The Flickr 24041918 Image Generatr

Gunner JACOB, P
Service Number:…………… 206040
Died:……………………….. 24/08/1918
Unit:………………………..."F" Bty. 14th Bde.
………………………………Royal Horse Artillery
Son of Mrs. M. E. Jacob, of Whyte Dyke Cottage, Hockwood, Norfolk.
Buried at ST. AMAND BRITISH CEMETERY
Cemetery/memorial reference: V. C. 14.
Source: www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/278101/jacob,-/

Soldiers Died in the Great War records that Gunner Percy Thomas Jacob was Killed in Action on the 24th August 1918 whilst serving in France & Flanders with the Royal Horse Artillery and Royal Field Artillery. No place of birth is shown. He was resident Brandon, Suffolk and enlisted Woolwich, S.E. London.

The Medal Index Card for Gunner 206040 Percy T. Jacob, Royal Horse Artillery is held at the National Archive under reference WO 372/10/184374
He was originally shown as Royal Field Artillery but with the same service number.
discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D3068346
He qualified for the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. The Medal Roll shows he only served with the Royal Horse Artillery and he died on the 24th August 1918.

His Service Records do not appear to have survived the incendiary attack during the Blitz on the Warehouse where all the Other Ranks Army Service Records were stored.

No match on Picture Norfolk, the county image archive.

The Government Probate Service holds a Soldiers Will for 206040 Percy Thomas Jacob who died on the 24th August 1918.
probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Wills?Surname=Jacob&Surn...

The Army Register of Soldiers Effects records that he was killed in action in France on the 24th August 1918 whilst serving with F Battery, 14 Brigade, The balance of his pay was sent in November 1918 to his mother, Mary E. His War Gratuity was paid to his sole legatee, his mother Mary.

A picture of his headstone, a few brief biographical details and speculation as to the circumstances of his death can be seen here.
www.undyingmemory.net/Hockwold/Jacob Percy.html


1898 - Birth & baptism.................

The Birth of a Percy Thomas W. Jacobs was registered with the civil authorities in the Thetford District in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1898. His mothers maiden name was Flack.

The baptism of a Percy Thomas Wilson Jacob, born 10th May 1898, took place on the 5th June 1898 in the Parish of St Mary and St Nicholas. His parents were John William, a Labourer, and Mary Elizabeth. The family live in the parish.
www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f8ffe93790eca32d2c5...

The most likely marriage of his parents was that of a John William Jacob to a Mary Elizabeth Flack which was recorded in the Thetford District in the January to March quarter, (Q1), of 1891.

1901 Census of England and Wales

The 2 year old Percy ‘Thos’ Wilson Jacob, born Hockwold, Norfolk, was recorded living at No.1 Whitedyke Cottage, Hockwold Fen, Hockwold. This was the household of his parents John ‘Wm’, (aged 34, a Gamekeeper, born Feltwell) and Mary Elizabeth, (aged 29, born Hockwold). As well as Percy they also have two daughters, Mabel Victoria Eliza, (6) and Minnie Elizabeth, (4) – both born Hockwold.


1911 Census of England and Wales

The Jacob family were still living in one of the Whitedyke Cottages at Hockwold. Parents John W, (44) and Mary Elizabeth, (41), have been married 20 years and have had 5 children, all then still alive. Still single and living with them are Percy Thomas W., (12) and Florence Ruby, (7) – both born Hockwold.


Until September 1911 the quarterly index published by the General Registrars Office did not show information about the mothers’ maiden name. A check of the General Registrars Office Index of Birth for England and Wales 1911 – 1983 shows no obvious additional children of John and Mary.


His unit………………………………………

XIV Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery was a brigade of the Royal Horse Artillery which existed in the early part of the 20th century. It had been dissolved before World War I but was reformed for the war. It served with 7th Division on the Western Front before becoming XIV Army Brigade, RHA in February 1917.

XIV Brigade, RHA was reformed in September 1914 with C Battery (from II Brigade, RHA), F Battery (from IV Brigade, RHA) and XIV RHA Brigade Ammunition Column. It joined 7th Division at Lyndhurst on formation. With 7th Division, it crossed to Belgium on 4 and 5 October 1914 (landing at Zeebrugge on 6 October) and served with the division on the Western Front until February 1917. While with the division, it saw considerable action serving at the Siege of Antwerp, the First Battle of Ypres, and in the battles of Neuve Chapelle, Aubers Ridge, Festubert, Loos, and of the Somme.

On 10 February 1917, the brigade left 7th Division and became XIV Army Brigade, RHA

The brigade moved to Italy in December 1917, before returning to the Western Front in March 1918. At the Armistice, it was serving as Army Troops with the Third Army
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XIV_Brigade,_Royal_Horse_Artillery


On the day………………………

ST. AMAND BRITISH CEMETERY

Location Information
St. Amand is a village in the southern part of the Department of the Pas-de-Calais, 17 kilometres east of Doullens.

History Information
The British Cemetery was begun in April, 1916, and used by fighting units and Field Ambulances until August, 1918 (though in 1917 it was practically closed), particularly by the 37th and the 56th (London) Divisions. There are now over 200, 1914-18 war casualties commemorated in this site. Of these, a small number are unidentified.
CWGC: www.cwgc.org/find-a-cemetery/cemetery/27901/st.-amand-bri...
As an Army unit it can be particularly hard to track its movements and the circumstances in which they were serving at the time of his death – they would go not only wherever the Army they were attached to needed them, but could also be lent between Armies if additional firepower was required.

Its likely they were involved however in the Second Battle of Bapaume at this time – St. Amand is North West of Bapaume and South West of Arras.

The battle of Bapaume, 21 August-3 September, was the second phase of the battle of Amiens, the British offensive often taken to be the turning point of the First World War on the Western Front.

During the relative lull between 11 and 21 August, Byng’s Third Army was reinforced, while the Canadian Corps moved from the Fourth to the First Army (Horne), on the left of the line.

The British attack began on a narrow front on 21 August, with an attack by the Third Army. The Germans responded with a counterattack on 22 August, which was quickly beaten off. On 23 August Haig was able to order a general advance by the Third Army and part of the Fourth, on a 33 mile front. On 26 August the right wing of the First Army joined in, extending the front to 40 miles (this attack is sometimes designated as the second battle of Arras of 1918). At that point the German line ran along the Somme south from Péronne, then across open country to Noyon on the Oise. Ludendorff had ordered a retreat from the Lys salient and what was left of the Amiens salient, with the intention of forming a new line on the Somme.

This plan was disrupted by the Australians, New Zealanders and Canadians. On 29 August the New Zealanders captured Bapaume (east of Amiens, south of Arras), breaking through the Le Transloy-Loupart trench system.

To the south the 2nd Australian Division captured Mont St. Quentin, on the east bank of the Somme, on the night of 30-31 August, and on 1 September captured Péronne itself.

