Part 144

=NOURISH, THOMAS ALDERMAN=, Private, No. 6118, 3rd Battn. Coldstream Guards, _s._ of Thomas Nourish, of Highland House, Kilby Road, Fleckney, Leicester, by his wife, Hannah, dau. of Anthony Loomes, of North Kilworth; _b._ Illston-on-the-Hill, co. Leicester, 8 March, 1881; educ. Fleckney Church of England School; enlisted 23 Feb. 1905; served in Egypt, 29 Sept. 1906 to 29 Jan. 1909; obtained his discharge and joined the Reserve, 23 Feb. 1908; was called up on mobilisation in Aug. 1914; went to France with the Expeditionary Force, 12 Aug., and died in No. 4 General Hospital, Boulogne, 4 Nov. 1914, of wounds received in action at Rentel, 29 Oct.; _unm._ Buried in Wimereux Churchyard (Grave No. 21).

=NOVELL, WILLIAM=, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 3819), 189603, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

=NUNN, ARTHUR WILLIAM=, Stoker, 1st Class, 228989, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.

=NUNN, FRANK ALFRED=, Acting E.R.A., 4th Class, M. 7311, H.M.S. Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.

=NUNN, FREDERICK WILLIAM=, Leading Cook’s Mate, 347626, H.M.S. Arethusa; killed in action in the Heligoland Bight, 28 Aug. 1914.

=NUNN, MERVYN HENRY=, Lieut.-Col. Commanding 9th (Service) Battn. Worcestershire Regt., _s._ of William Henry Nunn, of Broadwater Down, Tunbridge Wells, by his wife, Sophie Caroline, dau. of Major Richard Rollo Houghton, late of the Buffs; _b._ Woolhampton, co. Berks, 17 Nov. 1864; educ. Harrow; was gazetted Lieut. to the Worcestershire Regt. from the Militia, 28 April, 1886, and promoted Capt. July, 1892, Major 13 Nov. 1901, and Lieut.-Col. 8 Jan. 1915; was employed with Egyptian Army, 27 Dec. 1896 to 1 Oct. 1897; served in the Nile Expedition, 1897 (Egyptian medal with clasp, and medal); and in the South African War, 1902; was in command of the Imperial Yeomanry Battn., from 26 Feb. 1902; took part in operations in Natal (Queen’s medal with clasp); retired and joined the Reserve of Officers, 11 April, 1906, but rejoined his old Regt. on the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914; went to the Dardanelles, 24 June, 1915, and was killed in action at Chunik Bair, 10 Aug. following; _unm._ He was mentioned in Sir Ian Hamilton’s Despatch of 11 Dec. 1915, for gallant and distinguished service in the field. Col. Nunn was a fine sportsman, a good man to hounds and a good polo player.

=NUTCHER, MONTAGUE CYRIL=, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 3961), S.S. 1224, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

=OAKELEY, FRANCIS ECKLEY=, Lieut., R.N., 5th _s._ of the late Rev. James Oakeley, Vicar of Holy Trinity, Hereford, by his wife, Frances E. (Westdale, Chilston, Torquay), dau. of John Eckley, of Credenhill Park, Hereford; _b._ Hereford, 3 Feb. 1891; educ. Hereford Cathedral School, Eastman’s, and the Osborne and Dartmouth Royal Naval Colleges; was one of the second batch of cadets entered under the “new scheme,” and passed out from Dartmouth, 15 Sept. 1908; became Midshipman, 15 Sept. 1908, Sub-Lieut. 30 Nov. 1911, and Lieut. Nov. 1913; served in H.M. ships London (flagship of Rear-Admiral Startin, Channel Fleet, Sept. 1908); Invincible (Capt. Mark Kerr, 1st Cruiser Squadron, March, 1909); the Téméraire (1st Battle Squadron, Nov. 1909); Warrior (2nd Cruiser Squadron, Jan. 1910); Ure (2nd Destroyer Flotilla, July, 1910); Dreadnought (flagship of Sir William May, Home Fleet, Sept. 1910); Formidable (Atlantic Fleet, April to Sept. 1911); Superb (1st Battle Squadron, Nov. 1911); Dolphin (Portsmouth Submarine Depot for Instruction, Jan. to May, 1913); and from the last was transferred to H.M.S. Forth at Devonport for submarines. In Sept. 1913, he returned to Portsmouth on appointment to the Arrogant for C 7, and after the outbreak of war was appointed to the Maidstone, additional for D 2. He was lost in D 2 during the last week in Nov. 1914; _unm._ He was widely known for so junior an officer on account of his remarkable merit as a Rugby football player. He was in 1913’s English International Fifteen _v._ Scotland, and was looked upon as the most promising player of the United Services. He began playing for the Services First Twenty when he was still a Midshipman The following season Oakeley and Davis played magnificently against Ireland at Twickenham, and against Scotland at Inverleith--two matches that England won. Lieut. Oakeley had two caps against Scotland, one each against Ireland and France, and he was always on the winning side. He won the second prize for the cadet competition Sabre v. Sabre at the Royal Naval and Military Tournament, 1906, and the first prize cadet competition, Foil _v._ Foil, in the following year.

