Leonard Humphrey Marten & Thomas Arnold Marten

 The connection between St. Teilo’s, Bishopston, and St. Paul’s, Sketty, lies in the story of the Marten family, whose lives and legacies span both churches. Their history illustrates both the influence of a long-established Swansea family and the personal tragedies of war.

At St. Paul’s, Sketty, there is a memorial dedicated to Lieutenant Leonard Humphrey Marten, who lost his life during the Second Boer War (1899–1902) at the young age of 22. Leonard was born in 1879 at Clifton, Bristol, the second child of Robert Humphrey Marten and Blanche Anthony, who had married in 1875. The couple had three children in total: Winifred B. (1877), Leonard H. (1879), and Genoveva (1890).

1881 Census

The 1881 Census records the family living at 1 Hanbury Road, Clifton. At that time, Robert, aged 39, worked as a shipowner, while Blanche managed the household and cared for the children with the help of two servants, Alice Harding and Priscilla Winterson. The family name was listed as Marten. 

1891 Census

By the time of the 1891 Census, the family had moved to Sketty Road, Swansea. Robert, now described as “living on own means,” was no longer working. Blanche cared for their infant daughter, Genoveva, while Winifred and Leonard, aged 14 and 12, attended school. The household had grown in size, with three servants employed: Ellen Walsh, Mary Lewis, and Margaret Thomas. In this record, however, the surname appeared as Martin, a variation that would reappear in later documents.

Lieutenant Colonel
George Elliott Benson

Leonard’s education took him first to Shrewsbury School, Shropshire, which he attended until 1897, and then to Pembroke College, Cambridge, where he remained until 1900. Soon after leaving Cambridge, he enlisted in the army and was commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the Yorkshire Light Infantry. Leonard was sent to South Africa, where he joined the 3rd Mounted Infantry, attached to Lieutenant Colonel George Elliott Benson’s No. 3 Flying Column, a mobile force of about 2,000 men known for conducting night raids.

Primrose Cemetery, South Africa
credit - findagrave

On 30 October 1901, during heavy rain and mist, the column was attacked at Bakenlaagte by Boer commandos under Grobler, Opperman, and Louis Botha. In the fierce fighting, Leonard was severely wounded with a broken thigh. Reports suggest that while he lay helpless, he was mistreated by the Boers, who attempted to strip him of his clothing and boots. After six days of suffering, he died of his wounds at Elandsfontein. He was buried at Primrose Cemetery, South Africa, where his surname was once again recorded as Martin.

The Cambrian
15th November 1901

The Cambrian
3rd January 1902

Although buried abroad, Leonard’s sacrifice was not forgotten. His name is commemorated in several places: on the memorial inside St. Paul’s Church, Sketty; in the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry Boer War Museum in York; and in the pages of The Cambrian newspaper. The paper first reported his death on 15 November 1901, identifying the family home as Allensmore, Sketty, and noting that his grandfather was the late Mr. Thomas Marten of Fernhill. A later article, on 3 January 1902, described the erection of a Celtic cross memorial at his grave in South Africa, carved from Forest of Dean stone by William Morris of Rutland Street. In subsequent years, The Cambrian also reported on the activities of the Marten family. 

The Cambrian
July 1905

The Cambrian
July 1908

In 1905, Robert Humphrey Marten was credited with inventing a new method for lubricating tram rails, while in 1908, Leonard’s sister Winifred was mentioned as the secretary of the Swansea branch of the RSPCA.

While St. Paul’s remembers Leonard, the family’s earlier roots connect them to St. Teilo’s, Bishopston. Leonard’s grandfather, Thomas Arnold Marten, was born in 1815 in Walworth, Surrey. In October 1837, at All Saints, Oystermouth, he married Anne Heinsken. 

Thomas Arnold Marten and Anne Heinsken
Marriage Certificate
All Saints, Oystermouth

This was one of the earliest marriages to produce a certificate under the new system of civil registration, introduced only months earlier in July 1837. At the time of his marriage, Thomas worked as an accountant.

1861 Census

By the 1861 Census, Thomas and his family were living at Fernhill, Oystermouth. Thomas, then aged 45, was serving as Secretary of the Swansea Canal Company. His children included Robert H. Marten, Leonard’s father, who at that time was recorded as a mechanical engineer. The family employed several servants, reflecting their respectable social standing. 

1871 Census

Thomas Arnold Marten and Georgiana Catherine Dixon Jeffreys
Marriage Certificate
All Saints, Oystermouth

By 1871, Thomas had been widowed following Anne’s death in 1869, but he remarried later that year to Georgiana Catherine Dixon Jeffreys at All Saints, Oystermouth. Together they had further children, and by 1881, the family were living at No. 13 Promenade, Cheltenham, though their children were still being born in Oystermouth. 

1881 Census

Interestingly, in both the 1871 and 1881 census records, the family surname again appeared as Martin.

Thomas Arnold Marten  headstone
St. Teilo, Bishopston
credit - findagrave

Thomas’s life came to an end in March 1889 at Fernhill, Oystermouth, and he was buried in the churchyard of St. Teilo’s, Bishopston, where his headstone can still be seen today.

Lieutenant L. H. Marten
St. Pauls Church, Sketty
credit - Imperial War Museum War Memorials Register

The link between the two churches, then, is the Marten family itself. St. Paul’s, Sketty, preserves the memory of the young soldier Leonard Humphrey Marten, whose life was cut short in South Africa, while St. Teilo’s, Bishopston, is the final resting place of his grandfather, Thomas Arnold Marten, a respected figure in Swansea society. Together, these memorials tell the story of a family deeply woven into the history of the area, remembered both for their contributions at home and their sacrifices abroad.