Maurice Chapman was born in the summer of 1883 in Newington, Surrey (now in the London borough of Southwark. The younger of two children, his parents were Charles and Jessie Chapman. Charles was a horse collar maker and, by the time Jessie passed away in 1899, Maurice was following in his father’s footsteps.

Maurice sought a bigger career, however, and, on 6th April 1899, he enlisted in the Royal Artillery. His service records show that he was 5ft 6ins (1.68m) tall, and that he weighed 118lbs (53.5kg). In the section relating to any distinguishing marks, it was noted that his eyebrows met, he had a scar on his forehead and two tattoos, one on each forearm.

Maurice’s military career was not to be a lengthy one. He was recorded as being absent without leave on 18th May, and docked 6 days’ pay. Admitted to a hospital in Woolwich on 26th May, he spent a week there, suffering from scabies. On 27th July, Maurice was formally discharged from the army, when it was discovered that he had lied about his age: on his enlistment papers, he stated he was 18 years 7 months old (he was, in fact, just sixteen.

Returning to the family home, Maurice took up his father’s trade once more. Charles remarried in 1905, to a woman called Rosa. The 1911 census found the two living in two rooms in a house in Kennington Lane, but of his children, there is no sign. Maurice does not appear on any of the 1911 census records. It is also not possible to track down his older sister Charlotte either, there are a number of Charlotte Chapmans in the that year’s records, and it is also unclear whether she had married by this point.

Maurice only reappears on 1st March 1916, when he stepped up to serve his King and his Country. Initially signing up for the Labour Corps, he wasn’t formally mobilised for eighteen months. Maurice gave his profession as a barman, but also noted that he had served for two years in the 2nd Battalion of the Dragoon Guards, before being discharged in 1904, although there is no other record to corroborate this.

Private Chapman’s service records provide some, but not a lot of, information. There is no record of him spending time overseas, but he spent ten months with the Labour Corps, before transferring to the Tank Corps on 30th August 1918. Over the next year-and-a-half, he moved between a couple of the regiment’s depots and their reserve unit, and remained on active service long after the Armistice was signed.

Maurice remained on active service with the Tank Corps until November 1920, when he was medically discharged. He had been unwell for a while by this point, and a combination of diabetes and a perineal fistula meant that he was no longer physically fit enough to serve.

It is likely that Maurice was in the War Hospital in Bath, Somerset, when he was discharged, as this is where he passed away, on 22nd December 1920. He was 37 years of age.

Maurice Chapman did not travel far to his final resting place. He was buried in the grounds of the Locksbrook Cemetery in Bath, Somerset.

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