WILKINSON, JOHN ROTHES MARLOW, B.A., Lieut., 4th Battn. Middlesex Regt., eldest s. of the late Rev. Henry Marlow Wilkinson, Vicar of Milford, Lymington, Hants, by his wife, Florence Amy (Milford Corner, Milford-on-Sea), dau. of the late John Kemp-Welch, of Sopley Park, Hants; b. the Vicarage, Milford-on-Sea, 17 Oct. 1887; educ. Winchester College, and Worcester College, Oxford (1907–1911, B.A., Capt. of the College Boat Club); gazetted 2nd Lieut. to the 4th Middlesex, 22 March, 1911, and promoted Lieut. 10 Oct. 1913; left for France with the Expeditionary Force, Aug. 1914, and was killed in action at Oburg, near Mons, on the 23rd; unm. A Private of C Coy., 4th Middlesex, wrote: “On Sunday, 23 Aug., we were entrenched in front of a convent, when Capt. ... gave Lieut. Wilkinson an order to take half his platoon (two sections) to reinforce ‘A’ Coy. This Coy. was at the left of our position and was being hard pressed. We took up position under heavy fire at a group of houses. Your son went into one of the houses, and was heard directing the fire of his two sections through the skylight in the roof. He directed his fire so well that he forced the Germans to retire from his front. It was from this house that he saw overwhelming numbers of Germans coming through the wood to his front. The Germans came on again until they were within 200 yards. Lieut. Wilkinson then came out of the house into the trench. It was here that he got the order to retire. He got the order twice, but would not take it, as he thought it was not an official order. Eventually he got the order from the G.O.C. to retire. It was then I noticed he was limping. To retire we had to go through barbed wire; here we got separated owing to the heavy shell and rifle fire. I am very sorry to say that I was the only man of those two sections to get away from that place. No officers could give me any information of Lieut. Wilkinson. I reported to the C.O. what had happened and told him that Lieut. Wilkinson was a very brave man. He replied, ‘Yes, I know that, and I am very sorry to have lost him.’... I must say your son was a man in every sense of the word. I think he was as brave a gentleman as one could meet here. I told this to Capt.... I think I have an idea of a brave officer, as I went through the South African War and have eight clasps to my medal.”

WILKINSON, LEONARD RICHARD, Rifleman, No. 2240, C Coy., 1/9th (Queen Victoria’s Rifles) The London Regt. (T.F.), 2nd s. of George Henry Wilkinson, of Star Mills, Paper Maker, by his wife, Annie, dau. of William E. Pepper; b. Camberwell, 22 Dec. 1890; enlisted on the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914, served with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders and was killed in action during the severe fighting for Hill 60, near Ypres, on 24 April, 1915; unm.

WILKINSON, WILLIAM, Stoker, 1st Class (R.F.R., Ch. B. 6945), S.S. 101506, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLAN, SAMUEL, Private, No. 11727, 2nd Battn. Coldstream Guards; b. co. Lancaster; served with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders; killed in action at Cuinchy, 3 Feb. 1915.

WILLETS, FREDERICK, Private, No. 7965, 2nd Battn. The Royal Scots, 2nd s. of Arthur Willetts, by his wife, Mary, dau. of Thomas Bennett; b. Aston, Birmingham, 7 Aug. 1883; educ. Vicarage Road there; was employed as a Stove Fitter; enlisted in the Royal Scots, 13 Feb. 1902; served three years with the Colours and nine years in the Reserve; went to the Front, Aug. 1914; was wounded and taken a prisoner at Haines, and died a prisoner of war at Erfurt, Germany, 16 Feb. 1915, and was buried there. He m. at Aston, Birmingham, 1907, Nellie (No. 2, Back, 119, Park Road, Aston, Birmingham), dau. of William Whadauck, and had a son, Frederick, b. 26 Jan. 1908.

WILLIAMS, ALBERT, Stoker, 1st Class, K. 3806 (Ports.), H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLIAMS, ALBERT ERNEST, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 4015), 218031, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILLIAMS, ARTHUR MONTAGU, Solicitor, Lieut. Machine Gun Section, 7th (Robin Hood) Battn. Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regt.) (T.F.), only s. of the late Arthur Williams, of 109, Forest Road, Nottingham, Solicitor, by his wife, Mary, dau. of the late Thomas Morley, of 46, Addison Street, Nottingham; b. Nottingham, 21 Dec. 1883; educ. Nottingham Boys’ High School; served his articles with Capt. J. A. H. Green, admitted a Solicitor in 1905, and was in practice in Nottingham and had lately been a partner in the firm of Messrs. Browne, Son & Williams. He had joined the Robin Hoods as a private on leaving school in 1900, and became a 2nd Lieut. when the Territorial Act came into operation, and was gazetted Lieut. 8 June, 1913. On the outbreak of war he volunteered with the Battn. for foreign service, went to France, 25 Feb. 1915, and was killed in action at Kemmel, 15 June, 1915; unm. He was buried in Kemmel Churchyard. One of his men (Private T. Linney, 1867) wrote: “On the night of 15 June, 1915, at about 9.30 p.m. the Germans thought to make a surprise attack on our trenches south of Ypres, by first of all blowing up our trenches and then by violently bombarding our position by artillery and hand grenades. The 8th Battn. Sherwood Foresters, were in the trenches at the time, and were expecting to be relieved that night by the 7th Battn. Sherwood Foresters, this accounting for the officers of the 7th being in the trenches in the afternoon to view the positions. After the violent bombardment the Germans tried to charge the trench, and this being the first severe attack the 8th Battn. had been in they did not know which way to turn or what to do; already they had lost a large number of men and officers and were naturally panic stricken, when Lieut. Williams came to the rescue. Already he had been to fetch a wounded officer, Lieut. Dobson, in, and seen him safe; when the Germans stormed the trenches, he gathered the men together, and by his cool manner and words made a desperate stand against the coming onslaught; the Germans had got as far as the barbed wire, when Lieut. Williams shouted to the men “Come on men, if we’ve got to die, we will die fighting,” this put new life into the men and by desperate fighting the Germans were driven back, but Lieut. Williams, who had saved the situation at such a critical time, was killed instantaneously, by part of a shell fracturing his skull”; and Capt. G. H. Stubington: “It was after dark and he had just gone into the trenches which the Robin Hoods were taking over from the 8th Battn. when Lieut. Dobson of the 8th Battn. was wounded by a shell. Arthur went to help him when another shell exploded and killed them both instantly. He died on duty and I need not tell you how much we feel his loss. He was a most efficient officer and also in my case a close personal friend; I have, as you are aware, known him for years and as far as Machine Gun work is concerned, I feel that I have lost my right hand man.... The Officer Commanding desires me to add that the Battn. has suffered a great loss by his death, and he will be very much missed by all ranks to whom he had endeared himself, and especially by his brother officers.” Lieut. Williams, who was a Freeman of the City of Nottingham by birth, had taken his Musketry and Machine Gun Course and had qualified as an Instructor of Musketry. He was a member of, and played for, the Notts. Amateur Cricket Club; was for some time Secretary of the Nottingham Children’s Hospital and Hon. Secretary of the Red Cross for Notts, and was a member of the Newstead Lodge of Freemasons.

