PRC Posted 5 February Share Posted 5 February 11 minutes ago, Bob Davies said: He is down as Rupert Peter. Thought I was going mad there for a moment when I saw that. I know I checked both Thomas and Rupert Clutterbuck with and without year of birth of 1885 +/- 2 years, tried Clutterbuck's born Stanmore c1885 and Thomas \ Rupert born Stanmore c1885 and drew a blank on Genes Reunited and familysearch - both of which have links to FindMyPast. I can see now I didn't really have a snowballs chance of finding him on those two genealogy websites without a great deal more creative thinking - note the "slight" variation in surname and place of birth and the interesting unit he serves with on familysearch - perhaps he started as a Boy and worked his way up to Lieutenant! Image courtesy Genes Reunited. Image courtesy familysearch Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Bob Davies Posted 5 February Admin Share Posted 5 February 21 hours ago, PRC said: The Harrow School Archives are only accessible to School or Association members From a download there is this but I have drawn a blank for pictures of him. I have been every where, high society relatives etc, so time for me to stop on this candidate for now. There was obviously money in the brewing trade back then, also property. Regards, Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February Peter 21 - Gilbert Meade Gerard Lt 2nd Battalion, Highland Light Infantry at the time of the course, he died as a Captain serving with the same Battalion on the 3rd May 1916. Gilbert has no known grave and is remembered on the Basra Memorial. The additional information on his Commonwealth War Graves Commission webpage is that he was aged 27 and was the son of the late Gen. Sir Montagu Gilbert Gerard, K.C.B., K.C.S.I., and Lady Gerard. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/865317/gilbert-meade-gerard/ However a genealogy webpage has the following note “Commissary Clerk of Edinburgh under the Sheriff Courts Act, 1876. Calendar of Confirmations and Inventories: "GERARD, Gilbert Meade, Capt, 1st Battalion, HLI, at native of Scotland, died 3 May 1916, in Hospital in Mesopotamia, testate. Confirmation granted at Edinburgh, 20 June[1917], to Christopher Charles Nisbet WS Edinburgh, Executor nominated in Will or Deed, dated 29 August 1914 and recorded in Court Books of Commissariot of Edinburgh, 19 June 1917. Value of Estate £10,747 7s." https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Gerard-1397 And his entry in the Memorial Register records that he died of acute enteritis. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/865317/gilbert-meade-gerard/#&gid=1&pid=1 An obituary appeared in the Supplement to the Highland Light Infantry Chronicle of July 1916, made available via Google books. CAPTAIN G.M. GERARD. Yet another loss, affecting both the 1st and 2nd Battalions, has occurred in the death, from acute enteritis, of Captain Gilbert Meade Gerard in Mesopotamia. Captain Gerard was the only son of the late General Sir Montagu Gilbert Gerard, K.C.B., K.C.S.I., of Rochsoles, Lanarkshire. He joined the 2nd Battalion from the R.M.C., Sandhurst, in 1908, and became a lieutenant in 1911 and Captain in April, 1915. After accompanying the 2nd Battalion to France as Assistant Adjutant in August, 1914, he returned home severely wounded in November of that year, rejoining only to be again wounded in May, 1915. It was some time before he was sufficiently receovered to resume duty, but in February, 1916, he proceeded to Mesopotamia to join the 1st Battalion. For a few days before being admitted to hospital, Captain Gerard was in command of the 1st Battalion, and though he was already suffering from the serious illness which ended in his death on May 3, 1916, he refused to give in. Though of a somewhat retiring disposition, and not easily read on first acquaintance, Captain Gerard was of the type that may be trusted to “get there,” and when there to hold on. Shortly before he left for Mesopotamia, mention was made of the system of “posting on arrival,” and the probability or otherwise of Officers getting back to their own Regiment. Captain Gerard said that as long as they got him as far as Mesopotamia, it might safely be left to him to see that he rejoined the Highland Light Infantry. It was typical of the man, and there is no doubt that had there been difficulties in thr way, he would probably have made good his words. Had he been spared, the same spirit would have stood him and the Battalion in good stead, as it so often has the Officers and men of the Regiment in the past, and though, like many friends whose names no longer appear in any roll but the Roll of Honour, he will be missed; https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=pCxtyaZr8ZQC&pg=RA2-PA104&lpg=RA2-PA104&dq=Gilbert+Meade+Gerard+1916&source=bl&ots=f4gY9zjIXs&sig=ACfU3U0uN2uj7kUdoaMOhSN0ks9KzKVnUg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwir-8LL6ZSEAxU_WUEAHRzPDm84MhDoAXoECAIQAw#v=onepage&q=Gilbert%20Meade%20Gerard%201916&f=false But the same volume, covering 1914 to 1916, does not appear to have a picture of Gilbert. Lots of newspaper mentions on the British Newspaper Archive but no standout candidate for a potential picture. Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oxlade134 Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February (edited) One of the officers listed as being in this photo is Edward Prowett Blencowe DSO 1877-1960, who was with the Army from 1900-1919 and retired a Lieutenant-Colonel of the ASC. In 1908 he was seconded to the Egyptian Army. but by the 2 April 1911 British census he was a Captain ASC at Buller Barracks Area 5 , Aldershot. Age 33 when in this photo. I can't place him exactly from the only good photo I have of him is attached. I thought he could be the man far right and a bit faded (but unsure of uniform is this an Egyptian Army Cap I wonder ) I have attached another photo where he is superimposed on the cropped part of the group photo. What do members thin? Edited 6 February by oxlade134 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February 48 minutes ago, oxlade134 said: I can't place him exactly from the only good photo I have of him is attached. I thought he could be the man far right and a bit faded (but unsure of uniform) I have attached another photo where he is superimposed on the cropped part of the group photo. What do members thin? Oddly enough the man in the Musketry Party that you have highlighted as a possible match for Edward Prowett Blencoe is the one I was working on. When I did a numbered version of the Musketry Party, (back on page 2), I had him down as Officer 22. The thread author, @mrfrank, has then confirmed from the analysis of the regimental badges cross-referenced to the known list of attendees Officer 22 should be Captain Robert Sylvester John Faulknor, 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancs. I've been looking for additional images that might prove \ disprove that. So dealing with that first:- 22 - Robert Sylvester John Faulknor. Lt. serving with the 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancs at the time of the course, killed in action with the 1st Battalion on the 25th September 1915. No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a: The Channel Islands Great War Study Group Journal 60 February 2016 which also has a lot more information on him.http://www.greatwarci.net/journals/60.pdf b: WW1 Cemeteries com.https://www.ww1cemeteries.com/st-marys-ads-cemetery.html De Ruvignys also has an entry for him - I've sourced an extract from Genes Reunited as I had that to hand, but undoubtedly there will be a better qua;ity image available elsewhere. Image courtesy Genes Reunited. 1 hour ago, oxlade134 said: Edward Prowett Blencowe DSO 1877-1960, Turning back to this man, @mrfrank has him down as Officer 34, a Captain in the Army Service Corps. So a comparison would look more like this:- No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oxlade134 Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February 2 hours ago, PRC said: Oddly enough the man in the Musketry Party that you have highlighted as a possible match for Edward Prowett Blencoe is the one I was working on. When I did a numbered version of the Musketry Party, (back on page 2), I had him down as Officer 22. The thread author, @mrfrank, has then confirmed from the analysis of the regimental badges cross-referenced to the known list of attendees Officer 22 should be Captain Robert Sylvester John Faulknor, 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancs. I've been looking for additional images that might prove \ disprove that. So dealing with that first:- 22 - Robert Sylvester John Faulknor. Lt. serving with the 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancs at the time of the course, killed in action with the 1st Battalion on the 25th September 1915. No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a: The Channel Islands Great War Study Group Journal 60 February 2016 which also has a lot more information on him.http://www.greatwarci.net/journals/60.pdf b: WW1 Cemeteries com.https://www.ww1cemeteries.com/st-marys-ads-cemetery.html De Ruvignys also has an entry for him - I've sourced an extract from Genes Reunited as I had that to hand, but undoubtedly there will be a better qua;ity image available elsewhere. Image courtesy Genes Reunited. Turning back to this man, @mrfrank has him down as Officer 34, a Captain in the Army Service Corps. So a comparison would look more like this:- No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Cheers, Peter Posted 2 hours ago 3 hours ago, oxlade134 said: I can't place him exactly from the only good photo I have of him is attached. I thought he could be the man far right and a bit faded (but unsure of uniform) I have attached another photo where he is superimposed on the cropped part of the group photo. What do members thin? Oddly enough the man in the Musketry Party that you have highlighted as a possible match for Edward Prowett Blencoe is the one I was working on. When I did a numbered version of the Musketry Party, (back on page 2), I had him down as Officer 22. The thread author, @mrfrank, has then confirmed from the analysis of the regimental badges cross-referenced to the known list of attendees Officer 22 should be Captain Robert Sylvester John Faulknor, 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancs. I've been looking for additional images that might prove \ disprove that. So dealing with that first:- 22 - Robert Sylvester John Faulknor. Lt. serving with the 1st Battalion, Loyal North Lancs at the time of the course, killed in action with the 1st Battalion on the 25th September 1915. No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a: The Channel Islands Great War Study Group Journal 60 February 2016 which also has a lot more information on him.http://www.greatwarci.net/journals/60.pdf b: WW1 Cemeteries com.https://www.ww1cemeteries.com/st-marys-ads-cemetery.html De Ruvignys also has an entry for him - I've sourced an extract from Genes Reunited as I had that to hand, but undoubtedly there will be a better qua;ity image available elsewhere. Image courtesy Genes Reunited. 