Officers Photographs

Officers’ Photos

This photograph of the Unit’s commanding officer, Lt Col J E H Davies is by kind permission of Charles Young, Grandson of 48221 Pte Oliver Young M.M.. The photograph was taken outside the Nant Hall Hotel in Prestatyn in mid 1915. This is the only individual photograph we have seen of Lt Col Davies who commanded the Unit throughout the war.

The photograph above is reproduced here my kind permission of the University Archives, University College Cork, Ireland.

Lieutenant (Later Captain) Thomas Joseph Buckley joined the Unit in late 1915 prior to sailing to France and served until September 1916 when he returned to England having completed his 12 month contract (he later rejoined the Army and was gazetted Captain in 1918).

Thomas Joseph Buckley was born in Limerick in 1890 and studied medicine at University College Cork (UCC), qualifying in 1913. He was Captain of the UCC rugby team from 1909 to 1911 during which they were all-conquering. Having qualified, he worked in Shrewsbury where he returned after the war.
One can not help wondering how much influence he had on the Unit’s later rugby successes.

Lieut (later Major) John Burke MC. was one of only a few officers who served the entire war with the Unit. He was awarded the Military Cross in September 1918 and later served with the British Forces in Russia in 1919. 48542 Pte James Cleaves served as his batman. This photograph is by kind permission of Lieut (later Major) John Burke’s grandson, John Dunne.

Capt Meredydd Ffoulkes joined the Unit in mid 1915 while it was training in North Wales and served in it until the end of November 1915. This photograph is with the kind permission of David Ffoulkes, grandson of Capt M Ffoulkes.

Capt Carlisle Kelly served in the Unit from December 1917. This photograph is with the kind permission of his daughter Mrs Z T Slattery.

The photograph above is by kind permission of the Great Granddaughter of Captain Thomas Walter Melhuish (on the right) who served in the Unit from April 1917. The office on the left is probably Captain Carlile Kelly M.C.

Lieut. Thomas Downie Renwick servered in the Unit between 5th December 1916 and 21st January 1917. This photograph is by the kind permission of Don Cronshaw, Grandson of Lieut. T D Renwick.

Captain Bernard Woodhouse by kind permission of the Old Birkonian Society (http://obs.org.uk/obs-home).

Captain Bernard Woodhouse was qualified from University College Hospital, London in 1913 and subsequently joined the R.A.M.C. arriving in France with the B.E.F. in August 1914. He served with a number of units before joining the 130th (St John) Field Ambulance in 1916. He served in the Unit until April 1917 when he was transferred to to the 10th Battalion, The Welsh Regiment (1st Rhondda Battalion) as their medical officer. He received a fatal shrapnel wound to his skull on the 4th September 1917 while proceeding up the line with the the 10th Welsh who were in the process of taking over the right front line of the Langemarck sector from the 13th Battalion, the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. He was evacuated through XIV Corps MDS to 64 CCS where he died the following day. He is buried in Mendinghem Military Cemetery (III.D.20). Lt Col Davies wrote of him “We all loved him; he was always so brave and cool in action, so bright and cheerful and was a man of infinite kindness and great thoughtfulness for others especially for the wounded and sick. I valued his ability, tact and force of character.”