Hamilton Douglas Manley (1896-1918) : Soldier Killed in World War One

Hamilton Douglas Manley was born on September 25th in Dartford, the youngest child of Arthur Douglas Manley and his wife Lucy nee Streatfield, who had married in Cardiff in 1882. The 1901 census shows Arthur (aged 42, a licensed victualler) and Lucy (42) living at 37 Hythe Street, Dartford with their children Cecil (17), Arthur (14), Eva (12), Dorothy (10), Otway (7) and Hamilton (4). 

Lucy Manley nee Streatfield, Hamilton’s mother

37 Hythe Street was a pub called The Smith's Arms. It was renamed The Stage Door soon after the nearby Orchard Theatre opened in 1982.

The Stage Door pub in 2017

Lucy died on July 5^th 1908 aged 49 when Hamilton was aged 11. His father remarried in 1910 in Dartford, to Lucy Ann Rudkin. The 1911 census shows the family still living at 37 Hythe Street, Dartford. Those listed at this address were Arthur Douglas Manley aged 52, a licensed victualler, his wife Lucy Ann Manley, 42, his daughter Dorothy Jane Manley, 20, an assistant victualler, and his son Hamilton Douglas Manley, 14, at school (he attended Dartford Grammar School).

Hamilton was nearly 18 when the First World War started on 28^th July 1914. He joined the army in 1915 and was promoted to 2^nd Lieutenant in June 1917 aged 20. Junior officers were required to lead their men from the front and so the mortality rate for them was high. He was killed in action in action on March 27^th 1918 aged 21. The remembrance card below was printed for his family.

Dr Maurice Waugh Renton came to Dartford as a GP in 1903 and was the Medical Officer in Charge of King Edward Hospital (later called West Hill Hospital, now demolished) in Dartford from 1911 to 1933. Renton Ward in the hospital was named after him. He died in 1948 aged 79 in Dartford. I don’t know what the “dangerous operation” that he performed on Hamilton was.

The National Archives has a file containing some information about Hamilton’s war service. It shows that he joined the army aged 19 years and 15 days on October 9^th 1915 in Dartford. He was 5 foot 9 inches tall, weighed 142 lbs and gave his occupation as shop assistant. Hamilton joined the Coldstream Guards and was in the UK until he was sent to France on June 7^th 1916. He was wounded in action near Ginchy (which was on the Somme section of the battlefront) on September 15^th 1916 but rejoined his battalion on September 17^th 1916. Hamilton was promoted from Private to Lance Corporal on January 7^th 1917. Hamilton had applied for a commission (to become an officer) in the Infantry on July 10^th 1916, but was turned down as it was considered that he didn’t have enough experience of active service. He applied again on December 30^th 1916. The officer who assessed him wrote on his application form “I have seen Pte H Manley. He is a clean looking respectable young man with a Grammar School education and may make a useful officer.” Hamilton’s application was accepted and on January 17^th 1917 he was posted to Windsor for the purpose of being admitted to an Officer Cadet Battalion, which occurred on March 9^th 1917.

The United States entered World War 1 on the Allied side in 1917. The German High Command decided to mount a major offensive in the spring of 1918, because they realised that their only remaining chance of victory was to defeat the Allies before the overwhelming human and material resources of the United States could be fully deployed. The Germans also had the temporary advantage in numbers afforded by the nearly 50 divisions from the Eastern front, made available by the Russian surrender under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, signed on March 3^rd 1918. The Spring Offensive was a series of German attacks along the Western Front, beginning on 21 March 1918, which resulted in the deepest advances by either side since 1914. On 27^th March 1918, Hamilton and his men were defending Aveluy Wood, near the village of Thiepval on the Somme, as part of the 7^th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment.

The Battalion war diary for 27^th March 1918, the day that Hamilton died, reads : 

About 9 am the enemy attacked on our right and the Battalion on our right fell back. A Company formed a defensive flank along the south edge of Aveluy Wood and later B Company were also put in on the right flank to bridge a gap between D and A Company. The Battalion was now formed on 2 sides of a square – C and D facing east, A and B facing south.