3 hours ago, oxlade134 said: Edward Prowett Blencowe DSO 1877-1960, Turning back to this man, @mrfrank has him down as Officer 34, a Captain in the Army Service Corps. So a comparison would look more like this:- I have to agree the facial similarities seem to me that it is Officer 34 thats most likely Edward Prowett Blencowe, Thank you for your post and pointing me in the right direction Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oxlade134 Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February Another photo that helps (I think) identify Officer 34 as Edward Prowett Blencowe this one when he was Golf Champion of Ceylon in 1924. Cheers Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February 7 hours ago, oxlade134 said: Another photo that helps (I think) identify Officer 34 as Edward Prowett Blencowe this one when he was Golf Champion of Ceylon in 1924. Take 2 No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oxlade134 Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February 8 hours ago, PRC said: Take 2 No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Cheers, Peter Thanks for the great collage Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 6 February Share Posted 6 February 23 – Herbert Francis Searancke Huntington, Lt 2nd Battalion,Welsh Regiment, at the time of the course. Survived the war and is believed to have died in 1968. From Wikipedia:- Herbert Francis Searancke Huntington OBE (15 January 1888, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan – 1968) was a British fencer. He competed in the individual and team sabre events at the 1920 Summer Olympics. In addition to fencing Huntington was also a boxer and in 1912, was the Army and Navy Officers' middleweight champion. During World War I Huntington was a superintendent of physical training and was mentioned in dispatches when serving with the 2nd Welsh Regiment in France. In 1920, in addition to competing in the Summer Olympics he was the Services middleweight and heavyweight boxing champion. In 1921, he won the épée title at the British Fencing Championships and won the Services heavyweight boxing title. He served at command headquarters before he retired in 1923 and later received an OBE. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Huntington_(fencer) The Boxrec.com site, (deals with Boxing Records!) has a picture of him. And the source Olympedia has the same picture and adds “Although born in Wales, Herbert Huntington’s parents were both English and his father served in the Army with the rifle brigade. Herbert also joined the Army and served with the 2nd Welsh Regiment. He was originally a superintendent of physical training and during World War I saw service in France. He was mentioned in dispatches five times. After the hostilities he served as a lieutenant colonel in the staff office at command headquarters and his final post, before he retired in 1923 to take a job in the City, was Superintendent of Physical Training, Eastern Command. He was subsequently honoured with the OBE. Huntington’s son Nigel was also a soldier. Serving with the Royal Artillery during World War II, he sadly lost his life on active service in 1943.” http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/22150 His original commissioning appeared in the London Gazette dated September 18, 1908 on page 6763. The section starts on page 6762 and shows it to be a list of Gentleman Cadets from the Royal Military College who were to be Second Lieutenants, dated 19th September, 1908. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/28178/page/6763/data.pdf On the 1911 Census of England & Wales the unmarried 23 year old Lieutenant Herbert Francis Searancke Huntington, born Penarth, Glamorgan, was recorded at Llanion Barrack, Pembroke Dock with the 2nd Battalion, Welsh Regiment. The marriage of a Herbert F.S. Huntington to a Kathleen M. Griffin was recorded in the Plymouth District of Devon in the July to September quarter, (Q3), of 1914. His Medal Index Card doesn’t show him landing in France until the 1st January 1916. (See below – this was probably just a standardised date to explain the award of Victory Medal and British War Medal only).Then a Captain, his unit is shown as the Superintendant of Physical Training. He would go on to serve as a Major in the Welsh Regiment, before finishing his overseas war service as a Lieutenant Colonel with the General Head Quarters Staff. He is shown as receiving the O.B.E. When he applied for his medals in 1920 his contact address was given as 20, Abingdon Villas, Kensington, (London), W.8.. A newspaper report that appeared in the Hampshire Independent dated 13th May 1916, and I suspect relating to a Conscientous Objector, (as a non-subscriber I can only see a snippet), talks of a court martial for refusing to try on a uniform as ordered by Captain Herbert Huntington at the Rifle Depot at Winchester on the 20th April 1916. (Birmingham Mail 12th May 1916 shows a different snippet and references a Private Scott Deckers). Another snippet from the edition of The Sporting Chronicle dated 26th June 1916 – “Captain F.H.S. Huntington, the Army and Navy Middle Weight Champion, has left for the front. Prior to his departure he had been transferred from Chester to Aldershot as superintendent of gymnasia.” Lots of reports \ mentions on the British Newspaper Archive of Herbert in connection with his boxing matches but none from the thumbnails I could see with an attached picture. Possibly worth checking out is the reference to him as a fencer that appeared in the editions of The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News dated 23rd July 1921 and 17th December 1921. A report of the meeting of the Army and Air Force Fencing Teams that appears in the edition of The Sphere dated 3rd March 1923 also has pictures of the teams, although no guarantee Herbert was a member. The death of a Herbert F.S. Huntington at the age of 80 was recorded in the Ealing District of London in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1968. No obvious match in the UK Probate Calendar. No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a: the picture can be found both here https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/949315 and here http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/22150 Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGSMILE Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February (edited) 1 hour ago, PRC said: 23 – Herbert Francis Searancke