WILLIAMS, BENJAMIN, Private, No. 9600, 3rd Battn. Coldstream Guards, s. of John Williams, of 25ct., 7h, Cheapside, Birmingham; b. Perry Barr, co. Stafford, 7 July, 1894; educ. Rea Street Board School, Birmingham; was a Metal Spinner, Simplex, Salop Street, Birmingham; enlisted in the Coldstreams, 11 May, 1912; went to France 14 Aug. 1914, and was accidentally drowned in Cuinchy Canal, 4 Aug. 1915, while on active service; unm. Buried in the Military Cemetery at Givenchy.

WILLIAMS, CHARLES, Gunner, R.M.A. (R.F.R., 370), H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLIAMS, FREDERICK LEONARD, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 3177), S.S. 622, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILLIAMS, GEORGE JACKSON, 2nd Lieut., 1/5th Battn. York and Lancaster Regt. (T.F.), 2nd s. of David Jones Williams, of Rhydwen, Barnsley, member of the firm of Williams Bros., Ltd., Coal Exporters, by his wife, Dinah, dau. of the late George Jackson, Mining Engineer; b. Royston, co. York, 6 Feb. 1895; educ. High School, Barnsley and Rydal Mount, Colwyn Bay, and on leaving there entered his father’s office in Paris. When war broke out he was in England on a short holiday and he immediately volunteered and joined the 5th Reserve Battn. of the York and Lancaster Regt. under Lieut.-Col. Mitchell and was gazetted 2nd Lieut. 23 Sept. 1914. Being anxious to get to the front he transferred to the 1st/5th Battn. under Lieut.-Col. Fox (which had volunteered for foreign service) and while training with it at Sheffield contracted rheumatism and developed endocarditis from which he died at Barnsley, 27 April, 1915; unm.

WILLIAMS, GEORGE JOSEPH, Stoker, 1st Class, K. 14241 (Ports.), H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLIAMS, HAROLD, Stoker, 2nd Class, K. 21975, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILLIAMS, HERBERT CHARLES, Corpl., No. 10080, 2nd Battn. King’s Own (Royal Lancaster) Regt., yst. but one of the six soldier sons of Ellis Williams, of Hanmer Place, Bowerham, Lancaster, ex Qr.-Mr.-Sergt. of the same regt. (with which he served for 25 years), by his wife, Eliza Mary, dau. of Henry Studd, late of the R.A.M.C.; b. the Barracks, Lancaster, 2 April, 1895; educ. Bowerham School; enlisted as a drummer in the King’s Own at Lancaster, 3 May, 1909, and joined his battn. in Jersey, subsequently accompanying it to India. He came home with it in Dec. 1914, and on 15 Jan. went to the Front. He was severely wounded on 16 March, 1915, while placing sand bags to repair front of trenches by Ypres, and died in hospital at Bailleul. His comrade, Band Sergt. J. A. Nichol, wrote: “He passed peacefully away at 6.15 a.m. this morning, 23 March. I was with him throughout, and I’m writing this letter for Lloyd, his brother, who is very much upset. The remains will be interred to-morrow at 9 a.m. in the cemetery there, and I’ll be there to put some token of love on his grave for you and the family.” His two elder brothers, Coy Qr.-Mr.-Sergt. Ellis Watkin Williams and Sergt. John Henry Williams of the 1st Battn. of the King’s Own were wounded in the retreat from Mons, the latter, now a prisoner at Doberitz, very severely. The third, Sergt. Lloyd Williams, suffered from shell concussion and is now (1916) in Egypt. Rifleman Reginald Williams, the fourth, belongs to the King’s Liverpool Regt., and the fifth and last son, Private Percival Williams, is in the Army Service Corps.