=OAKES, ALEXANDER MONTAGUE=, Private, No. 11, 19th Battn. 5th Brigade, Australian Expeditionary Force, 3rd _s._ of the late Alfred Charles Oakes, of Camden House, Sussex Street, Woodstock, Cape Town, South Africa, Cape Civil Service, by his wife, Eliza Jane, dau. of George Robb; _b._ Cape Town, 26 Dec. 1885; educ. Normal College and St. George’s Grammar School, Cape Town; served for some time in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Own Volunteer Mounted Rifles before going to Australia on 30 Jan. 1913. On the outbreak of war he immediately volunteered and joined the 1st Naval and Military Contingent which left Sydney, N.S.W., early in Aug. 1914, in the steamer Berrima, accompanied by H.M.A. ships Sydney and Australia, for the conquest of German New Guinea. In this expedition he lost, by an accident, the use of three fingers of his right hand and was for some time in Hospital at Sydney, but upon being discharged immediately re-enlisted in the 19th Battn. and left Australia in the Ceramic, 25 June, 1915. He was killed in action in Gallipoli, 29 Sept. 1915; _unm._ The battn. were on fatigue work with the engineers improving the firing line when it occurred, and Oakes was putting up sand bags, when about 4 a.m. a stray bullet struck him over the heart killing him instantaneously. His Commanding Officer, Lieut.-Col. W. K. S. MacKenzie, wrote: “Your son was on my staff at the Liverpool Camp in Sydney before we left Australia and during our stay in Egypt before we came to the Front. I saw much of him and was attached to him, and I feel his loss deeply, it was a great shock to me. He was a fine soldier, and was liked by everyone in the regt. He died bravely fighting for the Empire.” He was buried the same afternoon at the foot of a gully near the sea, and a cross with his name, etc., was erected by his comrades.

=OAKES, ORBELL=, Capt., 2nd Battn. Yorkshire Regt., 2nd _s._ of Lieut.-Col. Orbell Henry Oakes, of Nowton Court, Bury St. Edmunds, late 1st Battn. The Worcestershire Regt., by his wife, Laura Eliza Josephine, dau. of George Clifton, formerly R.N.; _b._ Mhow, India, 7 Nov. 1880; educ. Wellington College; gazetted 2nd Lieut. Royal Garrison Regt. 28 Jan. 1903, and promoted Lieut. 2nd Yorkshire Regt. 3 Oct. 1906, and Capt. 29 Jan. 1913; served in the South African War, 1901–2; took part in the operations in the Orange River Colony, 1901–2 (Queen’s medal with four clasps); was employed with the West African Frontier Force, 6 April, 1910, to 3 Aug. 1914; went to France with the Expeditionary Force, and was killed in action at Moulin du Pietre, near Neuve Chapelle, 12 March, 1915; _unm._ Buried there. The late Lieut.-Col. W. L. Alexander wrote: “He died in action on 12 March, gallantly doing his duty in a trench near the Moulin du Pietre. He was hit in the head by a bullet, and death must have been instantaneous. He had been doing splendid work with his company since he rejoined the battn., and his loss will be deeply felt by us, both as an officer and a comrade, for he had endeared himself to us all.”