Huntington, Lt 2nd Battalion,Welsh Regiment, at the time of the course. Survived the war and is believed to have died in 1968. From Wikipedia:- Herbert Francis Searancke Huntington OBE (15 January 1888, Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan – 1968) was a British fencer. He competed in the individual and team sabre events at the 1920 Summer Olympics. In addition to fencing Huntington was also a boxer and in 1912, was the Army and Navy Officers' middleweight champion. During World War I Huntington was a superintendent of physical training and was mentioned in dispatches when serving with the 2nd Welsh Regiment in France. In 1920, in addition to competing in the Summer Olympics he was the Services middleweight and heavyweight boxing champion. In 1921, he won the épée title at the British Fencing Championships and won the Services heavyweight boxing title. He served at command headquarters before he retired in 1923 and later received an OBE. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Huntington_(fencer) The Boxrec.com site, (deals with Boxing Records!) has a picture of him. And the source Olympedia has the same picture and adds “Although born in Wales, Herbert Huntington’s parents were both English and his father served in the Army with the rifle brigade. Herbert also joined the Army and served with the 2nd Welsh Regiment. He was originally a superintendent of physical training and during World War I saw service in France. He was mentioned in dispatches five times. After the hostilities he served as a lieutenant colonel in the staff office at command headquarters and his final post, before he retired in 1923 to take a job in the City, was Superintendent of Physical Training, Eastern Command. He was subsequently honoured with the OBE. Huntington’s son Nigel was also a soldier. Serving with the Royal Artillery during World War II, he sadly lost his life on active service in 1943.” http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/22150 His original commissioning appeared in the London Gazette dated September 18, 1908 on page 6763. The section starts on page 6762 and shows it to be a list of Gentleman Cadets from the Royal Military College who were to be Second Lieutenants, dated 19th September, 1908. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/28178/page/6763/data.pdf On the 1911 Census of England & Wales the unmarried 23 year old Lieutenant Herbert Francis Searancke Huntington, born Penarth, Glamorgan, was recorded at Llanion Barrack, Pembroke Dock with the 2nd Battalion, Welsh Regiment. The marriage of a Herbert F.S. Huntington to a Kathleen M. Griffin was recorded in the Plymouth District of Devon in the July to September quarter, (Q3), of 1914. His Medal Index Card doesn’t show him landing in France until the 1st January 1916. (See below – this was probably just a standardised date to explain the award of Victory Medal and British War Medal only).Then a Captain, his unit is shown as the Superintendant of Physical Training. He would go on to serve as a Major in the Welsh Regiment, before finishing his overseas war service as a Lieutenant Colonel with the General Head Quarters Staff. He is shown as receiving the O.B.E. When he applied for his medals in 1920 his contact address was given as 20, Abingdon Villas, Kensington, (London), W.8.. A newspaper report that appeared in the Hampshire Independent dated 13th May 1916, and I suspect relating to a Conscientous Objector, (as a non-subscriber I can only see a snippet), talks of a court martial for refusing to try on a uniform as ordered by Captain Herbert Huntington at the Rifle Depot at Winchester on the 20th April 1916. (Birmingham Mail 12th May 1916 shows a different snippet and references a Private Scott Deckers). Another snippet from the edition of The Sporting Chronicle dated 26th June 1916 – “Captain F.H.S. Huntington, the Army and Navy Middle Weight Champion, has left for the front. Prior to his departure he had been transferred from Chester to Aldershot as superintendent of gymnasia.” Lots of reports \ mentions on the British Newspaper Archive of Herbert in connection with his boxing matches but none from the thumbnails I could see with an attached picture. Possibly worth checking out is the reference to him as a fencer that appeared in the editions of The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News dated 23rd July 1921 and 17th December 1921. A report of the meeting of the Army and Air Force Fencing Teams that appears in the edition of The Sphere dated 3rd March 1923 also has pictures of the teams, although no guarantee Herbert was a member. The death of a Herbert F.S. Huntington at the age of 80 was recorded in the Ealing District of London in the April to June quarter, (Q2), of 1968. No obvious match in the UK Probate Calendar. No new IP is claimed for the above, and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a: the picture can be found both here https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/949315 and here http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/22150 Cheers, Peter He’s wearing a fencing outfit’s upper garment in the right hand photo Peter, where he also shows a more advanced boxer’s nose than in the other photo. The role of superintendent of gymnasia was a staff officers job essentially overseeing the Army Gymnastics Staff (AGS). At that time there were no commissioned officers in the AGS other than a quartermaster and all other staff positions came from largely infantry officers, with the occasional cavalry or gunner officer filling in as and when. Similar officers fulfilled the extra roles in that capacity thrown up by the war and the creation of battle schools at places like Etaples, where they formed the staff. Captain Huntington has all the hallmarks of such an officer. Siegfried Sassoon mentions an Scottish officer in that role teaching bayonet fighting and included him