There is little concrete information available on the life of John Henry Chapman. His headstone, in Amesbury Cemetery, Wiltshire, confirms that he was a Lance Serjeant in the Royal Garrison Artillery, and that he died on 19th December 1920.
John’s pension ledger gives his widow’s name, Caroline, date of birth, 25th August 1900, and her address, High Street, New Romney, Kent. It also gives a cause of death for John, who passed away from pneumonia.
The record for Lance Serjeant Chapman’s headstone gives his next of kin as Mrs C Chapman, c/o Mrs Savage, which would suggest that that was Caroline’s maiden name. The Civil Registration Marriage Index records the union of a John H Chapman to someone with the surname of Savage in the summer of 1920: the wedding took place in Richmond, Yorkshire, although there does not appear to be any direct connection between the Lance Serjeant, Caroline and the town.
There are no further clear documents relating to John Henry Chapman. He lies at rest in the peaceful anonymity of Amesbury Cemetery.
Charles James Hibbs was born in the summer of 1895 the fifth of nine children to James and Emily Hibbs. James was a groom from Dorchester, Dorset, but the family were first raised in Bere Regis, where Charles was born, before moving to Amesbury, Wiltshire, by 1900.
When he finished his schooling Charles found work as an under boot for a local hotel. When war came, however, he stood up to play his part. Unfortunately, full details of his service are lost to time, but he had joined the Somerset Light Infantry by January 1917. Assigned to the 11th Battalion, Private Hibbs soon found himself barracked in Tankerton, Kent.
While there, Charles seemed to keep himself to himself, rarely mixing with any of his colleagues. His seniors did not appear to think a great deal of him. Towards the end of May, things had come to a head for Private Hibbs:
Charles James Hibbs… was found at a quarter past three on Wednesday afternoon lying dead by the downstairs front door of his billet at Buena Vista, Tankerton Road, with his right hand under the breech of the rifle and the muzzle pointing to his right shoulder.
Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald: Saturday 2nd June 1917
The subsequent inquest shone a harsh light on the Edwardian attitude towards mental health. In the week leading up to Charles’ suicide, he was pulled off patrol a couple of times for absentmindedness.
Deceased’s manner was very strange and his companions complained of him and said he was very strange the whole time…
He would lean about over the bannisters and one could not get any sense of reason out of him. He would not associate with his comrades in any way. If I [Sergeant Edward Risden] asked him whether there was anything the matter he would pull himself together and say “I’m all right, sergeant.” He would then be all right for a few minutes and then wander away from his comrades.
The Coroner – Did you think he was not quite right in his mind? – That was my opinion.
Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald: Saturday 9th June 1917
Private Hibbs was sent to see the Medical Officer, but was sent back to his unit and advised to stick to light duties.
One of Charles’ colleagues, Private Harold Prosser, was billeted him the night before he killed himself:
At 1:30am… [Prosser] heard deceased moving about in the next bed to him and the he got up in bed. Witness got a match and lit the gas. Deceased put on his trousers, boots, and hat and told [Prosser] to get back to bed and put the gas out. [Prosser] left the gas on and deceased sat on the bed for about half an hour smoking and kept saying “Yes, sir.” The deceased mentioned by name his father and mother and all his relations an then got up and said “Yes, this time I am going to do it.” Deceased went to the rifle rack and [Prosser’s colleague, Private Middleton] awoke then and told him to let the rifles alone or he would report him. Deceased then took his hand off the rifle rack and said “All right” and went back and sat on the bed again. He was still smoking. He had his eye fixed on the same rifle for about half an hour after that and then he undressed and went to bed.
Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald: Saturday 9th June 1917
Private Prosser then went to sleep in another room because, as he told the Coroner, he did not feel safe being in the same one. A report was made to Private Hibbs’ corporal the next morning and, when asked by the Coroner if he thought Hibbs “was a little off his head”, Harold replied “Yes, the previous day he sat in bed talking to himself all day. I asked him what was the matter and he said ‘I am all to pieces.'”
In summing up, the Coroner did show some sympathy towards Charles’ actions:
…while no military regulation might have been infringed he did think people should understand that it was most important to tell the doctor the symptoms of a patient. It not only applied to military patients, but to civilian patients. If the medical officer on [the morning of 30th May] had had the facts reported to him of the strange behaviour of the deceased during the night he would most probably have placed him in hospital and the man might have received such treatment there or elsewhere that would have got him back into a sane condition.
Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald: Saturday 9th June 1917
At the inquest, the jury recorded a verdict of suicide during temporary insanity. Private Hibbs died on 30th May 1917: he was just 21 years of age.
