Jonathan William Bevan – Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, Drake Battalion, Royal Naval Division

Able Seaman Jonathan William Bevan – Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, Drake Battalion, Royal Naval Division

Jonathan William Bevan was born in 1897 in Swansea, the son of Philip George Bevan and Elizabeth Jane Rees, who were married in 1895 in Swansea.

Family Background and Early Life

1901 Census

At the time of the 1901 Census, the Bevan family were residing at 4 Llangyfelach Street, Swansea. Philip George Bevan (28) was employed as a general labourer, while his wife Elizabeth Jane (23) managed the household.
Their children were Jonathan William and Stanley Ernest, both aged 4.

Also present were Elizabeth’s brother Thomas L. Rees (22) and his wife Maggie E. Rees (22).

1911 Census

By the time of the 1911 Census, the family were still living at 4 Llangyfelach Street, Swansea. Philip George Bevan (39) was employed as a coal trimmer, and Elizabeth Jane (33) remained at home.
Their children were Jonathan William (14) and Stanley Ernest (14), both working as errand boys; Albert Edward (8); Thomas George (7); Edith Winifred Mary (3); and Elizabeth Annie (7 months).

Naval Service and Death

Not all sailors of the First World War served at sea. Many men of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve were deployed ashore as infantry with the Royal Naval Division, a formation composed of naval personnel trained and employed as soldiers.

Jonathan William Bevan served as an Able Seaman with the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve and was attached to the Drake Battalion, Royal Naval Division, which by 1916 formed part of the 63rd (Royal Naval) Division on the Western Front.

In October 1916, the Drake Battalion was engaged in the later phases of the Battle of the Somme, operating in the Ancre sector, an area marked by devastated ground, deep mud, damaged trenches, and constant enemy shellfire. During this period, the battalion was involved in holding front-line and support positions rather than large-scale assaults, but nevertheless sustained steady casualties.

On 21^st October 1916, the Drake Battalion was subjected to heavy German artillery fire, alongside intermittent infantry engagements and persistent sniping. Casualties were frequently caused by shellfire while men were holding trenches, repairing defences, carrying supplies, or moving between positions.

On that date, Able Seaman Jonathan William Bevan was killed in action. He was 19 years old.

Jonathan William Bevan 
Thiepval Memorial
credit - findagrave

Having no known grave, Jonathan William Bevan is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial, Somme, which bears the names of more than 72,000 British and South African soldiers and sailors who died on the Somme and whose resting places are unknown.

His death reflects the sacrifice of naval men who left the sea to serve and die as infantry in the trenches of the First World War.