Westminster School and the First World War

John Oswald Heath

John Oswald Heath was the only son of John Edgar Heath, of Lee, Kent, and his wife Nora Mary, daughter of Oswald Lofthouse, of Warrington, Lancashire. He was born on 24^th May 1895.

He was admitted to Westminster at the end of September 1910, and joined Ashburnham house. Since he had arrived at the school at the slightly older age of 15, he joined the Transitus — a transitional year for pupils who were new to the school. After leaving the school in July 1912, he entered the pottery and glass manufacturing business for a short time before joining the Honourable Artillery Company in 1913.

In September 1914, the HAC moved from Finsbury, London to Belhus Park, Essex, and on the 18^th of that month John Heath went out with them to the western front. They landed two days later at Saint-Nazaire and were placed onto lines of communication. He served with them for nine months, which meant that he would have been involved in the First Battle of Ypres.

After those first nine months, he returned to Britain to take a commission as 2^nd Lieutenant with the 11^th (Service) Battalion, the Queen’s Own (Royal West Kent) Regiment on 28^th June 1915. He was promoted to Lieutenant the following February and returned to the western front as the Battalion Bombing Officer on May Day 1916.

He was killed in action, at the age of 21, during the attempt to capture Le Sars during the Battle of Le Transloy on the 7^th Oct. 1916. He is commemorated at Thiepval Memorial (Pier and Face 11 C).

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Ashburnham, Battle of Le Transloy, Honourable Artillery Company, Queen's Own (Royal West Kent) Regiment, Thiepval Memorial, Ypres | Leave a comment

John Hampson Dodgshon

John started at Westminster in Homeboarders’ House, but moved to Rigaud’s during his time at the school, leaving in 1908. He was a member of the Officer Training Corps whilst at school.

We do not know what he did immediately after leaving school, but in July 1913 he joined the Honourable Artillery Company, which is one of the oldest military organisations in the world. He served in Flanders and France from 18^th September 1914, but was invalided home in February 1915. Once he had recovered he was appointed 2^nd Lieutenant in the Surrey Yeomanry and he went out to serve in Egypt in 4^th October 1915. He then served in the Dardanelles for six months as an Assistant Military Landing Officer.

On his return to England John declined a post as Assistant Equipment Officer in the Royal Flying Corps, as he felt he ought to take a more active part in the war. He obtained his ‘wings’ in August, 1916 and became an instructor at the Royal Central Flying School in Upavon, Pewsey, Wiltshire. He was killed on 1^st October when flying from Bournemouth Aerodrome, acting as an observer. The aeroplane’s elevator control disconnected causing it to crash near Eastbourne.

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Bournemouth Aerodrome, Eastbourne, Riguad's, Royal Central Flying School, Royal Flying Corps, Upavon | Leave a comment

William Claudius Casson Ash

William Ash began Westminster School in Dale’s boarding house in 1883, before migrating up to Rigaud’s. He was a keen cricketer, playing for the school in the Charterhouse match. Cricket continued to be an important activity in his life after leaving the school, in 1888, for the army. In addition to taking part in military cricket, he also played for Old Westminsters, Free Foresters, the Butterflies and Berkshire and was a member of the Marylebone Cricket Club from 1896. He married Edith Learoyd, the second daughter of Edward Wright Barnett, in 1894.

His first commission in the army was as a 2^nd Lieutenant in the The Duke of Cambridge’s Own (The Middlesex Regt.), in 1892. He was made a Lieutenant in 1895 and a Captain in 1900. He served in the South African War in 1902 and continued to advance through the army ranks after the conflict had finished. When the First World War broke out he had achieved the rank of Major and was serving in Malta. Ash went to the western front in November 1914 and was wounded at Loos on 25^th September 1915 and invalided home. He returned to the front on 3^rd May 1916 to command a Football Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment.

At 11pm on the night of the 14th September 1916 his Battalion moved forward from the village of Montauban to assembly trenches in Carlton and Savoy Trenches for an attack on the village of Flers the following day. By 1am on the 15th they were in position and at 6.20am the leading units went into the assault, led by tanks which were being used for the first time in the history of warfare. The Middlesex men moved off at 10am; as they went forward they had to shelter from enemy shelling on a number of occasions. At midday they were ordered to take up positions at Scimitar Trench and they again moved forward under fire, with the battalion split either side of the Flers Road. By this time Flers itself had been taken but the situation in the northern part of the village was obscure. The battalion resumed the attack and at 5pm they lost their Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel William Claudius Casson Ash, who fell mortally wounded, having led the attack. He died at Etaples on 29^th September from his injuries.

His widow, Edith, placed an In Memoriam notice in The Times every year until her death, in her 80s, in 1955. Each year she included a different paragraph, the following is from 1926:

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Cricket, Dale's House, Edith Learoyd Ash, Etaples, Flers, Malta, Middlesex Regiment, Rigaud's, The Somme, The Times | 4 Comments

Horace Montague Gundry

Horace Gundry was a member of Homeboarders house from September 1898 until July 1901. He played cricket for his house. Upon leaving the school he entered an architect’s office, but by 1908 he had decided to emigrate to Canada. During the early-twentieth century, emigration from Britain reached unprecedented levels, with approximately 3.15 million people leaving between 1903 and 1913. The most popular destination during these years was Canada, drawing almost half of Britain’s emigrants.