Charles James Hibbs’ body was taken back to Wiltshire for burial. He was laid to rest in Amesbury Cemetery, not far from where his grieving family lived.
The early life of Henry George Preece is a challenge to piece together.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission give his father’s name as Edwin Preece, and suggest that the was the landlord of the George Hotel in Milverton.
The Army Register of Soldier’s Effects give the sole beneficiary of Henry’s estate as his sister Bessie.
The census record of 1911 appears to link the three members of the family, but give only a tenuous connection to Somerset. Edwin was a Coachman from Nunney, but the family – including Edwin’s wife Elizabeth, and two children, Henry and Bessie – were all living in Bayford, Hertfordshire, where the siblings had been born in 1900 and 1902 respectively.
It seems likely that the Preece family moved to Somerset not long after the census was taken, and this is potentially when Edwin took up his new role in Milverton.
War broke out in 1914, and Henry stepped up to play his part. He enlisted in the Devonshire Regiment, and was assigned to the 2nd Battalion. Full service details are lost to time, but Private Preece had joined up by April 1918.
Henry’s trail goes cold again at this point. He was admitted to a military hospital in Chatham, Kent, in the autumn1918, although the reason for this is unclear. He passed away there on 29th October: he was just 19 years of age.
The body of Henry George Preece was taken back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of St Michael’s Church in Milverton.
Louis Theobald was born on 27th January 1898 in Soho, Middlesex. There is little information available about his early life, and the only document that can be directly connected to him is his military service records.
Louis enlisted in the Royal Navy on 7th September 1915. He had been working as a miner at the time, and the document gives an insight into the man he was. He stood 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall, had brown hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion. The service records also confirm that he had a tattoo on his right arm.
Stoker 2nd Class Theobald was sent to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for his training. He spent three months there, before being given his first posting, on board the minesweeper HMS Alyssum. He remained on board for three months, before transferring to the cruiser HMS Wallington in February 1916.
Louis’ health was starting to be impacted by this point: he had developed bronchitis, probably exacerbated by heat and dust of the confined engine room he worked in. By April 1916 he was transferred back to HMS Pembroke, and within two months, he was medically discharged from service.
Stoker 2nd Class Theobald had been admitted to the Royal Naval Hospital in Chatham by this point, and his health began to deteriorate. He passed away from a combination of bronchitis and empyema on 15th September 1916: he was just eighteen years of age.
Louis Theobald was laid to rest in the Roman Catholic section of the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, Kent, not far from the dockyard where he had been based.
Thomas Collins was born in the Blackfriars area of Glasgow on 12th March 1877. His was a common name, and it is a challenge to find identify much about his early life. He did, however, have a brother called Andrew, and, when he finished his schooling, he found work as a carpenter and joiner.
Thomas sought new opportunities and, on 21st January 1899, he enlisted in the Royal Navy. Working as a Carpenter’s Crew, he was initially assigned to HMS Vivid, the Royal Naval Barracks in Devonport, Devon. His service records show that he was 5ft 5ins (1,65m) tall, with dark brown hair, grey eyes and a dark complexion.
Devonport was to become Thomas’ base, but, over the twelve years of his initial navy contract, he went on to serve on eight separate vessels. He records suggest that he was good at what he did, and his moved up through the ranks as a result. However, he seemed to have another side to him, which occasionally revealed itself.
Thomas was promoted to Leading Carpenter’s Crew on 19th December 1901, but what had been noted as a very good character seemed to take a downturn at this point. He was committed to cells for two weeks in January/February 1903, while serving on HMS Highflyer, with an incident leading to his demotion to Carpenter’s Crew once more. This also appears to match with a drop in his character: noted as Very Good in his reviews of 1899 to 1901, he slipped to Good in 1902 and fair in 1903 and 1904.
His imprisonment seems to have been the shake up Thomas needed. From here on in, his character was consistently recorded as Very Good and, by August 1909, he had regained the rank of Leading Carpenter’s Crew. There was, however, a serious blip in this good behaviour, noted in his service records:
This man was tried for the manslaughter of Richard Ernest Bell, blacksmith, on [illegible date], who died from injuries received in a fight with Collins on HMS Cambridge. Verdict of Jury at Assizes: “Not guilty”. Judge in summing up stated that he considered Collins was technically guilty of manslaughter.
Thomas had been on the mess deck of HMS Cambridge on 26th August 1905, when he became embroiled in a fight with Petty Officer Bell. Medical evidence showed that Bell died as a result of a blow behind his ear, the punch delivered by Leading Carpenter’s Crew Collins. While it seems likely that he unintentionally caused the Petty Officer’s death, he was cleared by the jury, and remained assigned to HMS Cambridge until November 1905.
