Gone But Not Forgotten

Frank Merrett (1873–1915)

Frank Merrett was born in Hambledon on 20 April 1873. Growing up in rural Hampshire in the late Victorian period, he would have witnessed the rapid changes of an expanding empire and a Royal Navy that stood at the heart of Britain’s global power. Like many men from the south coast, he chose a life at sea.

Merrett joined the Royal Navy and rose to the rank of Engine Room Artificer (ERA), a skilled and responsible position within a ship’s engineering department. Engine Room Artificers were highly trained specialists, entrusted with maintaining and operating the complex machinery that powered modern warships — work that demanded technical ability, discipline, and long hours below decks.

By the time of the First World War, he was serving aboard HMS Viknor. On 13 January 1915, during the early and uncertain months of the war at sea, he died while in service. His death was recorded as occurring by means other than disease, accident, or direct enemy action — a reminder that naval service carried many hazards beyond the battlefield itself.

Unlike many sailors lost at sea, Frank Merrett was laid to rest ashore. He is buried in Tinmson’s Plot (24.1) at Portsea Burial Ground, St Mary’s Road, Portsmouth — close to one of the Navy’s principal ports.

He left behind his widow, Charlotte A. Merrett, of 41 Knox Road, Stamshaw, Portsmouth.

Frank Merrett’s life reflects the close connection between Hambledon and the sea. Though born in a rural village, his service carried him into the wider world and into the great conflict that reshaped a generation. He is remembered as one of Hambledon’s sons who served during the First World War.

Bertram Rees Young (1897–1915)

Bertram Rees Young was born in Hambledon, Hampshire on 26 May 1897. He grew up in the village during the final years of the Victorian era, part of a generation that would come of age just as Europe descended into war.

He joined the Royal Navy as an Ordinary Seaman, one of the youngest ranks in the service. At just eighteen years old, he was serving aboard HMS Emperor of India, a powerful battleship of the Grand Fleet tasked with maintaining Britain’s naval supremacy during the First World War.

Bertram died on 8 September 1915. His death was recorded as occurring by means other than disease, accident, or direct enemy action — a reminder that service at sea carried constant danger, even away from the immediate presence of battle. Unlike many sailors of the war, his body was returned home.

He is buried in Curdridge Churchyard, near Botley in Hampshire.

His mother, Harriett Young, was notified of his death. She was living at The Gardens, Park Place, Wickham, Hampshire.

Bertram Rees Young was only eighteen years old when he died. His story reflects the sacrifice of a very young generation — men barely out of boyhood who answered the call to serve and whose lives were cut short before they had truly begun.

David Tilbury (1876–1914)

David Tilbury was born in Hambledon, Hampshire on 3 August 1876. Raised in a rural village community, he belonged to a generation for whom military service was both a livelihood and a duty. In time, he joined the Royal Marine Artillery, a corps trained to serve the heavy guns of the fleet and coastal defences.

By the outbreak of the First World War, Tilbury was serving as a Gunner. He was assigned to HMS Hogue, an armoured cruiser operating with the Royal Navy’s patrol forces in the North Sea during the opening months of the war.

On 22 September 1914, HMS Hogue was torpedoed and sunk by a German submarine during a devastating attack that also claimed two sister ships. The loss was sudden and catastrophic. David Tilbury was among those killed as a direct result of enemy action. His body was not recovered for burial, and like so many sailors lost at sea, he has no known grave.

He left behind his wife, Sarah Tilbury, who was living at Anthill Common, Denmead, near Cosham in Hampshire.

David Tilbury’s death came only weeks after the war began, in one of its first major naval tragedies. His loss is a reminder of how swiftly the conflict reached into communities like Hambledon, taking husbands, fathers, and sons into a war whose scale few could yet comprehend.

Alfred Ernest Abbinnett (1889–1915)

Alfred Ernest Abbinnett was born in Hambledon, Hampshire in 1889 and grew up within the close rural community of the village. Like many young men of his generation, he would have known agricultural work and the rhythms of village life before the outbreak of war altered the course of his future.

