Military History |
Theatre of War | Medals | Commonwealth War Grave or Memorial |
---|---|---|
France and Flanders | 1914 Star, British War & Victory Medals | Aire Communal Cemetery |
Arrived in Theatre | Medal Citation (if app) | SWFHS Area Memorials |
7 Oct 1914 in France | ~ | Warwick (Eleanor Cross) War Memorial |
Action, Battle or Other Reason Killed | Date and Place Mobilised | |
Accidentally drowned | 5 Aug 1914 at Warwick | |
Place of Death | Previous Regiments or Units | Other War Memorials |
Boeseghem | ||
Previous Service and Enlistment
Ernest's service number, 5307, was issued at some time between 4 Jan 1899 and 24 Apr 1900 when numbers 4214 and 5384 were issued. He served in South Africa
Circumstances of Death
Ernest died on 3 Sep 1917 when he accidentally drowned in the Canal d'Aire a la Bassee. The war diary places Ernest and the Royal Horse Guards in a camp at Boeseghem very close to the Canal d'Aire a la Bassee and no mention is made of casualties. A newspaper cutting states that Ernest went in search of a Corporal of his troop and was not seen for 5 days until his body was found in the canal in which he drowned. The diary does not mention any missing men for the whole of August to it has not been possible to identify who Ernest was looking for. |
Personal & Family History |
Birth Date/Place | Baptism Date/Place |
---|---|
Jan Qtr 1880 in Leamington Spa | 24 Mar 1880 at Leamington Priors, St. Paul |
Parents Names | Abode |
John F and Mary Ann Rooke | Handsworth, Birmingham |
Wife | Marriage Details |
Mabel Fanny Rooke nee Peck | Jul Qtr 1914 on the Isle of Wight |
Schools | Colleges |
~ | |
Address History | Employment History |
1880 - 4 Queen Street, Leamington Spa | 1891 - Scholar |
1881 - 4 Queen Street, Leamington Spa | 1901 - Soldier in 13th Hussars |
1891 - 5 West Rock, Leamington | 1911 - Prison Warder at Parkhurst Prison, IoW |
1901 - Cavalry Barracks, Norwich, Norfolk | 1914 - Prison Warder |
1911 - 4 Albany Terrace, Newport Isle of Wight | |
1917 - 36, Hunny Hill, Newport, Isle of Wight | |
- At some stage before he became a Prison Warder Ernest was an Attendent at Hatton Asylum
- Warwick War Memorial Project Biography