Thomas’ initial term of service came to an end on 20th January 1911, and he had no hesitation in re-enlisting. On board HMS St George at the time, his new contract brought with it the rank of Shipwright 2nd Class. Over the next five years, he served on four more ships, and rose a rank to Shipwright 1st Class.
On 8th January 1916, Thomas married Flora Peacock. Little information is available about here, although the wedding took place in Harwich, Essex. Thomas was serving on board the cruiser HMS Conquest by this point, and was based out of the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent.
On Tuesday evening, March 28th, a cutter belonging to HMS Conquest, which was taking forty liberty men off to the ship, was caught in a blizzard and nothing was seen or heard of her again till the morning, when she was found cast up on shore many miles away. All hands were drowned.
The cutter was being towed out by a steam-launch. The hawser broke and the boat drifted away ad capsized.
Westerham Herald: Saturday 8th April 1916
Shipwright 1st Class Thomas Collins was one of those lost from the cutter. He had not long turned 39 years of age. He was laid to rest in the Roman Catholic section of Woodlands Cemetery, Gillingham, not far from the dockyard at which he had been based.
Thomas’ headstone incorrectly gives his surname as Collings.
James Hurley was born in Timoleague, County Cork, Ireland, on 1st August 1894. His was not an uncommon name so full details of his early life are a challenge to unpick. However, later records confirm that his father was also called James Hurley, and when he finished his schooling, he found work as a farm labourer.
When war broke out in Europe, James Jr was quick to step up and play his part. He enlisted in the Royal Navy on 12th January 1915, and took the role of Stoker 2nd Class. His service records show that he was 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall, with dark brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion.
Stoker 2nd Class Hurley was sent to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for his training. However, his time there was to be tragically brief. He was admitted to the Welcome Hospital when he contracted pneumonia and empyema, but the condition was to prove too severe. He passed away on 6th February 1915, at the age of just 20 years old. He had been in the Royal Navy for just 25 days.
James Hurley’s parents were unable to bring him back to Ireland for burial. Instead, he was laid to rest in the Roman Catholic section of the Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, not far from the dockyard in which he had so briefly served.
Thomas McCall was born in Bootle, Lancashire, in 1892 and was one of two children to Francis and Elizabeth. Frank was a stoker on the steamers leaving Liverpool docks and, after working at the docks himself, Thomas soon followed his father onto the ships. By the summer of 1911, he had worked as a trimmer on at least two liners, the RMS Carmania and the RMS Empress of Britain.
When war came to Europe, Thomas stepped up, joining the Mercantile Marine Reserve – now better known as the Merchant Navy. By the summer of 1915, he was assigned to the seaplane carrier HMS Vindex, which spent most of the war in the North Sea.
Stoker McCall’s time there was to be brief. Details are sparse, but he passed away on 14th October 1915, with records suggesting this was due to disease. He was just 23 years of age.
Finances may have limited Frank and Elizabeth from bringing their son back to Lancashire: Thomas McCall was instead laid to rest in the Roman Catholic section of Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, Kent, not far from the dockyard in which he had been based.
Thomas’ headstone gives MaCall as his surname. This is an error: his name was spelt McCall.
Peter Bennoit was born in 1897 in St George’s, Newfoundland. The son of fisherman and sporting guide Peter Bennoit and his wife, Selina, little more is known about his early life.
When war was declared in Europe, he was quick to take up the call to arms. He made the journey to St John’s, and enlisted in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve on 14th October 1914. He set sail for Britain on board the training ship HMS Calypso and, having arrived in November, he was transferred to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent.
Seaman Bennoit remained in Chatham for the next couple of month, presumably to await a formal posting. This was not to happen, however: he was admitted to the Royal Naval Hospital in Chatham with mastoiditis, a bacterial infection of the inner ear. The condition was so serious that Peter succumbed to it: he passed away on 20th January 1915, at the age of just 18 years old.
Peter Bennoit was 2500 miles (4000km) from home, so it was not possible for him to be interred in Newfoundland. Instead, he was laid to rest in the Roman Catholic section of Woodlands Cemetery in Gillingham, Kent, not far from where he had passed.
Albert Graham Sweetland was born on 6th January 1895 in Kensington, Middlesex. The oldest of seven children, his parents were mechanical engineer Albert Sweetland and his wife, Edith.
A work ethic was instilled into Albert Jr from an early age. By the time of the 1911 census, he had been sent to Truro, Cornwall, where he worked as a servant to the Faull family, tending to their poultry.