Further north, on 2 September the Canadians broke through the Drocourt-Quéant switch, a strong section of the German line south east of Arras. With two gaps in the proposed new front line, Ludendorff was forced to retreat back to the Hindenburg line, abandoning all of the territory won earlier in 1918.
www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_bapaumeII.html


Mildly photoshopped to minimise impact of damage present on the original image.

This photograph appeared in the edition of the Norwich Mercury dated Saturday May 4 1918 along with the caption:

LEADING SEAMAN DANIEL ALLAN BOWTHORPE,

Fourth son of Mr. and Mrs. David Bowthorpe, 34, Wingfield Road, Norwich, one of the volunteers on the Vindictive, which played so gallant a part in the attack on the Zeebrugge Mole. He was severely wounded in the fighting and taken to Dover, where he died. He was brought to Norwich and buried on Tuesday.

The article referred to was:-

LOCAL MEN ON THE VINDICTIVE.

Among the Zeebrugge heroes to lose their lives was Leading Seaman Daniel Allan Bowthorpe, one of the volunteers in the great raid. Twenty-two years of age, and the fourth son of Mr. and Mrs. David Bowthorpe, of 34, Wingfield Road, Norwich, he died in a Dover hospital from wounds received in action.

The funeral took place at the Cemetery, Norwich, on Tuesday, when every mark of sympathy was shown by a large crowd. The service was conducted by the Rev. John Green (Vicar of St. Luke’s) and honour was paid to one who had given seven years for the service and made the supreme sacrifice for his country. The body was borne to the burial ground on a gun carriage. The coffin was covered with the Union Jack, and laid upon it was the deceased’s cap. Lance-Corp. Dixon, Lance-Corpl. Dunham, Private Reader, Private Baine, Private Boine, and Private McKein, with Sergt. Goodswain, from the Depot, Norfolk Regiment, acted as bearers, and at the conclusion of the service Bugler-Corpl. Codman sounded the “Last Post.”

The mourners included the father and mother, Mrs Taylor (sister), Mr. and Mrs. Lubbock (sister and brother-in-law), Mrs. Howard (sister), Mr. and Mrs. Labroke, (sister and brother-in-law), Private J. Bowthorpe and Private S. Bowthorpe (brothers), Mr. and Mrs. Bowthorpe (brother and sister-in-law), Misses G. and M. Bowthorpe (sisters), Miss Labbrooke, Mr. and Mrs. Marshall (aunt and uncle), Miss Hare and Mr. Lubbock. There were also present Able Seamen Smart, Troot, and Hawes, and Ordinary Seaman Landimore, on leave from their ships. There was a large number of wreaths from relatives and friends and parents of several Norwich seaman away on service.

Able Seaman Hawes was in the Zeebrugge fight with the deceased, and other local “Vindictive” men who took part in the engagement were:
Stoker (1st Class) Fredk Thompson of Poplar, formerly of Brandon
Stoker Fosdick of Norwich
Stoker Sharp, of Sheringham and
Chief Stoker Seago, of Lowestoft

Lieut. Young, M.P. for Norwich, as we mentioned last week, took part in the landing and suffered a serious wound, necessitating amputation of his arm.


Name: BOWTHORPE, DANIEL ALLAN
Rank:………………. Leading Seaman
Service:…………… Royal Navy
Unit Text:…………. H.M.S. "Vindictive"
Age:………………. 22
Date of Death:…… 24/04/1918
Service No:………. J/18711
www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2803060/bowthorpe,-da...

The Royal Naval Service records for J18711 Daniel Allan Bowthorpe, born Norwich, 23rd September 1896, are held at the National Archive under reference ADM 188/684/18711
The file begins in 1913.
discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D6870796

The WW1 Naval Casualties database records that Leading Seaman J.18711. (Ch.) Daniel Allan Bowthorpe, Royal Navy, was Killed or died as a direct result of enemy action on the 24th April 1918 whilst serving aboard HMS Vindictive. Daniel was born Norwich on the 23rd September 1896. The next of kin informed of his death was his mother, Martha, of 34 Wingfield Road, “Aylesham” Road, Norwich. [Should be Aylsham Road]

No obvious Civil Probate for this man.

No match on Picture Norfolk, the County Archive.


23rd September 1896 – Birth………..

(Source National Archive catalogue entry for his Naval Service records and the WW1 Naval Casualties database).

The birth of a Daniel “Allam” Bowthorpe was registered with the Civil Authorities in the Norwich District in the October to December quarter, (Q4), of 1896.

1901 Census of England and Wales

The 4 year old Daniel is recorded on the 1901 Census at 34 Wingfield Road, Norwich. This was the household of his parents, David, (aged 41 and a Baker from Norwich), and Martha, (aged 40 and from Norwich). Their other children are:-
Arthur……….aged 19.…. born London Westminster….. Shoemaker
Elizabeth…...aged 18.…. born London, Westminster…... Box Maker
Florence……aged 16.…. born Norwich…… Box Maker
Maud………..aged 14.….born Norwich
Ethel………..aged 10.….born Norwich
Thomas…….aged 7.…..born Norwich
Sidney……...aged 2.……born Norwich
Gertrude……aged u/1.….born Norwich

And in their 2up/2down terrace house they also has a boarder Ellen Munday, aged 19 and a Boot Trimmer from Norwich !

1911 Census of England and Wales

The Bowthorpe family were still living at 34 Wingfield Road. Parents “Jabez”, (52, Journeyman Baker) and Martha, (51), have been married for 31 years and have had 15 children, of which 11 were then still alive.

Still single and living at home were Maud, (23, Shoe Machinist), Ethel, (21, Shoe Machinist), Daniel, (15, Printer), Sidney, (12), Gertrude, (10) and May, (8). All of them were born Norwich.

Seamans Service Record………….

Daniel Allan Bowthorpe, born Norwich Norwich on the 23rd September 1896 and previously employed as a Printers Feeder, joined the Royal Navy as a Boy Sailor on the 25th July 1912. On reaching his 18th birthday on the 23rd September 1914 he signed up for another 12 years. At that point he was recorded as 5 feet 5 and a half inches tall, with Dark Brown hair, Hazel eyes and a Fresh complexion.

Ship\Station……Rank…..……………..From……….To
Ganges…………Boy II………………..25/07/1912…01/11/1912
Ganges II………Boy II………………..02/11/1912
Ganges II………Boy I………………...10/02/1913….10/12/1913
Gibraltar……….Boy I…………………11/02/1913…..02/12/1913
Vivid I…………Boy I…………………03/12/1913…..31/12/1913
Essex…………..Boy I…………………01/01/1914
Essex…………..Ordinary Seaman…….23/09/1914
Essex………….Able Seaman…………09/04/1915….21/04/1916
Pembroke(Hindustan)…Able Seaman…01/05/1916
Essex………….Able Seaman………….02/05/1916…23/08/1916.
Pembroke I……Able Seaman…………24/08/1916…03/11/1916
Courageous…..Able Seaman………….04/11/1916
Courageous.….Leading Seaman………01/03/1918…01/03/1918
Pembroke 1…..Leading Seaman………02/03/1918…23/04/1918

It is then noted that he died of wounds on the 24th April 1918 received in action off the coast of Belgium.

