William Horace Charles – Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, Nelson Battalion, Royal Navy Division
Able Seaman William Horace Charles – Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, Nelson Battalion, Royal Navy Division
Family Background and Early Life
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| William Horace Charles |
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| 1901 Census |
At the time of the 1901 Census, the Charles family were residing at Weston Place, Sketty, Swansea. David Charles (36) was employed as an engine driver (stationary) at the copper works, while his wife Emma (28), who had been born in Haverfordwest, managed the household. Their children were Amelia (5), William Horace (4), and David Stanley (2).
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| 1911 Census |
By the 1911 Census, the family had moved to 20 Vivian Road, Sketty, Swansea. David Charles (47) remained employed as a stationary engine driver, and Emma (38) continued to raise their growing family. Their children at this time were Amelia Flora (15); William Horace (14), who was working as an errand boy; David Trevor (12); Frederick Leslie (10); Richard Kenneth (8); Glyn Mathias (5); Annie Isabel (3); and Averil Roma (1). The younger children were all attending school.
Military Service
William Horace Charles enlisted in the Royal Naval
Volunteer Reserve and was posted to the Nelson Battalion of the Royal
Navy Division, serving as an Able Seaman. Like many members of the
Royal Navy Division, William served not at sea but as infantry on the Western
Front.
Nelson Battalion, Royal Navy Division – 13th November 1916
On 13th November 1916, the Nelson
Battalion was heavily engaged during the Battle of the Ancre, part of
the final phase of the wider Battle of the Somme. The Royal Navy
Division was tasked with attacking heavily fortified German positions around Beaumont-Hamel,
ground that had resisted previous assaults earlier in the campaign.
The battalion advanced across open, shell-scarred ground
under intense machine-gun and artillery fire, contending with deep mud,
broken wire, and intact enemy strongpoints. Despite these conditions, elements
of the Nelson Battalion succeeded in capturing sections of the German
front-line trenches, contributing to one of the few clear successes of the Somme
fighting.
Casualties during the assault were severe. Many men were
killed during the initial advance or while consolidating newly captured
positions under sustained shellfire. Others succumbed to exposure in the bitter
conditions that followed the attack. The fighting of 13 November 1916 marked
one of the most costly but strategically significant actions fought by the
Royal Navy Division during the war.
Death and Commemoration
British Army and Navy Birth, Marriage and Death Records
Able Seaman William Horace Charles was killed in action
on 13th November 1916, aged 19. His death is recorded in
the British Army and Navy Birth, Marriage and Death Records, and it was
also reported in the South Wales Daily Post, reflecting the local impact
of his loss on the Swansea community.
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| William Horace Charles Ancre British Cemetery, Beaumont-Hamel, Somme, France credit - findagrave |
William Horace Charles is buried at Ancre British Cemetery, Beaumont-Hamel, Somme, France, where many of those who fell during the Battle of the Ancre are laid to rest. His grave stands as a permanent reminder of the sacrifice made by members of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve who fought and died as infantry soldiers on the Western Front.
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