THE MEN OF BATHFORD WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR ~

Transcription

1 THE MEN OF BATHFORD WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR ~ THE WAR MEMORIAL ST. SWITHUN S CHURCH David Howells Bathford Society

2 With the centenary of the start of Britain entering the Great War on the 4th August 1914, it is appropriate to remember the men of Bathford who gave their lives during this conflict. Their names are engraved on the war memorial in Saint Swithun s churchyard, erected in As there is no more information in the Bathford Society archive on these men, I have tried to find out where they lived and where they are buried. The sources used are the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website, the census records, and the postal Directory for Bathford. The next two pages show photographs of the names on the war memorial. This is followed by images of all the certificates available on the CWGC website, followed by tables summarising the certificate information and finally a table combining the CWGC information with census & directory information.

3

4

5

6

7 Second Lieutenant Eric Guillebaud is buried in Saint Swithun s Churchyard. From the CWGC record he died on the 3rd of June 1915 and from the St Swithun Burial Register he was buried here on the 8th of June. Eric Guillebaud s War Memorial stone placed at the foot of the grave for his mother and uncle. The grave stone in the foreground of the CWGC certificate is not that of Eric Guillebaud, but of Lieutenant D.T. Wickham, R.N. who died in 1944 in the Second World War.

8 TRANSCRIPTION OF DETAILS ON THE CWGC CERTIFICATES NAME F-Names RANK MEMORIAL DETAILS OF Baldwin Henry Bernard Private Ploegsteert Memorial 37260, 1st Bn, Wiltshire Regiment who died on 12 April 1918 Burden William Daniel Private Tel El Kebir War Memorial Cemetery Clifford Reginald Gunner Dantzig Alley British Cemetery, Mametz Cockle J Lance Corporal Aubigny Communal Cemetery Extension Francis William John Gunner Dickebusch New Military Cemetery Guillebaud Eric Cyril Second Lieutenant Hancock Frederick William George Private Bathford (St. Swithun) Churchyard Hollybrook Memorial, Southampton 20288, 6th Bn., Royal Munster Fusiliers who died on 22 March 1918 Age 22 W/2313, "D" Bty. 121st Bde., Royal Field Artillery who died on 17 July 1916 Age 30 3/6832, 1st Bn., Somerset Light Infantry who died on 13 April 1917 Age , 99th Bty., Royal Field Artillery who died on 06 March 1915 Age 23 11th Bn., Worcestershire Regiment who died on 03 June 1915 Age 32 M2/106062, Army Service Corps who died on 08 January 1916 Hicks Francis John Private Meteren Military Cemetery 5291, 9th Bn., Australian Infantry, A.I.F. who died on 24 April 1918 Age 32 Hill Maurice Alexander Jones A Lance Bombardier Jones Charles Petty Officer 1st Class Corporal Arras Memorial 33419, 2nd Bn., Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry who died on 28 April 1917 Age 23 Ypres Reservoir Cemetery Portsmouth Naval Memorial W/3136, 119th Bde. Ammunition Col., Royal Field Artillery who died on 21 March , H.M.S. "Bulwark.", Royal Navy who died on 26 November 1914 Youngest son of the late Henry and Julia Burden, of Bathford, Bath. Son of William George and Alice Arm Clifford, of 3, Council Holdings, Cheddar, Somerset. Native of Bathford Son of Mrs. Emily Cockle, of High St., Bathford, Bath. Son of John and Eliza Francis, of Brewery Lane, Bathford, Bath. Son of Mabel Louise Guillebaud. Son of Mrs. J. Hicks, of 1, Alma Cottage, High St., Bathford, Somerset, England Son of Mrs. G. A. Hill, of Castle Cary, Somerset.

9 TRANSCRIPTION OF DETAILS ON THE CWGC CERTIFICATES (CONTINUED) Marshall Arthur Raymond Captain St. Sever Cemetery, Rouen 34th Bde., Royal Garrison Artillery who died on 02 February 1918 Age 27 Newman HenryJohn Sapper Cayeux Military Cemetery 71478, 4th Railway Telegraph Signals, Royal Engineers who died on 26 March 1917 Robins F Private Cairo War Memorial Cemetery , 1st/5th Bn., Somerset Light Infantry who died on 09 June 1919 Skrine Henry Langton Captain Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial 6th Bn., Somerset Light Infantry who died on 25 September 1915 Smartt William Francis Captain Stratton Strawless (St. Margaret) Churchyard Symes W H Private Godewaersvelde British Cemetery Tanner Arthur Thomas Gunner Bully-Grenay Communal Cemetery, British Extension Royal Army Medical Corps who died on 15 January 1916 Age , 21st Bn., Machine Gun Corps (Infantry) who died on 12 April , 238th Siege Bty., Royal Garrison Artillery who died on 23 April 1917 Age 30 Taylor Frank Corporal Ploegsteert Memorial 6258, 1st Bn., Somerset Light Infantry who died on 18 November 1914 Age 32 Tuck Albert George Private Gordon Dump Cemetery, Ovillers-La Boisselle 16949, "C" Coy. 8th Bn., Somerset Light Infantry who died on 01 July 1916 Age 21 Watson Albert Victor Private Pozieres Memorial 26054, 7th Bn., Somerset Light Infantry who died on 22 March 1918 Son of the late Charles and Lucy Marshall. Born at Mussooree, India. Son of Dr. William Francis Smartt, of 58, Leinster Rd., Dublin, husband of Florence Mary Smartt, of 12, Woodrow Rd., Pollokshields, Glasgow. 25 years Government Medical Officer in British Guiana. Son of James Symes, of 1, Chapel Row, Bathford, Bath. Son of John and Deborah Tanner, of Lower Shockerwick Farm, Bathford, Bath. Husband of Edith Helen Stebbings (formerly Taylor), of The Street, Holt, Trowbridge, Wilts. Son of George and Eliza Tuck, of "The Hill," Bathford, Bath

10 On the next page I have added the details, where found, of the home address and parents of these men from the census returns for Bathford. This summarises the men, the date of death and their age when killed, their regiment, and their War Cemetery, together with their home address and their parents, where known.