in a poem. Edited 7 February by FROGSMILE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February 10 hours ago, FROGSMILE said: He’s wearing a fencing outfit’s upper garment in the right hand photo Peter, where he also shows a more advanced boxer’s nose than in the other photo. The role of superintendent of gymnasia was a staff officers job essentially overseeing the Army Gymnastics Staff (AGS). At that time there were no commissioned officers in the AGS other than a quartermaster and all other staff positions came from largely infantry officers, with the occasional cavalry or gunner officer filling in as and when. Similar officers fulfilled the extra roles in that capacity thrown up by the war and the creation of battle schools at places like Etaples, where they formed the staff. Captain Huntington has all the hallmarks of such an officer. Siegfried Sassoon mentions an Scottish officer in that role teaching bayonet fighting and included him in a poem. Thank-you, fascinating stuff and for someone like me it's finding out that sort of thing that makes these searches such a great learning experience. To save others having to go back and search it might be an ideal time to bring forward the numbered image for ease of reference. Original image courtesy @mrfrank, Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February 24 – Anthony Charles Stevens Bovill. Lt, 9th Lancers at the time of the course. Survived the war and died in 1943. According to his Lives of the First World War entry he was educated at Eton from September 1901 to December 1906. Subsequently attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. His Military Cross was gazetted on the 23rd June 1915. According to a death notice in The Times he died on the 13th October 1943. https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/5177861 A family history website notes he was born in Hampshire in 1888 and married at Eleanor Victoria Monins in Chelsea in 1919. He was Master of Fox Hounds for North Shropshire and renowned for 'colourful' language. Awarded double MC in WWI. His death is shown as suicide, resulting from war damage. https://family-tree.cobboldfht.com/biographies/1172/anthony-charles-stevens-bovill Major Anthony Charles Stevens Bovill, of Mytton Hall, Montford Bridge, Shrewsbury, was High Sheriff of Shropshire in 1942. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Sheriff_of_Shropshire From the snippets I can see on the British Newspaper Archive he was found dead in the grounds of Mytton Hall as a result of gunshot wounds. The BNA also holds a report in the Army and Navy Gazette dated Saturday 29th July 1911 on the final of the the Subalterns Cup that had been played the previous Saturday at Roehampton. This was between the 9th Lancers and the 1st Life Guards, the Lancers winning 12 – 1. One of the players for the Lancers was an A.C.S. Bovill. The National Library of Ireland has the following photograph indexed. Major A.C. Bovill M.F.H on horse. commissioned by Hant Cottage, Ropley. Photo. Main Creator: A . H. Poole Studio Photographer. Language: English. Format: Photo. Unfortunately the catalogue shows it as not digitised. https://catalogue.nli.ie/Search/Results?lookfor=Bovill+Ropley&type=AllFields&limit=20 A History of Hunting in Hampshire by Brigadier General J.K.R. Hope, lists Major A.C. Bovill, M.C. of Hunt Lodge, Ropley, as Master of the Hampshire Hunt 1921-23. https://archive.org/details/historyofhunting0000brig/page/64/mode/2up?q=Bovill+%229th+Lancers%22 A piece on his time with the Hampshire Hunt ends with him going on to be joint-master to the Isle of Wight Hounds, 1924-25 and then master, 1925-32. https://archive.org/details/historyofhunting0000brig/page/100/mode/2up?q=Bovill The Cheshire Observer dated 20th May 1933 reports on him being welcomed as the new Master of the North Shropshire Hunt, having taken up residence at Mytton Hall. (British Newspaper Archive). The Eton College Digital Archive does not appear to have a picture of him. The British Newspaper Archive has the following potential source for a picture: Kent Messenger & Gravesend Telegraph dated 19th December 1914 has him reported promoted Captain. The thumbnail of the page appears to have 12 pictures of what looks to be individual soldiers. (Pre-war sources have him associated with the East Kent Hunt). Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February (edited) 25 - Claude Vierville Champion de Crespigny. Captain, 3rd Battalion, Wiltshire Regiment, survived the war but died on the 17th July 1927 at Singida, Tanganyika as a result of wounds - pssibly from being badly mauled by a Leopard - tbc. Note he had an older brother also called Claude, who appears to have had a similar early service career, (cavalry, Boer War, East Africa),but who took his own life in 1910. There are also images of that man in circulation as well, so care needs to be taken to ensure the right brother is identified – I’m not entirely sure that the major online write ups about him have always managed to distinguish the two. Within the family, juding from this piece on Essex eccentrics, the youngest Claude was known as Vierville. https://archive.org/details/essexeccentrics0000barn/page/54/mode/2up?q=Claude+Vierville+Champion+de+Crespigny&view=theater @Bob Davies has already linked to two images of him, one a painting, on the Europeans in East Africa website. The same site has him:- Born 25 Jan 1882 Heybridge, Essex, 4th son of 4th Baronet. School: Westgate-on-Sea. Served Boer War. Lieut. Paget's Horse, Jan 1900; 21st Lancers, Oct. 1900; Wiltshire Regt. Feb 1901; took part in the operations in Natal, including the three days' action of Laing's Nek, and later saw further service in the Transvaal, east of Pretoria, and was present at the action at Belfast; he continued to serve in various parts of the country until the conclusion of the war, and received the Queen's medal with four, and the King's medal with two, clasps. (However his war service in the 1904 edition of Hart’s reads “Lieut. de Crespigny served in the South African war with the King’s Royal Rifle Corps, took part in the operations in the Transvaal including actions at Laing’s Nek, Belfast, and Lydenburg; afterwards served with the 6th Mounted Infantry in Orange River Colony; was for some time galloper to Colonel de Lisle (Medal with six clasps). ) https://archive.org/details/hartsannualarmy1905hart/page/544/mode/2up?q=%22Claude+Vierville+Champion+de+Crespigny%22&view=theater Given the collar badge on the first painting in scarlet uniform believed to be of him, service with the KRRC seems more likely. 