Men of Denbury 1914-1918 Denbury Place and People the Great War Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land; When you can no more hold me by the hand, (Totnes Image Bank) Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay. Remember me when no more day by day You tell me of our future that you planned: Only remember me; you understand It will be late to counsel then or pray, Yet if you should forget me for a while And afterwards remember, do not grieve: For if the darkness and corruption leave A vestige of the thoughts that I once had, Better by far you should forget and smile Than that you should remember and be sad. Christina Rossetti The county of Devon was unusual, but not unique, in that not a single village survived the Great War without loss. Denbury deaths as a percentage of its population were amongst the highest in the land. My thanks go to the many Regiments, Museums, organisation, websites and private records that you have allowed me to research, copy and quote. Based on research carried out by Mick Sutherland-Cook 1 Men of Denbury 1914-1918 (IWM) Information supplied here is as accurate and complete as possible from the records available. Unfortunately, 70/80% of all WW1 service records were destroyed in the Blitz of WW2. If you have additional information on any of the men listed or any I may have omitted please let me know via [email protected] Introduction This publication is produced from the information gathered during my research into Denbury's contribution during the Great War 1914 – 1918 (and to 1922 when most Memorials were dedicated). It started with searching for more details about the men whose names are inscribed on the Denbury War Memorial: Pte. John Frederick BEER, 2nd Batt the Devonshire Regiment Pte. John Richard CORRICK, 9th Batt the Devonshire Regiment Pte. Montague EDWARDS, The Hampshire Regiment Warrant Officer John GAYLER, Royal Garrison Artillery Lcpl Henry (Pat) HAMMOND, The Royal Scots Pte. William Henry HOLMES, 16th Batt the Devonshire Regiment Lcpl Frank Ernest OSBORN, 2nd Batt the Devonshire Regiment Able Seaman Henry SEAWARD, Royal Navy Pte. William John TOZER, 7th Batt the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Albert Edward WILLIAMS, Service Arm not confirmed Able Seaman John Charles WYATT, Royal Navy It soon became evident that there were other men who had fought and died and, also there were men who had fought and returned all of whom, at some time during their lives, had had a relationship with Denbury. Therefore, men 2 Men of Denbury 1914-1918 who had been born in Denbury, or had married a local girl, or had come to the parish for work themselves or with a parent would be researched. Twenty- seven men were identified who had declared a 'relationship' with Denbury on their Attestation Papers when they join-up, on their Discharge Documents or somewhere in their record of service. Some were already Regular Soldier's and Sailor's when ‘The Great War’ started, some had previously fought in the Boer War, others had re-enlisted from pensioned retirement having already served their country for more than 20 years. But most were ‘War Volunteers’ and from 1916 conscripts. All were Heroes. Seventeen were 'killed in action' or 'died from wounds or related illness' at the Somme, Arras, Vimy Ridge, Gallipoli, at sea, slaughtered at Messines during the 3rd Battle of Ypres, or during the great tank battle at Cambrai or on the frozen plains of North Russia in 1919. One was taken 'Prisoner of War' and another was killed towards the end of the War whilst teaching new pilots to fly. The 11 names inscribed on the Denbury War Memorial are of those men who had been identified, in 1919, by the then Rector, Reverend Albert Chadwick as 'having a local connection'. There are many reasons why 'a local' man's name never made it on to his 'local' Great War Memorial. During the Great War whole families, widows of deceased servicemen and parents may have moved away from their ‘native’ area, memories and histories going with them. Also, some families did not want a daily reminder of 'lost' loved ones, or a man might have a stronger connection with some other place and be named on a memorial there (e.g. John Bulley born Denbury 1886 is inscribed on the Stoke Gabriel Memorial). However, none of the dead are forgotten. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) has made sure of that. When the First World War came to an end war graves were scattered throughout all the regions where fighting had occurred. The locations and sites of many graves were no longer known, and some individuals lay, unburied, in areas where fighting had been fiercest. It is in this context that the majority of the CWGC Archive Casualty Records came into existence. The Commission was set up to provide 'perpetual commemoration' to those who had died while serving in the Commonwealth forces during the war. 3 Men of Denbury 1914-1918 For those with no known grave, the Commission was provided with a list of missing individuals by the relevant military authorities. It enabled a decision to be made on where the most appropriate place of commemoration was for each individual, and to then set out the design and layout of the memorial panels on which their names would be recorded. Near the town of Ieper in Belgium is Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery in the world. It is now the resting place of more than 11,900 servicemen of the British Empire from the First World War. Denbury Memorial In addition to those men whose names are inscribed on the Denbury War Memorial 16 other 'Denbury' men fought during the First World War. In April 1919 the Rev. Albert Chadwick, Rector of Denbury, took the lead “to have some sort of permanent public memorial dedicated to ‘the men of Denbury’” and reported that he had complied a list of 9 bona fide men to be inscribed on a public memorial in the village (later two more names were added to his list). Subscription was slow and the Denbury Feoffees made up the balance with a gift of £4-16s-6d (£4.82) to enable the project to be completed. Denbury’s Great War Memorial, a plaque on the side of the cistern, was finally unveiled by General and Mrs. Kelly who lived at Tor Newton House, in 1920. (Totnes Image Bank) 4 Men of Denbury 1914-1918 It’ll all be over by Christmas In the summer of 1914 men, all over Europe were 'thrilled' by the prospect of war. By August a month had passed since the assassination of the Austrian Archduke. Austria, Russia, Germany and France had mobilised their armies and Britain was reluctantly being drawn in to the conflict. "We were all delighted when war broke out, in fact, we were bursting with happiness." recalled Len Thompson a farm boy from East Anglia. The men who were 'delighted' were not particularly blood thirsty, politically minded or jingoistic. But soldiering, even at wartime, offered prospects that were normally beyond the reach of the ‘ordinary’ man. In rural areas, such as Devon, the average size of a family was six and the father was usually a labourer earning about 13 shillings (65p) a week. If the weather was bad or he was sick and could not work the farmer stopped his pay. Most children left school at thirteen or fourteen to help their mother supplement the family income or to became labourers themselves. However, they were better educated than their parents and most could read and write. It was little wonder that young men rushed to enlist. They were paid 7shillings (35p) a week and if they sent half of it home ‘to mother’ the Government added another 3s 6d, so ‘mother’ received 7s. They were well fed and regularly, clothed, doctored, disciplined and excited. They were told the 'War presented an experience a man would be proud to tell his children and grandchildren about’. But they should join up quickly and grab a piece of the action because ‘it will be all over by Christmas'. Life in Denbury When the Great War began, on the 4th of August 1914, Denbury Village was a very different place than it is today. At the birth of the 20th Century, in Britain generally a long rural tradition was coming to an end. The period covering all the 19th Century began and ended with concern about the productivity and profitability of agriculture and the fortunes of those whose assets and social status were tied to the land. Some outcomes had grim consequences for the 5 Men of Denbury 1914-1918 rural poor but by 1914 agricultural wages had risen to 16s/9d (84p) a week for skilled men (less, of course, deductions such as rent) and 13s (65p) for the labourers who formed most of the agricultural workforce (more than 80% of Denbury’s working population were ‘land labourers’ [1911 Census]). But in the Devon countryside, many of the old ways lingered on and it took the 'Depression' of the 1930's and the Second World War to finally finish them off. However, the real contrast, as the early years of the 20th Century unravelled, was the great difference between town and country. That is, those who had running water and street lighting as a norm and those who did not. Denbury was a ‘did not’. Society then was made up of three or four distinct classes into which everyone fitted and ‘accepted’: farm workers and labourers, craftsmen and tradesmen, farmers and squires, and the landed gentry all were still prevalent in Denbury.