WILLIAMS, HUBERT LESLIE, Trooper, No. 13/258, 11th North Auckland Mounted Rifles, New Zealand Expeditionary Force, 3rd s. of Harry Edwin Williams, of Parua Bay, Auckland, New Zealand, by his wife, Harriet Mary, dau. of the late Henry Morey; b. at Parua Bay, 23 Nov. 1892; educ. there; and entered the Army, 15 Aug. 1914, being one of the first to enlist from Parua Bay at the outbreak of war. Killed in action at Walker Ridge, Gallipoli, during a night attack, 26 May, 1915, buried there. The circumstances of his death are told as follows in a letter from a comrade to his mother: “A mate of mine, H. L. Williams, was dragging me to put me in a hole out of the firing line after I was shot down that awful night, he had stopped for a minute to give me a drop of water out of his bottle, had just dropped on his knees, when a bullet struck him in the breast, he fell over me, he put his hand in mine and said ‘good-bye old fellow, good luck to you, I’m fixed.’ And so he died without a move, good fellow that he was.”

WILLIAMS, IDRIS HAVARD JOSEPH, Capt., 3rd Battn. Royal Fusiliers, 4th s. of the late Morgan Stuart Williams, of Aberpergwm, co. Glamorgan, J.P., D.L., by his wife, Josephine (9, Stratford Place, W.), dau. of William Herbert, of Clytha, Monmouthshire, and nephew of the late Capt. George Williams, Frontier Light Horse, who was killed in the Zulu War; b. Aberpergwm, 29 Dec. 1878; educ. Charterhouse; received his commission as 2nd Lieut. in the Royal Fusiliers from the Militia, 5 Jan. 1901, and was promoted Lieut. 26 March, 1904, and Capt. 29 Jan. 1910; served through the South African War, 1899–1902 (Queen’s medal with three clasps and King’s medal with two clasps), and with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders, died at Boulogne, 3 June, 1915, of wounds received in action at Ypres; buried at St. Donat’s Castle; unm.

WILLIAMS, JETHROE, L.-Corpl., No. 6074, 3rd Battn. Coldstream Guards, s. of Cabel Williams, of High Street, Cheltenham, Market Gardener; b. Leigh, near Cheltenham, 5 Dec. 1885; educ. there; enlisted 21 Jan. 1905; was appointed L.-Corpl. 10 Oct. 1914; served in Egypt, 29 Sept. 1906 to 28 March, 1911, and with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders, from 12 Aug. 1914, and died in No. 13 General Hospital, Boulogne, 5 Nov. following, of wounds received in action. He m. at Fulham, 22 Sept. 1906, Evelyn May (8, Station Road, Maldon, Essex), dau. of Robert Everett Coney Weston, of Bury St. Edmunds, and had a dau., Edith Josephine, b. 20 April, 1907.

WILLIAMS, JOHN NATHANIEL, Private, No. 12/484, 6th (Hauraki) Auckland Battn., New Zealand Expeditionary Force (formerly Capt., 4th Dorsets (T.F.)), elder s. of Col. Sir Robert Williams, of Bridehead, Dorchester, 1st Bt., M.P., by his wife, Rosa Walker, dau. of Nathaniel Sims, of Strood Park, Horsham; b. London, W., 24 Jan. 1878; educ. Matfield, Kent; Eton, and New College, Oxford; was for some time in the 4th Territorial Battn. of the Dorsetshire Regt., becoming Capt., but resigned his commission and went to New Zealand in 1910. On the outbreak of war enlisted as a Private in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force; left for Egypt in Oct. 1914; took part in the repulse of the Turkish attack on the Suez Canal in Feb. 1915, and in the landing at the Dardanelles, 25 April, 1915, and was killed in action at Gaba Tepe that day; unm. Major-Gen. Sir A. I. Godley, K.C.M.G., C.B., Commanding New Zealand Forces, wrote: “He was killed leading and setting a most gallant example to the men in the forefront of the Battn., and all the officers, N.C.O.’s and men of the company speak of him in the highest terms of admiration and affection. He had evidently made himself most popular with them and respected by all, and had he not fallen he would have been given a commission in this force immediately after the first action. I believe the example which he set in enlisting, and dying as he did in the ranks, has done more for this force and perhaps for the Empire than he would have done as a commissioned officer.”

WILLIAMS, JOSEPH, Chief Yeoman of Signals, R.N., No. Ch./206951, 4th s. of the late Edward Williams, of Hull, Chemist, by his wife, Betsy Ann, dau. of Henry Hollingsworth, of Hull, Chemist; b. Hull, 25 Feb. 1883; educ. Boulevard Higher Grade School, Hull, joined the Navy in Feb. 1899; served on H.M. ships, Perseus, 1905–8; Jason, 1908–10; Shannon, 1910–12; and R.F.A. Maine, 1912–14, and was studying for an examination for warrant officer when war was declared; joined H.M.S. Cressy and was lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914. He m. at Boulevard Baptist Church, Hull, 8 Sept. 1910, Agnes Mary (28, Redbourne Street, Boulevard, Hull), sister of James Albert Forgan Wighton, R.N. (lost in the action off Coronel, 1 Nov. 1914), and only dau. of the late James Brown Wighton, and had two children; Joseph Albert, b. 8 Sept. 1914; and Catherine Marian, b. 23 Aug. 1912.

WILLIAMS, MERVYN JAMES, Colour Sergt.-Major, No. 6854, 2nd Battn. Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, only s. of John Williams, of Blackrock, by his wife, Ellen Dorcas, dau. of James Watts, of Grove Avenue, Blackrock; b. Blackrock, co. Dublin, 21 June, 1882; educ. Booterstown School there; enlisted Jan. 1910; served in South Africa, Egypt, and with the British Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders from 24 Aug. 1914 to 16 May, 1915, on which latter date he was killed in action at Festubert; unm.

WILLIAMS, OWEN, Stoker, Petty Officer (R.F.R., B. 6104), 297624, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILLIAMS, SYDNEY ERNEST, Ordinary Seaman, S.S. 4202, H.M.S. Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.

