William Herbert Carr

12th June 1886 – 20th September 1917

Company Sergeant Major William Herbert Carr, Regimental Number 320974, was killed in action on the Western Front near St. Julien on the 20th September 1917. He is commemorated on the Menin Gate, Belgium.

Hardships and Celebrations

They married in Portsmouth towards the end of 1884. Their first child was William George Henry   who was born in 1885 in Portsmouth but contracted jaundice 7 days after birth and died at the age of 8 weeks.

Helena and William George Rendell’s second child was born surprisingly soon after this tragedy. It was not uncommon to use the deceased’s name for a subsequent child and so a second William—William Herbert—arrived on Saturday, 12th June, 1886.

Daughter Helena Daisy followed on 20th September 1887, born in Portsmouth. The last of the Carr brood was Gladys Lilian, born in the Summer of 1894 at Portsmouth.

Sheerness OS Six-inch map, 1906 revision. Maple Street is bottom right. Reproduced by permission. National Library of Scotland.

William obviously had promise in his teaching apprenticeship and in 1904 he took up a new post as Assistant Teacher at Emsworth National School, just to the east of the Portsmouth and Havant conurbations. The school was a small mixed elementary with an attendance of around 150 pupils. In December 1905 he achieved a first class pass in his Preliminary Examination for the Elementary School Teachers’ Certificate. He also had been successful in the following additional subjects: Practical and Theoretical Inorganic Chemistry, Physiography, Mathematics, and Freehand and Geometrical Drawing.

The day after William’s 20th birthday, we read the sad news that his father was admitted to West Sussex County Lunatic Asylum, Chichester³ (13th June, 1906). We don’t know of the nature of WGR’s illness, or how long it had been presenting, though it appears he was still well enough to hold down his naval position in 1901 when he was stationed at Sheerness, Isle of Sheppey, Kent. His stay in the asylum was brief: the Admission Register records his death on 9th November, 1906.

Extract from Lunacy Patients Admission Register, 1846-1912

In his third and final year of teaching at Emsworth School, William passed his Certificate Examination (December 1907) and this enabled him to apply for a training college place.

 

 

To War

All of William’s military records other than his medal index card are missing, presumed destroyed—not an uncommon state of affairs. He joined the 2/6th (City of London) Battalion (Rifles) probably shortly after the declaration of war.

William’s Battalion at Watford, 1915

His original Regimental Number was 2957. These were issued in order and we know that 2375 joined on 3rd September 1914 and 3164 joined on 6th October 1914, so 27th September or thereabouts is probable.

The regiment was formed at Farringdon Road in London in August 1914 before moving in October to a large country house, Mount Felix, Walton-on-Thames, then Burgess Hill in November.

In May 1915 it was moved to Norwich and to Ipswich the following month, then Stowmarket and Sudbury before a final move to Warminster, Wiltshire, in July 1916.

Finally, on 25 January 1917, the battalion landed at Le Havre and saw action at Bullecourt, but it is to the Battle of the Menin Road Ridge, part of the prolonged and bloody Third Battle of Ypres, that we must turn.

On 20 September 1917 the 2/6th Battalion took part in a successful attack at St Julien. Its job on the day was to leap-frog through the 2/8th and 2/5th Battalions who were tasked to make the initial attacks, and then turn right to attack the German lines in flank with the support of tanks. This was a new tactic and proved successful. The earlier waves, having gained their objective would stop and consolidate their positions and act as reserves for those leap-frogging them to the next objective. With effective artillery support this prevented the usual and immediate German counter-attack against tired men defending poorly prepared positions.

All the objectives were quickly taken, together with numerous prisoners, and with relatively few casualties; these were mainly from the German defensive barrage. As the battalion consolidated its gains, messages sent by dog and carrier-pigeon brought down supporting artillery fire on any German troops seen attempting to form up for counter-attacks.

It was during this action that William met his death. We have no circumstantial details, but he fell just north-east of St. Julien. He is remembered on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial in Belgium.^{8 9}

Researcher and Author: John Vickers