Royal Dublin Fusiliers, yr. _s._ of Capt. John Weatherill, of
6, Ailesbury Road, Dublin, Shipowner, by his wife, Margaret, dau. of
Archibald Mackenzie; _b._ Dublin, 19 March, 1887; educ. at St.
Andrew’s College, Dublin; Fettes College, Edinburgh; and Armstrong
College (Durham University), Newcastle-on-Tyne, where he obtained at
the age of 20 his B.Sc. degree in Naval Architecture and Engineering,
and, after serving his time as a Marine Engineer, gained his First
Class Certificate, and subsequently became a Partner in his father’s
firm of Shipowners. At its formation in Sept. 1914, he joined the
“Football” Coy. of the 7th Royal Dublin Fusiliers (having previously
been a Member of the Monkstown and Lansdowne Football Clubs), and was
elected by the Coy. to be Sergt. of the Machine Gun Section. On his
being gazetted 2nd Lieut. in March, 1915, he was transferred from “D”
Coy. to “B” Coy. of the same Battn. He left for the Dardanelles 9 July,
1915, and in the last letter received from him, dated 14 Aug. 1915,
said: “We got here a week to-day, and I expect you will have heard by
now all we have done so far. We landed under a very heavy shrapnel
fire. Russell and I were left behind on the boat to load the stores
of the Battn., and before we landed our first wounded started to come
back. Then an old Taube flew over, dropped a bomb--which just missed us
by inches--and gave those on shore the range, so we got shelled before
we even got into the lighter. They did not hit us, however. We then
landed and had to unload the boat on the beach. They got the range of
us all right and we had some very narrow shaves. My water bottle was
hit. Luckily we had no casualties. I will not tell you any more till
I get home, except that all my fellows have behaved splendidly, and
one, P. Quinn, has been mentioned. He was out sniping with me from an
advanced trench on Thursday, and we got four of their snipers, so I
recommended him this morning.... I am fit and well, and so far have
been very lucky.” He was killed in action at Suvla Bay 16 Aug. 1915;
_unm._ Letters received from officers and men alike testify to his
gallant conduct. Capt. J. Lucie Smith, B Coy., wrote: “He bore himself
in a most gallant manner, and at ‘Chocolate Hill’ brought in five
wounded men under fire, for which deed I believe he has been mentioned
in despatches.” Lieut. R. Douglas, Machine Gun Officer: “From the
moment we landed he was splendid. He was in the thick of all the worst
fighting round Hill 53 (the original position taken by our Battn.),
he was seen one day carrying five different wounded men of ours under
terrible fire, leaving his own trench each time to do so. It was on the
early morning of Monday last, the 16th, that he was killed during a
bomb attack by the Turks. At the time he was hit he was rallying some
men of another battn. who were breaking up. He succeeded in getting
them back, and so saved the position for us, but in doing so he was
killed. No praise could be too high for the manner in which he fought,
lived and died out here; he was wonderful.” L.-Corpl. Fraser, Machine
Gun Section, now Lieut. in Connaught Rangers: “We had a very severe
shelling on landing, and your brother distinguished himself on several
occasions for bravery, leaving the trenches and bringing five wounded
men under fire. On other occasions he displayed his fearlessness of
danger also. I need hardly say his deeds have commanded the admiration
and respect of everyone”; and Sergt. Charles E. Sawyer, B Coy.: “He
was a fearless leader and a good friend to us all. The event of Lieut.