He enlisted in the Hampshire Regiment, joining one of the county’s historic infantry regiments. By the time he went overseas, the war had settled into the harsh realities of trench warfare on the Western Front.

Alfred was killed in action on 25 September 1915 during the Battle of Loos, one of the major British offensives of that year. The fighting was intense and costly, with heavy casualties sustained in attempts to break through well-defended German positions. Amid the confusion and destruction of the battlefield, many of the fallen could not be individually recovered or identified.

He has no known grave and is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, which bears the names of thousands of soldiers who died in the sector and whose resting places are unknown.

Alfred Ernest Abbinnett was in his mid-twenties when he died. His name stands among those of his fellow villagers whose lives were cut short in the fields of France, far from the Hampshire countryside in which they had been raised.

Frederick James Pearce (–1915)

Frederick James Pearce was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later enlisted in Brighton. With the outbreak of the First World War, he joined the Royal Sussex Regiment, serving as a Private in the 9th Battalion (Regimental Number G/3009).

The 9th Battalion was part of Kitchener’s New Army and served on the Western Front. Like many volunteer battalions raised in 1914, it was composed largely of men who had answered the call early in the war and were sent to France after months of training in Britain.

Frederick James Pearce was killed in action on 25 September 1915 while serving with the British Expeditionary Force in the Western European Theatre. This date falls during the Battle of Loos, one of the major British offensives of 1915, marked by heavy fighting and significant losses.

He was one of many Hambledon-born men whose lives were cut short on the battlefields of France. His service and sacrifice form part of the wider story of a village deeply affected by a war fought far beyond its fields and lanes.

Charles George Wield (–1918)

Charles George Wield was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later resided in Merrow, Guildford. At the outbreak of the First World War, he enlisted in Guildford, Surrey.

He served with the Royal Garrison Artillery, holding the rank of P.L.Bdr. (Permanent Lance Bombardier), and bore the regimental number 88591. The Royal Garrison Artillery was responsible for heavy guns and coastal defence batteries, and its units were heavily engaged on the Western Front throughout the war.

Charles George Wield was killed in action on 25 May 1918 while serving in France and Flanders. By the spring of 1918, the Western Front was in the midst of intense fighting following the German Spring Offensive, with artillery units playing a vital role in both defence and counter-attack.

His death came in the final year of the war, during a period of sustained and costly operations. His name stands among those born in Hambledon who served in different arms of the British Army and whose lives were lost on the battlefields of Europe.

George Beckett (–1918)

George Beckett was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later enlisted at Fareham. During the First World War he served as a Sapper in the Royal Engineers, regimental number WR/266884.

He was attached to the Railways section of the Royal Engineers, a specialist branch responsible for constructing, repairing, and operating railway lines behind the front. Military railways were vital to the war effort, ensuring the steady movement of troops, artillery, ammunition, and supplies to and from the front lines.

George Beckett died on 9 July 1918 while serving in France and Flanders. His death occurred during the final year of the war, a period marked by intense fighting as Allied forces resisted and then countered major German offensives.

Though railway troops often worked some distance behind the immediate front line, their duties were carried out under constant risk from shellfire and air attack. George Beckett’s service reflects the essential — and often overlooked — contribution of the Royal Engineers in sustaining the armies in the field.

He is remembered among the men of Hambledon whose service took them to the Western Front and whose lives were lost during the conflict.

William Tribe (–1915)

William Tribe was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later resided at Old Blendworth, Hampshire. He enlisted at Gosport and joined the Hampshire Regiment, serving as a Private in the 1st Battalion (Regimental Number 9403).

The 1st Battalion was a regular army unit that had been deployed to the Western Front from the early months of the war. It was engaged in heavy fighting throughout 1914 and 1915 as the war settled into trench warfare across France and Flanders.

William Tribe was killed in action on 26 April 1915 while serving in France and Flanders. This period saw intense fighting during the Second Battle of Ypres, when British units faced sustained attack and endured significant casualties.

His death came in the second year of the war, far from the Hampshire countryside in which he had been born. William Tribe is remembered among the men connected with Hambledon whose service in the Hampshire Regiment cost them their lives on the Western Front.

