Name
Henry Chapman
1893
Conflict
First World War
Date of Death / Age
26/09/1915
22
Rank, Service Number & Service Details
Lance Corporal
4403
East Surrey Regiment
9th Bn.
"B" Coy.
Awards: Service Medals/Honour Awards
1914 /15 Star, British War and Victory medals
Cemetery/Memorial: Name/Reference/Country
LOOS MEMORIAL
Panel 65 to 67.
France
Headstone Inscription
N/A
UK & Other Memorials
Hemel Hempstead Town Memorial,
St Mary's Church Memorial, Apsley End
Pre War
Henry (Harry) Chapman was born in 1893 in Hindlip, Worcestershire, the son of Henry and Alice Chapman, and one of five children. At the time of his birth his father was Butler to the Allsopp family, who were brewers. By 1896 when his brother Frederick was born their father was working at Broxton Old Hall, Cheshire, for the Egerton family. On the 1901 Census the family were living at Monreith Lodge, Wigtownshire, Scotland and his father was working for the politician Sir Herbert Maxwell, 7th Baronet.
Harry followed his father into domestic service and in 1906 his employer was Sir John Stirling-Maxwell, a baronet, Scottish landowner and Conservative MP and a cousin of his father's employer Sir Herbert Maxwell.
In 1911 Harry was working as a Hall Boy at 21 Portland Place, the London home of Sir John and his wife Christina. His parents were then living at "Shendish," King's Langley, Herts, where his father was Butler to the Longman family of Longman Publishing.
Wartime Service
He enlisted in Guildford, Surrey in September 1914 and joined the 9th Battalion, East Surrey Regiment. He was sent for training initially to billets in Worthing, then to Shoreham, West Sussex and finally Blackdown, Aldershot.
The Battalion was sent to France on 31 August 1915 and by early September were in reserve for the British assault on Loos. They suffered heavy casualties in late September when the assault began as they were unable to get through the barbed wire to the German lines and were caught in heavy cross fire of machine guns and had to retire back to their trenches. They were then shelled heavily and further casualties were sustained.
Harry was one of those killed by shellfire during the Battle of Loos on 26 September 1915, age 22, having only been in France for 26 days. He has no known grave and his name is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, France.
Additional Information
His father received a war gratuity of £3 10s and pay owing of £2 6s 8d.
Acknowledgments
Brenda Palmer
Jonty Wild, www.dacorumheritage.org.uk, www.hemelatwar.org., www.hemelheroes.com.