1903, 1904 or 1905 Aide-de-Camp to HM Commissioner, EAP. In East Africa at the same time as his father Sir Claude. (Date depends on which source you look at – he is certainly shown as an ADC in the 1904 edition of Harts!) 1906 (London Gazette 1st October 1906). Lt. C.V.C. de Crespigny appointed to act as an Asst. Collector for the Nandi district of the Province of Kisumu. Had served in the Nandi Punitive Expedition 1905-06. 1908 Lieut. C.V.C. de Crespigny was tried and acquitted of the charge of causing the death of his native servant by a rash and negligent act.Whilst on safari he chased with a hog spear an African who had brought him a warm rather than a cold beer and accidentally killed him. At his trial, to the cheers of the court, the white jury acquitted him of culpable neglect in using weapons, saying that they knew their duty to a white man. Married first time in Kensington 19 July 1911 Mary Nora Katharine McSloy (divorced. 1924) One child Mary Charmian Sara (Baroness Lagerfelt) (4 Dec 1914 Chelsea-1967 Sweden). Second marriage in Mombasa 6 December 1924 Elspie Madge Salmon. https://www.europeansineastafrica.co.uk/_site/custom/database/?a=viewIndividual&pid=2&person=406 That site quotes https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Champion_de_Crespigny-57 as a partial source. I believe the author may be this blogger https://anneyoungau.wordpress.com/category/divorce/ Claude moved with his family and daughter to Canada in 1919 to take up farming, but their unhappiness there was cited as part of the reason for the divorce. He returned to the UK. initially alone. Served with RIC during Irish Rebellion 1921 and Ulster Special Constabulary 1922, ( @corisande also has a very detailed timeline here, including a picture of him as a child and a second painting, although that appears to be his cousin Raul, the future 5th Baronet). He has noted that Claude moved to the Essex Regiment in 1912. landing in France in October 1914 attached to the 2nd Battalion of the Suffolk Regiment. http://www.theauxiliaries.com/men-alphabetical/men-c/champion-de-crespigny/champion-de-crespigny.html The death announcement in the personal columns of the edition of The Times dated August 24th, 1927, recorded him as having died on duty while serving as a Game Ranger. A report in the South London Observer dated 27th July 1927 records it as a big game hunting accident. So does a report in the Hong Kong Daily Press dated 23rd August 1927. https://archive.org/details/NPDP19270823/page/n7/mode/2up?q=%22Claude+Vierville+Champion+de+Crespigny%22 No new IP is claimed for the above and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a. http://www.theauxiliaries.com/men-alphabetical/men-c/champion-de-crespigny/champion-de-crespigny.html b. https://www.europeansineastafrica.co.uk/_site/custom/database/?a=viewIndividual&pid=2&person=406 There is a bigger piece of work to do to untangle some of the confusion, but for the puposes of this exercise I’ll park that for now. Cheers, Peter Edited 7 February by PRC Formatting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGSMILE Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February (edited) 12 minutes ago, PRC said: 25 - Claude Vierville Champion de Crespigny. Captain, 3rd Battalion, Wiltshire Regiment, survived the war but died on the 17th July 1927 at Singida, Tanganyika as a result of wounds - pssibly from being badly mauled by a Leopard - tbc. Note he had an older brother also called Claude, who appears to have had a similar early service career, (cavalry, Boer War, East Africa),but who took his own life in 1910. There are also images of that man in circulation as well, so care needs to be taken to ensure the right brother is identified – I’m not entirely sure that the major online write ups about him have always managed to distinguish the two. Within the family, juding from this piece on Essex eccentrics, the youngest Claude was known as Vierville. https://archive.org/details/essexeccentrics0000barn/page/54/mode/2up?q=Claude+Vierville+Champion+de+Crespigny&view=theater @Bob Davies has already linked to two images of him, one a painting, on the Europeans in East Africa website. The same site has him:- Born 25 Jan 1882 Heybridge, Essex, 4th son of 4th Baronet. School: Westgate-on-Sea. Served Boer War. Lieut. Paget's Horse, Jan 1900; 21st Lancers, Oct. 1900; Wiltshire Regt. Feb 1901; took part in the operations in Natal, including the three days' action of Laing's Nek, and later saw further service in the Transvaal, east of Pretoria, and was present at the action at Belfast; he continued to serve in various parts of the country until the conclusion of the war, and received the Queen's medal with four, and the King's medal with two, clasps. (However his war service in the 1904 edition of Hart’s reads “Lieut. de Crespigny served in the South African war with the King’s Royal Rifle Corps, took part in the operations in the Transvaal including actions at Laing’s Nek, Belfast, and Lydenburg; afterwards served with the 6th Mounted Infantry in Orange River Colony; was for some time galloper to Colonel de Lisle (Medal with six clasps). ) https://archive.org/details/hartsannualarmy1905hart/page/544/mode/2up?q=%22Claude+Vierville+Champion+de+Crespigny%22&view=theater Given the collar badge on the first painting in scarlet uniform believed to be of him, service with the KRRC seems more likely. 