EAST Lancashire was known in the wars as having a proud record of family patriotism.

And nowhere was it so forcefully shown than among the large Snape family, of Blackburn.

For among the eight sons of Thomas and Mary Snape - the couple also had five daughters - five were already serving in the forces in WWI in early 1916 and two were preparing to join them.

Their mother had, by that time, remarried and was now Mrs R Taylor of March House Lane, Darwen.

Serving their king and country was Christopher, a private in the Lancashire Fusiliers; Albert Edward, a corporal in the King’s Own regiment; Arthur, a driver in the Palatine Field Artillery, Thomas, another driver with the Palatines and Ernest, a gunner in the same regiment.

Arthur and Albert had also both fought in the Boer War.

Before the war Christopher worked at Messrs Cotton’s Armenia Mill, Albert at the Blackburn Corporation Electricity Works; Arthur at Greenwood’s Mill Bank Top; while Thomas was a labourer at Fernhurst Farm and Ernest was in the office of Mr R Leach, accountant, Darwen.

As the local Weekly Telegraph reported the service record of the brothers, it also revealed that another, called William had passed the St John Ambulance exam and was awaiting a call to the Royal Army Medical Corps, and Herbert had enlisted under the Lord Derby scheme, which came into force in October 1915 when it became clear that voluntary recruitment was not going to provide the numbers of men required.

Under this group scheme men aged 18 to 40 could continue to enlist voluntarily or attest with an obligation to come if called up later on.

Voluntary enlistment ceased on December 15, 1915.