Rank or Profesion: 'Man of Wars - Man'

[Guest trystan]

This is a message from RootsChat, we are hoping that one of you may be able to shed some light upon it:

Hello all, and a very happy easter!

I recently ordered the marriage certificate for my GG Grandparents, Rebecca Ann Hart and Thomas Hopkins (if anybody recognizes these names please get in touch) from http://www.research-uk.co.uk, a very reliable service with which I am completely satisfied with.

When I was inspecting my certificate, I noticed the note made for Thomas Hopkins under 'Rank or Profesion', where it stated 'Man of Wars - Man', and I have not misread this. I am not certain what this means. Rebecca and Thomas married with a license in 1889, perhaps Thomas was a soldier preparing to go off to the Boer War, and they needed a license for a speady marriage. Any thoughts would be most welcome.

Also, I cannot find Thomas in the 1891 or 1901 English census, or BMD records from that period. Perhaps he died in the Boer War. Does anybody know how I can go about looking into this possibility?

See the thread of the discussion at:

http://www.rootschat.co.uk/forum/index.php...y;threadid=3213

Many thanks!