Category Archives: Royal Navy

Able Seaman, Boy, Channel Islands, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Jersey, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, story, war

Able Seaman William Turner

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Able Seaman William Turner

Details of William Alliston Turner’s life are a challenge to track down. According to later military records, he was born on 28th February 1888 in St Helier, Jersey. While there are a couple of census returns that may be connected to him, there is nothing to definitively confirm his early life.

William enlisted in the Royal Navy on 9th January 1904. He was just shy of his 14th birthday, and so was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class. Over the next fifteen months, he was attached to the training ship HMS St Vincent, moored at Haslar in Hampshire. In August 1902, he was promoted to Boy 1st Class, and was given his first posting, on board the cruiser HMS Edgar, in May 1905.

After a short spell at HMS Victory, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, William was assigned to HMS Powerful, a protected cruiser, and he would spend two years on board. During this time, he came of age, and was given the rank of Ordinary Seaman. His service records at the time confirm that he was 5ft 5.5ins (1.66m) tall, with dark hair, brown eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having two tattoos – a heart on the back of his right hand, and the letter T on the back of his left.

William seemed to have taken to his life at sea with some ease. On 1st January 1907 he was promoted to the rank of Able Seaman, and over the next eight years, he served on twelve different vessels, returning to Portsmouth between each voyage.

What had become a good career for Able Seaman Turner, began to take a bit of a downturn. He spent six separate periods of time in the brig between 1908 and 1914, totalling 121 days in total. On 19th March 1915, William was medically discharged from naval service, suffering from neurasthenia, or PTSD as it is now known.

At this point, William’s trail goes cold. He returned to the Channel Islands, and passed away on 13th April 1917: he was 29 years of age.

William Alliston Turner was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Lawrence Church in Jersey.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, Hampshire, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class Frederick Carder

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Stoker 1st Class Frederick Carder

Frederick Albert Carder was born on 2nd March 1893 in Dartmouth, Devon. The youngest of ten children, his parents were shipwright Samuel Carder and his wife, Julia. Frederick lost both of his parents in 1909, when he was just 14 years of age. He was taken in by his older brother, Ernest – who was better known as James – and his family and, by the time of the 1911 census was working as a porter for the local Co-operative Stores.

War came to Europe in the summer of 1914, and, two years later, Frederick stepped up to play his part. He enlisted in the Royal Navy on 4th July 1916, and was given the rank of Stoker 2nd Class. He was sent to HMS Victory – the Royal Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, Hampshire – for his initial training.

By the end of August, Stoker Carder was assigned to HMS Broke, a destroyer that formed part of the Dover Patrol, monitoring the waters off the Kent coast. He remained attached to the patrol and was promoted to Stoker 1st Class in January 1917.

On 20th April 1917, the Broke and another ship, HMS Swift, took on six German torpedo boats who were attacking the Dover Barrage – a network of nets and mines in the English Channel, designed to stop U-boats. The Broke rammed the torpedo boat SMS G42, and the two ships became locked together. Enemy sailors boarded the Broke, and hand-to-hand combat ensued. Eventually Broke managed to break free, and the G42 sank.

HMS Broke was towed back to shore, but 21 of her crew had died in the Battle of Dover Strait, including Stoker 1st Class Carder. He was 23 years of age.

The body of Frederick Albert Carder was taken back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in Paignton Cemetery, close to his brother, James, who had died in the summer of 1916. Read more about him by clicking here.

Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Dorset, Great War, history, illness, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, Somerset, story, war

Able Seaman Walter Brett

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Able Seaman Walter Brett

Walter Brett was born in Batheaston, Somerset, on 12th July 1896. The fourth of seven children, he was the second son of George and Louisa Brett. George was a groom and coachman from Norfolk, and his work took the family around the country. Louisa had been born in Staffordshire, their oldest child, daughter Florence, had been born in South Wales. By 1893, the family had settled in Somerset, but the next census, taken in 1901, found them in Branksome, Dorset.

When Walter finished his schooling, he found work as an errand boy for a hairdresser. By now the Bretts had moved back to Somerset, where George – and his widowed father, John – were working as coachmen for a Mr Page. There were seven in the household – George, Louisa, Walter and three of his siblings, and George Sr – and the family were living at 1 Nelson Terrace, on Walcot Street, Bath, in a six-roomed cottage.