Weatherill’s death needs some explanation. We were ordered to take up
a position on a long ridge overlooking the sea, and ‘B’ Coy., with
Engineers, had to dig a fire trench from the top down to the sea, and
occupy it in the front line. In going towards this position in firing
line formation No. 2 platoon became detached from the remainder of the
Coy., the night being so dark. Mr. Weatherill then ordered us under
cover while he went out to look for our Coy. He went to the top of the
ridge, where the Royal Irish Fusiliers were keeping the right flank
and found they had lost all, except one wounded, of their officers,
and the men in a state of depression. Lieut. Weatherill returned to
us and told me to go with him to where the Royal Irish Fusiliers
were posted, and ordered me to find their N.C.O.’s and rouse the men
as much as possible. I found they had only one L.-Corpl., and after
some persuasion got the men to keep a look-out to ensure their own
and our safety. We were thanked by their poor wounded officer and
were returning to our platoon when Mr. Weatherill stopped and told me
he felt it was his duty to stay with the Royal Irish Fusiliers, and
ordered me back to take command of No. 5 and join up with the Coy. as
soon as possible. He wished me good-bye and to do our best, and left
me. That was the last I saw of him alive. Next morning the fighting
was very great and I heard the Royal Irish Fusiliers were being badly
pressed and I went to the top of the ridge and learned from one of
their men that Mr. Weatherill had been killed at daybreak (only a few
yards from his great friend Lieut. Russell). I must say I was with Mr.
Weatherill from the moment of landing in that terrible advance round
Salt Lake and other places, and can truly say that a more brave and
cool officer never took men into action in that awful Peninsula, and
he fell in the knowledge that he was doing his duty and died as only a
gentleman and a British Officer can die.”
[Illustration: =Edward T. Weatherill.=]
=WEAVER, ALBERT=, Leading Stoker, 308507, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in
action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=WEAVER, GEORGE=, Stoker, 1st Class, 312062, H.M.S. Laurel; killed
in action in the Heligoland Bight, 28 Aug. 1914.
=WEAVER, WALTER=, Private, No. 8655, 1st Battn. Coldstream Guards,
_s._ of the late John Weaver, of Child Pitt, Newport, Shropshire,
by his wife, Mary (Oak Cottage, Bicton Heath, near Shrewsbury), dau.
of the late Edward Broome, of Hill End Farm, Lydbury, Salop; _b._
Crudgington, co. Salop, 12 Oct. 1890; educ. Lilleshall Public School,
Newport, co. Salop, was a Porter, Rowton House, Newington Butts,
London; enlisted in the Coldstreams in March, 1910; went to France 12
Aug. 1914, and was reported missing during the Battle of the Aisne, 14
Sept. 1914, and is now assumed to have been killed in action on that
date; _unm._
[Illustration: =Walter Weaver=.]
=WEBB, ALBERT=, Private, 846, 11th Battn. Australian Imperial
Force; served in Egypt and at the Dardanelles; killed in action, 15
May, 1915.
=WEBB, ARTHUR STUART=, Sergt., No. 11533, 1st Battn. King’s
Royal Rifles, elder _s._ of Arthur Stuart Webb, the well-known
Hampshire and Glamorgan professional cricketer, by his wife, Ethel E.
(45A, Mersham Road, Thornton Heath); _b._ St. Helier’s, Jersey,
31 March, 1894; educ. Southampton Grammar School; enlisted on the
outbreak of war, and was promoted Sergt. 1 Feb. 1915. He went with his
regt. to the front, served in France and Flanders, and was killed in
action, at Neuve Chapelle, 10 March, 1915; _unm._ Sergt. Webb,
who was himself a keen cricketer, belonged to a well-known sporting
family; one of his uncles played for Kent, and another was Fred Webb,
the ex-jockey, who won the Derby in 1873. His father is now (1916) on
service with the Royal Fusiliers. A comrade wrote: “I was present at
Neuve Chapelle when your eldest son got killed. He was a brave fellow,
and led his platoon until he got to the German’s barbed wire. We were
unable to get him into our trenches; but he died like a hero.” His
younger brother, Sergt. C. F. Webb, was killed 16 May, 1915 (see his
notice).
[Illustration: =Arthur Stuart Webb.=]
=WEBB, CHARLES ELIJAH JAMES=, Probationary 2nd Cook’s Mate, M.