About 5 pm enemy attacked on the whole front and succeeded in breaking into the wood at the south east corner. A Company retired slightly, killing a large number of the enemy. 2/Lt Rogers was taken prisoner but succeeded in escaping. D Company retired on Battalion H.Q. which were at Quarry Post. The attack was held up at Battalion H.Q. which were temporarily surrounded.

A new defensive line across Aveluy Wood was formed the following day. The Battalion was relieved the day after and marched away from the front line. The entry for 30^th March says

Total casualties for operations starting 25^th: 2/Lt Manley killed, 18 Other Ranks killed, 2/Lt Cutler, Smart, Lothein, Atkinson and Paley and 13 Other Ranks wounded, 24 Other Ranks missing believed prisoners.

The Colonel of the Regiment wrote to Hamilton’s father to tell him of his son’s death, saying that as he was killed on a retreat, his body could not be recovered.
  

The April 19th 1918 issue of the Dartford Chronicle contained the following item

Lieutenant Hamilton Douglas Manley of the Grenadier Guards, whose death in action on March 27th was briefly notified in last week's issue. He was the youngest son of Mr A. D. and the late Mrs Manley of Hythe St, Dartford. He was wounded in the great push of the Guards and gathered promotion to the Royal Sussex. He was an old Dartford Grammar School boy and was at home only five weeks ago. A great favourite with all who knew him, he gave promise of a successful career, had he been spared. He was 21 years of age.

 The Germans were unable to move supplies and reinforcements fast enough to maintain the advances they made during the Spring Offensive and all their attacks petered out. By late April 1918, the danger of a German breakthrough had passed. The German Army had suffered heavy casualties and now occupied ground of dubious value which would prove impossible to hold with such depleted units. In August 1918, the Allies began a counter-offensive with the support of 1–2 million fresh American troops. This resulted in the Germans retreating or being driven from all of the ground taken in the Spring Offensive, the collapse of the Hindenburg Line and the capitulation of the German Empire that November.

Hamilton’s name is on the Pozieres memorial which commemorates over 14,000 casualties of the United Kingdom and 300 of the South African Forces who have no known grave and who died on the Somme from 21 March to 7 August 1918. Pozieres is a village 6 kilometres north-east of the town of Albert.

Hamilton is commemorated on the Manley family grave in East Hill Cemetery (but he is not buried there).

The inscription reads

Resurgem / In / loving memory / of / LUCY STREATFIELD, / the beloved wife of / ARTHUR DOUGLAS MANLEY, / who died July 5th 1908, aged 49 years. / Mourned by her sorrowing husband / and six children, / Cecil, Douglas, Winifred, Dorothy / Otway and Hamilton. / Also CECIL DOUGLAS MANLEY, / son of the above / who passed away Nov 30th 1924, aged 40 / At rest / 'Rock of Ages' / cleft for me / let me rest myself on thee. / Also HAMILTON DOUGLAS MANLEY 2nd Lieut / 7th Royal Sussex Regiment, killed in action in France / on March 27th 1918, aged 21 years / So he died our noble loved one fighting to the last / Peace perfect peace with loved ones far away / In God's keeping, we are safe and they / Also ANNIE LOUISE MANLEY / wife of the above CECIL D MANLEY / who passed away Aug 16th 1925 aged 45 years.
"Resurgem" is Latin for "I shall rise again".

He is also commemorated on his father’s gravestone which is in Broadwater Cemetery, Worthing and is inscribed

In dearest and loving remembrance of Arthur Douglas Manley, died April 16 1919 aged 60 years.

Also 2nd Lieut Hamilton Douglas Manley, killed in France March 27 1918.

Peace, perfect peace, with loved ones far away, in God's keeping we are safe and they.

The marriage between Arthur Douglas Manley and his second wife Lucy Ann ended in March 1917 by judicial separation. A newspaper article (Evening Telegraph, 16 March 1917) describes the case brought at the Divorce Court. She alleged that he was violent to her and he did not defend the petition.

The 1921 census shows that Cecil Douglas Manley (aged 37) had taken over as the licensed victualler at 37 Hythe Street. Also living there were Cecil's wife Annie Louise Manley (40) and his daughter Margaret Lucy (7) as well as a barmaid and a general domestic servant.

