Roll of Honour - Oxfordshire

Ministry of Defence

Lest We Forget

The Royal British Legion

WROXTON WAR MEMORIAL

World War 1 & 2 - Roll of Honour with detailed information
Compiled and copyright © Anonymous 2009

The Wroxton War memorial tis to be found within All Saints Church, Wroxton, Oxfordshire on the south wall. It takes the form of a wall mounted, portrait orientated, white marble, tablet with broken pediment and raised scroll-lined border design; abutted to the base is an additional World War 2, landscape orientated, marble tablet; both tablets incorporate incised inscriptions and names infilled with black enamel paint.

Photographs Copyright © Anonymous 2009

1914 1918
To the Glorious Memory of the men of
Wroxton who fought in the Great War,
and were numbered amongst those, who
at the call of King and Country, gave up
their lives that others might live in freedom.
See to it that their names are not forgotten.

CLEYDON	Joseph	Lance Corporal, 2nd Battalion, Alexandra, Princess of Wales’s Own (Yorkshire Regiment), 21 Brigade, 30th Division. Army no. 42295. He was formerly with the Royal Field Artillery. He was killed in action at the Battle of Ypres on 28 September 1918. He was 36. He was the son of Joseph and the late Esther Cleydon of Wroxton. He is buried in grave I A 16 Sancourt British Cemetery, near Cambrai.
CLEYDON	Walter	Acting Bombardier, D Battery, 317th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery. Army no. 85839. He was killed in action on 12 October 1918. He was 32. He was the son of Joseph and the late Esther Cleydon of Wroxton and the husband of Hilda Cleydon, 3 Church Road, Teddington. He is buried in grave IV E 17 Caudry British Cemetery, near Cambrai.
COX	Frank Ernest	Lance Corporal, 9th (Service) Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment). He was killed in action in the fighting at the Hindenburg Line on 21 September 1918. He has no known grave but he is remembered on panel 3 of the Vis en Artois Memorial .
DRAKE	Harry Vaughtigan	Sergeant, Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars, 4 Cavalry Brigade, 2nd Cavalry Division. Army no. 285138. He was killed in action during the Battle of St Quentin on 21 March 1918. He was 21. He was the son of Henry and Emma Drake of Wroxton. He has no known grave but he is remembered on panel 6 of the Pozières Memorial.
EDWARDS	John	Driver, 350th Mechanical Transport Company, Army Service Corps. 49th (West Riding) Division. Army no. M2/074212. He died on 23 September 1915. He was 22. He was the son of John and Annie Edwards of Wroxton. He is buried in grave I J 24 Wimereux Communal Cemetery. Note It is possible that he served in the Essex Regiment as mentioned on the Memorial but no records of his service with this regiment have survived. It is recorded that he died of an unspecified disease and it is probable that he was in Hospital in Wimereux.
GARDNER	Percy T	Gunner, Argyll Mountain Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery, 4th Mountain Brigade, Army no. 301046. He died on 14 November 1918 age 24. He was the son of Thomas and Rose Annie Gardner of Wroxton. He is buried in grave 823 Mikra British Cemetery, Kalamaria, Greece. Comment He died of an illness at a time when the flu pandemic was sweeping through the Army.
HEMMINGS	James	Private, 11th Battalion, The Royal Warwickshire Regiment, 112 Brigade, 37th Division. Army no. 17896. He was killed in action during the Battle of the Ancre on 15 November 1916 age 29. He was the son of Esau and Mary Ann Hemmings of Wroxton. He has no known grave but he is remembered on Pier and Face 9A 9B and 10B of the Thiepval Memorial.
HUGHES	William Charles	Corporal, 9th Battalion, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, 64 Brigade, 21st Division. Army no. 17169. He died on 15 November 1918. He was 27. He was the son of Charles and Mary Ann Hughes of Wroxton. He is buried in grave XV B 3, Berlin South Western Cemetery. Note It is a strong possibility that he had been a Prisoner of War. Berlin South Western Cemetery is one of 4 cemeteries in Germany where Commonwealth Soldiers who were buried in Germany were permanently re-interred. His regiment was in France when he died which was probably died from an illness, the flu pandemic being the obvious suggestion.
