Name
Percy Goodchild
11th September 1885
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
31/05/1916
29
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Leading Seaman
214057
Royal Navy
H.M.S. Defence
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 /15 Star, British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
PLYMOUTH NAVAL MEMORIAL
11
United Kingdom
Headstone Inscription
NA
UK & Other Memorials
Walkern Village Memorial
Pre War
Percy was born on 11th September 1885 in Walkern to John and Sarah Goodchild and was christened in Walkern on 1st November 1885.
In 1891 the family were living in Walkern. Present were both parents, with John working as builder’s labourer. Their children were: Annie (22), Thomas (18), John (14), Herbert (12), Ernest (10), Percy (5) and Waller (3). An unnamed grandson of just 8 day was also present.
Percy seems to have enlisted in the Navy as a boy, probably in 1901 and in the 1901 census he was recorded as 15 and a boy under training at Devon Port. In his service record he was recorded as 5’ 3” tall, but on 11th September 1903 he signed on for 12 years at the age of 18 years, then he was recorded as 5’ 6 1/2” tall. On both occasions he was with light brown hair, brown eyes and with a fresh complexion.
In 1911 Percy was in the Royal Navy on board HMS Amethyst, a third class Cruiser, in Buenos Aires.
He pre-war service is a little confusing but appears to be recorded as a Boy Second Class on the Impregnable 25/3/1901 – 29/3/1909, then on the Lion from 30/3/1901. He was promoted to Boy First Class on the Lion from 6/2/1902 and continued on the ship until 30/10/1902. He moved to the Agincourt until 23/11/1902, the Vivid I from the following day and promoted to Ordinary Seaman (11/9/1903), then Donegal to 27/10/1904, the Vivid I from the 28th, where he was promoted to Able Seaman (8/2/1905), the Barfleur to 31/3/1905, the Vengeance to 4/5/1908, the Vivid I to 1/3/1909, the Theseus to 7/2/19010, the Argyll to 14/5/1910, the Amethyst to 17/8/1911, the Vivid I to 12/9/1911, the Pomone to 1/9/1913, then moved to the Defence 2/5/1913 as a Leading Seaman.
Wartime Service
When war commenced Percy was still a Leading Seaman on the Defence and remained on that ship until his death.
HMS Defence was a Minotaur-class armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy and launched in 1907. When war was declared she was stationed in the Mediterranean and participated in the pursuit of the German battlecruiser SMS Goeben and light cruiser SMS Breslau. The ship was transferred to the Grand Fleet in January 1915.
HMS Defence was sunk on 31 May 1916 during the Battle of Jutland, the largest naval battle of the war. Escorting the main body of the Grand Fleet, the ship was fired upon by one German battlecruiser and four dreadnoughts as she attempted to engage a disabled German light cruiser. She was struck by two salvoes from the German ships that detonated her rear magazine. The fire from that explosion spread to the ship's secondary magazines, causing them to explode in turn. The entire crew is believed to have been killed, although newspapers of the time made unverified claims of possible survivors.
Percy was one of those who died and whose body was not recovered. He is commemorated on the Plymouth Naval Memorial.
Additional Information
His pension cards record Mrs Sarah Goodchild of Beechcroft Lane, Walkern, Stevenage Herts. as his mother as his next of kin. She was awarded a pension of 4s 6d from 1st September 1917 to 23rd July 1919.
Acknowledgments
Jonty Wild
