Tag Archives: illness

Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Officer Training Corps, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Arthur Turner

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Private Arthur Turner

It is with great regret that we announce the death of Mr Arthur Jeffreys Turner, which took place on Tuesday last. The deceased was the only surviving son of Mr AW Turner, or Fitzroy.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 8th August 1917

Arthur Jeffreys Turner was born in Staplegrove, near Taunton, in 1897. There is little concrete information about his life, although the newspaper report of his funeral acts as a starting point.

Arthur – who, the report suggests, was known as Jeff – was the son of Arthur William Turner. The son of a gentleman, Arthur Sr was a coffee planter, who disappears from the UK Census returns from 1881 and 1891. On 4th August 1894, he married Carsina Florence Marie le Gay, the Paris-born daughter of Gustave Ferdinand le Gay, an officer in the French Army. Arthur was 40 years old, and gave his address as the Travellers’ Club in Piccadilly, London, while Carsina, who was just 21 years of age, lived in Richmond.

Of Carsina, there appears to be no further record. The 1901 census found Arthur Sr based back in his Piccadilly Club, and gives his marital status as married. Ten years later, Arthur Sr is recorded as living in Fitzroy House, to the north west of Taunton. He is still noted as married, and a retired coffee planter, and that he had two children, of whom only one survived. Arthur Sr’s only companions in the 14-roomed manor house, however, were two servants, Bessie Hill and Eva Caddy.

The same census recorded Arthur Jr boarding at a prep school in Berrow, Somerset. Naish House been purpose-built just seven years before, when the school moved down the coast from Clevedon. Arthur was one of 39 boarders, who were supported by a dozen staff.

Within three years of the census being taken, Britain was at war. Arthur Jr was 17 at this point, and was sent to Cambridge, where he enlisted in the Officers’ Training Corps (OTC). No details of his military career exist, but at some point he made the move to the Somerset Light Infantry. He was given the rank of Private, somewhat unusually, given his time in Cambridge. This would suggest either that he didn’t complete his OTC training, that he did not pass it, or that he chose to work his way up through the ranks, rather than accepting a paid commission.

At this point, Private Turner’s trail goes cold. There are no records to expand on his military career and the newspaper report spends more time focused on the inscriptions on the floral tributes at his funeral, than on his short life.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission documentation confirms that Arthur had died “of heart failure 31st July 1917. Age 20.” No other context is available, to whether heart failure was the primary cause, or it was brought on by another illness or injury can only be guessed at.

The body of Arthur Jefferys Turner was laid to rest in the graveyard of St John’s Church in Staplegrove, once a separate village, now a suburb of north west Taunton. He was buried in the family plot, alongside his paternal grandparents, Charles and Charlotte Turner.

Private Arthur Turner
(from findagrave.com)

Arthur Turner Sr lived on for a further six years after his son’s death. He died on 9th April 1923, and was also laid to rest in the family plot in St John’s Churchyard, Staplegrove. The newspaper report on his funeral gives similarly little away about his life:

The funeral took place at Staplegrove, Taunton, on Tuesday, of Mr Arthur William Turner, of Fitzroy, Norton Fitzwarren, who died… in his 79th year.

…the chief mourners were Lieut.-Com. Kenderdine and Mrs Kenderdine (son-in-law and daughter)…

The late Turner was a keen follower for many years of the Culmstock Otter Hounds, and the oldest member of the Somerset Country Club.

Langport & Somerton Herald: Saturday 16th April 1932
Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, Lance Corporal, photography, Royal Engineers, Somerset, story, war

Lance Corporal Ernest Bennett

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Lance Corporal Ernest Bennett

Ernest Harry Bennett was born in the summer of 1890, he third of ten children to Harry and Caroline – or Carrie – Bennett. Harry was a journeyman mason from the Devon village of Chagford, and this is where the Bennett family were raised.

When he finished his education, Ernest found work as a general labourer, and it this work that likely took him across the border to Somerset. He found work as a platelayer for the Great Western Railway in Taunton, and settled in Rowbarton, to the north west of the town.

On 28th September 1912, Ernest married Gertrude Alice Bennett in her local parish church, St George’s in Ruishton. A few months later, the couple had a son, Frederick, and almost exactly two years later, a daughter, Gladys, was born.

By this point, war was raging across Europe, and in July 1915, Ernest received the notice to enlist. Assigned to the Royal Engineers, he was attached to the 53rd Railway Company, probably to make use of his civilian trade. By the end of 1915, Ernest found himself in Egypt, and remained there for the rest of the war.

In July 1918, the now Lance Corporal Bennett was posted to the Railway Operating Division, but continued his service in North Africa. On 8th March 1919, he sailed from Port Said, heading back to Britain to be demobbed.

