Tag Archives: Royal Air Force

accident, Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Flight Lieutenant, Great War, history, photography, Royal Air Force, Royal Field Artillery, Royal Navy, Second Lieutenant, Somerset, South Lancashire Regiment, story, war

Flight Lieutenant Lewis Morgan

Leave a comment
Flight Lieutenant Lewis Morgan

Lewis Morgan was born on 22nd May 1892 in Plymouth, Devon. He was one of six children to former army officer and rector Lewis Harold Gilbert Morgan and his wife, Mary.

Growing up in Plymouth, it seems inevitable that the sea life would take hold in Lewis Jr. He first took up a post in the Merchant Navy, rising to Second Mate in December 1911.

By this point, however, he had set his sights on something more formal and soon enlisted in the Royal Navy. He served on a number of vessels over the years, and was re-engaged when war broke out. By the summer of 1915, he transferred to the Royal Naval Air Service, earning his wings on 5th August that year.

The now Flight Lieutenant Morgan’s service grew as the war continued. The life of air crew at this point in the era of flight was notoriously dangerous, and Lewis was to meet his own fate. On 11th May 1917, he was flying with Probationer Flight Officer Randolph Seed around Edmonton, Middlesex, when an accident occurred. The local newspaper reported on the incident and the subsequent inquest:

Flight-Lieutenant Mitchell gave a graphic account of the accident. He said that about eight o’clock in the evening he was flying at a height of 1,000 feet, and the machine containing the deceased officers was just ahead, but 500 feet higher. The flying conditions were good, and at the time both machines were going steadily. Glancing upwards he notices that the other machine suddenly appeared to collapse, the front extension of the main plane crumpling up. The machine nose-dived, and a black object fell out of it. The machine continued its descent and fell into the Edmonton Sewage Farm… The machine was so entirely broken up that it was impossible to theorise upon the cause of the accident. Morgan was said to have fallen on a concrete path. The deaths were instantaneous.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 23rd May 1917

Lewis Morgan was just 24 years old, and days away from his 25th birthday. His body was brought back to Somerset, and laid to rest in the graveyard of Holy Cross Church in Sampford Arundel. By this point, his parents were living in the nearby Woolcombe House, so their son was, in a way, brought home.

The newspaper article went on to report that Flight Lieutenant Morgan was the third and last son to Lewis and Mary.

Francis Morgan – five years Lewis’ senior – enlisted in the Royal Field Artillery when war broke out. He rose to the rank of Captain, and was mentioned in Despatches for his actions. He was killed in the Dardanelles – potentially at Gallipoli – on 2nd May 1915, at the age of 28 years old.

Walter Morgan was a year younger than Lewis. He also played his part in the First World War, joining the South Lancashire Regiment, and rising to the rank of Second Lieutenant. Walter was also sent to fight in Gallipoli, and this is where he also lost his life. He was killed just three months after Francis, on 9th August 1915. He was just 22 years of age.

The loss of three sons in two years was to take a further toll on the Morgan family. Mary had suffered from poor health for a while, and the deaths of Francis, Walter and Lewis was to prove too much. She passed away at home on 15th July 1917, aged just 56 years old.

Flight Lieutenant Lewis Morgan
accident, Chaplain, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Dorset, Great War, history, London, photography, Royal Army Chaplain's Department, Somerset, story, war

Reverend George Sweet

Leave a comment
Reverend George Sweet

George Charles Walrond Sweet was born on 4th December 1889, the oldest of three children to Reverend Charles Sweet and his wife Maud. A Church of England vicar, Charles moved around with his work, and, when George was born, he was based in Winterborne Kingston in Devon.

George was sent away to school, and, by the time of the 1901 census, Charles and the family had moved to Milton Lilbourne in Wiltshire, to tend the local flock.

After school, George studied at Oxford, then followed in his father’s footsteps by taking holy orders, and was soon appointed rector of Symondsbury, Dorset.

When war broke out, his calling was to serve in the Royal Army Chaplain’s Department. Details of his time during the conflict are unclear, although by the spring of 1919, he was attached to the headquarters of the Army of the Rhine.

It was here that he met Phyllis Squire Hickson, who was serving as a Nurse in the Queen Mary’s Auxiliary Army Corps. The couple fell in love and, in June 1919 they returned to England to marry. The wedding occurred on 6th August 1919, and the newlyweds set off on honeymoon the following day.

On his honeymoon tour, the Revd. George C Walrond Sweet… was drowned on Thursday evening in the Cherwell at Oxford, in the presence of his wife.

Mr and Mrs Sweet engaged a punt at Tims’s boathouse and went for a trip on the river. On returning about seven o’clock, when within 300 yards of the boathouse, the punt pole was embedded in the mud and, in attempting to dislodge it the pole broke.