7800, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=WEBB, CHARLES FREDERICK=, Sergt., No. 11428, 1st Battn., King’s
Royal Rifles, yr. _s._ of Arthur Stuart Webb, the well-known
professional cricketer, etc. (see above notice); _b._ Newport,
Isle of Wight, 3 Feb. 1896; educ. Southampton Secondary School;
enlisted in Sept. 1914, was promoted Sergt. March, 1915, a week
after his brother’s death, and died from wounds received in action
at Givenchy, 16 May, 1915, succumbing while on his way to the Field
Ambulance; _unm._ His Qr.-Mr. Sergt. G. Knaggs, wrote to his
father, at the request of Section Officer Major Barton Frere: “His
Battn. attacked the German trenches on the night, 15–16 May, and
captured them. Your son was seen to fall wounded, and although his
wounds may then have been slight ones, it is possible that he was more
severely hit on proceeding to the rear. In any case it is only too
evident that he did not reach the Field Ambulance.”
[Illustration: =Charles F. Webb.=]
=WEBB, EDGAR DORRINGTON=, Sergt., No. 1164, 21st Battn. (1st
Surrey Rifles) The London Regt. (T.F.), _s._ of Walter Edward
Webb, Capt. 14th Battn. (London Scottish), The London Regt., late
King’s Own Scottish Borderers by his wife, Annie Elizabeth, dau. of
Charles Powell; _b._ Devonport, 5 June, 1891; educ. Dumfries
Academy, and Dulwich College, London; was a clerk in the Bank of
England, May, 1910, to Aug. 1914; joined the 1st Surrey Rifles in June,
1910; volunteered for foreign service on the outbreak of war; went
to France, 15 March, 1915; and was killed in action at Brewery Post
Trench, near Rue de l’Epinette, Pas de Calais, 5 May, 1915. Buried in
British Cemetery, Rue du Bois, near Bethune. Sergt. Webb _m._ at
St. Leonard’s Church, Streatham, London, S.W., Annie Florence, dau. of
Arthur Henry Cornish; _s.p._
=WEBB, EDWARD CHARLES HARRY=, 2nd Lieut., 3rd (Reserve), attd.
1st Battn. Lincolnshire Regt., only _s._ of Edward Webb, of
Cosham House, Cosham, co. Hants and Hindugalla, Peradeniya, Ceylon,
Tea Planter, by his wife, Mary Quarry, dau. of William Charles
Whitham, of Warangalla, Ceylon; _b._ Hindugalla, 18 Dec. 1894;
educ. Haileybury College; passed into Sandhurst in Aug. 1914, and was
gazetted 2nd Lieut. to the Lincolns, 10 Nov. 1914. He was killed in
action at Neuve Chapelle, 10 March, 1915, and buried in an orchard with
other officers and men of the regt.; _unm._
[Illustration: =Edward C. H. Webb.=]
=WEBB, JAMES=, E.R.A., 2nd Class, 270880, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in
action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=WEBB, JOHN BOYER=, Lieut., 4th Battn. Prince of Wales’ North
Staffordshire Regt., attd. 1st. Battn. The Bedfordshire Regt., only
_s._ of Capt. Charles Boyer Webb, of Elford House, Tamworth, late
4th Battn. North Staffordshire Regt. (died 26 Feb. 1916), by his wife,
Adela Dorothy, dau. of Colonel Arthur Blundells, 3rd East Kent Regt.,
and grandson of the late Colonel Charles John Webb, who for some time
commanded the same regt. (4th N. Staffs); _b._ near Tamworth,
8 June, 1894; educ. Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge. He was
gazetted to the 4th Battn. North Staffordshire Regt. 7 Aug. 1914, being
quartered at Guernsey till 16 March, 1915, when he was attached to the
1st Bedfords, and promoted Lieut. 1 April following. He was killed in
action at Hill 60, near Ypres, 21 April, 1915; _unm._
[Illustration: =John Boyer Webb.=]
=WEBB, JOSEPH=, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 2556), 199206, H.M.S. Good Hope;
lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.
=WEBBER, CHARLES HENRY=, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 3852), 197166, H.M.S.
Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov.
1914.