Walter sought bigger and better things for himself. His older brother, Frederick, had left home, and was working as a grocer’s assistant in Brislington – now a suburb of Bristol – and he too wanted a career. On 23rd January 1912, he enlisted in the Royal Navy. As he was only 15 year of age, he was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class, and was sent to HMS Impregnable, a training ship based in Devonport, Devon, for his induction.

Obviously showing signs of ability and commitment to the role, Walter was promoted to Boy 1st Class just seven months later. His first assignment was on board the battleship HMS Cornwallis, and he spent the remainder of 1912 serving with her.

After a brief period back in Devonport – this time at HMS Vivid – and six weeks aboard HMS Lancaster, Boy 1st Class Brett was assigned to the ship that would become his home for the next three years. HMS Lion was a battlecruiser, and she was to serve as the flagship of her class of ships during the First World War.

Walter came of age while serving on Lion, and was given the rank of Ordinary Seaman on his eighteenth birthday. His service records show that he was 5ft 6ins (1.68m) tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having a mole on his stomach.

Walter was promoted to Able Seaman in the summer of 1915, and remained on board HMS Lion until the end of April the following year. His ship had been involved in a number of skirmishes by this point, including the Battle of Heligoland Bight, the defence of the raid on Scarborough and the Battle of Dogger Bank. In June 1916, she would be caught up in the Battle of Jutland, but Able Seaman Brett was back on terra firma by this point, and was billeted in Devonport.

On 1st August 1916, Walter was given a new posting, when he was assigned to the dreadnought battleship HMS Ajax. Acting as support to the Norwegian convoys in the North Sea, he was to remain on board until the closing weeks of the war.

Walter’s brother Frederick, meanwhile, was also caught up in the conflict. He had enlisted in the Gloucestershire Regiment, and was assigned to the 12th Battalion. By the spring of 1917, his unit was based in Arras, and was Private Brett was heavily involved. Following an attack on 8th May, he was declared missing, presumed dead. He was 24 years of age, and is commemorated on the Arras memorial.

Back at sea, in October 1918, Able Seaman Walter Brett became unwell, contracting a combination of influenza and pneumonia. He was transferred to the Hospital Ship Garth Castle, but the conditions were to get the better of him. He passed away on 27th October, at the age of 22 years old.

Walter Brett was brought back to Somerset for burial. His parents had lost both of their sons, but were able to lay their youngest to rest in Locksbrook Cemetery, Bath.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, Hampshire, history, illness, Leading Stoker, Petty Officer, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker Petty Officer Albert Symes

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Stoker Petty Officer Albert Symes

Albert Symes was born in Dorset on 6th March 1887. Details of his early life are a challenge to piece together, as his was not an uncommon name in the county – the 1891 census has at least two potential matches, and the 1901 record at least three.

The first concrete information for Albert is that of his military service. Having been working as a general labourer, he enlisted on the 22nd September 1906, joining the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class. His service records show that he was 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was also noted as having the letters BS (presumably for Bert Symes) tattooed on his right forearm.

The service document gives his place of birth as Yeovil, Dorset, although the town is actually in Somerset. The next census, taken in 1911, suggests he was born in the village of Bradford Abbas, three miles south east and over the Dorset border.

Stoker 2nd Class Symes was first sent to the training ship HMS Nelson. Based in Portsmouth, Hampshire, this is where Albert spent three months, before being assigned to the cruiser HMS Eclipse. Over the next nine years, Albert served on eight ships, returning to a land base – HMS Victory in Portsmouth – in between voyages.

Albert’s commitment to the job is evident – his character was continually noted as being Very Good, while his ability was Superior as each of his annual reviews. In May 1907 he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class; five years later he made Acting Leading Stoker, with a full promotion to the rank in June 1913; on 1st June 1915, while serving on board HMS Hampshire, Albert was promoted again, to Stoker Petty Officer.

Things would change rapidly for Albert, however. Within a matter of weeks, he had contracted pneumonia. He was transferred to the hospital ship Garth Castle, but the condition was to prove too severe. Stoker Petty Officer Symes passed away from the condition on 3rd October 1915: he was 28 years of age.

Albert Symes’ body was brought back to Dorset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Mary’s Church in the village of Bradford Abbas.

