All ten brothers signed up to join the nation’s fight
THERE were 10 brothers in the povertystricken Calpin family – and all of them signed up to fight in the conflict.
They were the largest single family to serve in the First World War, and their relatives believe it is high time they were honoured with a memorial.
The brothers were aged between 18 and 37 when they enlisted in 1914.
Nine of them survived the horrors but the eldest, John, died in 1916, shortly after being gassed in France.
George V hailed the brothers when they enlisted. But John’s grave, in a remote part of a cemetery in their home city of York, is the only place any of the men’s service is commemorated.
It is thought the rest of the brothers, Patrick, James, William, Martin, Thomas, Arthur, Henry, Ernest and David, were buried in unmarked graves.
Michael Calpin, 68, a grandson of Able Seaman Ernest, is calling for a permanent memorial.
The retired sheet metal worker said: “John is the only one to have any physical presence that proves any of the brothers existed. He was given a war commissioned grave which meant the Army paid for his headstone.
“The rest were buried in paupers’ graves which are unmarked. Their achievement has gone unrecognised.
“It would be nice to have a plaque in honour of the sacrifice they made.
“When they came back from the war they were completely forgotten. For 10 brothers to sign up is a unique thing which will never happen again.”