=OAKES, RICHARD=, Stoker, 1st Class, S.S. 109616, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

=OAKLEY, GEORGE HOWARD=, A.B., 222020, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914; _m._

=O’BRIEN, HUGH CONOR HENRY=, Capt., 2nd Battn. Royal Munster Fusiliers, eldest _s._ of Henry Joseph O’Brien, of Whitepoint House, Weston, Queenstown, co. Cork, late Lieut.-Col. R.A.M.C., by his wife, Ethel, dau. of Henry Banister; _b._ Stoke Damarel, co. Devon, 19 Nov. 1880; educ. Clongowes Wood College; Stonyhurst (1896) and Royal Military College, Sandhurst (1899–1900); gazetted 2nd Lieut. Royal Munster Fusiliers, 11 Aug. 1900, and promoted Lieut. 6 March, 1903, and Capt. 1 April, 1910; served (1) in the South African War, 1899–1902; took part in the operations in the Transvaal, Jan. to July, 1901; operations in the Orange River Colony, Feb. to 31 May, 1902, and in Cape Colony, July, 1901, to 31 May, 1902 (Queen’s medal with clasp); (2) on the North West Frontier, India, 1908, as Brigade Signalling Officer, attd. 3rd Brigade, during operations in the Mohmand country (medal with clasp); and (3) with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders, 1914. On 5 Sept. 1914, he left with the 2nd Battn. for Flanders where, and on the Aisne, he served in the trenches, except for one week’s leave home, until Dec. 1914. On 22 Dec. 1914, after a forced march from Bailleul, the regt. was ordered to retake, at all costs, trenches at Festubert which had been evacuated by Indian troops; advancing over open heavy ground in daylight, Capt. O’Brien, at the head of his company, was first wounded in the left side and fell, but was still able to encourage his men, calling out “Go on Munsters, now is your time to get back your own”; a few minutes later he was killed outright by shrapnel bursting over him; _unm._ An officer wrote: “He was ever a gallant officer, and died a glorious death after helping a wounded comrade to cover; by his death the regt. lost a most efficient and popular officer whom the men would follow anywhere.” Col. Bent, who was badly wounded, in the same regt., wrote: “I wish to tell you what a splendid officer your son was; you will have this testimony from others, but I must tell you what he was to me, as his commanding officer. He was of the best in every way, and as a company commander was of the greatest use to me--absolutely reliable, he had his company in first-class order. Beloved by all the men and officers, he was such a splendid man and soldier that it seems particularly cruel that he should have been taken so early.” Major Ryan, one of the few surviving officers of that fight, wrote: “From all accounts of everyone nothing could have been more gallant than the way he led his men.” When in India he got a Special Certificate at the School of Signalling, Kasauli. He was a keen sportsman and a good shot with gun and rifle, and on two trips to Cashmere and Baltistan made good bags of big game.

=O’BRIEN, JAMES JOSEPH=, Private, No. 1160, 1st Newfoundland Regt., _s._ of James O’Brien, of 27, Adelaide Street, St. John’s, Newfoundland, Cooper, by his wife, Mary; _b._ St. John’s, Newfoundland, 8 April, 1891; educ. Christian Brothers’ School there; volunteered on the outbreak of war and enlisted, 1 Feb. 1915; and died in Edinburgh Hospital, 2 Oct. 1915, following an operation; _umn._