WILLIAMS, THOMAS CHARLES, Stoker, 1st Class, 299881, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

WILLIAMS, TOM JAMES, Private, No. 11050, 2nd, attd. 1st, Battn. Welsh Regt., s. of George Williams, of Ffosyfedwen, Velindre, Henllan, Flannel Weaver, by his wife, Hannah, dau. of William Evans; b. Ffrontywann, 15 Nov. 1894; educ. National School, Velindre. He enlisted in the Welsh Regt. in Dec. 1913, was in training with the 2nd Battn. in Hampshire when the war broke out, and was soon afterwards sent out to France. There he was a driver in the transport section of his regt., till he contracted rheumatic fever, lying for some weeks in hospital at Le Havre, and then returning to England on three weeks’ leave. At the appointed time he reported himself at Cardiff Barracks, and was in a few days on his way back to France again, to join the 1st Battn. He served with them for three months, and was killed in action, being shot in a bayonet charge, at Zillebeke, 25 May, 1915; unm. His brother, Private William Williams, is now (1916) serving with the Devons.

WILLIAMS, WALTER KENT, M.V.O., Engineer-Capt., R.N., 2nd s. of William Philips Williams, Journalist, some time of the South Wales Daily News, by his wife, Mary, dau. of Manoah Kent; b. St. Davids, co. Pembroke, 24 Oct. 1863; educ. Proprietary School, Cardiff, and Royal Naval College, Keyham, Devonport; entered the Navy as Assistant Engineer, 1 July, 1885; promoted Engineer, 2 April, 1887; Chief Engineer, 1 Aug. 1897; Engineer-Commander, 1 Aug. 1901, and Engineer-Capt., 1 Jan. 1912. While serving as Engineer in the Blanche, 1893, he landed with the Naval Brigade from H.M. ships Blanche, Swallow, and Sparrow under Commander Lindley to punish a robber chief, Fumo Omari, for various acts of treachery. The fortified strongholds at Puwani and Jongeni were stormed and captured. Capt. Williams was awarded the general Africa medal (Vitu, Aug. 1893 clasp) for these services. He was Engineer at the Royal Osborne College at the time the present Prince of Wales and his brother were students there, and for his services was awarded the M.V.O. in Oct. 1910. He afterwards served for a period ashore at Portsmouth, and on the outbreak of war was appointed on the staff of the Bulwark, and was lost when that ship was blown up off Sheerness, 26 Nov. 1914; unm.

WILLIAMS, WALTER ROLAND, Acting E.R.A., 4th Class, M. 7279, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

WILLIAMS, WILLIAM, Private, No. 1218, 3rd Battn. (Royal Fusiliers) The London Regt. (T.F.), eldest s. of the late Edwin James Williams, by his wife, Ellen, dau. of James Roberts; b. Plymouth, 24 Oct. 1889; educ. there; joined the 3rd London Regt. in July, 1912; volunteered for foreign service on the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914; went to Malta in Sept.; was sent to France in Jan. 1915, and was killed in action at the Battle of Neuve Chapelle, 10 March, 1915, being shot through the head in an attack on the German trenches; unm.

WILLIAMS, WILLIAM HENRY, Stoker, 1st Class (R.F.R., B. 4468), S.S. 103409, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

ADDAMS-WILLIAMS, DONALD ARTHUR, 2nd Lieut., 4th Battn. (Service) South Wales Borderers, only s. of the Rev. Herbert Addams-Williams, Rector of Llangibby, co. Monmouth, by his wife, Grace, dau. of Thomas Royse Lysaght; b. Llangibby Rectory, 28 April, 1896; educ. Winton House, Winchester, and Marlborough College, where he was in the O.T.C., and joined the Public Schools Battn. immediately on the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914. He was gazetted 2nd Lieut. to the South Wales Borderers, 18 Nov. 1914; went to the Dardanelles 29 June, and was killed in action there, 11 Aug. 1915, after the advance from Anzac. Capt. A. W. Hooper wrote: “I am the only officer left out of the five who came out with the coy., and was in hospital wounded when Arthur was killed; hence I am somewhat handicapped, but I have spoken to Arthur’s platoon sergt. several times about the sad incident, and he has given me several little details about it. A covering party was sent forward to clear the enemy away from some wells from whence they had been sniping our troops for three or four days. This party was also to act as a screen to keep the enemy from advancing, or firing, while the remainder of our battn. went forward and dug themselves in, in an advanced position. Arthur, with his platoon, commanded a portion of this covering party, more of the enemy were found near the wells than was anticipated, and our covering party lost rather heavily. However, they nobly did their work, and kept the enemy back while the new trenches were being dug. Arthur was absolutely fearless, and always very cheerful in the trenches. He took his men forward, and had not advanced far before he was hit; he went on and presently was hit a second time, but where each of the first two shots struck him his sergt. did not know. However, being twice wounded, he continued to command his platoon, encouraging all of the men, and showing them a noble example by his own heroism, and disregard of self. A little time afterwards, while still advancing, he was wounded a third time. He turned completely round, and must have died within a few seconds. His sergt. knelt by him as he died, and has told me since that his death was a grand one to see. The sergt. had to leave him, to take charge of the platoon, and when the covering party retired his body was not seen. Several times Sergt. Worthington, his platoon sergt., volunteered to go forward and look for it, but the Turks were now holding that ground in very strong numbers, and it would have meant a further sacrifice of life to send a search party out; therefore his body, and those of two other officers who died the same evening, was never recovered. His death meant a great loss to his men, who thought so highly of him, to the whole coy., and also to myself, who found him an ever-cheerfull and lovable friend.” Nearly three months afterwards, during a reconnaisance, Lieut. Curtis, of the Northamptonshire Regt., discovered his body, and had it brought back to South Wales Borderers Valley, where it was buried in the little Military Cemetery on 3 Nov. 1915.

