A ALLEN
Deck Hand RNR. 8506/DA
H.M.Drifter “Violet May”
15th February 1918 Age 28
In the midst of life
We are in Death
From his loving wife
And three sons
ALLEN, ALBERT
Rank:…………………......Deck Hand
Service No:…………….8506/DA
Date of Death:………..15/02/1918
Age:……………………......28
Service:…………………...Royal Naval Reserve
…………………………........H.M. Drifter "Violet May."
Grave Reference:……14. 389.
Cemetery:
LOWESTOFT (BECCLES ROAD) CEMETERY
Additional Information:
Husband of L. Nathan (formerly Allen), of 71, Beresford Rd., Lowestoft.
CWGC: www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/397544/ALLEN,%20ALBERT
The WW1 Naval Casualties database records that Deck Hand 8506.D.A. (Ch) Albert Allen was ‘ Killed or died as a direct result of enemy action’ on the 15th February 1918 whilst serving aboard H M Drifter ‘Violet May’. He was buried North Lowestoft Cemetery. Albert was born 6th October 1886 at Lowestoft. The next of kin informed of his death was his wife Lilian May Nathan, 71 Beresford Road, Lowestoft.
The Royal Naval Reservist service records for DA 8506 Albert Allen, born Lowestoft on the 6th October 1886, are held at the National Archive under reference BT 377/7/54960
discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D8516009
There is no obvious Civil Probate for this man.
Albert is not obviously remembered on any of the main War Memorials at Lowestoft.
The local council have put the cemetery records online. Albert Allen, aged 31, was buried in the Cemetery on the 22nd February 1918. He was a R.N.R. Gunner aboard H.M.S. “Violet May” and he died at Sea off Dover.
apps.eastsuffolk.gov.uk/pages/cemeteries/Lowestoft/abbott...
6th October 1886 – Birth
(Source – WW1 Naval Casualties database and the National Archive Catalogue entry for his Service Records).
However, there is no likely match for the birth of an Albert Allen in Suffolk at this time. There are births registered in the Mutford District in Q4 of 1886 for a Herbert William Allen and a William John Allen. There are no Allen births recorded in Q1 of 1887.
(Mutford District covered Lowestoft and the nearby villages.)
1891 Censuses of England & Wales and Scotland
The 5 year old Albert Allen, born Lowestoft, was recorded living at 23 Reeve Street, Lowestoft. This was the household of his parents William, (aged 47 and a Bricklayer, born Alborough, Norfolk) and Eleanor, (aged 45, born Northrepps, Norfolk). As well as Albert their other children living with them are:-
Eleanor….aged 11…..born Lowestoft
Ernest……aged 9……born Lowestoft
1901 Censuses of England & Wales and Scotland
The Allen family were now recorded living at 7 Waveney Terrace, Whapload Road, Lowestoft. As well as parents William, (aged 57, now stated to have been born Thurgarton, Norfolk) and Ellen, they also have their son Albert, (15, no employment listed) and a boarder living with them.
1911 Census of England and Wales
The 25 year old Albert, a Trawlerman born Lowestoft, was recorded along with his wife Lilian, (24, born Hopton, Suffolk) and son Thomas, (8(?) months, born Lowestoft), boarding at 15 Union Road, Lowestoft. The couple have been married under a year. Thomas is their only child so far.
Prior to the end of 1911, marriages were not cross-referenced in the quarterly indexes published by the General Registrars Office. A great deal of work has been done on many genealogy sites to cross-reference the local register references to create a better idea of who married who. Unfortunately in most Registers there are at least two weddings recorded on each page and so for each spouse you will get two, (or more bridegrooms) and vice versa. Which is the right combination usually required further verification from other sources.
For Albert Allen we have the opposite. There is no obvious candidate for the marriage of an Albert to a Lilian in England and Wales. However there is a marriage recorded for an Albert Allen in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1910. A check of three genealogy sources show them all reporting that Albert married either Ernest Frederick James or Ethel Syris Peek. So it would appear that there are the usual two weddings on a page, with two grooms, but only one bride. The relevant page is 1821 of Volume 4a of the Mutford Register. A search using those details reveals what is probably Alberts missing bride – a Lilian May Carsey.
Going back to the 1911 Census, the head of the household where the Allens are boarding, is a married woman, Martha Carsey, (aged 61, born Beeston, Norfolk). Martha has been married 41 years and has had 11 children, of which 9 were then still alive. Living with her is her Fisherman son, Harry Carsey, (aged 21, a Fisherman born Corton, Suffolk).