Ernest Reed (–1916)

Ernest Reed was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later enlisted in Portsmouth. During the First World War he served as a Private in the 14th (Service) Battalion of the Hampshire Regiment (Regimental Number 12664).

The 14th Battalion was one of the Service battalions raised during the expansion of the Army in 1914–1915. After training in Britain, it was deployed to the Western Front, where it became engaged in the sustained trench warfare that characterised much of the conflict in France and Flanders.

Ernest Reed was killed in action on 3 September 1916. His death occurred during the Battle of the Somme, one of the largest and most costly offensives of the war. Throughout the late summer of 1916, battalions of the Hampshire Regiment were involved in repeated assaults against strongly defended German positions.

He was one of many Hambledon-born men who left Hampshire to serve overseas and did not return. His name stands among those of his fellow villagers who lost their lives during the long and devastating struggle on the Western Front.

William George Pearce (–1917)

William George Pearce was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later resided in Upham, Hampshire. He enlisted in Winchester and joined the Hampshire Regiment, serving as a Private in the 15th (Service) Battalion (Regimental Number 26889).

The 15th Battalion was one of the wartime Service battalions raised as part of the Army’s expansion. After training in Britain, it was deployed to the Western Front, where it took part in the prolonged and costly campaigns fought across France and Flanders.

William George Pearce was killed in action on 20 September 1917 while serving in the Western European Theatre. This date falls during the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele), a campaign marked by difficult ground conditions, sustained artillery fire, and heavy casualties on both sides.

His death came during one of the most demanding phases of the war on the Western Front. William George Pearce is remembered among those born in Hambledon whose service carried them to France and whose lives were lost in the conflict.

Albert Charles Mitchell (–1918)

Albert Charles Mitchell was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and enlisted at Gosport. During the First World War he served as a Private in the 1st/4th (Territorial Force) Battalion of the Hampshire Regiment (Regimental Number 38306).

The 1st/4th Battalion was a Territorial unit that saw service overseas during the war. Unlike many Hampshire battalions that served exclusively on the Western Front, this battalion was deployed to other theatres of war as part of Britain’s wider imperial commitments.

Albert Charles Mitchell died on 17 October 1918 while serving in India. His theatre of war is recorded as the Asiatic Theatres. Although far removed from the trench warfare of France and Flanders, service overseas carried its own hardships, including climate, disease, and the strains of prolonged deployment.

His death came only weeks before the end of the war in November 1918. Albert Charles Mitchell is remembered among the Hambledon-born men whose service extended beyond Europe and whose lives were lost during the global conflict.

William Edward Daniels (–1917)

William Edward Daniels was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later resided in Southwick, Hampshire. He enlisted at Gosport and served as a Private in the Coldstream Guards (Regimental Number 20706).

The Coldstream Guards, one of the oldest regiments in the British Army, served with distinction on the Western Front throughout the war. As part of the Guards Division, its battalions were frequently engaged in major offensives and defensive actions in France and Flanders.

William Edward Daniels was killed in action on 9 October 1917 while serving in the Western European Theatre. His death occurred during the Third Battle of Ypres (Passchendaele), a campaign marked by prolonged fighting in extremely difficult conditions and heavy casualties among British and Commonwealth forces.

He is remembered among the men born in Hambledon whose service took them to the battlefields of Europe and whose lives were lost during the conflict. His sacrifice forms part of the wider story of a village profoundly affected by the First World War.

Gilbert Alfred Churcher (–1916)

Gilbert Alfred Churcher was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later resided in Wallington, Surrey. He enlisted at Croydon and joined the Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment, serving as a Private in the 7th Battalion (Regimental Number G/1853).

The 7th Battalion was one of the Service battalions raised during the expansion of the Army in 1914. After training in Britain, it was deployed to the Western Front, where it became engaged in the sustained trench warfare that defined much of the conflict in France and Flanders.

Gilbert Alfred Churcher was killed in action on 1 July 1916 while serving in France and Flanders. This date marks the opening day of the Battle of the Somme, one of the most costly days in the history of the British Army. Units across the front suffered extremely heavy casualties as they advanced against heavily defended German positions.