DE COURCY-WILLIAMS, ALMERICUS JOHN FALKINER (ERIC), 2nd Lieut. 5th, attd. 4th, Battn. Middlesex Regt., only s. of John Almericus de Courcy-Williams, of St. Etchens, Killucan, co. Westmeath, M.A., M.B., B.Ch. T.C.D., by his wife Frideswide Catherine Emily, dau. of Robert Smyth, Portlick Castle, Athlone, J.P., and grandson of Surgeon-Major John William Williams, of Killucan, co. Westmeath, M.A., M.D., by his wife, Emily Letitia, née de Courcy, sister of Michael William, 32nd Lord Kingsale; b. Greenhills, Killucan, 4 May, 1895; educ. Roysses School, Abingdon, and Royal Military College, Sandhurst; gazetted 2nd Lieut. to the 2nd Battn. West India Regt., July, 1914; transferred to the Middlesex Regt., 20 Aug. 1914; went to France with the 4th Battn., 6 Sept.; took part in the fighting at Septmouts near Soissons, 14 Sept.; joined the 1st Battn. at Venizel, but returned to the 4th Battn. at Courcelles, 1 Oct.; took part in the march from the Aisne to Vieille-Chapelle, and the battle there, 12–15 Oct. where he was the only officer in his coy. not wounded, and died at Bethune, 21 Oct. 1914, of wounds received in action two miles from Aubers while commanding his coy. in the front line of trenches, the previous day, during the First Battle of Ypres. Buried in Bethune Cemetery. His Colonel wrote: “He was such a promising boy, and we were all proud of him and shall miss him much.” Another officer wrote: “I can tell you all ranks were very sorry, as he was a brave soldier and was a great favourite with all, and likely to have a bright army career.” A wounded soldier who was in the trenches with Lieut. de Courcy-Williams said that he frequently exposed himself to danger while exhorting his men not to waste ammunition, but to shoot straight. He was fatally wounded while aiming a rifle in the trenches trying to get a sniper who was picking off his men, and his last words were, “Men, give it them.”

WILLIAMSON, ALBERT JOHN, Stoker, 1st Class, Ch. 154287, R.F.R., B. 1366, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914; m.

WILLIAMSON, DAVID MILLAR, Petty Officer, 216842, H.M.S. Hogue; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLIAMSON, FREDERICK, Stoker, 1st Class, 302086, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILLIAMSON, PETER, Private, No. 881, 12th Battn. 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, Australian Imperial Force, s. of Matthew Williamson, of Ollaberry, Shetland; Seaman; b. Edinburgh, 29 March, 1891; educ. Ollaberry, and Lerwick, Shetland; went to Australia; volunteered on the outbreak of war and joined Commonwealth Expeditionary Force, Aug. 1914; left for Egypt with the main force in Oct.; went to the Dardanelles, and died on board H.M.S. Delta, 9 Aug. 1915, of wounds received in action there. Buried at sea. He m. at Edinburgh, Jessie, dau. of (—) Sutherland, of Latheron, Crofter, and had three children: Peter, b. ——; Lizzie, b. 5 Jan. 1893, and Maggie, b. 30 Nov. 1894.

WILLIAMSON, ROBERT, Private, No. 14054, 1st Battn. Royal Scots (Lothian Regt.) served with the Expeditionary Force in France, etc.; killed in action at Voorstraat, 30 Jan. 1915.

WILLIAMSON, ROBERT HAMILTON, 2nd Lieut., 118th Heavy Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery, only surv. s. of Dr. George Williamson, of 256, Union Street, Aberdeen, by his wife, Constance, dau. of A. H. Gunn; b. Stonehaven, co. Kincardine, 27 Sept. 1893; educ. Glenalmond, and was gazetted 2nd Lieut. 3rd (City of Aberdeen) Battery, 1st Highland Brigade, R.F.A. (T.F.), June, 1911, and promoted Lieut. ... June, 1913. After being attd. for a year to a Regular Battery of Field Artillery, he gained a commission in the Royal Garrison Artillery at the Military Competitive Examination in April, 1914, and was gazetted to the 118th Heavy Battery, R.G.A., 10 June following. He left for France early in Nov. 1914, and died in the Allied Force Base Hospital, Boulogne, 27 Dec. 1914, of wounds received at Fauquissart, near Laventie, on the 6th, while making a sketch of the enemy’s position for his battery from an advanced observation post in a ruined church tower; unm. Buried Allenvale Cemetery, Aberdeen. The commanding officer, 8th Brigade of Heavy Artillery, in which he served, wrote: “I had a great personal liking for him and thought very highly of him, both professionally and as regards his general disposition and demeanour with his other brother officers and the men, who all liked him;” and the officer commanding his battery wrote: “I shall never forget your boy, either for his own personal qualities or for what he had done for the battery.”