11 CWGC CENSUS or PO Directory SURNAME Forename Date died Age Rank Died at Home Father Mother Dob Census BALDWIN Henry Bernard 12/04/ Wilts Pte Ploegsteert Woodland Place John Victoria 1899 BURDEN William 22/03/ RMF Pte Tel el Kebir Dovers Lane Henry Julia 1897 CLIFFORD Reginald 17/07/ RFA Gnr Mametz Chapel Bldgs William George Alice 1887 CLIFFORD Albert RFA Dvr No CWGC Record Chapel Bldgs/High St. William George Alice 1885 COCKLE John 13/04/ SLI1 L/C Aubigny High St/Devizes Rd. Henry Emily 1895 FRANCIS William 06/03/ RFA Gnr Dickebusch Brewery Lane John Eliza 1892 GUILLEBAUD Eric. (Cyril) 03/06/ Worc 2Lt Bathford The Sycamores Charles William Mabel Louisa 1893 MARSHALL (Uncle) HANCOCK Frederick 08/01/ RASC Pte Southampton Church St. HEAD Wife Rose 1879 HICKS Francis 24/08/ Aus Pte Meteren Alma Cottage James (Directory) Annie HILL Maurice 28/04/ Ox/B Cpl Arras Not in census JONES Charles 26/11/ RN PO Portsmouth Mem Warleigh Farm Charles Jane Not in census JONES Alfred 24/10/ RFA Bdr Ypres Warleigh Farm Charles Jane 1897 MARSHALL Arthur 02/02/ RGA Capt. St Sever The Sycamores Charles William MARSHALL Mabel Louisa 1891 NEWMAN Henry 26/03/ RE Spr Cayeux The Star Inn, Brewery Lane William Mary 1887 ROBINS F Pte Upper Shockerwick. Frederick Maria 1887 SKRINE Henry L 25/09/ SLI6 Cap Menin Gate Warleigh Manor Henry Mary 1881 SMART(T) William F. 15/10/ RAMC Cap Stratton Strawless Radnor Ldg, Bathford 1861 SMITH R Pte Vine Cottage William Albert Widower 1899 SYMES W 12/04/1918 MGC Pte Godewaersvelde 1 Chapel Row James (Directory) TANNER Arthur 05/05/ RGA Gnr Bully Grenay Shockerwick Farm John Deborah 1888 TAYLOR Frank 18/11/ SLI 1 Pte Ploegsteert Not in census TUCK Albert G 01/07/ SLI8 Pte Ovillers la Boisselle High Street George Elsie 1896 WATSON Albert V. 22/03/ SLI 7 Pte Pozieres Devizes Road Louisa (Wid) 1884

12 COMMENTARY Of the 23 people recorded there were 4 that I could not locate on the census. Francis Hicks, Maurice Hill, W. Symes, Frank Taylor There were three men that I was unable to trace at the CWGC. Namely:- Albert Clifford, F. Robins, R. Smith (possibly due to the large number of Smiths ) A Symes family first appears in Bathford in the 1915 Directory, only the head, James, is recorded so it is likely that this was his father. They first lived in Church Street then moved to Chapel Row by This agrees with the CWGC record. Similarly, a James Hicks is listed in the Directory at Alma Cottage, so Francis must have been away when the census was taken. Frank Taylor s wife was Edith Helen Taylor before marriage, however there is no Edith or Helen, although there is a F.E. Taylor, daughter of James & M.L. Taylor at Hillside Cottage in 1871 so she could have been Frank Taylor s wife. A possible explanation why his name is recorded here? James Taylor s occupation is given as Major RMLI Full pay list, a military connection? There is no explanation as to why Maurice Hill is recorded; his mother lived at Castle Cary.

13 The Clifford family sadly lost two sons as did the Jones family. There were two men from The Sycamores (now Sycamore House), residence of Charles Marshall, namely Captain Arthur Marshall and Second Lieutenant Eric Guillebaud, his cousin. Eric s mother, Mabel Louisa Guillebaud, a widow, died at the age of 60 on 18th February 1912, which is probably why he was living with her brother Charles William Marshall, a widower. Charles died in February 1915 at the age of 73 years and so died without knowing that his nephew died soon after him, nor that his own son died two years later. Unlike most of the other men Eric is buried in St. Swithun s churchyard (southern end of row M), with his mother & uncle. A further home burial is that of Captain William Smartt, Royal Army Medical Corps, who is buried in St Margaret s Churchyard, Stratton Strawless. I was curious as to why he was remembered in Bathford and found him in the 1911 Census living at Radnor Lodge as a General Medical Practitioner. For 25 years he had been the Government Medical Officer in British Guiana. He was the oldest member of the group at 53 years. The next step is to try to find out where & how these men died David Howells, February 2014