Arthur Oswald Hopkins – Royal Welsh Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion

Private Arthur Oswald Hopkins – Royal Welsh Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion

Arthur Oswald Hopkins was born in 1897 in Pontypool, Monmouthshire, the son of William Hopkins and Annie Hopkins. His childhood unfolded in the industrial districts of Swansea, where the Hopkins family settled at Dinas Road and became part of the steel‑working communities of the Lower Swansea Valley.

Family Life

1901 Census

The 1901 Census records the Hopkins family living at 102 Dinas Road, Swansea, where William Hopkins, aged 44 and born in Carmarthenshire, worked as a Steel Worker, and his wife Annie, aged 41 and also Carmarthenshire‑born, managed a large household. Their children present were Gwilym J., 20, a Labourer in the Tube Works; Annie M., 18; Joseph A., 17; Octavia M., 12; Morfydd, 9; Ivor B., 7; Arthur O., 4; and Kate V., 2. The census paints a picture of a busy home spanning all ages, with older children already engaged in skilled industrial work.

1911 Census

By the 1911 Census, the family had moved to 90 Dinas Road, Swansea. William, now 55, continued his work as a Steel Worker, while Annie, aged 51, oversaw the home. Their children present were Gwilym John, 31, employed at a Steel Smelting Furnace; Elizabeth G., 23, a Dressmaker; Octavia M., 21, a Milliner; Morfydd, 18; Ivor B., 16, a Tinworkers’ Bundler; Arthur O., 14; Kate V., 10; and Gladys L., 8. The household reflects a family deeply rooted in Swansea’s industrial life, with several children working in skilled trades.

Service Papers

Military Service

In December 1915, Arthur Oswald Hopkins enlisted to serve with the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion, one of Wales’s most distinguished infantry regiments. The battalion saw heavy service on the Western Front, and men like Arthur entered a regiment known for its discipline, resilience, and long tradition of service.

Illness, Discharge, and Death

Arthur’s military service was cut short by illness. According to the British Army World War I Service Records, he was discharged in 1916, recorded as Unfit for further service due to tuberculosis, a disease that spread rapidly in the cramped, damp, and exhausting conditions of wartime barracks and training camps.

His condition worsened, and on 16 April 1917, Arthur died at the 4th London General Hospital, Denmark Hill, London, a major military hospital treating soldiers suffering from chronic illness, respiratory disease, and long‑term medical conditions.

Arthur Oswald Hopkins
Cwmgelli Cemetery, Swansea
credit - findagrave

Burial

Arthur’s body was brought home to Swansea and laid to rest at Cwmgelli Cemetery, where he is commemorated among the wartime burials of the First World War.