Carpenter's Crewman, Channel Islands, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Jersey, photography, Royal Navy, Shipwright, story, Surrey, Sussex, war

Shipwright 2nd Class Laurence Durell

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Shipwright Laurence Durell

Laurence Edward Horsnell la Vavasour dit Durell was born on 24th December 1894, one of seven children to Edward and Julia. Edward was born in Jersey, in the Channel Islands, but he and Julia were living in Camberwell, Surrey, when Laurence was born.

The census records from the time show a family who came to be divided. In 1901, Edward was working as an artificial limb maker, while Julia looked after their son and the house the family shared at 14 Kerfield Crescent.

By 1911, things had changed significantly. Edward was now employed as a grocer’s storeman, and he and Laurence – apprenticed to a carpenter – were living with his parents, Edward and Sarah, at their home in St Clement, Jersey. Julia, meanwhile, was still on the mainland, where she was employed as a housekeeper for Frederick Manford, a 31-year-old cinema attendant in Hastings. Laurence’s younger sister, Phyllis, was also living there.

Laurence seemed keen to carve out a career for himself and, on 3rd January 1913, he enlisted in the Royal Navy as a Ship’s Carpenter. His service records show that he was 5ft 8ins (1.72m) tall, with dark hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion. He was first sent to HMS Victory, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth, Hampshire, for his training.

Over the next five years, Ship’s Carpenter Durell served on six ships, and as war broke out in the summer of 1914, his role became more and more vital. In May 1917, while serving on board the cruiser HMS Castor, he was promoted to the rank of Shipwright 2nd Class.

During the summer of 1918, Laurence contracted pneumonia. He was transferred to the hospital ship Soudan, but the condition was to prove too severe. He passed away on 15th July 1918, at the age of 23 years of age.

Laurence Edward Horsnell la Vavasour dit Durell was taken back to Jersey for burial. He was laid to rest a family plot in St Clement Churchyard, not far from where his relatives still lived.

Shipwright Laurence Durell
(from ancestry.co.uk)
Able Seaman, Boy, Commonwealth War Graves, County Antrim, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, Greece, history, illness, killed in action, Lance Corporal, photography, Royal Navy, Scotland, story, war

Boy 1st Class Ernest Hewett

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Boy 1st Class Ernest Hewett

Ernest Roye Hewett was born on 18th April 1898 and was the third of twelve children to Alfred and Ada. Alfred was a coachman and groom and, while both he and Ada were born in Cornwall, it was in Budleigh Salterton, Devon, that the family were born and raised.

When he finished his schooling, Ernest found work as a butcher’s boy, but when sought bigger and better things. His oldest brother, Ralph, had enlisted in the army by the time of the 1911 census and, by that October, his next oldest brother, Leslie, had enlisted in the Royal Navy. Ernest felt a career in the military was his destiny and, on 12th September 1913, he also joined the navy.

As he was under age at this point, he was given the rank of Boy 2nd Class, and sent to HMS Impregnable, the training establishment in Devonport, for his induction. His service records show that he was 5ft 2.5ins (1.59m) tall, with brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion.

Ernest spent nine months training, moving from Impregnable to HMS Powerful, and gaining a promotion to Boy 1st Class in the process. In June 1914, he was assigned to the cruiser HMS Edgar, remaining on board for six months, by which point war had broken out.

On 18th December 1914, Lance Corporal Ralph Hewett was killed in action, aged just 20 years old. Attached to the 2nd Battalion of the Devonshire Regiment, he was caught in fighting in Northern France, and is commemorated on the Le Touret Memorial.

Ernest, by this point, had been assigned to another ship, the armed merchant cruiser HMS Viknor. Patrolling the seas off Scotland, towards the end of the month, she was tasked with locating and detaining the Norwegian ship Bergensfjord, on board which was a suspected German spy.

The vessel was located and escorted to Kirkwall in the Orkneys, and the suspect and a number of other prisoners, were taken on board the Viknor to be transported to Liverpool. The ship and crew were never to reach their destination. On 13th January 1915, she sank in heavy seas off the Irish Coast: no distress signal was made and all hands were lost.

BODY WASHED ASHORE – Another body has been washed ashore at Pallntoy Port, about six miles from Ballycastle. The body was that of a man of about 5ft 10in. in height. He was dressed in a blue jacket, and wore a service blue webbed belt, on which was the name E. F. Hewett. In the pocket of the trousers was a boatswain’s whistle.