Mr Sweet fell on the side of the boat and then over-balanced into the river. His wife tried to reach him, but without success, and then jumped into a second punt and from that into another boat, but failed to reach him, and he disappeared. The body was not recovered until a quarter of an hour had elapsed, and life was then extinct.

Mr Sweet, who was an MA of Keble College, was only married on Wednesday at St James’s Church, West Hampstead…

[Phyllis’ father] Mr William Hickson… said his daughter became engaged to Mr Sweet in France. He did not meet him until last Tuesday. They came to England to be married. Mr Sweet met with a bicycle accident some years ago and [he] understood from his daughter that her husband was unable to swim or take any active exercise, but while he had been in France his health had much improved.

It was stated [at the inquest] that Mr and Mrs Sweet had been married only one day when the accident occurred and Dr Brooks, a university coroner, said that the tragedy was one of the saddest that had ever come under his notice.

Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser: Wednesday 13th August 1919

The inquest confirmed that the punt pole had broken about 2.5ft (0.76m) from the top. When George was dragged from the river, artificial respiration was carried out for around 50 minutes, but proved unsuccessful. The inquest returned a verdict of accidental death. George was just 29 years of age.

Reverend George Charles Walrond Sweet’s body was brought to Somerset for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of Holy Cross Church in Sampford Arundel, more than likely because he or his father had been vicars there.

This was the second tragedy to befall the Sweet family. George’s younger brother, Leonard, had been schooled in Sherborne, then at the Military College in Sandhurst. He joined the 1st Battalion of the Hampshire Regiment as Second Lieutenant on 5th February 1913, and was promoted to full Lieutenant in September 1914, and Captain in October 1915.

Captain Sweet was then attached to the 29th Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps, and gained his wings at the British Flying School in Le Crotoy, France, in August 1915. On 22nd June 1916, he was on patrol duty over the British lines, when he was involved in a skirmish, and his plane crashed, killing him instantly. He was just 23 years of age.

Captain Leonard Sweet was laid to rest at the Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery in Poperinge, near Ypres.

Captain Leonard Sweet
(from findagrave.com)

Phyllis Sweet never remarried. By the time of the 1939 England and Wales Register, she was living in Bridport, Dorset, and working as a political organiser and speaker. She passed away in August 1944 in Cannock, Staffordshire, at the age of 63 years old.

Commonwealth War Graves, Corporal, Great War, history, illness, Kent, Lincolnshire, Lincolnshire Regiment, photography, Private, Royal Air Force, story, war

Corporal Herbert Lyon

Leave a comment
Corporal Herbert Lyon

Herbert Woodley Lyon was born in Lincoln early in 1897, one of five children to Walter and Emma Lyon. Walter was a cashier for an engineering company, and the family grew up in some comfort, employing a housekeeper, sick nurse and servant by the time of the 1911 census.

When he finished school, Herbert found work as a draper’s assistant, but with war closing in things were to change. Initially joining the Lincolnshire Regiment, by February 1918, he had transferred across to the Royal Flying Corps, moving to the Royal Air Force when it was founded that April.

Corporal Lyon was based with 112 Squadron at RAF Throwley, just to the south of Faversham, Kent. Details of his service are scarce, but it seems that he trained and qualified as a fitter, helping with the maintenance of the aircraft. His service records show that he stood 5ft (1.52m) tall.

Herbert’s time in the Royal Air Force was limited. His records show that he died of natural causes on 1st November 1918. He was just 21 years of age.

Corporal Herbert Woodley Lyon’s family had relocated to Wells in Somerset by this point. He was laid to rest in Faversham Borough Cemetery, not far from the airfield at which he had been based.

accident, Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, India, Ireland, Kent, Lieutenant, photography, Prince of Wales Leinster Regiment, story, war

Captain Roden Chatterton

Leave a comment
Captain Roden Chatterton

Roden Latham Chatterton was born on 13th July 1895, in Budin, Bengal, India. He was the only child to George and Ella Chatterton. George was a Lieutenant Colonel in the army, and had married Ella in India, where he was based.

The family had returned to England by the time of the 1911 census, but then moved permanently to Ireland. When war broke out, Roden joined up, enlisting in the 1st Battalion of the Leinster Regiment with the rank of Lieutenant. Full details of Roden’s military service are not available, but he arrived in France in January 1915 and, stayed there for the best part of two years.

In December 1917, the now Captain Chatterton transferred to the Royal Flying Corps. Based in Kent, he learnt to fly, and was close to gaining his wings, when an accident befell him in March 1918.