1903, 1904 or 1905 Aide-de-Camp to HM Commissioner, EAP. In East Africa at the same time as his father Sir Claude. (Date depends on which source you look at – he is certainly shown as an ADC in the 1904 edition of Harts!) 1906 (London Gazette 1st October 1906). Lt. C.V.C. de Crespigny appointed to act as an Asst. Collector for the Nandi district of the Province of Kisumu. Had served in the Nandi Punitive Expedition 1905-06. 1908 Lieut. C.V.C. de Crespigny was tried and acquitted of the charge of causing the death of his native servant by a rash and negligent act.Whilst on safari he chased with a hog spear an African who had brought him a warm rather than a cold beer and accidentally killed him. At his trial, to the cheers of the court, the white jury acquitted him of culpable neglect in using weapons, saying that they knew their duty to a white man. Married first time in Kensington 19 July 1911 Mary Nora Katharine McSloy (divorced. 1924) One child Mary Charmian Sara (Baroness Lagerfelt) (4 Dec 1914 Chelsea-1967 Sweden). Second marriage in Mombasa 6 December 1924 Elspie Madge Salmon. https://www.europeansineastafrica.co.uk/_site/custom/database/?a=viewIndividual&pid=2&person=406 That site quotes https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Champion_de_Crespigny-57 as a partial source. I believe the author may be this blogger https://anneyoungau.wordpress.com/category/divorce/ Claude moved with his family and daughter to Canada in 1919 to take up farming, but their unhappiness there was cited as part of the reason for the divorce. He returned to the UK. initially alone. Served with RIC during Irish Rebellion 1921 and Ulster Special Constabulary 1922, ( @corisande also has a very detailed timeline here, including a picture of him as a child and a second painting, although that appears to be his cousin Raul, the future 5th Baronet). He has noted that Claude moved to the Essex Regiment in 1912. landing in France in October 1914 attached to the 2nd Battalion of the Suffolk Regiment. http://www.theauxiliaries.com/men-alphabetical/men-c/champion-de-crespigny/champion-de-crespigny.html The death announcement in the personal columns of the edition of The Times dated August 24th, 1927, recorded him as having died on duty while serving as a Game Ranger. A report in the South London Observer dated 27th July 1927 records it as a big game hunting accident. So does a report in the Hong Kong Daily Press dated 23rd August 1927. https://archive.org/details/NPDP19270823/page/n7/mode/2up?q=%22Claude+Vierville+Champion+de+Crespigny%22 No new IP is claimed for the above and all image rights, if any, remain with the current owners. Sources. a. http://www.theauxiliaries.com/men-alphabetical/men-c/champion-de-crespigny/champion-de-crespigny.html b. https://www.europeansineastafrica.co.uk/_site/custom/database/?a=viewIndividual&pid=2&person=406 There is a bigger piece of work to do to untangle some of the confusion, but for the puposes of this exercise I’ll park that for now. Cheers, Peter Of your four photos both, the scarlet uniform, and the service dress including a cap, each show insignia of the Wiltshire Regiment, Peter. He doesn’t convey a very pleasant character, I hope that the leopard didn’t suffer any indigestion… Edited 7 February by FROGSMILE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corisande Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February Thanks Peter . I have sorted the photo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrfrank Posted 7 February Author Share Posted 7 February (edited) 1 hour ago, FROGSMILE said: Of your four photos both, the scarlet uniform, and the service dress including a cap, each show insignia of the Wiltshire Regiment, Peter. He doesn’t convey a very pleasant character, I hope that the leopard didn’t suffer any indigestion… Sounds like he may have had some ‘issues’. He looks such a happy chap in the photograph. This was reported by my home city’s newspaper, The Hull Daily Mail in 1909…… Edited 7 February by mrfrank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGSMILE Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February (edited) 8 minutes ago, mrfrank said: Sounds like he may have had some ‘issues’. He looks such a happy chap in the photograph. This was reported by my home city’s newspaper, The Hull Daily Mail in 1909…… Thanks mrfrank, very interesting. That confirms to me the arrogant s**t that I thought he probably was. Edited 7 February by FROGSMILE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February Given the Maldon connection I wonder if forum member @stephen p nunn has come across him? Any mention of Claude \ Viervelle I could find in the newspapers seems to have used as an excuse to bring up his father, another Claude, who also seems to have had a hot temper. Even in his seventies he was publicly challenging a "younger" cousin, (in his fifties) to a duel at dawn with a choice of pistols or swords. The interview for potential male employees was a boxing match and going through the newspapers I couldn't help but notice that his butler shot himself after falling foul of his employer. What a happy household that must have been Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen p nunn Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February Thank you. This is the same family...... FINALLY AT REST What happened to Lieutenant de Crespigny by Stephen P. Nunn To say that Sir Claude was a determined man would be something of an understatement. Not for nothing was he described as; “one of the hardest and pluckiest men in England”. Adventurer, sportsman, early balloonist, pugilist, magistrate, amateur hangman (volunteer executioner), he was undoubtedly; “a strong man with set views”. Born