Post August 1911 it had become compulsory when registering the birth of a child with the Civil Authorities in England and Wales to also record the mothers maiden name. A check of the General Registrars Office Index of Births for England and Wales produces two possible children of Albert and Lilian.
A Phillip H. Allen, mothers maiden name Carsey, was registered in the Mutford District in Q1 of 1912.
An Ernest J. Allen, mothers maiden name Carsey, was registered in the Mutford District in Q4 of 1915.
On the day
night of 14/15 February
LAST GERMAN DESTROYER RAID ON THE DOVER STRAITS
Violet May, hired net drifter, damaged
ALLEN, Albert, Deck Hand, RNR, DA 8506
BARBER, Charles, 2nd Hand, RNR, SA 1084
BUCHAN, Alexander, Ty/Skipper, RNR
DYKER, James, Boy Cook, RNR, SBC 1169
ERSKINE, John, Trimmer, RNR, ST 2611
GERRIE, Paul, Trimmer Cook, RNR, TC 413
GILLIES, Donald, Deck Hand, RNR, SD 1529
HARRIS, William J, Deck Hand, RNR, DA 15070
www.naval-history.net/xDKCas1918-02Feb.htm
German destroyers conducted a raid in the Dover area. Hired trawlers and drifters were badly battered by the German attack: CHRISTINA CRAIG, CLOVER BANK, COSMOS, JAMES POND, JEANNIE MURRAY, SILVER QUEEN, VERACITY, and W. ELLIOT sunk and GOLDEN RULE and VIOLET MAY damaged.
From The Dover Patrol 1914 - 1918 by Roy Humphries
"The convened Court of Inquiry could not fail to lay blame squarely on the shoulders of those who had commanded AMAZON and TERMAGANT and the M 26 monitor..........Vice Admiral Keyes could not find any excuse for the delay in engaging the enemy vessels who had not replied to a challenge signal. There was, he concluded sufficient evident to frame a charge for a trial by courts martial upon the commanders. All three were relieved of their respective commands immediately."
1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?/topic/27865-...
On the night of 14th/15th February 1918, a dramatic raid took place by German destroyers against vessels of the Dover Patrol, causing serious losses which included the sinking of one armed trawler and seven drifters. The enemy’s object was to destroy the ‘light barrier’ as they called the British flare ships, whose effect was to make the Straits of Dover almost impassable. Two half flotillas of destroyers were employed on the raid. Between Folkestone and Griz Nez there existed a series of buoys which were used to assist the patrols to maintain their positions. About two and a half miles on either side of this line were stationed trawlers, paddlers and other small craft, to either burn flares or to use searchlights. There was also fifty-eight drifters patrolling this line.
At 12.40 a.m. one half flotilla of four destroyers started the attack from the NW by shelling the paddler Newbury, whose revolving searchlight made her an easy target. The destroyers then proceeded slowly down the drifter line and sank the drifters W. Elliot and Veracity. The paddler Lingfield and a motor launch also came under fire, but some drifters managed to make their escape. The enemy then disappeared.
Three destroyers made an attack from the SE at about 12.45 a.m. near the Griz Nez end of the line. The trawler James Pond was soon on fire. The crew endeavoured to extinguish the flames and beach her, but the vessel finally had to be abandoned. Proceeding along the line, the enemy shelled the drifter Clover Bank, which took fire, and afterwards sank. The destroyers then sank the drifters Cosmos and Jeannie Murray. Only four survivors escaped from these three craft. The next to be shelled were the drifters Golden Grain, Golden Rule, Violet May and Treasure, which were all damaged. At about 1.30 a.m. the Germans turned back when about halfway across the Channel and on the return journey met and sank the drifter Silver Queen, which had taken off the survivors of the Cosmos. Finally, after firing on two more drifters, these destroyers made off. This raid cost the Patrol heavy losses of men and ships. There were sunk one armed trawler, seven drifters, and one paddler and six drifters damaged.
www.dnw.co.uk/auction-archive/lot-archive/lot.php?auction...
www.naval-history.net/WW1Book-MN3b-Merchant_Navy_in_WW1_H...