Victoria Cross were awarded to some of the units that took, with ballots then taking place to see who then got them. His record is noted that he was included in the ballot for the V.C. granted for operations against Zeebrugge dated 22 – 23 April 1918.

A War Gratuity was paid to his next of kin. His conduct throughtout his naval career was rated ‘Very Good’.

HMS Essex…………………………….

(Daniel joined this ship on the 1st January 1914 and stayed with her until the 23rd August 1916, with one small break – possibly when he served as apart of a prize cew)

Essex rejoined the 4th Cruiser Squadron in January 1914 with Commander Hugh Tweedie in command.

After visiting Madeira and Jamaica, the ship arrived in Veracruz, Mexico, on 9 February to relieve her sister ship, Suffolk, and protect British interests during the ongoing Mexican Revolution. Two weeks later, she visited Galveston, Texas, before heading for Tampico, Mexico where she arrived on 11 March. Essex only spent a few days there before returning to Veracruz on 13 March. She was in Tampico when Mexican soldiers briefly detained American sailors buying gasoline for their ship on 9 April (the Tampico Affair) and returned to Veracruz ten days later, two days before the Americans began landing there on 21 April. They were not satisfied by the Mexican apologies and U.S. President Woodrow Wilson ordered the city occupied in retribution and to forestall a major arms delivery to Victoriano Huerta's forces. The Mexicans resisted and stray bullets hit Essex the next day, wounding one man who was shot in both feet. Tweedie, escorted by two ratings, was sent to take dispatches for the British Minister in Mexico City on the 26th and returned two days later. Rear-Admiral Christopher Craddock inspected the ship and her crew on 5–6 May. Essex sailed for Tampico on 10 May before leaving Mexican waters on the 14th. A month later, the ship was in Quebec City when she was visited by the Canadian Minister of Marine and Fisheries on 16 June. The following month, Essex ferried the Governor General of Canada, Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, to Newfoundland and Labrador before returning to Quebec City on 20 July.

World War I

When Craddock received the preliminary war warning on 27 July, he ordered Essex to join her sister Lancaster in Bermuda, which she reached three days later. The ship was ordered to patrol the area north and northwest to protect British shipping and destroy any German commerce raiders. As the Germans appeared to be concentrating their efforts in the Caribbean, Craddock ordered Essex south to reinforce his forces there in early September. On 7 September, she captured the tender, SS Bethania, for the armed merchant cruiser SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, en route from Halifax to Jamaica. The ship continued to patrol the sealanes from the Caribbean Sea to Canadian waters until the end of February 1915, when she escorted a troop convoy from Halifax to Queenstown, Ireland. Essex then sailed to Barrow-in-Furness where she began a refit that lasted until 29 April. Now assigned to the 7th Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet, she spent the next several weeks in Avonmouth or Scapa Flow before being transferred to Cruiser Force and began patrolling the area between the Azores, Madeira, Cape Verde and Gibraltar on 8 June. Rear-Admiral Archibald Moore, commander of the 9th Cruiser Squadron, hoisted his flag aboard the ship on 4 September and pulled it down on the 29th. Essex began a brief refit at Gibraltar on 1 October that lasted until the 26th and then resumed patrolling the Central Atlantic. She captured a German merchantman, SS Telde, on 3 May 1916 in the Canary Islands. The ship resumed patrolling until her arrival in Devonport on 17 August; Essex was paid off days later.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Essex_(1901)

See also
www.naval-history.net/OWShips-WW1-05-HMS_Essex.htm

HMS Courageous………………………..

(Daniel joined this ship on the 4th November 1916 and stayed with her until the 1st March 1918)

Courageous was laid down on 26 March 1915, launched on 5 February 1916 and completed on 4 November. During her sea trials later that month, she sustained structural damage while running at full speed in a rough head sea; the exact cause is uncertain. The forecastle deck was deeply buckled in three places between the breakwater and the forward turret. The side plating was visibly buckled between the forecastle and upper decks. Water had entered the submerged torpedo room and rivets had sheared in the angle irons securing the deck armour in place.

Upon commissioning, Courageous was assigned to the 3rd Light Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet. She became flagship of the 1st Cruiser Squadron near the end of 1916 when that unit was re-formed after most of its ships had been sunk at the Battle of Jutland in May. The ship was temporarily fitted as a minelayer in April 1917 by the addition of mine rails on her quarterdeck that could hold over 200 mines, but never laid any mines. In mid-1917, she received half a dozen torpedo mounts, each with two tubes: one mount on each side of the mainmast on the upper deck and two mounts on each side of the rear turret on the quarterdeck.

Second Battle of Heligoland Bight

Throughout 1917 the Admiralty was becoming more concerned about German efforts to sweep paths through the British-laid minefields intended to restrict the actions of the High Seas Fleet and German submarines. A preliminary raid on German minesweeping forces on 31 October by light forces destroyed ten small ships. Based on intelligence reports, the Admiralty allocated the 1st Cruiser Squadron on 17 November 1917, with cover provided by the reinforced 1st Battlecruiser Squadron and distant cover by the battleships of the 1st Battle Squadron, to destroy the minesweepers and their light cruiser escorts.[18]

The German ships—four light cruisers of II Scouting Force, eight destroyers, three divisions of minesweepers, eight Sperrbrechers (cork-filled trawlers) and two other trawlers to mark the swept route—were spotted at 7:30 am. Courageous and the light cruiser Cardiff opened fire with their forward guns seven minutes later. The Germans responded by laying an effective smoke screen. The British continued in pursuit, but lost track of most of the smaller ships in the smoke and concentrated fire on the light cruisers. Courageous fired 92 fifteen-inch shells and 180 four-inch shells during the battle, and the only damage she received was from her own muzzle blast. One fifteen-inch shell hit a gun shield of the light cruiser SMS Pillau but did not affect her speed. At 9:30 the 1st Cruiser Squadron broke off their pursuit so that they would not enter a minefield marked on their maps; the ships turned south, playing no further role in the battle.
After the battle, the mine fittings on Courageous were removed, and she spent the rest of the war intermittently patrolling the North Sea.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Courageous_(50)


On the day……………………………….

On 23 April a second attempt was made, in conjunction with a raid on the neighbouring harbour of Ostend. The raid began with a diversion against the mile-long Zeebrugge mole. The attack was led by an old cruiser, Vindictive, with two Mersey ferries, Daffodil and Iris II. The three ships were accompanied by two old submarines, which were filled with explosives to blow up the viaduct connecting the mole to the shore. Vindictive was to land a force of 200 sailors and a battalion of Royal Marines at the entrance to the Bruges Canal, to destroy German gun positions. At the time of the landing the wind changed and the smokescreen to cover the ship was blown offshore. The marines immediately came under heavy fire and suffered many casualties. Vindictive was spotted by German gun positions and forced to land in the wrong location, resulting in the loss of the marines' heavy gun support. Eventually the submarine HMS C3 commanded by Lt. R. D. Sandford, destroyed the viaduct with an explosion. Sandford was awarded the Victoria Cross for this action.

