War hero ancestor of Duncan Edwards killed in pub accident
A GROUP of Black Country local history enthusiasts have uncovered the story of a Great War soldier, a cousin of the football legend Duncan Edwards, who was killed in a tragic accident while on sick leave. Although he was given a full military funeral in Brierley Hill, his name does not appear on the Dudley or Brierley Hill war memorials and the group is now beginning efforts to have his name inscribed.
2nd Lieutenant Harry Edwards was the first cousin twice removed of the great Duncan Edwards. Harry was recovering from being gassed in the trenches and was enjoying a brief spell of home leave when he met up with his cousin John Joseph Edwards, Duncan’s grandfather. Harry suffered a fall, fracturing his skull, and despite being rushed to the military hospital at Wordsley, he died within a few hours.
David Barratt, researcher with the Duncan Edwards Foundation, and James Hadley, a Great War researcher and family historian with the Dudley Archives, have uncovered the story of Harry Edwards’s life and military career, while Roger Scriven and the volunteers of the Chapel Street Housing Forum have cleared Harry’s grave at the South Street Baptist Church graveyard in Brierley Hill.
Harry Edwards was born in Brierley Hill on May 29, 1885. His parents were George Edwards, who originally came from the Belbroughton area, and Mary Plant, a native of Brierley Hill.
The 1901 census shows the family living at number 17, Delph – George was then 49 and Mary 47 and they had seven children: Harry (15), Walter (14), Trevor (11), Harriet (9), Joe (7), Violet (6) and Bert (2).
On August 15, 1904, Harry joined the Royal Navy and served in the Royal Marines Light Infantry. In 1904 he was listed with the Plymouth Division and over the next 10 years he was awarded prize money for assisting in the capture of hoodlums, as well as being stationed at Argyll, Donegal and Gibraltar. He appears in the Royal Navy census of 1911, aged 25, single, as a private in the RMLI.
On February 15, 1912, Harry was invalided out of the Royal Navy and placed on the Royal Navy reserve. His character throughout his service is deemed very good and he received two service medals – the Africa General Service Medal with Somaliland 1908-10 Clasp, part of the long campaign against the Dervishes led by Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, and the Navla General Service Medal with Persian Gulf 1909-14 Clasp, for operations against pirates and slavers in the region.
Rejoining
Little is known of Harry’s time between leaving the Royal Marines and the start of the First World War. He answered the call to arms but instead of rejoining the Royal Marines he signed on with the South Staffordshire Regiment.
James Hadley writes: “Harry’s medal index card and corresponding rolls show us that he entered service as a corporal (regimental number 10083) with the 7th battalion South Staffordshire Regiment at Theatre 2b, Gallipoli and the Aegean Islands, on July 21, 1915. His rolls also suggest a moved to 2nd Battalion South Staffs at some point and a promotion to lance-sergeant, before he was discharged to commission on June 26, 1917.
“Speculating that if the transfer to the 2nd Battalion was in line with the 7th Battalion’s extraction from the Dardanelles, it is likely that Harry served at the Somme, which is supported by a newspaper article, and at Arras, maybe with the 2nd Battalion in 2nd Division during 1916 and into 1917, and potentially as an officer in the 2/6th Battalion South Staffs attached to 59th (North Midlands) Division at Ypres and Cambrai.
“It is this later location, Cambrai Operations and the Battle of Bourlon Wood, where Harry was likely gassed, as mentioned in local newspapers. We can pin down this event to the most likely dates of November 30 or December 1, 1917, during the German counterattack.
Treatment
“Harry was sent back for treatment at Eaton Hall in Cheshire sometime before Christmas 1917 and arrived back home for three weeks leave on February 12, 1918.”
Harry Edwards died at the 1st Southern Military Hospital Stourbridge (Wordsley Hospital) on February 17, 1918, following his fall in Dudley.
The inquest into Harry’s death was held in the board room at Wordsley Hospital on February 19, under the coroner Mr Gough Allen with Charles Dudley as foreman of the jury. The following report was printed in the Dudley Chronicle, February 23, 1918:
“Mary Edwards, mother of the deceased, 4, Delph, Brierley Hill, identified the body, and said he was 33 years of age and second lieutenant in the 2/6th South Staffordshire Regiment. He had seen active service in the Dardanelles and also in France. At the latter place he was gassed, and shortly before Christmas was sent home. He had received treatment at Eaton Hall, near Chester. He came home on three weeks leave on the Tuesday of last week. On Saturday last he left home at 10.30am, and said he was going to Brierley Hill to bring meat from Mr Harry Griffiths. She did not see him again alive, but saw him about four o’clock on Sunday morning at the hospital. He was then dead. Generally speaking, before he was gassed her son enjoyed good health.