in 1847, Sir Claude ‘Champion’ de Crespigny JP was the 4th Baronet of that ilk. He joined the Navy at 15, was then commissioned into the Army with the 60th Rifles and eventually transferred to the Hussars. He later held a militia command and was CO of the Maldon and Dengie Companies of the National Reserve during the Great War. From 1881 Sir Claude’s country seat was Champion (now Totham) Lodge, off Broad Street Green. He lived there with his wife, Lady Georgina Louisa Margaret Champion de Crespigny (née McKerrall) and they had nine children – five boys (all with the first name Claude) and four girls. Their fifth and youngest son, Claude Norman, was born in 1888 and appears to have inherited some of his father’s undoubted “pluck”. In 1907 he became a Second-Lieutenant with the 1st (The King’s) Dragoon Guards. Promoted to Lieutenant in January 1908, in November of the same year he transferred to the 2nd Dragoon Guards – the Queen’s Bays. On the 7/9/1913 he married Olive Rose Champion de Crespigny (née Gordon) – a relation of famous General Gordon of Khartoum. With the outbreak of the Great War, Claude Norman joined his regiment in France and was in the thick of the fighting. Accounts indicate that, on the 1/9/1914, horses were picketed down and the Guards were holding an important tactical point at Compiégne in an encounter later described as; “the second Balaclava”. About 5.30am Claude Norman and a few of his men stood their ground as the Germans opened fire on them with 12 field guns and several Maxims. Despite a determined defence all of the Guards involved that fateful morning were either killed or seriously wounded. Claude Norman was last seen alive advancing towards the jaws of the enemy with his revolver drawn. It was a sad, but all too common outcome for a young (26 year old) officer, keen to do his bit for King and country and making the ultimate sacrifice in the process. But there is something a bit different about Claude Norman’s subsequent story. The official records confirm that he was indeed; “killed in action in France”, but he was then somehow buried here in England. How can that be? Possible mistakes aside, the answer is confirmed in the latest book by Great War historian Richard Van Emden - ‘Missing’ (Pen & Sword 2019). Richard says that in the early stages of the war; “around forty sets of remains had been privately removed from the Western Front by grieving wealthy families”. The War Office soon put a stop to the practice, but it would appear that Claude Norman was one of those forty. The Essex County Chronicle for Friday November 13, 1914, takes up the story. “The deceased”, said the Chronicle, “was (initially) buried at Néry, near Compiégne, but the body was disinterred”. It was then; “enclosed in a coffin of polished oak, with silver plated furniture” and was “conveyed to Maldon by train”. A gun carriage transported the coffin (from East Station) to Champion Lodge, Sir Claude insisting on walking behind it all the way. A firing party, band, escort, bearers and trumpeters were already on site, along with a “large and sympathetic crowd”. All proceeded through the grounds to the de Crespigny mausoleum, known as the Crescent, where Claude Norman was laid to rest to the crack of three volleys and the haunting sounds of the Last Post. You would think that was the end to this sad chapter in the de Crespigny family’s lineage, but there is a further twist. Visit Totham Lodge today and you won’t find any sign of a mausoleum, or come to that any kind of monument to Claude Norman. Although there is a tablet to him in Great Totham church, when the family finally ended their residency of Champion Lodge (which is now a care home), in the 1950s Claude Norman was exhumed yet again and his body reinterred some half a dozen miles away in the churchyard of St. Andrew’s, Hatfield Peverel. The other day I decided to go in search and to pay my respects. There, on one side of an imposing white, stepped and enclosed cross, is a simple inscription; “Claude Norman Champion de Crespigny. Lieutenant, Queen’s Bays. Born June 14th 1888. Killed in Action September 1st. 1914” - and we might add, buried three times, but now hopefully at rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen p nunn Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February Champion Lodge is now Totham Lodge. The family memorials are in Great Totham Church and the bodies re-intered at Hatfield Peveral. Regards. Stephen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen p nunn Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen p nunn Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February Sir Claude Champion de Crespigny, Bart. (1847-1935), of ‘Champion Lodge’, Great Totham, described as “a fine old fighting man”, was CO of the Maldon & Dengie Companies. Born in London, he was the 4th Baronet de Crespigny, descended from noble Norman stock. He had previously been in the Royal Navy (from 1860 to 1865) and then with the 60th Rifles. Three of his sons had already served in the South African war – Claude (Junior) with the Household Cavalry, Raul with the Grenadier Guards and Vierville, the Imperial Yeomanry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephen p nunn Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February This is your man..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGSMILE Posted 7 February Share Posted 7 February 59 minutes ago, stephen p nunn said: This is your man..... Interesting that the motto on his memorial is that of the 60th Rifles (King’s Royal Rifle Corps). Presumably either a nod to his father’s regiment (which seems odd), or perhaps he did serve with that regiment for a period, despite the apparent association with the Wiltshire’s, Essex and Suffolk Regiments. More details to confirm it seems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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