Freeman’s Journal: 24th February 1915

Already in mourning for Ralph, Alfred and Ada were unable to bring 16-year-old Ernest Roye Hewett back home. Instead, he was laid to rest in Ballintoy parish church, County Antrim.

The heartbreak was to continue for the Hewett family. Leslie’s career had gone from strength to strength and, by the time of his older brother’s death, he had been promoted to Able Seaman. In the summer of 1915, he was assigned to the cruiser HMS Europa, remaining aboard for the next year as it patrolled the Mediterranean. In July 1916 he fell ill, having contracted malaria. This was to prove his undoing: he passed away from the condition on 21st July, at 20 years old.

Able Seaman Leslie Hewett was laid to rest in the Mikra British Cemetery in Greece. His parents had now lost their three oldest sons, and had no way to reach their final resting places.

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, Cook, Cook's Mate, County Antrim, Great War, history, Kent, killed in action, photography, Royal Navy, story, war

Ship’s Cook Walter Griffin

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Ship’s Cook Walter Griffin

Walter Griffin was born on 15th December 1886 in Woolwich, Kent. Details of his early life are lost to time, but, by the time of the 1901 census, he was working as a cooper’s mate at a cement factory in Higham, Kent.

Walter sought bigger and better things for himself, and, on 19th June 1907, he enlisted in the Royal Navy as Cook’s Mate 2nd Class. His service records confirm that he was 5ft 4ins (1.62m) tall, with brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion.

Walter was initially sent just down the coast to the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for his training. He remained there for nine months, and was promoted to Cook’s Mate 1st Class for his service.

In January 1908, he was given his first posting, on board HMS Wildfire, and, over the next nine years, he served on a further four ships, returning to Chatham in between postings. Walter was obviously dedicated to the work he was doing: in January 1910 he was promoted to Leading Cook’s Mate, and by 1917, he was promoted again, to the ran of Ship’s Cook.

This promotion coincided with a transfer to what would be his last assignment, on board HMS Racoon. This Beagle-class destroyer patrolled the waters between Scotland and Northern Ireland, and he spent the winter of 1917/18 on board.

On 9th January 1918, there were storm conditions off the Irish coast: high seas and blizzard limited limited vision. At 2am, the Racoon struck rocks, and foundered: in the treacherous conditions, all hands were lost. Shio’s Cook Griffin was 31 years of age.

Walter Griffin’s body washed ashore near the village of Ballintoy, Country Antrim, the following day. He was laid to rest in the parish church, next to two other crew members, Ordinary Seaman Frank Green and Stoker 2nd Class Frederick Sarell.

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, County Antrim, Essex, Great War, history, Ireland, killed in action, Northern Ireland, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 2nd Class Frederick Sarell

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CWG: Stoker 2nd Class Frederick Sarell

Frederick Clifford Sarell was born on 6th July 1899, one of six children to James and Theresa. James was a general labourer from East London, and the family were born and brought up in West Ham, Essex.

The Sarell family were beset by tragedy: Frederick’s oldest brother, James, died in 1903, at the age of 23, while James Sr passed away three years later. By the time of the 1911 census, Theresa was raising her five remaining children in a small house in Fife Road, Canning Town, with her oldest three children bringing in some money to support the family,

In 1913, another of Frederick’s brothers, George, passed away, and the following year his oldest sister, Theresa Jr, also died. By the summer of 1917, with war raging across Europe, Frederick stepped up to play his part. It is unclear whether his motives were to support his mother, or because he was conscripted, but either way he enlisted in the Royal Navy.

Frederick had been working as a dock labourer when he signed up. He Employed as a Stoker 2nd Class, his naval records show that he was 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, with brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion. He was noted as having a scar on his right knee, a distinguishing mark that would tragically help to identify his body before the year was out.

Stoker Sarell was initially sent to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for his training. On 10th October 1917, he was given his first posting, on board the destroyer HMS Racoon, which patrolled the seas between Ireland and Scotland.

Frederick was on board when, on 9th January 1918, the Racoon struck rocks off the coast of Northern Ireland in heavy seas and blizzard conditions. All of the crew – more than 90 men – were lost. Stoker 2nd Class Sarell was just eighteen years old when he died: he had been in the Royal Navy for less than six months.