Returning to Somerset, Ernest fell ill, contracting pneumonia, probably on the journey home. He was admitted to the Taunton Military Hospital, but passed away from the condition just ten days after reaching England’s shores, on 1st April 1919. He was just 28 years of age.

The body of Ernest Harry Bennett was laid to rest in the graveyard extension to St George’s Church in Ruishton, not far from where his widow and children lived.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorset, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire, Wiltshire Regiment

Private Henry Poole

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Private Henry Poole

Henry George Poole was born in the summer of 1892 in Creech St Michael, Somerset. The older of two children, his parents were carpenter Benedict Poole, and his wife, Louisa.

When he finished his schooling, Henry was apprenticed to a carpenter, but also devoted time to the village’s Friendly Society.

With war on the horizon, Henry was drawn to play his part and serve his country. He enlisted early in the conflict and, while full details of his military career are lost to time, documents confirm that he was assigned to the 8th (Reserve) Battalion of the Wiltshire Regiment.

It is unclear whether Private Poole served any time overseas but his battalion moved between Trowbridge in Wiltshire, to Weymouth and Wareham in Dorset. Indeed, by the end of 1915, Henry was based at Bovington Camp, to the west of Wareham. He was here when he fell ill, and when, on 28th November 1915, he passed away from an undisclosed condition in the camp hospital. He was just 23 years of age.

Henry George Poole was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Michael’s Church in the village of his birth.

A local newspaper reported on Henry’s funeral, but the article underlines how facts were gotten wrong then, as they are sometimes now. The Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser reported that Henry was 22, instead of 23, that he had ‘sisters’, when he only had one, and gave his father’s name as Benjamin, not Benedict.

Commonwealth War Graves, County Kildare, Great War, history, illness, Ireland, Northumberland, photography, Private, Shropshire Yeomanry, Somerset, story, war

Private Arthur Devenish

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Private Arthur Devenish

Arthur John Walderow Devenish was born in the spring of 1900, and was the oldest of ten children. His parents, John and Ada Devenish, were both born in Maiden Newton, Dorset, and this is where Arthur and his younger sibling Albert were born. By 1905, however, plumber and glazier John had moved the family thirty miles north-west, across the Somerset border to the village of Thurlbear.

There is little concrete information about young Arthur’s life. When war broke out, he was too young to enlist, but had definitely joined up by the spring of 1918, presumably as soon as he came of age. Private Devenish was assigned to the 2nd/1st Battalion of the Shropshire Yeomanry. The troop remained on home soil, and, by the time Arthur enlisted, was a cyclist unit, based in Northumberland.

Early in 1918, Private Devenish’s battalion moved to County Kildare, Southern Ireland. He was billeted in barracks in Curragh Camp, and remained there for the rest of the conflict. Tightly packed accommodation was a breeding ground for a range of illnesses and, by November 1918, Arthur had contracted pneumonia. He was admitted to the camp hospital for treatment, but the condition was to get the better of him, and he passed away there on 1st December 1918, aged just 18 years of age.

The body of Arthur John Walderow Devenish was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Michael’s Church, in Orchard Portman, not far from where the family lived in neighbouring Thurlbear.

Commonwealth War Graves, Dorsetshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, photography, Private, Somerset, Somerset Light Infantry, story, war

Private Frank Hodge

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Private Frank Hodge

Frank Hodge was born in the village of Orchard Portman, to the south of Taunton, Somerset in 1888. One of nine children, his parents were farm workers John and Sarah Hodge. When Frank finished his schooling, he first worked with horses, then became a herdsman on the farm.

By the time war broke out, only the British Army Medal Roll Index Card remains to confirm how Frank he served his King and Country. The document shows that he enlisted in the Somerset Light Infantry, but subsequently made the move to the Dorsetshire Regiment – the Commonwealth War Graves Commission gives his troop as the 2nd Battalion.

While it is unclear in which regiment he was serving at the time, Private Hodge was sent to France on 22nd June 1915. He served for four years, and appears to have been demobbed in May 1919. Private Hodge’s military career between these dates is lost to time.

When he left the army, Frank returned home. His health appears to have suffered, however, and he seems to have been on a downward decline. He passed away from ‘sickness’ on 15th November 1919: he was 31 years of age.

Frank Hodge was laid to rest in the peaceful churchyard of St Michael’s, in his home village of Orchard Portman.

Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, illness, Labour Corps, photography, Private, Royal Berkshire Regiment, Somerset, story, war, Wiltshire Regiment

Private Herbert Lee

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Private Herbert Lee

Herbert Jack Lee was born in the autumn of 1893 and was one of twelve children. His parents were Devon-born John Lee and his wife, Emily, who came from Churchstanton, Somerset, and it was here that the young family were raised. John was a bootmaker-turned-innkeeper, and the Lees lived in the village’s Rising Sun Inn.