Early in 1915 Gundry enlisted as a Private in the 7^th Canadian Infantry Battalion (British Columbia Regiment). The Regiment travelled first to England and then on to France on 10^th Feburary 1915 becoming incorporated into the 1^st Canadian Division. Gundry probably lost his life in the Battle of Thiepval, one of the Battles of the Somme. The 7^th Battalion losses were estimated at 250 men after the first day of fighting, on which Gundry was killed in action.

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged 7th Canadian Infantry Battalion, Battle of Thiepval, British Columbia Regiment, Canada, Homeboarders | Leave a comment

Edward Whinney

Edward Whinney was the sixth son of Frederick Whinney and Emma Morley. He was born in London on the 31^st August 1870 and was admitted to the school as a Homeboarder in September 1884. During his time at the school, he was a keen cricketer. Even after he left, he continued to represent the school in the Old Westminsters XI.

After leaving school in July 1887, Edward and became a member of the London Stock Exchange. On the 7^th October 1987, he married Maude Clementine Louise, who was the elder daughter of John Crow, of Hampstead.

He had already served in the army, and following the outbreak of war, he rejoined his old former regiment, becoming a Captain of the 2/7th Battalion (Territorial Force) Middlesex Regiment on the 23^rd October 1914. He was promoted to Major just over a month later, and was transferred to the 12th (Service) Battalion, Middlesex Regtiment. He served with them at Gibraltar and in Egypt, before going out to the western front in June 1916.

He was killed in the action at Thiepval on the 26^th Sept 1916, at the age of 46, leaving behind him his wife, three sons and a daughter.

19160923_Whinney,E — Maj. E. Whinney, during operations against the Senussi. ┬® IWM (Q 15706)

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Cricket, Homeboarders, London Stock Exchange, Maude Clementine Louise, Middlesex Regiment | Leave a comment

Leon de Barr Kelsey

Leon de Barr Kelsey was the only son of Richard and Annie Kelsey, of South Kensington. He attended Homeboarders’ House from April 1898 until July 1901.

Leon was knocked out in the first round of the 300 yards race at the Athletic Sports Competition in 1900. However, he did make it into the Cricket 3^rd XI, scoring 49 runs in one match.

After leaving the school Leon embarked on a career as an architect, studying for six more years before entering his father’s business as a bootmaker. Leon’s father died in 1911, aged only 54, and it must have been Leon’s responsibility to support his widowed mother and younger sister.

In April 1915 Leon entered the Inns of Court Officer Training Corps. He took a commission as 2^nd Lieutenant in the 23^rd Battalion of the London Regiment. He went out to the western front on 24^th September 1915.

He left all his money and belongings to his younger sister Lilian, who was not yet 30. Unusually, his body was brought back to England and he is buried in Highgate Cemetery, directly behind Karl Marx.

Troops from the London Regiment at the Somme, 6th September 1916

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Highgate Cemetery, Homeboarders, Inns of Court Officer Training Corps | Leave a comment

Victor Roundell George Biddulph

Victor Biddulph was the only son of George Tournay Biddulph and Lady Sarah Palmer, youngest daughter of Roundlell, 1^st Earl of Selborne. He was born on 24^th May 1897, after his parents had been married for over a decade. He shared his birthday with Queen Victoria, who insisted that the baby should be named after her. Victor was baptised the week following the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in Henry VIIth Chapel, Westminster Abbey.

Victor’s paternal uncle had been at the school in the 1850s, so it was natural that he should also attend Westminster. He joined Grant’s House as a half boarder from September 1911 until Easter 1914. He was probably planning on joining his father’s bank, or perhaps he intended to practice law. Either way, he joined the Inns of Court Officer Training Corps in 1915 and became a 2^nd Lieutenant the 5^th Battalion of the Rifle Brigade on 11^th August 1915. His parents were keen supporters of the Ham & Petersham Rifle Club so his choice of regiment is perhaps unsurprising.

The following year Biddulph was attached to the 8^th Battalion and went out to the western front on 12^th July 1916. He was killed in action on the Somme, near Flers aged just 19. His body was not found, but a gravestone was added at the foot of his mother’s grave — she had died in 1910.

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Grant's, Ham & Petersham Rifle Club, Queen Victoria, Rifle Brigade, The Somme, Westminster Abbey | Leave a comment

James Leslie Buckman

Jack Buckman was the only son of James and Mary Jane Buckman, of East Dulwich, Surrey. He was born on 11th November 1892, and was sent to Fairfield Preparatory School in Southwark. His paternal grandfather had been a farm labourer, and his maternal grandfather was a rate collector. His father had worked hard to obtain a position as Borough Treasurer of Bermondsey; Jack’s parents’ decision to send him to Westminster was testimony to their ambitions for their son.

