The 4th Public Schools Battalion, 21st Royal Fusiliers, did not land in France until Nov 1915, approximately one year after they first gathered in Ashtead, Surrey as newly enlisted recruits. We have pieced together from the photos in Noel Downing‘s (PS/2581) collection, the names and identities of some of his comrades in arms. At this time they were all privates, but all went on to become Officers by 1916. The reality of their possible early deaths was clearly ever present. Three out of the eight named individuals were to be killed.
The first two photographs are taken outside Ashtead lodge, home of the Drew family, where six men were billeted in Oct 1914.
Shooting off to Brighton on a Sunday, Ashtead, 1914. From left: Chandler, Noel, Miss Drew & Spicer
William Richard Powell Chandler (PS/2507) is described as ‘a good sort’ by Noel. He was the one with whom he shared a room in Ashtead Lodge. He later became a Major in the Tank regiment.
Miss Drew was the daughter of the house, whom Noel described unflatteringly in one of his letters.
We have been unable to identify ‘Spicer’ and Noel informs us that they did not get on with him and he ‘left us’ shortly afterwards.
Shooting off to Brighton on a Sunday, Ashtead, 1914. In the car: Thompson & Noel in front, Webster & Tree behind. Miss Drew & Spicer left behind
It is presumed that Thompson was Stanley Thompson (PS/3312) but not obvious.
Webster would be Aubrey Webster, of the 19th Batt. Royal Fusiliers. He was Noel’s good friend from Brasenose and was billeted in nearby Epsom. He was killed on 24 Apr 1916 a few weeks after arriving in France.
Philip Bevan Tree (PS/3293) was a Keble College man. He gained a commission in the Machine Gun Corp and was killed in action at Peronne on 24 Mar 1918.
These four would appear to be the party who set out to Brighton where Noel certainly had friends and mentions he had visited before. It can be presumed that Chandler took this photo.
The period was a strange one. There was undoubted chaos at the beginning and army life brought some unpleasant privations as the training intensified, but there was also a bizarre ability to revert to civilian normality with the greatest of ease.
Noel discusses bringing his car down to Ashtead in a letter of Oct 1914 so we can presume these photos date from shortly afterwards. This Sunday outing contrasts with training activities of the Battalion, pictured in the postcards, on the other six days a week.
21st Battalion (4th Public Schools) Royal Fusiliers, Perham Down Camp, Tidworth, 1915. From left: Wilkinson, Berry, Noel & Maylett
The final photo comes from a later period in the Summer of 1915 on Perham Down. The Battalion were camped here close to Salisbury plain immediately before their embarkation to France. The three individuals are named on the back (surnames only). They would be:
- William Oscar Wilkinson (PS/4275) rose to be acting Captain in the 7th Battalion of the Cheshire Regiment when he was killed in action on 5 Aug 1917
- Stephen Goldsmith Berry (PS/6383) later got a commission in the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire regiment, the Sherwood Foresters. He survived the war and died in 1953
- Frederick George Maylett (PS/2957) became a Captain in the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry and died in 1957