“Ena Sarah Roberts, single woman, living with her parents at 13, Talbot Street, Brierley Hill, said that last Saturday she met deceased about 2.15pm, near the Five Ways, Brierley Hill. He went across to Marsh’s and fetched 2lbs of sausages for her, and then with her to her home. About 2.40 at her home he had two cups of tea and a beef sandwich, but nothing of an intoxicating nature. He stayed with her till about 5.15 at her home. Then they went by tram as far as Wellington Road, Dudley. They went to his cousin’s in that road, reaching there about 5.45. There they had tea, but nothing intoxicating. He then went out, but witness did not go with him. That would be about 6.47. Witness then went out with cousin’s wife to the Coach and Horses, Springsmire, Dudley. They went into the back kitchen. After being there a short time the deceased came in with his cousin. He paid for two glasses of port for witness and his cousin’s wife, whilst he and his cousin had beer. At about 8.40 the deceased left the room, and the accident happened almost immediately. She first heard a rumbling noise like someone tumbling downstairs, only it seemed much softer. She did not see him fall down the cellar, but thinking something had happened she ran to the cellar steps, went down, and found him lying at the bottom of the steps unconscious. She suggested that the doctor should be fetched, but ‘they’ declined to do so, because they thought he would soon get better. He was then removed to his cousin’s house. About 11.30 Dr Rhodes, who had been sent for, came, and attended him. His coat was covered with blood at the back. She took all he had in his possession from him.
“The coroner: Why did not the cousin do it?
“Witness: I do not know; they left it to me. He was then removed to the hospital, reaching there about one o’clock on the Sunday morning. Witness fetched the mother and brother to the hospital, and on their arrival she handed over deceased’s possessions to the brother.
Questions
“Answering several questions of the Coroner, witness said the deceased had on him a pocket book, a £1 Treasury note in a pocket wallet, 14s 9d in money, a note book, a cheque book, and a handkerchief. Deceased did not say where he was going when he went out of the back kitchen.
“The Coroner: Was he sober when you first met him? “Witness: Yes, sir. “The Coroner: Was he sober when he left the kitchen? “Witness: I think he was. “The Coroner: How long had you known him? “Witness: About five years. Hannah Edwards, [Duncan Edwards’s grandmother] wife of the cousin, 567 Springsmire, Dudley, said
deceased came to her house about five minutes to five, and had tea. When in the kitchen at the public house her husband was with him. Deceased seemed very jolly and was joking. She heard a noise and exclaimed. ‘Oh, Harry’s gone down the cellar.’
“The Coroner: What made you presume he had fallen down the cellar?
“Witness said she could partly tell by the noise and she knew where the door of the cellar was situated. It was exactly opposite the kitchen door, and the door of the cellar opened inwards. She went down the cellar and found deceased lying on his back, bleeding from the back of the head. She did not hear anyone refuse to send for the doctor.
Soldier
“The Coroner asked the mother: Was your son a soldier before the war?
“The mother: No sir; he joined at the outbreak of the war.
[Strictly speaking, Harry Edwards was not a soldier before the war; he was a Royal Marine. The coroner then tries to clarify this point]
“The Coroner: Well, was he a member of the Army or Navy before the war?
“The mother: He joined the Royal Marines when he was 18.
“The Coroner: has he ever been decorated?
“The mother: Yes; he had two medals before the war.
“The Coroner: Did he get a decoration in this war? “The mother: No, sir. “The Coroner: But I understand he got a commission as an officer. “The mother: Yes. “The Coroner said: He has served his country well and has fine record. This man was a soldier before the war. He has done extremely good service before this war in the Marines, and he
has done splendidly during this war.
William Carrington, proprietor of the Coach and Horses, said he had never seen deceased before he came to the house that night. He purchased two half-pints of ale – one for him and one for his companion, and later was supplied with two more half-pints. At about quarter-past eight witness was told someone had fallen down the steps into the cellar. He went down and found deceased lying on his back, with his feet propped up against the steps and his head on the floor. He was not conscious, and was removed to Mr Edwards’s (his cousin’s). Then the doctor was sent for.
“The Coroner: Was a proposition made while deceased was down the steps for a doctor to be sent for?
“Witness: My wife suggested that the doctor should be immediately summoned, and I said ‘Yes, it would be the best course to take.’
“The Coroner: Although you thought it was the best thing to fetch a doctor, you did not do it? “Witness: Well, there was no time. “The Coroner: What! Do you mean that there was no time from the time the accident occurred till he was taken to Mr Edwards’s? “Witness made no reply. “Supt Tucker: What time was he taken from the premises? “Witness: About 8.20. “The Coroner: Surely he was not taken from the cellar within five minutes after the accident occurred? “Witness: Well, ten minutes, sir. “The Coroner: Well, we’ll have it at five and twenty past eight, then. Did anyone see him fall down the cellar?
“Witness: No, sir; I don’t think anyone did.
“The Foreman of the Jury: Was the cellar door left open? “Witness: No, sir; it was latched. “The Coroner: How do you know? “Witness: Well, I don’t know, but it usually is.
