NINETY FOUR years after he died in battle, Glosters soldier Walter Deverell has finally been laid to rest.

His great neice, Sandie Provis, 63, of Hucclecote, yesterday spoke of how moving she found the ceremony.

Mr Deverell, a soldier from the 2nd/4th Glosters regiment in the First World War, lost his life on the battlefield in 1916 at Fromelles.

On Saturday, along with hundreds of others discovered in a mass grave dug by German soldiers, he was buried with full military honours.

Sandie said: "I was watching it on the BBC on Saturday morning, and I thought it was extremely moving.

"I was brought to tears by the whole thing, it was just so wonderful."

For Sandie, the burial represented the final journey of a great uncle she never knew, and had only known about for around a year.

She explained: "When they found the remains last year, I didn't know I had any relatives who had died at Fromelles.

"But my sister had been doing some family research, and she had been contacted by someone who must be a cousin of ours, who told us about this great uncle Walter."

Around 62 Gloucestershire Regiment soldiers were believed to have been among the 250 bodies of Australian and British war dead found in the mass grave last Autumn in the Pheasant Wood in the French village.

The Innsworth-based Service Personnel and Veterans Agency has been co-ordinating an archaeological and DNA-based investigation in order to name as many as possible.

Sandie said: "We haven't been involved in the DNA gathering, but we know about it."

She had also been touched by reports of how well the enemy soldiers had looked after the British war dead.

She said: "I was very touched by the fact that these German soldiers were the enemy, but they actually buried these men.

"That was very nice to hear about."