The attempt to sink three old cruisers, to block the flow of traffic in and out of the Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge failed. The failure of the attack on the Zeebrugge mole resulted in the Germans concentrating their fire on the three blocking ships, HMS Thetis, Intrepid and Iphigenia, which were filled with concrete. Thetis did not make it to the canal entrance, after it hit an obstruction and was scuttled prematurely. The two other ships were sunk at the narrowest point of the canal. The submarines C1 under Lieutenant A. C. Newbold and C3 under Sandford were old, each with a volunteer crew of one other officer and four ratings. They had five tons of amatol packed into their fore-ends and were to be driven into the viaduct and then blown up, to prevent reinforcement of the German garrison on the mole. The crews were to abandon their submarines shortly before the collision with the viaduct, leaving the submarines to steer themselves automatically. During the passage from Dover, C1 parted with its tow and arrived too late to take part in the operation.Sandford, in command of C3, elected to steer his ship into the viaduct manually instead of depending on the automatic system.

Of the 1,700 men involved in the operation, S. F. Wise recorded in 1981 that 300 were wounded and more than 200 killed. Kendall gave figures of 227 dead and 356 wounded. The destroyer, HMS North Star was sunk. Among the dead was Wing Commander Frank Brock, the man who devised and commanded the smoke screen. Most of the casualties were buried in England either because they died of their wounds en route or because the survivors recovered their bodies to repatriate them. The Zeebrugge plot of St James's Cemetery, Dover has nine unidentified men and fifty named men who died on 23 April 1918 but most fatalities were returned to their families for local burials.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeebrugge_Raid

HMS Vindictive…………

Early in 1918 she was fitted out for the Zeebrugge Raid. Most of her guns were replaced by howitzers, flame-throwers and mortars. On 23 April 1918 she was in fierce action at Zeebrugge when she went alongside the mole, and her upperworks were badly damaged by gunfire, her Captain, Alfred Carpenter was awarded a Victoria Cross for his actions during the raid. This event was famously painted by Charles de Lacy, the painting hangs in the Britannia Royal Naval College. In addition to her usual complement, she embarked Royal Marine gunners to man the supplementary armament, and a larger raiding party. This comprised two of the three infantry companies of the 4th Battalion, Royal Marine Light Infantry, (their third company was embarked on the Iris), along with two "companies" of seamen raiders commanded by Lieutenant Commander Bryan Fullerton Adams and Lieutenant Arthur Chamberlain ("A" & "B" seamen Companies) respectively.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Vindictive_(1897)

Diversionary Operation on Zeebrugge Mole

The raid on Zeebrugge harbour began at one minute after midnight on 23 April with the diversionary operation to land a force of Royal Marines at the mile-long Zeebrugge Mole. The men landing on the Mole formed a storming force and a demolition force to destroy the German gun batteries, seaplane station and defences on it. They were carried to the Mole by the old cruiser “Vindictive” and two Mersey River passenger ferries, the “Daffodil” and “Iris II”. The primary duty of the “Daffodil” was to push “Vindictive” up against the Mole, then pull alongside the Mole herself and her Marine force would disembark onto the Mole. The Acting Captain of the “Vindictive” was Commander Alfred Francis Blakeney Carpenter, RN.

As events unfolded the “Vindictive” was already under fire as she arrived and there were casualties to many of the leading Marines and commanders of this storming operation. The smoke screen was less effective than planned because the wind changed direction half an hour before the arrival of “Vindictive” at the Mole. “Daffodil” had to continue pushing “Vindictive” against the Mole and her Marines had to disembark via the bow onto “Vindictive” and then onto the Mole. “Iris II” could not land her Marines directly onto the Mole either, and great bravery and casualties were suffered by the men trying to secure her to the Mole. She attempted to go alongside “Vindictive” instead but only a few men managed to get onto “Vindictive” before she was withdrawn. Many casualties were suffered by the crews manning the guns on “Vindictive”.
www.greatwar.co.uk/battles/yser/zeebrugge-ostend-raid.htm

see also
www.mckenzie.uk.com/book/export/html/5
www.naval-history.net/WW1Battle1804ZeebruggeOstend.htm


Mildly photoshopped to minimise impact of damage present on the original image.

The Postcard

A postcard published by W.H. Mizen of Upton-on-Severn. The women have been posed for the photograph.

The card was posted in Upton-on-Severn on Friday the 22nd. August 1919 to:

Miss Smith,
100 Market Jew Street,
Penzance.

The message on the back of the card was as follows:

"Friday.
Thanks so much for your
letter.
We came here on Monday
and are staying until
Saturday week.
Could you make it on
Saturday before getting
to Taunton.
I should love to see you
so do try".

A Tank Named Mephisto

So what else happened on the day the card was posted?

Well, on the 22nd. August 1919, a Great War tank named Mephisto was moved two miles in Australia.

Mephisto is a German A7V tank captured by Australian troops. One of only 20 built, it is the last surviving example of the first German tank.

The tank was lost during the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux on the 24th. April 1918 when it was abandoned after falling into a ditch.

In July 1918, under the cover of an artillery barrage, Australian infantry and two British vehicles (either Gun Carriers or Mark IV tanks) moved forward and dragged it back to their lines under fire from the Germans who were still within sight of the tank. They had to don gas masks after German poison gas was deployed.

Following its capture, Mephisto was transported to the 5th Tank Brigade demonstration ground at Vaux-en-Amiénois near Amiens.

During its stay there it was decorated with 'soldier-art' paintings of a British lion with its paw on an A7V, many soldiers' names, details of its capture and recovery, and the rising sun badge of the Australian Imperial Force (A.I.F.)

From Vaux-en-Amiénois, Mephisto was shipped by rail to the Tank Corps Gunnery School at Merlimont and then on from Dunkirk to London.

On the 2nd. April 1919 it was loaded on to the SS Armagh at Tilbury. The tank arrived at the Norman Wharf in Brisbane on the 6th. June 1919.

On the 22nd. August 1919, two steamrollers from the Brisbane Municipal Council pulled Mephisto (travelling on its own caterpillar tracks) from the wharf to the Queensland Museum. The journey of less than 2 miles that took 11 hours.

I was visiting St Margarets Church in Lowestoft specifically to see the side chapel, dedicated to those who had lost their lives from the town in the Great War. The names of hundreds of them are written on panels down one side. I was here even more specifically to look for five names in particular – spread through-out the alphabet so that meant I needed good shots of at least five of the panels. Well I took pictures of them all, “just in case”. Not all are as sharp or framed as I might have liked and I definitely didn’t have time to thoroughly research all the names, (but who knows, I may come back!). So five panels are done, the rest are pot luck.