By the time he arrived up Ashburnham in 1907, Jack was suffering from a health condition that prevented him from participating in athletics and other activities, including the OTC. However, upon leaving the school in 1910, secured a place to read Law at Wadham College, Oxford.

He passed his prelims in February 1911, and graduated in June 1914. He was admitted to Middle Temple but, on the outbreak of war, decided to join the Army. He was placed on a waiting list following an unconvincing medical examination, but was soon posted as 2nd Lieutenant with the 8th (Service) Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment, which was training near Salisbury Plain. He was awarded a first class certificate in musketry, and his leadership potential was judged to be such that he was sent on a special staff course at Camberley.

He was transferred to the 12th Bermondsey Battalion, East Surrey Regiment in 1915 as a temporary Lieutenant, and was promoted to Captain in October 1915. He was given responsibility for 200 men. He went out went out to the western front on 1st May 1916, and on the 3rd of May, the editor of the Elizabethan received the following message:

Jack Buckman was killed in action at Flers, France, on 15th September 1916. His parents published a memorial in the London Times every year on his birthday, and on the anniversary of his death.

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Ashburnham, East Surrey Regiment, Gloucestershire Regiment, Wadham College Oxford | Leave a comment

Stephen Arthur Herbert Codd

Stephen Codd was the only son of Arthur and Florence Codd of West Hampstead. He was born on the 24^th October 1891, and was admitted to Homeboarders House as a non-resident King’s Scholar in 1905.

He was a keen public speaker, regularly participating in the Debating Society. On 17 February 1910, Stephen argued in favour of Vivisection: he “fluently demonstrated what benefits had been conferred upon mankind by vivisection, and indulged in some rather gruesome detail.”

In his final year at school, he won first place in the Orations — a public speaking competition — and was commended for his “sweeter voice” and was “word perfect” in the final performance of a passage from Isaiah predicting the fall of Babylon.

Stephen left the school in July 1910, and entered the office of the High Commissioner for South Africa, Herbert, 1^st Viscount Gladstone. However, after three years, Stephen decided to take holy orders, and went to King’s College London, where he gained the Wordsworth Latin Prize in the Intermediate B.D. Exam, in 1914.

In September 1914, he enlisted in the Universities and Public Schools Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers, and was made 2nd Lieutenant, 11th (Service) Battalion, Gloucestershire Regt in the December of that year. He was attached to the 7th Battalion and went out to Gallipoli on 24^th September 1915. That November, Gallipoli was hit by a great blizzard; Stephen suffered from frostbite and was invalided home.

After his convalescence, he went out to the western front on 24th August 1916, where he took part in the attack at High Wood. The plan was to use tanks later on in the month, and Stephen’s regiment was preparing the way by attempting to penetrate into the German trenches. Stephen was the only officer of his battalion to succeed in doing so, but he was never seen again.

In June 1917, the King’s College Review quoted a letter that Stephen’s Colonel wrote: “The regiment attacked on the 9th and your son gallantly led his men into the enemy’s lines but were driven out by superior numbers. Your son was last seen at the head of his men… he was a brave splendid officer and at once made himself popular with his brother officers and men.”

Posted in Debating Society, The Fallen | Tagged Gallipoli, Homeboarders, Royal Fusiliers, The Somme, Universities and Public Schools Battalion | Leave a comment

George Claude Rivers

George Rivers, often known to his friends as Charlie, joined Rigaud’s house as a day pupil in 1899, becoming a boarder in the spring, 1902. He played Cricket for his house and for a Town Boy team but with limited success as a batsman, scoring few runs and often being bowled out quickly. He also enjoyed gymnastics, but is described in The Elizabethan as ‘careful but lacks strength’. Nevertheless, he earned half pinks during his final year at the school.

After leaving the school he went to work in Burma. He must have returned to London by 1913 as he married Miss Elsie Margaret Pickthall on 1^st November and soon after the couple had a daughter. Once war was declared as he joined the Inns of Court O.T.C. and then took a commission as 2nd Lieut, 9th (Service) Batt. the East Surrey Regiment just before Christmas 1914. He was a ‘Grenade Officer’ — in charge of the bomb throwers within his battalion.

Rivers went out to the western front on 30^th August 1915. Just under a year later his regimental history tells us his battalion was:

‘ordered up to the Briqueterie, near Montauban, in support of the 73rd Infantry Brigade, who, together with the 17th Brigade, attacked and captured the western outskirts of Guillemont. On the 21st the Battalion, together with the 8th Battn. the “Queen’s”, moved up in the new front line, the “Queen’s” occupying the trench just west of the quarry in Guillemont, whilst the Battalion held the trenches in the rear of the “Queen’s”.’

Rivers was killed in heavy shelling on the part of the enemy near Trones Wood during 21^st August 1916, along with three other men from the regiment.

19160821_RiversGC — Unloading ammunition at battery position behind Arrow Head Copse, near Guillemont; August 1916 (IWM)

Posted in The Fallen | Tagged Charles Rivers, Cricket, East Surrey Regiment, Elsie Margaret Pickthall, George Claude Rivers, Gymnastics, Rigaud's House, Trones Wood | 1 Comment