“The Coroner: Supposing the
young man had wanted to go out of the kitchen for any purpose, would he have any difficulty finding his way?
“Witness: Well, he could easily mistake the cellar door for the yard door.
“Sister Edith Annie Owen, nurse at the hospital, said deceased was admitted at 1.15 on Sunday morning, suffering from a fracture of the skull. He died about 3.45 the same morning. Death supervened in consequence of the fracture of the skull.
“The Coroner said it was rather unfortunate these days, when men were wanted, that such a thing should have happened. But there it was, and what the jury had to do was to make an enquiry and ascertain what the cause of death was. He did not think they would have very much difficulty in coming to a verdict. He thought they would agree with him that it was accidental purely.
Accidental death
“The jury returned a verdict of ‘Accidental death.’”
It does appear to have been an unfortunate accident. Harry Edwards lived through pre-war service in Somalia and the Persian Gulf; he survived the Gallipoli campaign and years of trench warfare in France; but after a couple of drinks (two halfpints of ale) he mistook a door in a Dudley pub and fell down the cellar stairs, fracturing his skull.
Harry Edwards’s funeral in Brierley Hill was on a large scale, as reported in the local press:
“Never has a bigger crowd been known to assemble at a funeral at Brierley Hill than that which gathered in and around the South Street Baptist burial ground on Saturday afternoon last, when the remains of the late Second-lieutenant Harry Edwards, of 4, The Delph, were laid in their last resting place.
“Roughly estimated, there were between 2,000 and 3,000 people present. They were particularly orderly and the service was of the most impressive character. The deceased officer was buried with full military honours. His coffin was covered with the Union Jack, and upon the top of this were placed the deceased’s cap and belt.
“A firing party, in charge of Lieutenant D. Ormond-dobbin, numbering 29, and including several men wearing wounded stripes (one man wearing as many as five), two privates wearing the Military Medal ribbon, another the DCO, and a third the Mons Star, was present from the Lichfield depot of the South Staffordshire Regiment, to which the deceased soldier was attached. Several local men home on leave also attended as a mark of respect. These included Sergeant Major Bird, Sergeant Headley, Sergeant Turley, Sergeant Whittaker, Corporal Bridgen, and Private Price.
“The service was conducted by the Rev C.G. Gillingham. The hymns, Jesu, Lover of my Soul and Lead, Kindly Light, were sung in the Church, Miss Wright accompanying at the organ.
“In a brief tribute to the deceased officer, the Pastor spoke of the deceased’s early connection with the church and school, saying that he was an old scholar of the Sunday School, and a member of the Young Men’s Bible Class. He (the Rev C.G. Gillingham) was a stranger to the district and could not speak from personal knowledge, but he had been told by teachers of the school of the high regard Lieutenant Edwards had always been held by both teachers and the members of the church and school. Speaking of the deceased officer’s military career, the rev gentleman said that Lieutenant Edwards had served his country well, and had brought great honour to his native place. He was sure that the hearts of everyone present went out with the deepest sympathy for the bereaved father and mother of the deceased.
“After the committal service had been said at the graveside, the firing party fired three volleys, and then the bugler sounded the Last Post.
“The mourners were: Mr Trevor Edwards, Mr Bert Edwards, Masters Harold and Sydney Edwards (brothers), Mr Fred Phillips, Mr Arthur Jones (brothers-in-law), Mr William Randle, Mr William Plant (uncles), Mr William Timmins, Mr W. Plant, Mr Thomas Ratcliffe, Corporal Oliver Plant, Private W. Plant (cousins).
“The bearers were members of the firing party.
Tributes
“Beautiful floral tributes were sent by: Mother and Dad; Walter and Nellie; Trevor and Kate; Harriet and Fred (Clent); Bert and Annie; Violet and Arthur; Henry, Joe and Phoebe; Uncle Will Plant, Aunt Alice and family; Mr and Mrs J. Kidd and friends; Aunt Margaret and Uncle Will; Aunt Sarah and Uncle Jim; Mr and Mrs Male; Friends from the Duke William Inn; Mrs Jones and family; Mr and Mrs Fradgley; Mr and Mrs Brookes and family; Cousin Fanny; Walter and Jacob; Mr and Mrs Carrington (Coach and Horses, Springmere, Dudley); Mrs Farmer; Family of the late Mr Timmins; Mr and Mrs Ratcliffe (cousins); Mr Chance.”
David Barratt and his colleague eill now begin the process by which Harry Edwards’s name can be added to the appropriate war memorials and the Chapel Street Housing Forum are seeking assistance towards the cleaning of Harry’s war grave headstone.
The research into Harry’s story has taken several years but in all that time not one photograph of Harry Edwards has been found. Given the extensive Edwards family, it is hoped that one exists somewhere. If you know of a photograph, please get in touch with the Black Country Bugle.