=O’CALLAGHAN, DUNCAN MCKAY MACDONALD=, 2nd Lieut. 3rd attd. 2nd. Battn. Duke of Cornwall’s L.I., 2nd _s._ of the late Surgeon-Major George Henry Kenneth O’Callaghan, A.M.S., and eldest _s._ by his 2nd wife, Suzanne Charlotte (Minto House, Newquay, Cornwall), dau. of the late Thomas Harding, of Wick House, Brislington; _b._ Ludlow, co. Salop, 4 June, 1891; educ. Cheltenham College and Trinity College, Oxford; obtained his commission 10 Aug. 1914, being gazetted to the 3rd Battn. Duke of Cornwall’s L.I., served with the 2nd Battn. in France and Flanders, and was killed in action at St. Eloi, 14 March, 1915; buried in Military Cemetery, Dickebusch, Flanders; _unm._ At Cheltenham he won the Junior School Championship in Athletic Sports and represented the College in cricket and football. He was a College Prefect and Head of his House. On leaving, he gained a classical scholarship at Trinity College, Oxford, where he was elected member of the Oxford University Authentics Cricket Club. He played in the Freshmen’s and Seniors’ matches in football and cricket, and, after leaving Oxford, was a prominent member of the London Irish Football Club.

=OCHS, RONALD PHILIP=, 2nd Lieut., 5th, attd. 4th. Battn. The Middlesex Regt., yr. _s._ of Capt. James Frank Ochs, of 4, Sloane Gardens, S.W., now (1916) M.L.O. at Dieppe, by his wife, Amy, eldest dau. of Philip Goldsmith; _b._ 4, Sloane Gardens, S.W., 20 Nov. 1896; educ. at Chertsey, Sunningdale School, and Marlborough College; joined the Public School Battn. of the Middlesex Regt. on the outbreak of war, and was given a commission, 10 Feb. 1915; went to France early in June, 1915, and was killed in action at Hooge, Flanders, 27 Sept. 1915, and buried the next day at Brandhoek.

=ODDY, JOSEPH ETHELBERT=, A.B., 207511 Chatham, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

=ODGERS, NICHOLAS=, Leading Seaman (C.G.), 179652 (Dev.), H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

=ODLING, ERIC ROBERT MEADE=, Lieut., Royal Engineers, only _s._ of Charles William Odling, of Craignoon, Ridgway Gardens, Wimbledon, C.S.I., formerly Secretary to the Government of India P.W.D., and Inspector-General of Irrigation, by his wife, Alice Ronayne Mary, dau. of Robert Warren Meade, of Dublin; _b._ Darjeeling, India, 30 Oct. 1893; educ. Cheltenham College (scholar), passing 3rd on the list into the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich; gazetted 2nd Lieut. 20 Dec. 1912, and promoted Lieut. 12 Nov. 1914; went to France with the Expeditionary Force in Aug. 1914, and after various services was appointed Acting Adjutant to the Signalling Coy. at Headquarters; invalided home in Oct. but returned to duty the following Jan. joining the 11th Field Coy. at Givenchy, 11 March, and was killed in action at Festubert, a fortnight later, 25 March, 1915; _unm._ Buried at Chateau Gorre, near Festubert.