The Roll of Honour site has already made a start on trying to identify all the names in the chapel.
www.roll-of-honour.com/Suffolk/LowestoftStMargaretsChurch...

For more on each name see comments below.

Abbreviations used.
CWGC - Commonwealth War Graves Commission
SDGW – Soldiers Died in the Great War

Mutford was the Civil District for the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriage, (until 1935 - when it became part of the new District of Lothingland).


V.W. BAXTER
E. BEAMISH
W. BEATTON
J.W. BEAVERS
F. BEAVERS
H.W. BECKETT
S. BECKETT
S.C. BECKHAM
W. BELTON
C.H. BENSTEAD
A.N. BESSEY
J.E. BESSEY
F.H. BETTS
W.J. BICKER
C. BIRD
H. BIRD
H.G. BIRD
A.T. BIRDSEYE
A.W. BLAKE

I was visiting St Margarets Church in Lowestoft specifically to see the side chapel, dedicated to those who had lost their lives from the town in the Great War. The names of hundreds of them are written on panels down one side. I was here even more specifically to look for five names in particular – spread through-out the alphabet so that meant I needed good shots of at least five of the panels. Well I took pictures of them all, “just in case”. Not all are as sharp or framed as I might have liked and I definitely didn’t have time to thoroughly research all the names, (but who knows, I may come back!). So five panels are done, the rest are pot luck.

The Roll of Honour site has already made a start on trying to identify the names in the chapel.
www.roll-of-honour.com/Suffolk/LowestoftStMargaretsChurch...

For more on each name see comments below.

Abbreviations used.
CWGC - Commonwealth War Graves Commission
SDGW – Soldiers Died in the Great War

Mutford was the Civil District for the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriage, (until 1935 - when it became part of the new District of Lothingland).

B R Palmer
W Parker
A G Parry
C Pasque
E A Patterson
T Patterson
W Patterson
A J Paul
A Peak
Arthur Pearson
Artis Pearson
L E Peck
H St H Peskett
F Phillips
S A Pike
W G Piper
O J Pitcher
B R Pitchers
A J Pitt

On a pedestrian walk through from Rouen Road to Kings Street, memorials recovered from the old breweries thats once dominated the area and have now gone have been assembled.

The 1914-18 memorial originally came from Steward & Patteson Brewery in Barrack Street. It was on the wall just inside the main gates next to the gatekeepers office. It was moved to Rouen Road when the Barrack Street brewery closed.

Roll of Honour site (RoH)
www.roll-of-honour.com/Norfolk/NorwichBreweries.html

As these men could potentially come from all over the country, there is more than usual level of uncertainty.

John Dossie Patteson
Frederick Britcher
Alexander Crooks
J Firth
James Halfacre
Albert Lee
Thomas Lee
Walter James Moore
Frederick Rix
C M Scott
George Henry Shorten
C Smith
C Yaxley
William C Yaxley

C R Cooper
C Daniels
R C Jackson
E E Smith
F H Wade

Edward Branch
John Austin Philo
Walter Ward

Jesse James Holman
Jack Noel Lester
Reginald Vernon Tweedy

E Chambers
Walter Edward Root

1914 - 1918

Allen, Gordon V
Probably
ALLEN, GORDON VICTOR
Rank: Private
Service No: 20835
Date of Death: 12/10/1916
Regiment: Essex Regiment, 1st Bn.
Panel Reference Pier and Face 10 D.
Memorial THIEPVAL MEMORIAL
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/773230/ALLEN,%2...

No match on Norlink

The Soldiers who Died in the Great War database has this Essex Regiment man down as born Wood Dalling, Norfolk. and resident Lower Hellesdon,.

The 1911 census has a Gordon Victor, born circa 1898, at Wood Dalling near Reepham and who was recorded in the District of St Faiths that covers Hellesdon on the night of the census.

On the 1901 census, the three year Gordon, (or “Gorden” according to the Genes Re-united transcribers), who had been born at Wood Dalling, was recorded at Heydon Road, Wood Dalling, Norfolk. This is the household of his parents, Frederick, (aged 26 and a Railway Labourer from Salle, Norfolk) and Frances, (aged 33 and from Wood Dalling). They also have a guest staying with them - a 22 year old Traction Engine Driver called Albert Bowles from Heigham, Norfolk.

Gordon is not recorded on the Wood Dalling Village or Church Memorial.

October 1916

After having spent 10 weeks in the Ypres Salient the 88th Brigade, the brigade in which the Royal Newfoundland Regiment was serving, was temporarily attached to the British 12th Division, which was holding Gueudecourt. By nightfall on October 10, the regiment was manning a 450-metre section of the trench on the northern outskirts of the village.
The attack began at 2:05 pm on 12 October 1916. The regiment advanced in line with the 1st Essex Battalion on their left. The men kept so close to the supporting artillery barrage that several became casualties from the shrapnel of their own supporting guns. Likewise, the Germans were compelled by the shelling to remain under cover and as a result were quickly engaged in hand-to-hand fighting. By 2:30 p.m. both assaulting battalions of the 88th Brigade had secured their initial objective, Hilt Trench in the German front line.
As the Newfoundlanders advanced to their final objective, Grease Trench some 750 metres from their starting line, heavy machine-gun fire coming from the front and the right flank forced the regiment back to Hilt Trench. On their left flank, a German counter-attack drove the 1st Essex Battalion back to the outskirts of Gueudecourt, leaving the Newfoundlanders with an open flank.[2] Newfoundland bombing parties cleared and secured the vacated portion of Hilt Trench and as a result doubled the length of the regiment's front line. All ranks began digging in the hard chalk to construct a new firing step and parapet and reverse the former German position.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gueudecourt_(Newfoundland)_Memorial

A history of the battalion reported in some detail the heavy fighting near Gueudecourt:
“Essex, with other units, were transported in ‘buses at six o’clock on the night oft the 9th to relieve part of the 37th Brigade in the firing line. They marched up to the support line through Delville Wood... The battalion was moved into the firing line on the 11th in readiness for an attack in co-operation with the Newfoundland Regiment. Gueudecourt lay just below a German defensive system, the last but one to be penetrated before Bapaume could be reached from the south.....The advance took placed at 2.5 p.m. on October 12th; W and X Companies moving from the trenches in front of Gueudecourt, and Y and Z being in support in the Sunken Road. The barrage fire was well timed, and under cover of it W and X Companies took the first line trenches, There they were re-inforced by half of Z Company. The remainder of the battalion swung left-handed, as the objective had not been gained by the 7th Suffolks.....Meanwhile X and Y Companies had ‘mopped up’ the dug-outs of the first objective, killing 300 Germans and capturing 60 of the 64th Brandenburgers, known as the ‘Crown Prince’s Little Berlin Boys’. They then moved on to the second line, but about half-way across were stayed by very heavy fire from front and flanks, particularly from the left. ......The 18th Brigade on the right and the 35th Brigade on the left did not get forward, and the Essex companies gradually retired in waves to the first objective, where they remained for two hours bringing enfilade fire to bear, thence back to the front line, on relief, where they re-organised. At nightfall the battalion held the original front line, and the Newfoundlanders retained the first objective.”
www.chelmsfordwarmemorial.co.uk/Chelmsford_War_Memorial/B...