=WEBBER, EDWARD CHARLES=, Clerk, Royal Navy, H.M.S. Good Hope,
only _s._ of Edward Samuel Webber, of 18, Taswell Road, Southsea,
M.B. Cantab, by his wife, Edith, dau. of Dr. John Brickwell; _b._
Sutton Valence, co. Kent, 13 May, 1894; educ. Portsmouth Grammar
School, where he was Captain of the Games, 1910 and 1911, and Sergt. in
the O.T.C.; entered the Navy, 15 July, 1911; appointed Clerk, 15 July,
1912; appointed to the staff of Rear-Admiral Sir Christopher Cradock,
25 Feb. 1913; and went down in H.M.S. Good Hope in the Battle off
Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914; _unm._
=WEBBER, HAROLD PERCIVAL=, L.-Corpl., No. 2398, 2nd Battn. (Royal
Fusiliers) The London Regt. (T.F.), 5th _s._ of William Webber,
retired Coy. Secretary, for 43 years in the service of John Board
& Co., Ltd., of Dunball, Bridgwater, Cement, Lime, Brick and Tile
Manufacturers; _b._ Puriton, Bridgwater, co. Somerset, 7 May,
1889; educ. Collegiate School, Bridgwater; was apprenticed for three
years to J. P. Curtis, of High Street, Weston-super-Mare, Ironmonger,
with whom he stayed for a few months; after which he was with John
Walsh, Ltd., of Sheffield, for about three years, and then entered the
employ of John Barker & Co., Ltd., of Kensington, London, being one
of the first batch of young men who enlisted from that establishment
on the outbreak of war; after training in Malta, he went to France,
arriving at Marseilles the first week in Jan. 1915, and was killed
in action near l’Epinette, Armentières, 13 March, 1915; _unm._
Lieut.-Col. Attenborough wrote: “He was shot through the head and died
instantaneously. His death was a great loss to his Coy., in which he
was very popular, and was a loss to the battalion as he was a very
promising soldier. He is buried with others of his comrades in a
cemetery prepared for soldiers near a large farmhouse just behind our
trenches.”
[Illustration: =Harold P. Webber.=]
=WEBBER, HAROLD VICTOR=, 2nd Lieut., 1st Somerset L.I., yst
_s._ of the late Sergt.-Major William Webber, Somerset L.I. (who
_d._ 6 July, 1915, the same day as his son was killed); by his
wife, Elizabeth (Jellalabad, Holway Road, Taunton), dau. of Thomas
Laver; _b._ Taunton, co. Somerset, 22 Oct. 1895; educ. Huish
Grammar School there; enlisted in the Somerset L.I. 9 April, 1912; was
promoted Corpl. 15 July, 1914; Sergt. 31 Oct. 1914; and gazetted 2nd
Lieut. on the field, 14 Feb. 1915; went to France 22 Aug. 1914; served
through the fighting at Ligny; the retreat from Mons; the Battles of
the Marne and the Aisne; afterwards proceeding to Belgium with his
regt., and took part in the 1st Battle of Ypres and the fighting in
the Ploegsteert Woods. In Feb. 1915, he came home on leave, and in May
was seriously wounded and again sent home, but returned to the front 7
June, and was killed in action on the Yser Canal, 6 July, 1915, while
leading his platoon; _unm._ Major G. Fleming wrote: “Your son
died as a gallant officer and soldier should at the head of his men
and whilst performing a particularly dangerous and arduous task. We,
with the Rifle Brigade, attacked the German trenches at 6 a.m. on the
6th inst., and your son had to dig communication trenches across the
open from our trenches to the captured trenches. He was killed very
soon after he had got his men into position lined up across the open.
There must be great comfort to you in knowing that he died so gallantly
and a soldier’s death in action is much to be coveted. We all miss him
terribly as he was always so cheerful and willing to do anything in
his power to help others and to perform his duty.” 2nd Lieut. Webber’s
eldest brother, Sergt. W. T. Webber, was killed in France in Nov. 1914,
and his two other brothers, Col.-Sergt. S. A. Webber and Col.-Sergt. J.