LYDIATT	John Francis	Lance Corporal, 562nd Company, Royal Army Service Corps. Army no. M/098295. He was killed in action on 9 April 1919, age 37. He was the son of Joseph and Elizabeth Lydiatt of Wroxton. He is buried in grave XIV A 5, Terlincthun British Cemetery, Wimille near Calais. Additional information 562nd Company was the Ammunition Column for 30th Brigade Royal Garrison Artillery. It later served as the Corps Siege Park for 1st ANZAC and then IV Corps. The unit was responsible for moving the various Heavy Artillery units around the Western Front. As he is listed as being killed in action in 1919, perhaps it should be presumed that he died in a military accident or explosion.
NEVILLE	James [Henry]	Private, 8th Battalion, The Cheshire Regiment , 40 Brigade, 13th Division. Army no.18725. He died on 25 August 1915. He was 24. He was the son of John and Eleanor Neville native of Wroxton. He is buried in grave II J 169 East Mudros Military Cemetery, Limnos, Greece. Additional information He died from an illness during the Gallipoli Campaign at the time when the Battle of Sulva was raging
NEVILLE	W R	Lance Corporal, 3rd Royal Berkshires. No information has been found about this man. The most likely possibility is: William George NEVILLE - Private, 2nd/4th Battalion, Princess Charlotte of Wales’ (Royal Berkshire Regiment). Army no. 220238. He was previously with The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. He died of his wounds on 21 March 1918. He was 21. He was the son of Charles and Emma L Neville, East Street, Headington. He is remembered on panel 56 and 57 of the Pozières Memorial.
SHAW	Frank William	Lance Corporal 194th Company, Machine Gun Corps (Infantry), 23rd Division. Army no. 55086. He was formerly with The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. Army no. 25873. He was killed in action during the first Battle of Passenchendaele on 17 October 1917. He was 33. He was the son of the Rev. William and the late Sarah Shaw and the husband of Emma Henrietta Shaw of Wroxton. He is buried in grave VI A 17 Aeroplane Cemetery, Near Ypres.
SMART	Thomas	Private, 11th Battalion, The Essex Regiment, 71 Brigade, 6th Division. Army No. 14016. He died from his wounds on 6 October 1915 shortly after his Regiment had been fighting at Hooge. He was 24. He was the son of John and Susan Smart of Wooler, Northumberland. He was a Footman at Wroxton Abbey and married Ethel Hughes in Wroxton on 5 June 1915. He is buried in grave 11 46 St. Sever Cemetery, Rouen.
WHING	Edmund John	[Listed as J E WHING on memorial] Private, 10th (Service) Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment 1 Brigade, 1st Division. Army no. 15586. He was formerly in The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. On the first day of the Battle of Loos, 25 September 1915, he was killed in action. He was 30. He was the son of Charles and Mary Whing of Wroxton. He has no known grave but he is remembered on panel 60 to 64 of the Loos Memorial.
WISE	Arthur Sidney	Lance Corporal, 2nd/4th Battalion, The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry 184 Brigade, 61st Division. Army no. 200660. He was killed in action on the first day of the battle of St Quentin, 21 March 1918. He was 21. He was the son of Sidney and Margaret S. Wise of Wroxton and the brother of Francis. He has no known grave but he is remembered on panels 50 & 51 of the Pozières Memorial.
WISE	Francis Harry Varney	Lieutenant, Royal Flying Corps awarded Mons Star. He died on 3 January 1918 age 23. He was the son of Sidney and Margaret S Wise of Wroxton and the brother of Arthur. He is buried in grave B 33 Teddington Cemetery. Additional information Based on a report in the Banbury Guardian 24 January 1918 Fatal Flying accident to Lieut. F.H.V. Wise RFC Through a mishap occurring while in the air, Lieut. FHV Wise and Lieut. Albert Payne, both of the Royal Flying Corps, were killed at Hendon on 13 January. Lieut. Wise, who was twenty-two years, was the eldest son of Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Wise, of Wroxton, Oxfordshire, and nephew of Mrs. Rogers, of the Anglers Hotel, Teddington, with whom he resided for several years. He went to London to be articled to a firm of solicitors and at the outbreak of war he joined the Royal Naval Division, with which he took part in the expedition to Antwerp and had been awarded the Mons Star. He was recommended for a commission, and was gazetted to the Royal Naval Division, from which he later proceeded to the Royal Flying Corps. The gallant young officer fought with the RFC in France. He returned to England on sick leave, and he afterwards made almost 200 flights across the Channel. On 13 January with Lt. Payne, he was about to pilot an aeroplane to Martlesham Heath and when the machine was at a height of about 2,000 feet, (I think this may be a misprint for 200 feet) it was suddenly seen to bank and then side-slip to the ground, where it burst into flames. Both occupants were killed instantaneously. Much sympathy is felt for his relatives and friends, also for Miss Beatrice Hooper, to whom he became engaged only a week previously. (Second daughter to Sub-divisional Inspector Race Hooper from Kingston Police)