Albert was set on developing a life for himself and, in the next few years, he emigrated to Australia. He settled in the town of Liverpool, now a suburb of Sydney, and found work as a station hand. War was on the horizon, however, and people of the empire were called upon to serve their King.
Albert enlisted on 22nd January 1916, joining the 18th Battalion of the Australian Infantry. His service records tell a little about the man he was becoming. He was 5ft 7ins (1.7m) tall, and weighed 143lbs (64.9kg), with fair hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion. The document also notes that he was a Methodist, and that he had tried to enlist in the British army before emigrating, but that a slight defect in his right eye had prevented him.
Private Sweetland set sail for Europe on 9th April 1916. His unit sailed via Suez, reaching Folkestone, Kent, that November. His time back in Britain was to be brief, however: within a matter of days he was in Etaples, France.
Albert was thrown into the thick of things. On 5th May 1917, he was wounded while fighting at Arras. He was shot in the legs, and medically evacuated to Britain for treatment and recuperation. He was to remain on home soil for the next year, before returning to his unit in June 1918.
On 3rd October 1918, Private Sweetland was injured during the Battle of the Beaurevoir Line. His unit’s push forward was initially successful, but ultimately failed to capture the the village. The German forces attacked with gas, and Albert was caught up in it, receiving a gun shot wound to his back.
By the time Beaurevoir was in Australian hands three days later, more than 430 Allied soldiers had been killed. Albert was awarded the Military Medal for his bravery during the battle.
Private Sweetland was medically evacuated to Britain once more, and was admitted to Bath War Hospital for treatment. This time, however, he was not to be as luck as he had been eighteen months previously. He died on 7th November 1918, from a combination of appendicitis, pneumonia and heart failure. He was just 23 years of age.
Albert Graham Sweetland was laid to rest in the military section of Bath’s Locksbrook Cemetery, not far from the facility where he had passed. His parents and his sister Winifred attended the funeral.
John Gordon Ashton was born at the start of 1885, and was one of at least two children to John and Elizabeth. Little information is available about his early life, although later records confirm that he was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and that the family were living on Elswick Road, leading west out of the city, by 1900.
John found work as a musician, but sought a bigger and better career for himself. On 3rd October 1900, he enlisted in the army, joining the 21st (Empress of India’s) Lancers. His service records show that, at not yet sixteen years of age, he was just 5ft 1in (1.55m) tall, and weighed 101lbs (46kg). He had brown hair, grey eyes and a dark complexion, and two moles on the front of his left shoulder.
Private Ashton joined up for a period of 12 years’ service, and spent most of it on home soil. The army seemed to suit him, and he steadily rose through the ranks. By August 1901, John was promoted to Bandsman; five years later, he took the rank of Trumpeter; the start of 1908 brought with it a promotion to Lance Corporal.
In September 1910, John’s unit was sent to Egypt: the move brought him a further promotion. Corporal Ashton spent two years in Cairo, before returning to Britain in the autumn of 1912. He had completed his contract of service with the 21st Lancers, and was formally discharged from service on 4th October.
Back on civvy street, John once again found work as a musician. Life outside of the army seemed not to suit him, however, and he joined the reserve forces in March 1913. The now Lance Sergeant’s service records show the man he had become: he now stood 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall, and bore a large oval scar on the underside of his right knee.
When war was declared the following summer, John was formally mobilised once more. He was attached to the 9th (Queen’s Royal) Lancers and, by 27th August 1914, was in France. Lance Sergeant Ashton’s time overseas was not to last long, however; he returned to Britain just before Christmas that year, and was based at Tidworth Camp in Wiltshire.
John’s military record was not without its hiccups. On 11th March 1910, while based in Canterbury, he was severely reprimanded for being in neglect of his duty whilst in charge of a barrack room. In 1915, however, he received a more severe punishment: on 23rd January, he was found guilty of using insubordinate language to his superior officer – in front of six ranking witnesses – and was demoted to Corporal.
It would seem that John’s health was beginning to suffer, and, after a career of nearly sixteen years, he was medically discharged from the army because of a heart condition.
At this point, his trail goes cold. He remained in the Wiltshire area, and seems to have been receiving ongoing medical treatment. At some point, he married a woman called Mary, although no other information is readily available for her.
Early in 1921, John was admitted to the Pensions Hospital in Bath, Somerset, having contracted pneumonia. He passed away there on 25th February following an aneurysm of the heart. He was 36 years of age.
John Gordon Ashton was laid to rest in the sweeping Locksbrook Cemetery in Bath.
Death and Service 