=THOMAS-O’DONEL, GEORGE O’DONEL FREDERICK, M.C.=, Capt. and Adjutant, 4th Battn. Royal Fusiliers, only _s._ of Edwin Thomas-O’Donel, of Newport House, Newport, co. Mayo, J.P., D.L., by his wife, Melicent Agnes, dau. of Capt. Richard Annesley O’Donel; _b._ Dublin, 21 Oct. 1884; educ. Cheltenham College, and abroad; joined the Royal Donegal Artillery Militia in 1902; gazetted 2nd Lieut. in the 4th Royal Fusiliers, 23 May, 1906; promoted Lieut. 10 April, 1909, and Capt. 26 Nov. 1914; appointed Adjutant, 15 Jan. 1913; went to France with the Expeditionary Force, 13 Aug. 1914, and was killed in action at Hooge, near Ypres, 16 June, 1915. Capt. O’Dond was awarded the Military Cross [London Gazette, 19 Feb. 1915]; and was twice mentioned in Sir John (now Lord) French’s Despatches [London Gazette, 19 Oct. 1914, and 18 Feb. 1915]. Brig.-Gen. McMahon, commanding the Brigade, wrote on 5 Nov. 1914: “I think the Battn. has done very well out here, and I hope it will continue to do so. George is going strong and is fitter than when he started, and can claim a very large share in producing such good results as may have been attained”; and Col. Hely-Hutchinson wrote: “I cannot tell you what a shock the whole thing has been to me, we were the closest of friends, we slept together, we fed together, we rode together, and we fought together, and we never had a row for seven months, and the only time we had been separated, George goes and gets killed, and I get off. It is too sad after all the months he had been out and the good work he had done. I myself got a small touch of a shell on the head and have come home for a bit, thank God, as I don’t think I could have carried on any longer out there without George and the rest--we lost six killed and nine wounded officers, and I had no heart and was just tired out and so was George, he just went on till he dropped.” Major F. R. Mallock: “His death is a great loss to his country and the regt.--he served so gallantly and so well; there are few of us left who went out with the Battn., George was the only one of the combatant officers left after the fighting at Ypres. I had a great affection and admiration for him, he did work splendidly right through.” Brig.-Gen. Reginald Pinney, formerly commanding 4th Battn. Royal Fusiliers, also wrote to the late Capt. Thomas O’Donel’s father: “I am most distressed for you and his mother at George’s death--also for the regt. and the army, for he was fulfilling all the promise he showed when he joined; seeing his name gave me a special shock, for I had just heard of my getting a division, and had been talking of Staff and had hoped to get George appointed a G.S.O.” He _m._ in London, 26 Nov. 1914, Florence Violet (Newlands, co. Wexford), only dau. of George Claud Flood Braddell, of Newlands, co. Wexford, and Luckington, co. Wilts; _s.p._

=O’DONNELL, MARTIN=, Seaman. R.N.R., 2729A, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.

=O’GRAM, CHARLES=, A.B. (R.F.R., B. 5549), S.S. 2104, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.

=O’HAIRE, DAVID=, Private, No. 11058, 6th Battn. Royal Irish Rifles, 2nd _s._ of the late David O’Haire, by his wife, Agnes (now wife of Private William John McCallister, of Dromore Street, Rathfriland, co. Down, now (1916) on active service with the Royal Irish Rifles), dau. of Thomas O’Haire; _b._ Lierkelly, Ballyroney, co. Down, 17 July, 1897; educ. Newry Street National School, Rathgueanel; was an active member of the Ulster Volunteer Force; enlisted, 27 Aug. 1914; left Basingstoke, with the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, July, 1915, and was killed in action at the Dardanelles on or about 6 Aug. 1915; _unm._

=O’HARA, HENRY DESMOND, D.S.O.=, Lieut., 1st Battn. Royal Dublin Fusiliers, only _s._ of William James O’Hara, of Oriel House, Ballincollig, Cork, Resident Magistrate, by his wife, Cecilia, 7th and yst. dau. of the late Peter Connellan, of Colmore, co. Kilkenny, J.P., D.L., and gdson. of the late Rev. James Dunn O’Hara, of O’Hara Brook and The Castle, Portstewart, co. Antrim; _b._ Ballydulf, Thomastown, co. Kilkenny, 21 May, 1892; educ. Dunchurch Hall, Rugby; Charterhouse, and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst; gazetted 2nd Lieut. Royal Dublin Fusiliers, 4 Sept. 1912; promoted Lieut. 29 April, 1914; went to the Dardanelles, 17 March, 1915; took part in the heavy fighting following the landing there, and died on the hospital ship Arcadian, 29 Aug. 1915, of wounds received in action on the 12th; _unm._ Buried in the military cemetery, Gibraltar. “On 25 April, 1915, at Sedd-el-Bahr, he took command of his battn. when all other officers had been killed or wounded. At night, when the enemy broke through the line, he displayed great initiative and resource in organising a successful counter-attack, restoring the line and causing great loss to the enemy.” For this he was awarded the D.S.O. [London Gazette, 3 June, 1915]. Lieut. O’Hara was also mentioned in Sir Ian Hamilton’s Despatch of 20 May [London Gazette, 5 Aug.], 1915, for his conduct during, and after, the landing of the 29th Division on 25 April.