WILLINGALE, SIDNEY GEORGE, Petty Officer (N.S.), 197386, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLIS, GEORGE, Private, R.M.L.I., Po./12561, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILLIS, THOMAS, A.B. (R.F.R., Ch. B. 3672), 160183, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILLIS, WILLIAM BRIAN DE LAVAL, Corpl., No. 12289, 3rd Auckland Regt. (Countess of Ranfurly’s Own), New Zealand Expeditionary Force, eldest s. of the Ven. William Newcombe de Laval Willis, formerly for 35 years Vicar of Cambridge and Archdeacon of Waikato, New Zealand, by his wife, Mary Agnes, dau. of the late G. H. Clarke, of Micheldever, Hants, England; b. the Vicarage, Cambridge, New Zealand, 17 May, 1888; educ. the Cambridge District High School and St. John’s Collegiate School, Auckland; entered the Survey Department of the New Zealand Government in Feb. 1906. When war broke out in Aug. 1914, he obtained leave to temporarily resign his post and enlisted as a Private in the 3rd Auckland Regt., of which he was immediately made Corpl. He left New Zealand with the First Expeditionary Force 16 Oct. 1914, took part in the repulse of the Turkish attack on the Suez Canal in Feb. 1915, and in the landing at Gaba Tepe on April 25 and for 10 days was in the thick of the fight. On May 5 when re-embarking with 400 others for Cape Helles he was shot in the lungs. After considerable delay he reached Alexandria on 10 May, but died at the Deaconess Hospital there two days later; unm. He was buried in the Military Cemetery at Alexandria. His Colonel (Plugge) was near him when wounded, and helped temporarily to dress his wounds. Writing subsequently, he described him as “an ideal soldier, and as plucky as could be,” and said also that “he had done magnificent work.” One of his comrades wrote: “You would feel proud if you could hear the way all his men spoke of him, and they all said the same.” The Prime Minister of New Zealand writing as Minister of Lands said, “As an officer of the Lands and Survey Department he showed the greatest promise, and his assiduity to his responsible duties occasions a great loss not only to the Public Service, but also to the Dominion.” The Under-Secretary wrote also “His record in the Department was of the highest.” In the district in which he was last engaged in survey work, a public movement was made, and a memorial brass erected in the Manganui Hospital, and a number of beds attached to the Memorial.

WILLS, GEORGE EDWARD LEONARD, Stoker, 1st Class, K. 11282, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

EARDLEY-WILMOT, FREDERICK LAWRENCE, Lieut., Princess Patricia’s Canadian L.I., only s. of Col. Arthur Eardley-Wilmot, of Westernlea, Westward Ho! and Hales Hall, Cheadle, co. Staffordshire, late R.F.A., by his wife, Mary Blanche, only dau. of Clement Thomas Sneyd-Kynnersley, of Loxley Park, and Highfields, co. Stafford, and grandson of Major-Gen. Frederick Marrow Eardley-Wilmot, R.A. [2nd son of Sir John Eardley-Wilmot, 1st Bart.]; b. Portsmouth, 25 Feb. 1895; educ. Cheltenham and Toronto University (Oct. 1913 to Aug. 1914); volunteered on the outbreak of war and was gazetted Lieut., P.P.C.L.I. 22 Sept. 1914; came over with the first contingent in Oct. 1914; was appointed Machine Gun Officer, Feb.; went to France when his regt. joined the 20th Brigade (27th Division), and was killed in action in the trenches at St. Eloi, 18 March, 1915; unm.

WILMSHURST, WILLIAM JESSE, Driver, No. 826, 1/3rd Kent (Fortress) Royal Engineers (T.F.), eldest s. of Jesse Wilmshurst, of 15, Standen Street, St. John’s, Tunbridge Wells, Engine Steerer for Kelsey’s, brewers, by his wife, Catherine, dau. of Charles Hallett; b. Tunbridge Wells, 3 Sept. 1895; educ. at St. John’s Boys’ School there; was working at Kelsey’s, brewers, when mobilised; joined the Kent (Fortress) R.E. Oct. 1911; left England for the Dardanelles, and was drowned on H.M.S. Hythe, 28 Oct. 1915, when that ship was sunk in the Ægean Sea; unm. Major Ruston, himself saved from the ship, wrote: “The whole event was so sudden and so unexpected, and the time the Hythe remained afloat after the collision was so short, that it is practically impossible to say what happened to individual men. Many of the drivers must have been injured in the collision, as the other vessel struck their part of our vessel, and brought down our foremast.... From what I know of the drivers, and your son in particular, I am sure he died bravely.” His brother, Albert Edward Wilmshurst, was also on the Hythe, but was rescued.

WILSON, ALBERT PATTERSON, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 6304), 224462, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914; m.

WILSON, ALLAN, A.B. (R.F.R., Ch. B. 9740), 205388, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILSON, DOUGLAS HENRY VERNON, Lieut., R.N., H.M.S. Bulwark, yst. s. of the late Charles Pooley Wilson, formerly Lieut. Indian Navy, and Principal Officer of the Board of Trade, London District, by his wife, Claudia Wilson (Highland Road, Upper Norwood, S.E.), dau. of James T. Secretan; b. Upper Norwood, 19 Dec. 1885; educ. Dulwich College and H.M.S. Britannia (where he won Champion Featherweight Cup in Boxing, Aug. 1901); entered the Navy as a Naval Cadet on H.M.S. Formidable, 15 Sept. 1901, became Midshipman, 30 Nov. 1901; Sub-Lieut. 30 April, 1905; and Lieut. 1 Oct. 1907; served the whole of her first commission on H.M.S. Formidable on Mediterranean Station; when Lieut. on H.M.S. Venus attended Mr. Winston Churchill as A.D.C. to Mombasa, and on the same ship went to Quebec for the Tercentenary Festival in 1908; appointed to H.M.S. Glory 30 Oct. 1913; transferred to H.M.S. Bulwark 29 July, 1914; and was lost when that ship was blown up off Sheerness on the morning of 26 Nov. following. He m. at Weymouth, 17 Oct. 1914, Evelyn Maud, dau. of Thomas Charles Hooman, of Lilliput, Dorset; s.p.