By the time of the 1911 census, John had returned to boot-making once more. Herbert, meanwhile, had found work as a domestic gardener, bringing in a second wage to a household that included his parents and two younger siblings.

When war came to Europe, Herbert – who was better known by his middle name – stepped up to serve his King and Country. Little of his service documentation remains, but a contemporary newspaper report outlined his time in the army:

[Jack] joined the service in January, 1916, and was posted to the Wilts Regiment. He was subsequently transferred to the Royal Berks, and with them proceeded to France, returning to England suffering from trench feet at Easter, 1917. He was then posted to the Devon Regiment, and put into an Agricultural Company, and employed at Offwell, near Honiton.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 12th March 1919

Private Lee’s health had suffered badly during the winter of 1916/17 and, in the spring of 1919, he came down with a severe bout of influenza. His body was too weakened to recover, and he passed away on 4th March 1919, aged just 25 years old.

Herbert Jack Lee was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Paul’s Church, in his home village of Churchstanton.

Interestingly, in the same edition of the Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser that had reported on Herbert’s funeral, was a report on the state of the Lee’s former home, the Rising Sun Inn.

…some of the rooms were very damp through water having come in… [and] was not fit to live in. The house had been very well conducted by the present tenant [Frank Gill], but… trade… had gone down by four-fifths since the war..

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 12th March 1919

Frank Gill was applying to the Licensing Board to avoid paying taxes for the year, given the drop in clientele and the number of other public houses in the area to support any customers. His case was referred on.

Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Egypt, Great War, history, illness, London, Major, Middlesex, Nottinghamshire, photography, Royal Army Service Corps, Somerset, story, war

Major Montgomerie Boyle

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Major Montgomerie Boyle

Montgomerie Boyle was born on 20th March 1859 in Hendon, London. The youngest of three children, his parents were John and Jane Boyle. John was a barrister, and the family lived in some comfort – the 1861 census found them living in a house in Harrow, Middlesex, with four live-in servants and a groom.

[Montgomerie] joined the South Notts Yeomanry 22 years ago. Subsequently he obtained an appointment at Weston-super-Mare, under the Somerset Territorial Force Association, and did much useful work in co-ordinating the Army Service Corps in the county.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 2nd April 1919

In the spring of 1891, Montgomerie married Constance Smith. She was a banker’s daughter from Nottingham, and the couple tied the knot in Basford, now a suburb of the larger city. They went on to have a daughter, Marion, who was born the following year.

By the 1901 census, the young family had moved to Timsbury, Somerset. Montgomerie was recorded as living on his own means, and the family had a retinue of servants to support them. A decade later, they had moved into the manor house in Staple Fitzpaine, Somerset. Montgomerie was now listed as a Captain in the Army Service Corps.

Storm clouds were gathering over the continent and, when war broke out, Captain Boyle was called back into active service.

…he was stationed with his Regiment on the East Coast for twelve months, and then went to France, where he remained for six months. He was re-called for service with the Mechanical Transport Section of the Army Service Corps in German East Africa, contracted malaria at the end of fifteen months and was invalided home. On his recovery he was despatched to the Egyptian front, and was with the British troops in Jerusalem. He became ill while there, and, on going down to the base at Cairo, was for a month in the Citadel Hospital, where he was treated for a malignant disease. By slow stages, first in a hospital ship, then in a Red Cross train through France, he was conveyed to [Le] Havre. Here, curiously enough, the doctor in charge of the hospital ship upon which he was placed happened to be… an old friend and medical attendant. Major Boyle landed at Southampton, and went immediately to the 3rd London General Hospital at Wandsworth [Surrey], where he was examined by an eminent specialist. His condition was serious but on Monday week last he arrived at his old home, where, despite the devoted care of his wife and daughter, he passed away quietly.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 2nd April 1919

Major Montgomerie Boyle passed away on 27th March 1919, a week after his sixtieth birthday. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St Peter’s Church, on the outskirts of the grounds of the manor house the Boyles had made their home ten years before.

When Constance died ten years later, at the age of 70 years old, she was laid to rest in the family plot, reunited with her late husband once more.

Major Montgomerie Boyle
(from findagrave.com)
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, Kings Royal Rifle Corps, Lieutenant, Middlesex, photography, Somerset, story, war

Lieutenant Vincent Mellor

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Lieutenant Vincent Mellor

Vincent Charles Serocold Mellor was born in Chelsea, Middlesex, in the spring of 1897. The younger of two children, his parents were Chief Solicitor to the Treasury – and later Sir – John Paget Mellor and his Australian-born wife, Mabel. The 1901 census recorded the family living on Chelsea Embankment, with four servants: a cook, a nurse and two housemaids.

