As he lay in a hospital bed suffering from severe gunshot and shrapnel wounds, Private Harry Jeffs was still showing his defiance and bravery.

The 34-year-old soldier, shot on the battlefields of France in the First World War, was thinking of home as doctors tried to save him.

But the member of 1st/8th Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment was never to return, dying a day after having his leg amputated.

The soldier from Hoby, near Melton, was one of hundreds of Leicestershire men and woman who went to fight and did not come home.

This year, on the 90th anniversary of the end of the First World War, the Leicester Mercury has launched its Faces of the Fallen campaign.

We aim to try to put a face to the young men and women from Leicester and Leicestershire who died fighting for their country.

People can visit our website to leave messages and photographs of those killed in the First World War.

Pte Jeffs died in a military hospital on September 24, 1916.

A touching letter was sent by a fellow patient to his parents, William and Esther, who lived in Hoby.

The letter, written by Geo L Duncan (rank unknown), described Pte Jeffs's bravery while in hospital.

It was discovered in June this year after an appeal for more information about 11 names listed on a plaque in All Saints Church, in Church Lane, Hoby.

It read: "Poor fellow. But he was full of the British pluck, and had all the patience, too, of a real Christian soldier.

"His thoughts were of home when I saw him and he asked if I would write and let you know about him.

"It was yesterday afternoon when I saw him. As the evening wore on, he grew weaker and toward midnight his soul had passed to be with his Maker.

"I can in some measure realise what his loss will mean to you. Yet you must not think of him as lost.

"Quite apart from the fact that he did his duty and died in a good cause, you should remember that the shells which kill our brave fellows' bodies are powerless to kill their spirits."

Pte Jeffs's body is buried at the Puchevillers British Cemetery in northern France, which was described at the time as a "beautiful stretch of quiet agricultural country well back from the firing line".

He had been a member of Hoby Church choir for a number of years and also rang the bells to call worshippers to pray.

All Saints churchwarden Vic Allsop said: "The 11 names on our memorial plaque were fading so we raised some money to get the plaque restored.

"We wanted to give the names a personality so we appealed in the Mercury to find out more.

"People came forward with quite a bit of information – including the letter about Harry Jeffs – and others started asking us questions about their relatives.

"It's good to see that people are still interested in the war.

"We have uploaded some photographs and a tribute to Harry on the website.

"Hopefully, many other people will be doing the same."

Diane Horsfield, Hoby Parish Council clerk, said: "The First World War was such a long time ago now that it's often hard to find people with information about their relatives.

"Some families with little or no information about their families may learn something from this website."

Click here to upload your image