WILSON, EDWARD HENRY, Rifleman, No. 2056, 9th Battn. (Queen Victoria’s Rifles) The London Regt. (T.F.), only s. of Henry Edward Wilson, of 45, Durham Road, East Finchley, by his wife, Alice, dau. of Robert Pritty; b. Tufnell Park, N., 17 May, 1895; educ. Owen’s School, Islington, and on leaving school, entered the Head Office of the London City and Midland Bank; volunteered on the outbreak of war and joined the Queen Victoria’s Rifles, Aug. 1914; left for France 4 Nov. following, being attached to the machine-gun section of his battn.; took part in the capture of Hill 60, when the machine-gun section of the Q.V.R.’s rendered excellent service; and was killed in action by shell fire near Wieltje, at the beginning of the Second Battle of Ypres, 24 April, 1915. Buried in the garden of a cottage 200 yards S.E. Battn. H.Q., Wieltje. His officer, Lieut. Brian Fargus, who was himself killed on New Year’s Day, wrote in Dec. 1914: “Wilson accompanies me voluntarily whenever I go out on a prowl round the lines or up to some dangerous point. He knows no fear and has turned himself into my bodyguard; he is a splendid fellow and I think no end of him.” And the Sergt. in charge of the machine-gun section wrote of his fearlessness of danger and conscientious attention to duty, and of the very good work he had done at Hill 60. He was a member of the Blackheath Harriers and had won a number of prizes at athletic meetings; he was also a keen cricketer and football player and an enthusiastic yachtsman.

WILSON, ENNIS NORMAN, A.B. (R.F.R., Ch. B. 9005), 196524, H.M.S. Cressy, lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILSON, ERNEST, Private, R.M.L.I., Ch./16978, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

WILSON, EWEN HOLMES HUMPHREY JAMES, Lieut., 1st Battn. The Black Watch (Royal Highlanders), only s. of the late James Humphrey Wilson, of Shona, Ayr, by his wife, Katherine Campbell, dau. of John Gordon MacMillan; b. Ayr, 18 June, 1892; educ. Harrow; gazetted 2nd Lieut. 14 Feb. 1912; and promoted Lieut. 16 May, 1914; left for France with the Expeditionary Force in Aug. 1914, his battn. forming part of the 1st Brigade, and was killed in action at Sablonnières during the Battle of the Marne, 8 Sept, following; unm. Buried at Sablonnières. His Major wrote: “His Coy. will miss him, and so do we all, as he had endeared himself to all his brother officers and comrades,” and a corpl. in his platoon: “He died leading the men who adored him.” At Harrow he played cricket and football for his house, and was a Colour-Sergt. in the O.T.C. at Sandhurst.

WILSON, GEORGE, Stoker, H.M.S Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILSON, HARRY, Private, No. 1278, 14th Battn. Australian Imperial Force; served in Egypt and at the Dardanelles; killed in action, 27 April 1915.

WILSON, HARRY, Leading Seaman, 233319, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILSON, HUGH STANLEY, 2nd Lieut., 8th Battn. Worcestershire Regt. (T.F.), 4th s. of the Rev. James Maurice Wilson, D.D., Canon of Worcester, formerly Head Master of Clifton College, and afterwards Vicar of Rochdale and Archdeacon of Manchester, by his wife, Georgina Mary, dau. of the late Admiral John Talbot; b. at the School House, Clifton College, Bristol, 28 Nov. 1885; educ. Clifton College and King’s College, Cambridge; was an assistant Master at Rugby School; volunteered on the outbreak of war and joined the 8th Worcesters as a Private in Aug. 1914; was given a commission as 2nd Lieut., 29 Oct. following, and was killed in action in France, 14 Sept. 1915. Buried in the English Military Cemetery, Hébuterne, Pas de Calais, France; unm.

WILSON, JAMES, Stoker, 1st Class (R.F.R., B. 10493), S.S. 108189, H.M.S. Hawke, s. of James Wilson, of 63, Britannia Street, Belfast; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

WILSON, JOHN, Private, R.M.L.I. (R.F.R., Ch. 15442), H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914; m.

WILSON, JOHN JOSEPH DEXTER, Boy, 1st Class, J. 27512 (Ports.), H.M.S. Hawke, s. of Joseph Wilson, of 22, High Street, Waterloo, Pilsley, co. Derby; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

WILSON, ROBERT, Private, R.M.L.I., Ports. 7473, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WILSON, ROBERT SYM, Capt., 1st Battn. Seaforth Highlanders, eldest s. of the late Andrew Hay Wilson, Agent, Royal Bank of Scotland, Leith, by his wife, Anne Wood (11, Drummond Place, Edinburgh), dau. of Christopher Wood, of Leith; b. Leith, 17 Nov. 1876; educ. Edinburgh Academy and Trinity College, Glenalmond, Perth; gazetted 2nd Lieut. 1st Seaforth Highlanders from the Militia, Dec 1897, and promoted Lieut. 9 Dec. 1899, and Capt. 11 April, 1902; served through the South African War, 1899–1902; took part in the advance on Kimberley, including action at Magersfontein (wounded); the operations in the Orange Free State, May 8 to Jan. 1901, and Jan. to March, 1902; those in the Cape Colony, Feb. and March, 1901, and Aug. 1901 to Jan. 1902, and in the Transvaal March to Aug. 1901, and March 31 to May, 1902 (Queen’s medal with three clasps and King’s medal with two clasps). Between 1907 and 1910 he was employed as Adjutant, first to the Volunteers and afterwards to the Territorial Force. On the outbreak of war Capt. Wilson was in India with his battn. He sailed for France with the Dehra Dun Brigade (Meerut Division) of the Indian Expeditionary Force in Sept. 1914, and was killed in action at Neuve Chapelle, 8 Nov. following. He m. at Murrayfield, Midlothian, 5 Nov 1902, Harriet Evelyn (Hawthornbank, Murrayfield), 2nd dau. of the late Alfred William Pearce, of Broughty Ferry, and had three children: Andrew Ripley, b. 13 Jan. 1904; Ronald Christopher, b. 15 May, 1905; and Marjorie Anne, b. 25 July, 1912.