S. Webber, are now (1916) on active service.
[Illustration: =Harold Victor Webber.=]
=WEBBER, HUGO=, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 1683), 200656, H.M.S. Good Hope;
lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.
=WEBBER, JOHN=, Private, No. 7611, 1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers,
_s._ of the late James Webber, of Bootle, Liverpool, by his wife,
Mary Ann; _b._ Bootle, co. Lancaster, 14 Feb. 1879; educ. New
Ferry, co. Chester; enlisted and served three years with the Colours;
was a Labourer; rejoined 5 Aug. 1914; went to France, 16 Sept. 1914,
and was reported missing after the heavy fighting on 29 Oct. 1914. He
_m._ at Birkenhead, 1906, Myra (50, Teddesley Street, Walsall),
dau. of Charles Jones, and had four children: James Edward, _b._
8 April, 1907; John, _b._ 8 March, 1914; Myra, _b._ 29 Jan.
1909; and Gladys May, _b._ 21 Sept. 1911.
[Illustration: =John Webber.=]
=WEBSTER, COLIN AILESBURY=, Private, No. 1253, No. 1 Coy., 1st
Battn. Honourable Artillery Co., only _s._ of Henry Ernest
Webster, of 21, Kingsley Avenue, West Ealing, and the National Bank,
Notting Hill Gate, W. (well-known in the swimming world as handicapper
to the Otter Swimming Club); by his wife, Kate Minnie, dau. of William
Ailesbury Bull; _b._ Bayswater, 13 May, 1894; educ. Acton County
School, on leaving which he was employed on the Stock Exchange; joined
the H.A.C., 8 Aug. 1914; left for France 18 Sept. 1914; and was killed
in action near Wulverghem, 25 Nov. following; _unm._ Buried in
the garden of a farmhouse at Wulverghem. A sergt. of his Coy. wrote:
“He has been a thoroughly good soldier throughout, and I can assure
you we all (No. 1 Coy.) lament his loss.” Like his father he was a
fine swimmer and at the close of the season of 1914, stood second for
the average prize of the Otter Swimming Club. He was also a keen Rugby
football player and a member of the Ealing Rugby Football Club.
[Illustration: =Colin A. Webster.=]
=WEBSTER, HARRY=, Electrical Artificer, 2nd Class, 347541, H.M.S.
Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off
the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.
=WEBSTER, JESSE=, Petty Officer (N.S.), 201748, H.M.S. Cressy;
lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=WEDDERBURN, ROBERT HAMILTON MACLAGAN=, 2nd Lieut., 3rd (Reserve),
attd. 1st Battn., The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), yst. _s._
of the Rev. Laurence Craigie Maclagan Wedderburn, Minister of the
United Free Church of Scotland, at Madderty, Crieff, by his wife,
Gertrude Elizabeth, dau. of the late Lt.-Col. James Maxwell, C.B.,
sometime Acting Governor of the Gold Coast; _b._ Madderty Free
Church Manse, co. Perth, 30 April, 1893; educ. at George Watson’s
College, Edinburgh, and Edinburgh University (M.A. April, 1914); was
L.-Corpl. in his school O.T.C., and Sergt. of the machine-gun team of
the University O.T.C., and obtained Certificates A and B; gazetted
2nd Lieut. from the Special Reserve of officers, to 3rd Cameronians,
15 Aug. 1914; joined in Sept, and trained with them at the Nigg Camp,
Ross-shire; left for Rouen in charge of 95 men, 1 Jan. 1915, was there
attached to the 1st Cameronians then in the trenches near Armentières,
and was killed in action in the trenches near Bois Grenier early in the
morning of 3 Feb. following; _unm._ Buried beside Capt. Stirling
in the village of Bois Grenier. His Commanding Officer, Lieut.-Col. P.