The body of Frederick Clifford Sarell washed ashore near Ballintoy, County Antrim. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of the village’s church next to two other crew members, Ordinary Seaman Frank Green and Ship’s Cook Walter Griffin.

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, County Antrim, Essex, Great War, history, Ireland, Kent, killed in action, Northern Ireland, Ordinary Seaman, photography, Royal Navy, story, Surrey, war

Ordinary Seaman Frank Green

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Ordinary Seaman Frank Green

Frank Ernest Green was born in Stratford, Essex on 14th November 1889. One of nine children, his parents were printer’s compositor John Green and his wife, Susan. The family were raised in Leytonstone and, by the time of the 1911 census, they were living in a house in Elsham Road.

Frank found work as a clerk for a financial company when he finished his schooling. On 31st August 1912, he married sailor’s daughter Charlotte Greenland, who was four years his senior. The couple settled in Gibbon Road, Peckham, Surrey, where Frank continued his work.

When war broke out, Frank was called upon to play his part. On 3rd January 1917, he enlisted in the Royal Navy for the duration of the war. His service records show that he was 5ft 6.5ins (1.69m) tall, with brown hair, blue eyes and a fresh complexion.

Ordinary Seaman Green was initially sent to HMS Pembroke, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Chatham, Kent, for training. He spent short periods of time on two ships before being assigned to HMS Racoon, a Beagle-class destroyer,

Initially patrolling the Mediterranean, by the time Frank joined the crew the Racoon she was part of the Second Destroyer Flotilla, based from Northern Ireland. In January 1918, she struck harsh weather:

HMS Racoon, Lieut. George LM Napier RN, in command, struck some rocks off the north coast of Ireland at about 2am on the 9th [January], and subsequently foundered with all hands.

Nine of the crew had been left behind at her last port of call, and these are the sole survivors.

Seventeen bodies have been picked up by patrol craft, and are being buried at Rath Mullan. Five more bodies have been washed ashore, and are being buried locally.

All the next of kin have been informed.

Exeter and Plymouth Gazette – Monday 14 January 1918

Ordinary Seaman Frank Ernest Green was one of those to be washed ashore. He was just 28 years of age. He was laid to rest in the peaceful and picturesque graveyard of Ballintoy Church, County Antrim, not far from where he had come to land. He was buried next to two other crew members, Ship’s Cook Walter Griffin and Stoker 2nd Class Frederick Sarell.

Commonwealth War Graves, Cornwall, Devon, Great War, history, illness, photography, Royal Navy, Stoker, story, war

Stoker 1st Class John Stone

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Stoker 1st Class John Stone

John Edward Stone was born on 10th April 1894 in Torquay, Devon. The oldest of seven siblings – of whom three survived childhood, his parents were John and Hannah Stone.

John Sr was a masons labourer, but when his son finished his schooling, he found work initially as a grocer’s errand boy, then as an outdoor porter. John Jr sought bigger and better things, however, and, in February 1913, he enlisted in the Royal Navy.

Stoker 2nd Class Stone’s service records show that he was 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall when he joined up, and that he had brown hair, grey eyes and a fresh complexion. He was based at HMS Vivid, the Royal Naval Dockyard in Devonport, and this is where he spent the first six months training.

John’s first sea-going posting was on board the armoured cruiser HMS Defence and she was to be his home from 2nd September 1913 to May 1916, when she was sunk during the Battle of Jutland. During his month aboard, he was placed in the brig for 14 days due to ‘absence’. This imprisonment seemed to have refocused John’s priorities, however, and he was promoted to Stoker 1st Class on 26th February 1914.

Rescued from the lost Defence, John was taken back to Devonport, and he remained there until the end of August 1916. From here he transferred to the depot ship, HMS Blake, which was to be his home until the end of the war.

In the spring of 1917, John married Sarah Juliff in St Columb, Cornwall. The couple went on to have a daughter, Christiana, a few months later.

Stoker 1st Class Stone fell ill towards the close of the war, contracting pneumonia. He passed away while still on board HMS Blake, on 15th November 1918. He was 24 years of age.

Sarah was living in Middle Street, Padstow when her husband passed. He was brought back to the county, and was laid to rest in the town’s cemetery.

The official documents go on to say that Sarah moved to the Caerwilliam Hotel in Cabres Bay. However, there are no records for the hotel or location, although it could refer to Carbis Bay in St Ives, Cornwall.