WILSON, SAMUEL OLSON, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 9787), S.S. 2446, H.M.S. Hogue; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WILSON, WILFRED, A.B., 212496, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

BOWES-WILSON, GEORGE HUTTON, Capt., 4th Battn. The Yorkshire Regt. (T.F.), s. of Thomas Bowes-Wilson, of Enterpen Hall, Hutton Rudby, Yorkshire; b. Newcastle-on-Tyne, 26 April, 1877; educ. Clifton College, and New College, Oxford (B.A.); joined the 4th Territorial Battn. of the Yorkshires from the Volunteers on the organisation of the Territorial Force in 1907, and was promoted Capt. 1 March, 1913; volunteered for foreign service on the outbreak of war; and was killed in action, near Ypres, 17 June, 1915. Buried at Vlamertinghe. He m. at St. Peter’s Church, Harrogate, 29 Sept. 1908, Nora Dulcie, only child of the late Herbert Linney, and had a son, Maurice Desmond, b. 6 June, 1912, d. 17 March, 1915.

WIMHURST, ARTHUR DANIEL, Stoker, 1st Class, 364229, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WIMSETT, FREDERICK THOMAS, Private, No. 2280, 83rd Field Ambulance, 27th Division, R.A.M.C. (T.F.), 3rd s. of William George Wimsett, of 2, Hilda Terrace, Ham Hill, Snodland, co. Kent., by his wife, Emma, dau. of Richard May; b. Larkfield, 10 Dec. 1896; educ. Snodland National School; was working at Snodland Paper Mill; joined the Territorials 2 July, 1914, and was at his first training camp on Salisbury Plain when they were ordered to return, owing to the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914. He immediately volunteered for foreign service, trained at Maidstone, Canterbury, Sittingbourne and Windsor; went to France, 6 March, 1915, and died in No. 11 General Hospital, Boulogne, 13 May, 1915, from a wound in the head, received while picking up the wounded on the 11th. He was buried in the English part of the Cemetery there.

WINDEBANK, ROBERT PERCY, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 4075), 190016, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

WINFIELD, STUART JAMES, L.-Corpl., No. 9956, 1st Battn. East Kent Regt. (The Buffs), s. of James Stratton Winfield, of 17, Boden Road, Gillingham; served with the Expeditionary Force in France, etc.; killed in action, 18 Oct. 1914.

WINDLE, JOHN, Officers’ Steward, 1st Class, L. 2085, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WING, MATTHEW, Private, R.M.L.I. (R.F.R., Ch. B. 2016), H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

WINGATE, THOMAS PATERSON, Capt., 2nd Battn. King’s Own Scottish Borderers, only s. of the late Paterson Wingate, of Glasgow, Shipbuilder, by his wife, Jessie Crawford (18, Westbourne Terrace, Glasgow), dau. of John Bruce Murray, of Glasgow; b. Woodcroft, Glasgow, 7 Feb. 1877; educ. Kelvinside Academy, Glasgow, and Glasgow University (B.Sc. 1899); gazetted 2nd Lieut. to 2nd King’s Own Scottish Borderers, then in India, 4 May, 1898, and promoted Lieut. 21 April, 1900, and Capt. 24 Jan. 1906; served in the South African War, 1899–1902, with the King’s Royal Rifle Corps; took part in the operations in Natal, 1899, including actions at Rietfontein and Lombard’s Kop; the defence of Ladysmith, including action on 6 Jan. 1900; operations in Natal, March-June, 1900; in the Transvaal, east of Pretoria, July to 29 Nov. 1900, and in the Transvaal, 30 Nov. 1900, to March, 1901; and was Railway Staff Officer (graded Staff Lieut.), 4 May, 1900, to 4 May, 1901, and Military Landing Officer (graded Staff Capt.), 5 Sept. 1901, to 30 June, 1903 (mentioned in Despatches [London Gazette, 8 Feb. 1901], Queen’s medal with two clasps and King’s medal with two clasps). At the close of the war he joined his regt. in India and returned with it to Glasgow; and from 9 March, 1912, to 9 March, 1915, was Adjutant to the 3rd (Reserve) Battn. at the Depôt, Berwick-on-Tweed, and after mobilisation in Aug. 1914, at Portland. He went to France, 16 March, 1915, in charge of a draft for the 2nd Battn., which had formed part of the first Expeditionary Force (13th Brigade, 5th Division), and was killed in action at Hill 60, 18 April, 1915, the day after the 2nd King’s Own Scottish Borderers and the 1st West Kents had stormed the Hill; unm. Col. Sladen, D.S.O., commanding 2nd King’s Own Scottish Borderers, himself wounded on this occasion, wrote: “He was such a brilliant soldier and such a good comrade in every way. His loss is a great loss to the regt., and the Army can ill afford to lose such as he was. Hill 60 has indeed taken a heavy toll of this regt.” And the following appeared in the Regimental Orders, 23 April, 1915: “It is with very great regret that the commanding officer has to announce to the battn. the death of Captain T. P. Wingate, the late Adjutant, who was killed in action on 18 April, 1915. In his magnificent soldierly qualities and his self-sacrificing devotion to duty the late Capt. Wingate has set a standard which all ranks may well endeavour to attain.”