His death on that first day of the Somme places him among the thousands who fell in one of the war’s most devastating engagements. Gilbert Alfred Churcher is remembered among the men born in Hambledon whose lives were lost on the battlefields of the Western Front.

Harry Thompson (–1918)

Harry Thompson was born in Hambledon, Hampshire and later resided on Hayling Island, Hampshire. He enlisted at Portsmouth and served as a Rifleman in the Rifle Brigade, attached to the 2/10th (London) Battalion (Regimental Number 47665). He had formerly served under the number 12033 in the Royal Flying Corps.

The 2/10th Battalion was part of the London Regiment and saw service on the Western Front during the later years of the war. Rifle units were frequently engaged in front-line operations, including trench holding, raids, and offensive actions during the major Allied advances of 1918.

Harry Thompson was killed in action on 28 August 1918 while serving in France and Flanders. His death occurred during the Allied Hundred Days Offensive, a sustained series of attacks that ultimately forced the German Army into retreat in the final months of the war.

He is remembered among the men born in Hambledon whose service spanned different units and roles during the conflict. His name stands with those of his fellow villagers whose lives were lost in the closing stages of the First World War.

Herbert Critchell (–1916)

Herbert Critchell was born in St Mary’s, Portsmouth, and later became associated with Hambledon, Hampshire, where he was recorded as residing. Like many men from the south coast of Hampshire, he enlisted in Portsmouth, a city closely connected with the Army and Navy.

He joined the Hampshire Regiment and served as a Private in the 1st Battalion (Regimental Number 9514). The 1st Battalion was a regular army battalion that saw extensive service during the war.

Herbert Critchell died on 10 June 1916. His death was recorded as occurring at home, and the theatre of war is listed as “Home.” Unlike many of his contemporaries who fell overseas, his death did not take place on the battlefields of France or Flanders, but in Britain.

Though fewer details are recorded in the surviving summary, his service places him among the many men connected with Hambledon who answered the call to serve during the First World War. His name stands alongside those of fellow villagers whose lives were claimed during those years of conflict.

Harold William Sanders (–1915)

Harold William Sanders was born in Staines, Middlesex, and later resided in Hambledon, Hampshire. With the outbreak of the First World War, he enlisted at Marylebone and joined the Royal Engineers.

He served as a Corporal (Regimental Number 40730) in the 62nd Field Company, Royal Engineers. Field Companies were responsible for vital engineering tasks close to the front line — constructing and repairing trenches, building bridges, laying barbed wire, clearing obstacles, and preparing defensive positions. Their work was often carried out under direct enemy fire.

Harold William Sanders was killed in action on 19 July 1915 while serving in France and Flanders. His death occurred during a period of sustained trench warfare, as British forces sought to strengthen and expand their positions on the Western Front.

Though not born in Hambledon, he was living in the village at the time of his service, and his name is included among those connected with the community who lost their lives during the war.

Sergeant Patrick Gerard O’Brien

Sergeant Patrick Gerard O’Brien was serving with 415 Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. In 1942, many RCAF squadrons were operating from airfields in southern England as part of the expanding Allied air effort.

On 23 March 1942, he was flying in a Handley Page Hampden Mk I (serial AT239) on a local training flight. The Hampden was a twin-engined medium bomber used extensively in the early years of the war, both for operational missions and for training crews.

During the flight, the aircraft entered a spin from approximately 1,600 feet. Witness accounts were described in the official report as varied and somewhat contradictory, but there was no indication that mechanical failure caused the accident. While attempting to recover, the aircraft struck a hillside near Hambledon. The impact was catastrophic, and Sergeant O’Brien sustained fatal injuries.

His death occurred not in combat, but in the course of preparation and training — a reminder that wartime flying carried significant risk even away from enemy action. Training accidents were an all-too-common part of the air war, particularly during the rapid expansion of aircrew numbers in the early 1940s.

Sergeant Patrick Gerard O’Brien is remembered among those whose service brought the war to the skies above Hambledon itself, and whose life was lost while preparing for the duties of operational flying.