Bloomfield, Bertie

BLOOMFIELD, BERTIE
Rank: Sapper
Service No: 84576
Date of Death: 17/06/1918
Age: 38
Regiment/Service: Royal Engineers, 9th Coy.
Grave Reference I. J. 1.
Cemetery MONT-BERNANCHON BRITISH CEMETERY, GONNEHEM
Additional Information:
Husband of Mrs. H. E. Bloomfield, of Mill Cottages, Lower Hellesdon, Norwich.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/247743/BLOOMFIE...

No match on Norlink

The Soldiers who Died in the Great War database has this Royal Engineer down as born Norwich..
The most likely match on the 1901 census is a 21 year old Bertie, born Burgh St Peter, Norfolk, who was recorded at 40 Paddock Street, Norwich. Bertie, an Agricultural Labourer, was the head of this household. Living with him was his 28 year old wife Honor E. who came from Norwich.

By the time of the 1911 census, the Bertie from Burgh St Peter was recording in the District of St Faiths which covers Hellesdon..

The marriage of Bertie Bloomfield to Honor Elizabeth Blake was recorded in the Norwich District in the the July to September quarter of 1900.

A picture of his headstone can be seen here
twgpp.org/information.php?id=2724024

A piece on the death of another engineer, Simon Corrigall, from 9th Company gives us a bit more detail.

On the 8th May (1918) Simon transferred to 9th Field Company R.E, a Regular Army unit in 4th Division.. On the 28th March it had been in the line on the right of the 56th Division, but moved north soon after to the Franco-Belgium border to hold the German Lys Offensive, along the La Bassee canel near Bethune. The strong German offensive had been stopped there by the end of April, but 4th Division remained in that area.

Normal trench warfare continued on 4th Divisions front, at times the Germans actively shelled both its support and reserve line trenches. On the morning of the 17th June, the 1st Kings Own made a successful
daylight raid on the German trenches in the Vinage Sector of 4th Divisions front. That probably triggered heavy German artillery fire that day, when Sappers Simon Corrigall and Bertie Bloomfield of 9th Field Company R.E. were killed in action, while Sapper Thomas Clayburn died of his wounds the next day. The three sappers were probably working together in the front or support line, when they fell victim to German artillery fire.

Simon Corrigall, aged 22, and Bertie Bloomfield were buried in adjacent graves in the small Mont-Bernanchon cemetery, 8 kilometres NNW of Bethune.
docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:gq9cGmPRi-4J:www.r...

Copsey, Cecil

COPSEY, CECIL STEPHEN SAMUEL BLOOM
Rank: Private
Service No: 12573
Date of Death: 13/10/1915
Age: 18
Regiment: Norfolk Regiment, 7th Bn.
Panel Reference Panel 30 and 31.
Memorial LOOS MEMORIAL
Additional Information:
Son of William L. Copsey, of "Ivanhoe", Lower Hellesdon, Norwich, and the late Emma C. Copsey.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/730360/COPSEY,%...

No match on Norlink

The Soldiers who Died in the Great War database has this Norfolk Regiment man down as born St Michael at Thorn, Norwich.

The 4 year old Cecil, born Norwich, was recorded on the 1901 census at 141 Sprowston Road. This was the household of his parents, William L.(aged 31 and a Master Baker from Norwich), and Emma, (aged 29 and from Norwich). Their other children are:-
Cyril………………….aged u/1.………..born Norwich
Dudley………………..aged 2.…………born Norwich
Gwendoline………….aged 3.………….born Norwich

The Copsey’s also had a live in servant.

On 12th October 1915 the Battalion moved from billets to a line in front of the St Elie Quarries, taking over from the Coldstream Guards. The attack was planned to go ahead the following day under a smoke cloud with the Norfolks closing on the German trenches from both ends of their position thus straightening their line, their own trenches being in a semi-circle. The left side of the Battalion was also tasked with bombing a German communications trench. A bright sunny day with an ideal wind for moving the smoke towards the enemy positions, the artillery bombardment began at 12:00 and was intensive by 13:45. 54 heavy and 86 field howitzers and 286 field guns fired on enemy trenches in the area of the Hohenzollern Redoubt, Fosse 8, the Quarries, Gun Trench and the positions south to Chalk Pit Wood. It failed to cause sufficient damage to the enemy positions. The smoke barrage went wrong and ceased by 13:40, twenty minutes before the attack was launched at 14:00 and was thus very thin. German machine gun fire from in front and from the direction of Slag Alley, opposite the Norfolks right flank, enfiladed their attack. Whilst they gained a foothold in the Quarries and consolidated the position they were unable to advance further. In the battalions first serious engagement they lost 5 Officers killed or died of wounds and 6 wounded, and 66 other ranks killed, 196 wounded and 160 missing.
Source: 1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=42270

Cecil is also commemorated on the St Georges Tombland Roll of Honor, Norwich.
www.flickr.com/photos/43688219@N00/6521818031/


Copsey, Dudley

COPSEY, DUDLEY LEONARD BLOOM
Rank: Private
Service No: 42711
Date of Death: 24/04/1918
Age: 18
Regiment: Essex Regiment, 2nd Bn.
Panel Reference Panel 85 to 87.
Memorial LOOS MEMORIAL
Additional Information:
Son of William L. Copsey, of "Ivanhoe", Lower Hellesdon, Norwich, and the late Emma C. Copsey.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/730361/COPSEY,%...


Dudley LB can be seen on Norlink. He died while serving with the Essex Regiment
norlink.norfolk.gov.uk/02_Catalogue/02_013_PictureTitleIn...

See brother Cecil above for family details from the census.

I have seen transcripts of the Battalion War Diary for the previous few days, but hey end on the 23d.

Thu., Apr 18, 1918 SUPPORT AREA, FRANCE
Hostile attack. Barrage commenced at 1-0 am. Actual attack materialised at 3-am. Not heavy losses. 1st. Bn. Kings Own Regt. Attacked the village of RIEZ -du -VINAGE at 9-0 pm, and the Battalion relieved them on EAST side of village. Casualties:- Capt. L.M. WINN Wounded.
--- signed by R.N. Thompson, Lieut. Colonel, Commanding 2nd Bn. The Essex Regt.

Fri., Apr 19, 1918 FRONT LINE, FRANCE
The Village of RIEZ-du-VINAGE discovered to be still full of enemy. Casualties:- 2/Lt. J. HAYHURST Killed. 2/Lt. E.W. STANDERWICK Killed. 2/Lt. S. STORER missing.
--- signed by R.N. Thompson, Lieut. Colonel, Commanding 2nd Bn. The Essex Regt.