On the night of 14th/15th February 1918, a dramatic raid took place by German destroyers against vessels of the Dover Patrol, causing serious losses which included the sinking of one armed trawler and seven drifters. The enemy’s object was to destroy the ‘light barrier’ as they called the British flare ships, whose effect was to make the Straits of Dover almost impassable. Two half flotillas of destroyers were employed on the raid. Between Folkestone and Griz Nez there existed a series of buoys which were used to assist the patrols to maintain their positions. About two and a half miles on either side of this line were stationed trawlers, paddlers and other small craft, to either burn flares or to use searchlights. There was also fifty-eight drifters patrolling this line.
At 12.40 a.m. one half flotilla of four destroyers started the attack from the NW by shelling the paddler Newbury, whose revolving searchlight made her an easy target. The destroyers then proceeded slowly down the drifter line and sank the drifters W. Elliot and Veracity. The paddler Lingfield and a motor launch also came under fire, but some drifters managed to make their escape. The enemy then disappeared.
Three destroyers made an attack from the SE at about 12.45 a.m. near the Griz Nez end of the line. The trawler James Pond was soon on fire. The crew endeavoured to extinguish the flames and beach her, but the vessel finally had to be abandoned. Proceeding along the line, the enemy shelled the drifter Clover Bank, which took fire, and afterwards sank. The destroyers then sank the drifters Cosmos and Jeannie Murray. Only four survivors escaped from these three craft. The next to be shelled were the drifters Golden Grain, Golden Rule, Violet May and Treasure, which were all damaged. At about 1.30 a.m. the Germans turned back when about halfway across the Channel and on the return journey met and sank the drifter Silver Queen, which had taken off the survivors of the Cosmos. Finally, after firing on two more drifters, these destroyers made off. This raid cost the Patrol heavy losses of men and ships. There were sunk one armed trawler, seven drifters, and one paddler and six drifters damaged.
www.dnw.co.uk/auction-archive/lot-archive/lot.php?auction...
www.naval-history.net/WW1Book-MN3b-Merchant_Navy_in_WW1_H...
From “Swept Channels” by Taffrail, - (Captain Taprell Dorling).
" On the night of February 14-15 1918 , an enemy submarine was reported in the minefield by the drifters, and heavy firing began. The "P" boats, monitors and destroyers on patrol concluded that the firing was at the submarine. They were unaware that a flotilla of German destroyers had steamed through the patrol and were attacking the paddle minesweepers, trawlers and drifters who were burning lights to assist in illuminating the minefield.
The trawler James Pond , commanded by Chief Skipper A.E.berry, D.S.C., R.N.R., was burning her flares near the French coast when he saw three destroyers approaching from the eastward at high speed. Flashing past at very close range, they each fired salvoes. It was impossible to miss. The raiders disappeared into the darkness, to leave the trawler damaged and blazing.
The enemy destroyers had not finished. After passing the James Pond they turned sharply to the north-north-west along the line of drifters, firing salvoes into them as they steamed by. These little ships did not hesitate to return the fire with the tiny guns they possessed; but 3- and 6 pounders were nothing of a match for the 4.1's of the enemy. The Christina Craig, Clover Bank, Cosmos. Jeannie Murray, Silver Queen, Veracity and W Elliott, all between 60 and 96 tons, were sunk one after the other. Still more were damaged."
1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?/topic/219699...
The German destroyers involved were B97, V100, B109 and B 110 of the II.TF (TF = torpedo boat flotilla) of the High Seas Fleet. The II.TF was equipped at the time with Germany's most powerful destroyers and often used for raiding in late 1917 and early 1918. It's the same unit that attacked a convoy off the Norwegian coast on December 12, 1917, sinking a destroyer, four RN trawlers, and merchant ships. Its commander was KK Oskar Heinecke, the only destroyer officer to be awarded the Pour Le Mérite during the war.
The two British destroyer captains in charge of guarding the trawlers were court martialled as, on the Germans passing astern they challenged them, on receiving no response assumed they were friendly. From The Dover Patrol 1914 - 1918 by Roy Humphries: "The convened Court of Inquiry could not fail to lay blame squarely on the shoulders of those who had commanded AMAZON and TERMAGANT and the M 26 monitor..........Vice Admiral Keyes could not find any excuse for the delay in engaging the enemy vessels who had not replied to a challenge signal. There was, he concluded sufficient evidence to frame a charge for a trial by courts martial upon the commanders. All three were relieved of their respective commands immediately."
sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=5204.5;wap2