1939-1945
BERRY	Arthur William	Trooper, 46th Regiment, Reconnaissance Corps, Royal Armoured Corps. 46th North Midland Infantry Division, British 10th Corps which was an element of 8th Army Army no. 5387687. He died on 12 September 1944. Aged 25. He was the son of Arthur Charles and Elsie May Berry and the husband of Violet Mary Berry, of Grimsbury, Oxfordshire. He is buried in grave IV C 4 Montecchio War Cemetery, Italy. Notes He died during the Battle of Gemmano , a battle that has been nicknamed the "Cassino of the Adriatic". There were 11 assaults by the Allied Forces between 4 -13 September first by the British 56th Division and then the British 46th Division. It was the Indian 4th Division who after a heavy bombardment made the twelfth attack at 03:00 on 15 September and finally carried and secured the German defensive positions.
BERRY	George Henry	Air Mechanic, 2nd Class, HMS Gosling, Royal Navy RN No. L/FX. 697944. He died on 2 November 1944. Aged 19. He was the son of Ralph and Jane Berry of Wroxton. He is buried in grave Plot C Coll. grave 10 (Screen Wall Panel 1), Duke Street Cemetery, Southport Additional information HMS Gosling was commissioned on 1 July 1942 as a Fleet Air Arm Training Establishment at Risley near Warrington. Its purpose was to train Air Fitters, Air Mechanics, Radio Mechanics and Royal Marine Trainees of the RN Air Station Defence Force.
GARDNER	Charles Henry	Private, The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. Army no. 5385497. He died on 30 March 1941. Aged 23. He was the son of Thomas and Rose Ann Gardner of Wroxton. He is buried in the Churchyard of All Saints Church, Wroxton. Note He died in the United Kingdom but the cause of death is not known.
PRITCHARD	Hugh	Able Seaman, HM Submarine Tempest, Royal Navy. Service no. C/SSX 33930. He died on 23 February 1942. Aged 26. He was the son of John Henry and Elizabeth Ann Pritchard of Wroxton. He has no known grave but he is remembered on Panel 55, 3 Chatham Naval Memorial Additional information HMS Tempest (N86) was a T-class submarine, laid down by Cammell Laird in Birkenhead and launched in June 1941. Her career was short and in the Mediterranean. She sailed from Malta on the night of 10 February to patrol the Gulf of Taranto. The following evening, 11 February, HMS Tempest was signalled that the Italians were aware of a submarine in the vicinity and that it should be assumed that her patrol had been compromised. On the 13 February HMS Tempest was sighted on the surface by the Italian destroyer Circe. HMS Tempest attempted to dive, but Circe began depth charging the area, eventually resulting in oil being seen on the surface. HMS Tempest had been crippled, and forced to surface, where she was hit by gunfire from the Circe. The crew abandoned the submarine, and were picked up by the destroyer. The Italians attempted to board the abandoned vessel but were prevented by rough seas so the Italian destroyer opened fire scoring more than a dozen direct hits, but failing to sink the Tempest. Finally the Italians attempted to take the submarine in tow. Two members of the destroyer’s crew boarded the submarine and prepared the tow. As Circe manoeuvred to take up the tow, HMS Tempest suddenly started to sink forcing those onboard to jump into the sea. HMS Tempest slipped beneath the waves stern first with the bows disappearing vertically.
Men of Wroxton who do not appear on the War Memorial
FREEMAN	Sidney	Private, 15th (Service) (2nd Birmingham) Battalion, The Royal Warwickshire Regiment, 14 Brigade, 5th Division. Army no. 19581. He was killed in action on 9 May 1917 probably near the Scarpe. He was 30. He was the son of James and Kezia Freeman of Wroxton. He has no known grave but he is remembered on Bay 3 of the Arras Memorial
PALMER	Wilfred	Private, 5th (Service) Battalion, Princess Charlotte of Wales’s (Royal Berkshire Regiment), 35 Brigade, 12th Division. Army no. 45782. He was formerly with The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. He died from his wounds on 21 September 1918 following the assault on the Hindenberg Line. He was 23. He was son of William James and Alice Palmer and the husband of Christina Palmer, both of Wroxton. He has no known grave but he is remembered on the addenda panel of the Vis en Arttois Memorial.

Last updated 17 June, 2021

War Memorials Trust