Sat, Apr 20, 1918 FRONT LINE, FRANCE
Sharp village fighting all day. About 50 prisoners taken. Casualties:- Revd. R.M. GIBSON to England. Capt. J.G.H. KENNEFICK Killed. Lieut. L.C. GLADDEN Killed. 2/Lt. L.G. NORMAN ?.A. Capt. A.G. de la MARE M.C. to H.A.
--- signed by R.N. Thompson, Lieut. Colonel, Commanding 2nd Bn. The Essex Regt.

Sun, Apr 21, 1918 FRONT LINE, FRANCE
Village fighting still going on. Relieved by 2nd Bn. Lancs. Fusiliers on night 21st/22nd, and the Battalion occupied position N of RIEZ-du-VINAGE less “D” Coy who remained in position between RIEZ-du-VINAGE and CANAL. Casualties:- 2/Lt. W.S. MOSS Wounded.
--- signed by R.N. Thompson, Lieut. Colonel, Commanding 2nd Bn. The Essex Regt.

Mon., Apr 22, 1918 FRONT LINE, FRANCE
Attack by 2nd Bn. Lancs. Fusiliers in conjunction with 61st [crossed out: Infantry Brigade] [inserted: Division] “B” and “ C” Companies sent up to fill gap between 61st [crossed out: Brigade and] [ inserted: Division] 2nd Lancs. Fusiliers. Casualties:- 2/Lts. G.H.PRIDMORE and J. CAMPLIN joined for duty.
--- signed by R.N. Thompson, Lieut. Colonel, Commanding 2nd Bn. The Essex Regt.

Tue., Apr 23, 1918 FRONT LINE, FRANCE
Situation unchanged. Casualties:- 2/Lt. J.L. ELLISTON Wounded.2/Lt. J. CAMPLIN Wounded.. 2/Lt. G.H. PRIDMORE to H.A.
--- signed by R.N. Thompson, Lieut. Colonel, Commanding 2nd Bn. The Essex Regt.
Source 1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=52206

Durrant, Leonard

Probably
DURRANT, LEONARD JAMES
Rank: Driver
Service No: T/35546
Date of Death: 09/02/1915
Age: 18
Regiment/Service: Army Service Corps, No.2 Depot Coy.
Grave Reference Screen Wall. 3 "C." A. 409.
Cemetery GREENWICH CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Son of Mr. and Mrs. J. Durrant, of Manor Farm Cottage, Drayton Rd., Norwich.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/386004/DURRANT,...

No match on Norlink

The 4 year old Leonard J, born Hellesdon, Norfolk, was recorded on the 1901 census at Drayton Road, Norwich.. This was the part of Drayton Road which was within the Parish of St Marys, Hellesdon.
The address was the household of his parents, James, (aged 41 and a Cowman on Farm from Reedham, Norfolk) and Ann, (aged 41 and from Long Sutton, Lancashire).

Their other children are:-
Elsie M…………………………aged 11.……………born Reedham, Norfolk
Hilda R…………………………aged 9.……………..born Somerlayton, Norfolk
Susan…………………………..aged 7.……………..born Somerlayton, Norfolk
William…………………………aged 2.…………….born Hellesdon

The death of an 18 year old Leonard was recorded in the Woolwich district of London in the the January to March 1915 quarter.

Eastoll, Cecil G

EASTOLL, CECIL GEORGE
Rank: Private
Service No: 56747
Date of Death: 17/07/1918
Age: 19
Regiment: Lancashire Fusiliers, 17th Bn.
Panel Reference Panel 54 to 60 and 163A.
Memorial TYNE COT MEMORIAL
Additional Information:
Son of James and Emma Eastoll, of Drayton Rd., Lower Hellesdon, Norwich.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/1630770/EASTOLL...

The Soldiers who Died in the Great War database has this Lancashire Fusilier down as born Barnham Broom, Norfolk. and resident Norwich.

The 1 year old Cecil, born Barnham Broom, was recorded on the 1901 census at Rush Green, Barnham Broom.. This was the household of his parents James, (aged 40 and an Ordinary Agricultural Labourer from Besthorpe, Norfolk) and Emma, (aged 40 and from Besthorpe, Norfolk). Their other children are:-
Edith…………………..aged 9.…………….born Flordon, Norfolk
Emma…………………aged 10.……………born Flordon, Norfolk
Fredrick……………….aged 15.……………born Flordon, Norfolk………Ordinary Agricultural Labourer
Jessie………………….aged 13.……………born Flordon, Norfolk
Lily……………………aged 3.……………..born Besthorpe, Norfolk

Cecil is not commemorated on the Barnham Broom village memorial

Fox, Walter

FOX, WALTER
Rank: Private
Service No: 39378
Date of Death: 09/11/1917
Age: 24
Regiment: The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment), 7th Bn.
Grave Reference XXX. K. 19A.
Cemetery ETAPLES MILITARY CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Son of William H. and Emma Fox, of Lower Heilesden, Norfolk.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/501211/FOX,%20W...

No match on Norlink

The Soldiers who Died in the Great War database has this West Surrey’s man down as born and resident Norwich..

The most likely match on the 1901 census is an 8 year old Walter who was born St Faiths, Norfolk and who was recorded at Swan Street, St Faiths. This was the household of his parents, William H., (aged 36 and a Warehouseman from St Faiths), and Emma, (aged 32 and a Horse Hair Weaver from St Faiths). Their other children are:-
Albert J………………………….aged 5.……………………..born St Faiths
Anna M…………………………aged 12.…………………….born St Faiths
Ethel……………………………aged 10.…………………….born St Faiths

From the Battalion War Diary

10th November 1917

One man “A” Coy killed whilst at work on RAILWAY ST.
qrrarchive.websds.net/PDF/QW00719171106.pdf

Frost, Lamoni

FROST, LAMONIA
Rank: Lance Corporal
Service No: 20606
Date of Death: 13/08/1915
Age: 17
Regiment: Essex Regiment, "C" Coy. 1st Bn.
Panel Reference Panel 144 to 150 or 229 to 233.
Memorial HELLES MEMORIAL
Additional Information:
Son of William and Sarah Ann Frost, of Mile Cross, Aylsham Rd., Norwich.
CWGC www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/682725/FROST,%2...

No match on Norlink

There is a headstone in the St Marys churchyard which reads:-

In loving memory of
WILLIAM JONATHAN FROST
Died 24th August 1928
Aged 70 years

Also LAMONIA FROST
Drowned at Sea 13th August 1915
Aged 17 years

Also of ROBERT FROST
Killed in Action 15th SEPT.1916
Aged 27 years

Plus two more Frost’s

The first name shown on the right hand column of the Great War panel is Lamonia’s brother Robert, who died on the Somme.