For someone with a relatively high standing in Edwardian England, there is surprisingly little documentation relating to Vincent – who was known as Vin. His name does not appear in the 1911 census, although nor does his family.

At some point, Vincent was given a commission in the King’s Royal Rifle Corps, but his service records are lost to time, which makes it impossible to find any specific information about his military career. Lieutenant Mellor’s headstone confirms that he served in Palestine, and that he fell ill while in the Middle East.

Vincent returned to Britain for treatment, and was admitted to the Red Cross Hospital for Officers in Portland Place, London. Whatever his condition, he was to succumb to it: he passed away on 21st March 1919, aged just 20 years of age.

Vincent Charles Serocold Mellor was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the peaceful graveyard of St Paul’s Church in Churchstanton, close to the family’s country home, and the same church in which he had been baptised two decades before.

Lieutenant Vincent Mellor
(from findagrave.com)
Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Prince of Wales Leinster Regiment, Private, Somerset, story, war

Private Edward Paul

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Private Edward Paul

Edward James Paul was born in Curry Mallet, Somerset, early in 1888, one of nine children to William and Eliza Paul. William was a stone mason, but Edward and his brothers went into agricultural labouring when they finished their schooling. Eliza and Edward’s sisters found employment making and finishing clothes.

Little further information about Edward’s early life is available but when war broke out, he stepped up and volunteered. Full details about his military service are no longer evident, but he enlisted early in 1915, joining the Prince of Wales’ Leinster Regiment.

Assigned to the 6th Battalion, Private Paul’s Medal Roll Card confirms that he was sent overseas on 9th July 1915, destined for the Dardanelles, and Gallipoli.

How long Private Paul served in the Balkans for is unclear, but he was back on British shores by early in 1916, and had been admitted to a hospital in Birmingham, having fallen ill. Again, details are sketchy, but he was to succumb to the condition on 15th February, at the age of 27 or 28.

Edward James Paul’s body was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the quiet graveyard of St James’ Church, in his home village, Curry Mallet.

Canada, Canadian Infantry, Commonwealth War Graves, Driver, Great War, history, illness, India, Kent, photography, Royal Field Artillery, Sergeant, Somerset, story, war

Serjeant Robert Priddle

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Serjeant Robert Priddle

Zebulon Priddle was born in the autumn of 1876 in Curry Mallet, Somerset. One of ten children, who included Meliam, Cornelius, Absalom, Ebenezer, Lancelot and Jabez, his parents were Robert and Mary Priddle.

Robert was a farm labourer, and his son followed suit at first, but a career away from home beckoned and, on 16th January 1894, he enlisted in the Royal Artillery. Aged just 18 years and 2 months, Zebulon had volunteered in the Somerset Light Infantry, a militia group at that point. His service records confirm that he was 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall and weighed 122lbs (55.3kg).

Driver Priddle was based on home soil for eighteen months before his wish for a life of adventure was realised. On 16th September 1894, his battalion set sail for India, and he was to remain there for more than six years. Zebulon returned to Britain in February 1902, where he was placed on reserve status. He completed his twelve years’ service in January 1906, and stepped down from the army.

Britain’s shores could not contain Zebulon, however, and at some point he emigrated to Canada. Little information of his life in North America is available, other than that the move seemed to have provided him with an opportunity to change his name, as in documents from this point on he is known as Robert Priddle.

The next record for Robert is that of his re-enlistment when war broke out. He was living in Winnipeg by this point, and, as he gives his mother, Mary, as his next-of-kin, it seems that he did not marry or have children.

Robert joined up again on 16th December 1914, and was attached to the 9th Battalion of the Canadian Infantry. Promoted to the rank of Sergeant, he arrived back in England in March the following year. His time there was to be brief, however, and within a matter of weeks, Robert arrived on the Western Front.

Over the next six months, Sergeant Priddle’s health suffered significantly, and he had several periods in hospital. Initially suffering from bronchitis, in July 1915 he was medically evacuated to Britain with cardiac angina. He remained in England and, when rheumatism set in in October, he was transferred to reserve status.

Sadly, this was not to be the last time Sergeant Priddle’s health suffered: he was admitted to hospital in Shorncliffe, Kent, with a ruptured aortic aneurysm. He succumbed quickly, passing away on 25th January 1916, at the age of 39 years old.

The body of Robert Priddle was brought back to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest under his assumed name, in the peaceful graveyard of St James’ Church in his home village of Curry Mallet.