N. Robertson, C.M.G., wrote: “Owing to the very short time he was with
us, I had not seen your son personally very much, but I am informed
that he was most keen in his work, and always did his very best to
carry out efficiently every duty that was given him to do. He was at
the time superintending the erection of a traverse of sandbags in the
trenches, when he was shot through the brain by one of the enemy’s
snipers,” and the Officer Commanding 3rd Battn., Major Luard, published
the following order: “It is with the deepest regret that the Commanding
Officer has to announce the death (killed in action) of 2nd Lieut. R.
H. M. Wedderburn, of this Battn., and at the time serving with the 1st
Battn. Though the late 2nd Lieut. Wedderburn was comparatively a short
time with his battn., he was well-known for his exceptional keenness
and the loss to this battn. is deeply felt by all.”
=WEEDON, SYDNEY CHARLES=, Private, No. 1102, 1/4th Battn. (Signal
Section) Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regt. (T.F.), 2nd _s._
of Albert Weedon, of 23, Scott Street, Maidstone, by his wife,
Alice Celia, dau. of John Fryer, of Maidstone, _b._ Maidstone,
co. Kent, 19 Aug. 1892; educ. St. Paul’s School there; was a Wire
Mattress Maker; joined the R.W.K. Regt. early in 1911; went to India
29 Oct. 1914, and died on foreign service at Jubbulpore, India, 27
May, 1915, of septicæmia, contracted from drinking water from a
native well; _unm._ He was buried in the English Cemetery there,
with full military honours; a marble cross erected by the officers,
non-commissioned officers and men of his Coy. marks the grave. The
Officer Commanding the signal section wrote: “He was in my Signal
Section, and was one of the best and keenest signallers I had. He and
his brother have been of very great assistance to me, always ready
to do anything and always doing it thoroughly and well.” Two of his
brothers are now (1916) on service: Pte. Leonard Weedon and L.-Corpl.
Percy Weedon, both with the Royal West Kent Regt.
[Illustration: =Sydney C. Weedon.=]
=WEEDS, JAMES=, Private, R.M.L.I., Ch. 11520, H.M.S. Hawke; lost
when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914; _m._
=WEEKES, JOHN=, Leading Stoker (R.F.R., B. 9369), 296881, H.M.S.
Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct.
1914; _m._
=WELBURN, ARTHUR=, Private, No. 6663, 2nd Battn. Coldstream
Guards; _s._ of Thomas Welburn, of Weaverthorpe, Sherbarn Eke,
York, by his wife, Louisa, dau. of the late Thomas Swain; _b._
Allerston Marshes, Pickering, 9 Feb. 1889; educ. Sledmere; enlisted 25
Feb. 1904, served three years with the Colours, then passed into the
Reserve, and was for some time in the Huddersfield Police Force and at
the time of the outbreak of war was an attendant at the County Asylum,
Rainhill, near Liverpool; he was called up on mobilization 5 Aug. 1914,
and was killed in action at Rentel, Belgium, 30 Oct. 1914, by the
bursting of a shell; _unm._
[Illustration: =Arthur Welburn.=]
=WELBY, RICHARD WILLIAM GREGORY=, Lieut., 2nd Battn. Grenadier
Guards, elder _s._ and _h._ of Sir Charles Glynne Earle
Welby, of Denton Manor, Grantham, 5th Bt., C.B., formerly M.P. for
Newark; by his wife, Lady Maria Louisa Helen, sister of Frederick
William Fane, 4th Marquis of Bristol, and elder dau. of the late Lord
Augustus Hervey; _b._ Denton Manor, 16 Oct. 1888; educ. Eton and
Christ Church, Oxford; gazetted 2nd Lieut. 23 Feb. 1910, and promoted
Lieut. 24 May, 1911; went to France with his battn. which formed part
of the 4th (Guards) Brigade, 12 Aug. 1914; took part in the retreat
from Mons, and was killed in action at the Battle of the Aisne, 16
Sept. 1914; _unm._ Buried in Soupir Churchyard, near Vailly on the
Aisne. The Officer Commanding his battn. wrote: “We have been fighting
a hard battle and had a very severe action on Tuesday, when Dick Welby
was wounded in the shoulder. We were very short of officers owing to
our heavy casualties, and every officer of Dick’s coy. had been killed
or wounded. He very pluckily insisted on remaining at duty (instead of
going to the hospital) to help us through the difficulty, and remained
at duty during the following day; on the third day we got a terrible
shelling and poor Dick was killed. I can’t tell you how we all deplore
Dick’s loss, nor how gallantly he did his duty to the end.” Lieut.