The Frost family were recorded on the 1901 census at Aylsham Road, Hellesdon,

Head of the family was William, (aged 44 and an Agricultural Labourer from Newton St Faiths, Norfolk). His wife is Sarah, (aged 43 and from St Faiths Norfolk). There children are:-
Eliza……………….aged 13.………….born Horsford
George…………….aged 15.…………..born Newton St Faiths……Stockman on Farm
Henry………………aged 21.………….born Horsford…………….Agricultural Labourer
Lamoni (a daughter)..aged 2.…………..born Hellesdon
May B………………aged 5.…………..born Hellesdon
Robert………………aged 11.…………born Hellesdon
Sarah A……………..aged 19.…………born Newton St Faiths………..Laundress
William……………..aged 17.…………born Newton St Faiths………Horseman on Farm

The Frosts have another son, John Willimott, aged 23 and an Agricultural Labourer from Horsford. I suspect he may be Sarah’s son from an earlier relationship.

On the 1911 census, Lamoni, aged 12, is recorded as Male. The family is still recorded at Hellesdon.

The sinking of the Royal Edward 1915

A passage from the History of Norfolk Regiment tells the rest of (the)….story: Colonel Tonge refers to the loss of 300 men, the best draft that ever left Felixstowe. These men volunteered to join the Essex Regiment and appear to have constituted the drafts of June 23 and July 24 1915. They were part of the reinforcements carried by the transport "Royal Edward" which was torpedoed and sunk in the Aegean Sea on August 14th 1915. She sank two and a half minutes after the torpedo struck her. Of the 1,400 men she carried only 600 were saved, and the drowned included all but 18 of the 300 Norfolk men. The men who had had a route march just before leaving Alexandria, were waiting on deck for foot inspection at about 9.20 am. Their lifebelts were down below, and when the ship was unexpectedly struck most of them ran below to fetch the belts. Owing to the ship's sudden heeling over and sinking, these never got up again. Those who escaped were picked up by a hospital ship which responded to the s.o.s. signal. To partly replace this sad loss, another draft of 150 men to the Essex Regiment was dispatched on September 29, 1915. Addenda 1994 From: "Men of Gallipoli"(David & Charles,1988) by kind permission of the publishers. One of the features of the Cape Helles monument is the rows of names of men drowned in the torpedoing of the Royal Edward,which sank in the Eastern Mediterranean on 13th August with a loss of over 850 lives.A.T.Fraser in the Border Regiment,was in a deckchair on the afterdeck starboard side when suddenly dozens of men ran past him from port to starboard. The explosion came before he had time to ask what was the matter."The ship had no escort and we had not been ordered to have our life-belts with us.The hundreds on deck ran below to get their life-belts and hundreds below would have met them on their way up.I shared a cabin accessible from the deck I was on and I raced there to get my life-belt and ran to my life-boat station which was on the star- board side.As the men arrived they fell in two ranks. Already the ship was listing and this prevented our boats from being lowered,so we were ordered to jump for it.I saw no panic,but of course one could imagine what was happening on the inside stairs. I swam away from the ship and turned to see the funnels leaning towards me.When they reached the sea,all the soot was belched out,there was a loud whoosh and the ship sank. No explosion,no surge.So I was alone.The little waves were such that in the trough you saw nothing,on the crest you saw a few yards.The water was warm.I wondered if there were sharks". Fraser found some wood to rest on and he was joined by a seaman,an older man who had twice previously been torpedoed.This brought the young Scot confidence.An up turned Royal Edward lifeboat was to provide 17 of the survivors with a little more security though in what Fraser calls half-hourly recurring turbulence,the boat turned over,offering them conventional but completely waterlogged accommodation every alternate half hour but at least providing them with something to do.There was no singing and little conversation. The first ship that passed hailed the scattered men and promised to signal for help.It could not stop as it had high explosives for Lemnos.Some of the men became depressed and showed unwillingness to clamber back in the life boat when it overturned,but on each occasion all were persuaded.Finally the hospital ship SOUDAIN arrived to pick them up in her life-boats,and at 2 o'clock Fraser was safely aboard her after just under five hours in the sea. He remembers that"a large number of men lost their false teeth as we were constantly sick in the sea- and these men were sent back to England.
www.geocities.com/heartland/acres/5564/royaledward.html

Here lies a
Gallant Seaman
Daniel Allan Bowthorpe RN
Of this city
Who died in his 22nd year
On St George’s Day, April 23rd 1918
Of wounds received on Zeebrugge Mole

Name: BOWTHORPE, DANIEL ALLAN
Rank: Leading Seaman
Service: Royal Navy Unit Text: H.M.S. "Vindictive"
Age: 22 Date of Death: 24/04/1918 Service No: J/18711
Grave/Memorial Reference: 46. 307. Cemetery: NORWICH CEMETERY, Norfolk
www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=2803060

No match on Norlink

The 4 year old Daniel is recorded on the 1901 Census at 34 Wingfield Road, Norwich,This is the household of his parents, David, (aged 41 and a Baker from Norwich), and Martha, (aged 40 and from Norwich). Their other children are:-
Arthur…………….aged 19.….Shoemaker….born London Westminster
Elizabeth………..aged 18.….Box Maker…..born London, Westminster
Ethel……………….aged 10.….born Norwich
Florence………….aged 16.…Box Maker……born Norwich
Gertrude…………aged u/1.….born Norwich
Maud………………aged 14.….born Norwich
Sidney…………….aged 2.……born Norwich
Thomas…………..aged 7.…..born Norwich

And in their 2up/2down terrace house they also has a boarder Ellen Munday, aged 19 and a Boot Trimmer from Norwich !

The raid began with a diversionary attack against the mile-long Zeebrugge mole. The attack was led by the old cruiser, HMS Vindictive, with two Mersey ferries, Daffodil and Iris II. The three ships were accompanied by two old submarines, which were filled with explosives to blow up the viaduct connecting the mole to the shore. Vindictive was to land a force of 200 Royal Marines at the entrance to the Bruges Canal, however, at the time of the landing the winds changed and the planned smoke-screen to cover the ship proved ineffective. The marines, whose objective was to destroy German gun positions, immediately came under heavy fire and suffered heavy casualties. Vindictive, spotted by German gun positions, was forced to land in the wrong location, resulting in the loss of the marines' heavy gun support. Eventually, submarine HMS C3, commanded by Lt. R. D. Sandford, destroyed the viaduct as planned, by explosion. Sandford was awarded the Victoria Cross for this action.
The plan to sink three old cruisers to block the flow of traffic in and out of the Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge did not go as planned. The failure of the attack on the Zeebrugge mole resulted in heavy German fire on the three blocking ships, Thetis, Intrepid and Iphigenia, which were filled with concrete. Thetis did not make it to the canal entrance, after it had hit an obstruction and was scuttled prematurely. The two other ships were sunk at the narrowest point of the canal.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeebrugge_Raid
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Vindictive_(1897)
www.mckenzie.uk.com/
www.fotosearch.com/IST512/1217192/
www.mckenzie.uk.com/zeebrugge/Preparation_-_Albert_McKenz...