About 5:30pm on March 27th, [Captain Chatterton] was about 1.500 feet up, was trying to land near an aerodrome, and the wind was very rough. He shut off the engine and tried a left hand turn when the machine stalled and came down in a spin nose down and crashed to the ground. Several [people] went to his assistance. He was in great pain and made no remarks. He had been strapped in, but the belt had broken. The wind was from the south south-west. He came own into the wind and was trying to turn head into it when the machine got into a spin. It was not an ideal day for flying. Another machine… was flying with the deceased, and that landed all right. There was no collision in the air. When [he] turned he had not got the nose down far enough to keep up the engine speed and, in the witness’ opinion it was through an error of judgment on his part that the machine crashed. Had there been more space he would have got out of the spin. There was nothing wrong with the machine, but it was a type that was very difficult to handle in rough weather.

Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald: Saturday 6th April 1918

Captain Chatterton was taken to the Lees Court Military Hospital south of Faversham for treatment, but died of his injuries on 29th March 1918. He was 22 years of age.

Roden Latham Chatterton was laid to rest in a quiet corner of the Borough Cemetery in Faversham.

accident, Commonwealth War Graves, Flight Officer, Great War, history, Kent, Lincolnshire, photography, Royal Air Force, story, war

Flight Officer Walter Stevens

Leave a comment
Flight Officer Walter Stevens

Walter James Stevens was born on 29th November 1899, the oldest of three children to James and Elizabeth. James was a labourer in the munitions factory in Faversham, Kent, and this is where Walter and his siblings were born and raised.

Initially attending the council schools, Walter won a scholarship to Wreight’s Grammar School, before gaining work as a clerk at the Shepherd Neame brewery in the town.

From the age of 11, Walter was also an active member of the local United Methodist Church. He was a keen organist, taught at the Sunday School, and played a key role in the Wesley Guild. He was also a sometime member of the St John’s Ambulance, undertaking duties at The Mount Hospital in the town.

When was broke out, Walter was keen to play his part. He enlisted in the Royal Naval Air Service, and was sent for training at their air base in Cranwell, Lincolnshire. While on a flight on 11th March 1918, Flight Officer Stevens’ aircraft crashed, and he was killed instantly. He was just 18 years of age.

Walter James Stevens’ body was brought back to Kent: he was laid to rest in the Faversham Borough Cemetery, not fat from his family home. At the funeral, Walter’s senior officers reported the promise he had shown, and that he was close to passing his probationary exams. Two weeks after his burial, a memorial service to him was given at the church to which he had dedicated so much of his young life.

Air Mechanic, Commonwealth War Graves, Cornwall, Great War, history, illness, Kent, photography, Private, Royal Air Force, story, war

Private George Knight

Leave a comment
Private George Knight

George Albert Knight was born in Dover, Kent, on 27th September 1888, the second of seven children to Thomas and Frances Knight. Thomas was a railway porter from Hampshire, and the family lived in a small terraced house a few minutes’ walk from his workplace, Dover Priory Station.

By the turn of the century, the family had moved to Faversham: Thomas was working a signalman, and two of George’s brothers also worked for the railway – one as a clerk, the other as a number taker. George, meanwhile, was working as a butcher.

In the summer of 1916, George married Alice Smith, who was working as a domestic servant for an government inspector in Willesborough, Kent. George was still working as a butcher at this point, and continued to do so up until the spring of 1918, when he was eventually called up.

Private Knight enlisted in March 1918, joining the Royal Naval Air Service shortly before it merged with the Royal Flying Corps to become the fledgling Royal Air Force. He was based in Cornwall, and his role included mechanic work.

On the evening of 21st September 1918, George collapsed and, despite being rushed to hospital in Truro, he passed away the following morning. It appears that he had not been unwell before, and his death came as a shock. He was just short of his 30th birthday.

George Albert Knight was brought back to Kent for burial. He was laid to rest in Faversham Borough Cemetery, not far from where his widow and family were living.

Air Mechanic, Buckinghamshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Great War, history, illness, photography, Royal Air Force, Somerset, story, war

Air Mechanic 3rd Class Gilbert Jennings

Leave a comment
Air Mechanic 3rd Class Gilbert Jennings

Gilbert William Jennings was born on 4th January 1901, and was the third of four children to William and Lily Jennings. Both were born in Chard, Somerset, and this is where they raised their young family. William was a foreman in one of the town’s lace factories and when he finished school Gilbert followed his father into the industry.

War broke out across Europe in 1914 and, while Gilbert was too young to enlist at the start of the conflict, it is evident that he wanted to play his part as soon as he was able to.

On 6th September 1918 he enlisted in the Royal Air Force: his experience with factory machinery led him to the role of Air Mechanic 3rd Class. His service records confirmed that he was 5ft 7ins (1.70m) tall, had brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion.