Welby was mentioned in F.M. Sir John (now Lord) French’s Despatch of 8
Oct [London Gazette, 19 Oct.] 1914.
[Illustration: =Richard W. G. Welby.=]
=WELCH, GEORGE RICHARD=, Leading Seaman, 190986, H.M.S. Cressy;
lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=WELCH, WALTER GEORGE FREDERIC=, Lieut., 117th Battery, Royal
Field Artillery, only _s._ of Reginald Courtenay Welch, for
twenty years Principal of the Army College, Heath End, Farnham,
near Aldershot, by his wife, Adeline Charlotte, dau. of the late
Abingdon Compton; _b._ Hyde Park, London, 7 March, 1890; educ.
Charterhouse; The Army College, Farnham, and the Royal Military
Academy, Woolwich (passed in 25th on list, Jan. 1909); gazetted 2nd
Lieut. R.F.A., 22 July, 1910, and posted to 127th Battery at Bordon;
went to Depôt at Preston, Jan. 1913, and was promoted Lieut. 23
July following. On mobilization he was attached to the 44th Brigade
Ammunition Column; went to France 21 Aug. 1914, where he was, shortly
after his arrival, posted to the 117th Battery, 26th Brigade, R.F.A.
(1st Division), and took part in the fighting on the Aisne and in
Flanders. He was killed in action while fighting his guns about 1,000
yards south of Veldhock, E.S.E. of Ypres, on the evening of 30 Oct.
1914; _unm._ His Commanding Officer wrote of him: “He was the life
and soul of our little mess: a keen and a good soldier. We buried him
alongside the guns he had fought”; and one of those who served under
him wrote: “Mr. Welch was always very popular with the men, especially
so in action.” Lieut. Welch was a keen football player and on one
occasion at the Front took part in a match played behind the firing
line, which was interrupted by a German bombardment and resumed when
the fire died down.
[Illustration: =Walter George F. Welch.=]
=WELCH, WALTER LEONARD=, Private, R.M.L.I., Ch./15266, H.M.S.
Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.
=WELCH, WILLIAM GEORGE=, Armourer’s Crew, M. 5907, H.M.S.
Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off
the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.
=WELCHMAN, EDWARD THEODORE, D.S.O.=, Capt., 1st Battn. West
Yorkshire Regt., 2nd _s._ of Edward Welchman, of Carshalton,
L.R.C.P., M.R.C.S., formerly of Heckington, Lincolnshire, by his wife,
Alice, dau. of James Singleton; _b._ Southea, co. Cambridge, 21
July, 1881; educ. Sleaford Grammar School and Sandhurst; gazetted
2nd Lieut. 2nd West Yorkshires, 11 Aug. 1900; and promoted Lieut. 20
March, 1902, and Capt. 7 March, 1910; served in the South African War,
1901–2; took part in the operations in the Transvaal, April, 1901, to
31 May, 1902 [Despatches, London Gazette, 17 Jan. 1902; Queen’s medal
with three clasps, D.S.O.], and with the 1st Battn. in the Mohmand
Expedition, 1908 (medal with clasp). On his return home he joined the
3rd Reserve Battn. at York, but on the outbreak of war rejoined the 1st
Battn.; went to France, 1 Oct. 1914, and died 26 Oct. following, at the
Base Hospital, Boulogne, of wounds received at Le Paradis on the 20th.
Buried Boulogne Hospital Cemetery; _unm._ Capt. Welchman had a
fine record, and numberless letters bear the highest testimony to his
character and attainments. He was a keen sportsman, and very popular
in both his regt. and outside it. He qualified for the Staff College,
Camberley, which he entered Jan. 1914.