Ernest Richard Edwards

Gunner Ernest Richard Edwards – Royal Artillery, 452 Battery, 67 (6^th Battalion The Welch Regiment) Searchlight Regiment

Ernest Richard Edwards was born in 1906, the son of George Edwards and Margaret Ann Davies, who were married in 1880 at St. Mary’s Church.

1911 Census

1911 Census

At the time of the 1911 Census, the Edwards family were living at 90 Robert Street, Manselton. George, aged 52, was employed as a traveller, while his wife Margaret Ann, aged 47, managed the household. Living with them were their children: Lillian, aged 22; Robert Thomas, 19; and John Graham, 17, both of whom were employed as tinhouse behind workers. Also present were Herbert Ewart, aged 12, and the youngest child, Richard Ernest (later recorded as Ernest Richard), aged 5.

John Graham Edwards – Royal Navy Service

Service Records

John Graham Edwards served with the Royal Navy during the First World War, having first enlisted in August 1914.

1921 Census

1921 Census

By the time of the 1921 Census, the Edwards family had moved to 77 Courtney Street, Manselton. George, then 62, was working as a tailor traveller employed by W. Williams Tailors, while Margaret Ann, aged 57, continued with household duties. Their son Herbert Ewart, aged 23, was also employed by W. Williams Tailors as a tailor traveller. Ernest Richard, aged 15, was still attending school. Also living with the family were their son John Graham, aged 28, who was a doubler tinplates worker for R. Thomas & Co., Steel Tinplate, although unemployed at the time; his wife, Elsie Murton, aged 25, who undertook household duties; and their young daughter, Betty Margaret, aged one.

Service in the Royal Artillery

During the Second World War, Ernest served as a Gunner in the Royal Artillery, with 452 Battery, 67 (6^th Battalion The Welch Regiment) Searchlight Regiment. This unit originated from the 6^th (Glamorgan) Battalion of The Welch Regiment, a Territorial Army battalion with strong ties to South Wales, including Swansea and Glamorgan. In the late 1930s, as part of Britain’s growing air defence network, the battalion was converted from infantry to a searchlight regiment to help combat the threat of German night raids.

The 67^th (Welch) Searchlight Regiment formed part of the anti-aircraft defences protecting South Wales, serving under the 45^th Anti-Aircraft Brigade, which was responsible for defending key industrial areas such as Cardiff, Newport, and Swansea during the Blitz. The regiment’s searchlight batteries, including 452 Battery, played a vital role in illuminating enemy aircraft to assist anti-aircraft guns and night-fighter aircraft. Their work, though often unheralded, was critical to Britain’s home defence during the intense bombing campaigns of 1940–41.

As the war progressed, elements of the regiment were deployed to other parts of the country, including the West Midlands, to strengthen air defences there. In late 1944, with the reduction of the Luftwaffe threat, the regiment was reorganised as the 67^th Garrison Regiment, Royal Artillery, and later converted into the 608 (Welch) Infantry Regiment, Royal Artillery, performing garrison and occupation duties toward the end of the war.

Marriage and Death

In 1934, Ernest Richard Edwards married Catherine Owens.

South Wales Daily Post 

According to the South Wales Daily Post of 29^th May 1940, Gunner Ernest Richard Edwards died at a military hospital in Gloucester while serving with the Royal Artillery. He was buried at Oystermouth Cemetery, Swansea, and his funeral was reported in the newspaper.

Military Hospital in Gloucester

During the early years of the Second World War, Gloucester’s main receiving centre for military casualties was the Gloucester Royal Infirmary on Great Western Road (later known as Gloucestershire Royal Hospital). The hospital became part of the Government’s Emergency Medical Service and was adapted to accommodate war casualties. From September 1939, the hospital board agreed to take military cases, including those from the Royal Gloucestershire Hussars, and prepared for wartime conditions by installing blackout measures and creating around 20 emergency beds in the out-patient hall. By October 1940, a dedicated resuscitation ward for the treatment of “war wound shock” had been established, equipped for blood transfusions and emergency surgery. During this period, the hospital effectively functioned as a military hospital for servicemen evacuated or transferred to Gloucester for treatment. It is believed that Gunner Ernest Richard Edwards was one of those service personnel who received care there before his death in May 1940.

Commemoration

Gunner Ernest Richard Edwards is commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and is buried at Oystermouth Cemetery, Swansea. His grave is maintained in perpetuity by the CWGC and records him as serving with the Royal Artillery (452 Battery, 67 Searchlight Regiment) at the time of his death on 26^th May 1940, aged 34. His sacrifice is remembered alongside that of many South Wales men who served in the Territorial Army’s searchlight and anti-aircraft units during the early years of the Second World War.