of bullets in a bid to save a dying comrade has been saluted as an “amazing person”.

Private William Johnson, who grew up in Bampton, near Witney, was a member of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry.

On September 25, 1915, Pte Johnson volunteered to go back through the trenches to save a fellow soldier following a fierce battle at Bellewaarde Farm, near Hooge in Belgium.

Despite being shot in the leg himself, he braved more enemy fire to go back to Lieutenant AW Wood’s aid.

Last night, his granddaughter Pamela Smith hoped his tale of First World War bravery would inspire more people to support the Poppy Appeal this year.

Mrs Smith,of Hilliat Fields, Drayton, has trawled through records to discover more about her grandfather’s past, including his heroism in Belgium.

She said: “He had to crawl on his hands and knees through the mud and barbed wire.

“He was a very big man and he was being shot at all the time.

“I remember he said he had to lay down and feign death.

“I wished I had listened to him more when I was a child. He was an amazing person.”

Despite Pte Johnson’s heroic efforts, Lt Wood died of his injuries the following day.

Crowds lined the streets of Bampton to welcome home their hero in 1916.

He was awarded the Military Medal, also received a citation from King George V and a marble clock from townsfolk.

According to Mrs Smith’s research, only 38 of the 448 officers and men of the 5th Battalion of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry returned after the fighting near Hooge.

Recalling her grandfather talking about his other war experiences, Mrs Smith, 70, said: “He said neither side really wanted to kill each other. They were just following orders from senior officers.

“He used to talk about the rats in the trenches and how they were as big as cats, and everytime they had to march somewhere they had to carry this heavy equipment.

“If a soldier fell over he would just be dragged into the mud. There was no hope for them and they often had to just leave them. It was very cruel.

“And he told of how he walked over dead bodies of his comrades and soldiers suffering from shell shock. They would just shoot them because they were in such a terrible state.”

“He always walked with a stick, but he was so glad to be alive after seeing all those terrible things.

“I am all for the Poppy Appeal, especially as wars are continuing. The Poppy Appeal makes people think.”

He died in 1961 and is buried at Drayton.