=O’KEEFFE, THOMAS=, Corpl., No. 11022, 1st Battn. Royal Dublin Fusiliers, 29th Division, Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, eldest _s._ of the late Richard O’Keeffe, by his wife, Ellen (Dublin Road, Carlow), dau. of Andrew O’Neill; _b._ Ballykealy Ballon, co. Carlow, 10 Dec. 1892; educ. Christian Brothers Academy, Carlow; enlisted 10 Jan. 1911; was appointed L.-Corpl. 1912, and promoted Corpl. 1913; served in India, Nov. 1913, to Nov. 1914; left England with his regt. for the Dardanelles, 16 March, 1915; took part in the landing there, 25–26 April, and was killed in action at Gallipoli, 10 July, 1915; _unm._ A comrade wrote of him: “On one occasion we were advancing and the enemy’s trenches were about three or four hundred yards in front. At all events, a Sergt. of the Worcestershire Regt. twigged a wounded man lying out in front. At this time we were halted in a ravine preparing to advance, and the enemy’s fire was very heavy; at any rate, the Sergt. shouted at his men that there was a wounded man in front: would some of them go out and take him in? But the fellows all passed it down the line that there was a wounded man out in front: would someone go out and bring him in? At any rate Tom heard it, and asked immediately where the wounded man was. The Sergt. showed him, and Tom shouted round at me, ‘Will you come, Terry?’ Then without waiting for an answer he was out over the top and started running towards the wounded chap. I rushed out after Tom, and between us we got the chap in. He told us he had been lying out there two days--in reality he had been there since about 11 a.m. that morning; it was then about 6 p.m. He was wounded in the shoulder, side, arm and thigh, and had lost an awful lot of blood. He was in that much pain that he thought he had been there two days. The Dublins and Munsters were that weak then that they combined the two regiments and called us the Dubsters. Well, after bringing in that chap we advanced, and succeeded in routing the Turks and dug ourselves in in a new position, from which the New Zealanders relieved us the next day. Well, that is just one of the many little moves I was in with poor old Tom. Now I wasn’t present when Tom was killed; I was in the trenches, and Tom was in charge of a ration party going back along a nullah to draw the company’s rations, when he was killed by a sniper. It appears this sniper had command of this part of the nullah, and blankets and sandbag barricades were put to knock off the sniper, but all to no purpose; he must have been concealed on a hill. It was him that killed poor Tom. The bullet pierced his brain, and he only lived for a couple of minutes afterwards, during which time he was unconscious, so never spoke after being hit. The medical officer was present on the spot, but could not do anything. Tom is buried in a very nice cemetery in a separate grave.” His yr. brother. Richard O’Keeffe, is now (1916) on active service with the London Regt.

=OLDBURY, FREDERICK=, Chief Armourer, 340522, H.M.S. Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.

=OLDFIELD, GUY CHRISTOPHER OTTLEY=, Lieut., 2nd Battn. The Queen’s Royal Surrey Regt., attd. King’s African Rifles, only _s._ of Lieut.-Col. Christopher George Oldfield, late Royal Artillery, by his wife, Margaret Elizabeth, dau. of the late Cortlandt J. Le Bailly, and gdson. of Sir Richard Charles Oldfield; _b._ Poona, India, 17 Sept. 1888; educ. Clifton College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst; gazetted 2nd Lieut. Royal West Surrey Regt. 19 Sept. 1908, and promoted Lieut. 1 April, 1911; was seconded for service with Uganda Battn. of the King’s African Rifles, 3 Dec. 1913; served in the Jubaland Expedition in the spring of 1914, and was killed in action at Tsavo, Mombassa, British East Africa, 6 Sept. 1914, while defending the Nairobi Railway against a superior German force armed with maxim guns; _unm._ His body was recovered two days later and buried at Tsavo. A brother Officer wrote: “It is quite impossible for me to convey to you in words how we all loved the dear lad. Such a shining example of a true Christian gentleman and sportsman.”