Air Mechanic Jennings was sent to Buckinghamshire for training, but his time there was to be tragically short. Within a matter of weeks he was admitted to the Central Military Hospital in Aylesbury with pneumonia. The condition was to prove too much for his body: he passed away on 28th October 1918. He had been in the Royal Air Force for just 52 days and was a victim of his desire to get involved in the war before it was too late to do so. He was 17 years of age.

Gilbert William Jennings’ body was brought back to Somerset for burial: he was laid to rest in the cemetery of his home town, Chard.

accident, Captain, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Great War, history, illness, Kent, Lieutenant, London, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, photography, Royal Air Force, Second Lieutenant, story, war

Captain William Rowell

Leave a comment
Captain William Rowell

William Cecil Rowell was born on 29th November 1892 in Wolborough, Newton Abbot, Devon. He was the youngest of three children to architectural surveyor Spencer Rowell and his wife, Annie.

The 1911 census recorded that William had left the family home to study to be a civil servant, and was boarding with a family in Fulham, London. His studies complete, he was driven by a need to serve his country and, on 22nd January 1913, aged just 20 years old, he enlisted in the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment.

Full details of his service are not available, but it is clear that he was committed to his purpose. He was promoted to Second Lieutenant soon after enlisting, rose to full Lieutenant in November 1914, and Captain a year later. It’s not possible to pinpoint where he served, he was wounded twice and, after his second recovery, he made a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps (later moving to the new Royal Air Force when it was founded in 1918).

Captain Rowell was based at Bekesbourne Airfield in Kent. He qualified as a pilot with 50 Squadron in October 1918, but was injured when, on the 12th November, his Sopwith Camel collided with the hanger. William was admitted to the Military Hospital in nearby Canterbury, but the injuries to his leg proved too severe for it to be saved, and he underwent an amputation in January 1919.

Tragically, while the initial prognosis was good, within a few weeks sepsis set in; Captain Rowell passed away on 22nd May 1919, aged just 26 years old.

William Cecil Rowell’s body was brought back to Devon for burial. He was laid to rest in the family plot in the graveyard of St Mary’s Church in Wolborough.

accident, Australia, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Devonshire Regiment, Great War, history, injury, Lieutenant, photography, Royal Air Force, story, war

Lieutenant Frederick Liardet

Leave a comment
Lieutenant Frederick Liardet

Frederick Charles Evelyn Liardet was born in Brighton, now a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, in 1888, and the eldest son of Wilbraham and Eleanor Liardet.

There is little further information about Frederick’s early life, but, when war broke out, he wanted to play his part for King and Country, and enlisted in the Devonshire Regiment.

He had an adventurous career… Having been twice wounded while on active service in France, he was appointed an instructor in the Balloon Section of the Royal Flying Corps.

Exeter and Plymouth Gazette: Tuesday 18th December 1917

On 23rd October 1915, Frederick married Kathleen Norah Liardet in Highweek, Newton Abbot, Devon. She was the daughter of a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Royal Marine Light Infantry, and may have been a cousin (while their surname is unusual enough for there to be a connection, I have been unable to identify a specific connection). The couple went on to have a daughter, Barbara, who was born in 1917.

In 1916, while on a night flight with the Royal Flying Corps, the now Lieutenant Liardet was involved in an accident and badly injured. He returned to England to recover, he and Kathleen living with her family. While his health initially improved, he relapsed and passed away on 13th December 1917, aged just 29 years old.

Frederick Charles Evelyn Liardet was laid to rest in the graveyard of All Saints Church in his adopted home of Highweek, Devon.

accident, Berkshire, Cheshire, Commonwealth War Graves, Devon, Flight Cadet, Gloucestershire, Great War, history, Lieutenant, London, photography, Royal Air Force, story, war

Lieutenant Alan Lloyd

Leave a comment
Lieutenant Alan Lloyd

Alan Edward Lloyd was born in around 1899, the second of five children – all boys – to William and Edith Lloyd. Both of his parents were Welsh, and his older brother was born in Cardiff. Railway clerk William moved around the country with work, however, and Alan was born in Lydney, Gloucestershire, his younger brother in Paddington, London, and his two youngest siblings were born in Windsor, Berkshire.

There is little information about Alan’s early life; what is clear is that, by the autumn of 1918, he had been in the army, reaching the rank of Lieutenant. He transferred across to the newly formed Royal Air Force and, in December that year was training as a Flight Cadet at Shotwick Airfield near Chester.

On the 4th December, Alan was flying his Sopwith Camel, when he got into a flat spin; the aircraft crashed and Alan was killed. He was just 19 years old.

Alan Edward Lloyd was brought to Devon – where his family were now living – for burial. He was laid to rest in the graveyard of All Saints Church in Highweek, near Newton Abbot.

Lieutenant Alan Lloyd
(from ancestry.co.uk)