This article was written with the assistance of Nicholas O’Reilly, Heather Brooks and Sheila Brown, who are relatives of Hamilton and supplied me with information and photos.

Philip Taylor
(Revised 7 May 2017)

Simon Francis Phillips (1832-1908), Successful Draper in Dartford

Simon Francis Phillips came from a fairly humble background in Cornwall and founded a drapery shop in High St, Dartford, which developed into a large, successful business.

Simon was born about 1832 in St Columb, Cornwall. The village is 6 miles east of Newquay. He is listed (aged 8) in the 1841 census with his siblings William (12), Edwin (10) and Agnes (6) living at St Columb Major, although the names of his parents are not given. In 1851 Simon aged 19, a draper’s assistant was living at Ferris Town, Kenwyn, Truro, which is about 15 miles south of St Columb Major. In the same household were his brother Edwin (21, a watch and clock maker) and sister Agnes (a draper’s assistant) but again, no parents.

Simon moved to London and in 1861, aged 28, a draper’s assistant, he was living at 87 Milton St, Marylebone with his mother Betsy (aged 63, a widow) and sister Agnes (25). In 1862 he married Jane Greenwood in Bodmin, Cornwall. He was 30 and she was 24, born in St Austell, Cornwall. They moved to London (Hammersmith) where their sons Francis James (b1866) and Edwin Herbert (b1868) were born.

The 1871 census lists Simon (38), Jane (31), Francis (4) and Edwin (2) living at 5 Braemar Park, Hammersmith. Also in the household were Jane’s parents James (70) and Mary (70), as well as her sister Sarah Greenwood (29, a dressmaker). Simon’s occupation is given as warehouseman. According to his obituary¹, he was a buyer for a wholesale drapery firm, Messrs Spencer, Turner and Boldero.

In 1873, Simon founded a drapery business at 29 and 31 High St Dartford, a property called Luton House. His son William George Phillips was born in September 1874. In addition to their three sons, Simon and Jane had two other children who died as infants². Betsy, Simon’s mother, died in November 1874 aged 75 and Agnes, his sister, died in December 1874 aged 39, both in Dartford. They are buried together in East Hill Cemetery. The cemetery records state that Betsy was the widow of William Phillips.

The business prospered and Simon opened another shop on the opposite side of the road, at 54 High St. The 1881 census shows Simon (48, a draper), Jane (42), Francis (14), Edwin (12) and William (6) living at 29 and 31 High St, Dartford. Also listed at the same address were a draper’s shopman, six draper’s apprentices and a general servant.

Advert in Dartford & West Kent Advertiser (1881)

Simon was an ardent Methodist. He attended the Wesleyan Church in Spital Street, Dartford where he was Sunday school superintendent. His son, Edwin, was choirmaster and organist at the church from 1894 to 1911. Simon was also a member of the Dartford School Board and a manager of the Wesleyan day schools¹.

Simon Francis Phillips, date unknown

In 1891, Simon (58, a draper), Jane (51) and William Phillips (16) were living at 29 and 31 High Street with Simon’s sister-in-law Elizabeth Brokenshaw nee Greenwood (aged 72), who was the widow of John Luly Brokenshaw, a miller. Also listed at the address were a dress milliner, a porter, two servants, three draper’s assistants, a draper’s apprentice and a dressmaker. Simon’s sons Francis and Edwin (both shown as draper’s assistants) were living next door at 27 High St, which had been acquired in 1889³.

Simon's shop before 1900 (Simon is looking out of the first floor window on the left)

A fire occurred in 1900, which completely destroyed the S F Phillips drapery store. It was described by S K Keyes³ thus:

The fire which broke out in the drapery department of Messrs S. F. Phillips, High Street, about 11.20pm on Tuesday night, January 9, 1900, was probably the worst experience in Dartford. Mrs Phillips and the young lady assistants who had retired to their rooms over the shop, were rescued by a long ladder brought by Mr Tom Martin of the Bull and George Hotel, while waiting for the Fire Brigade. When Captain Butler of the Dartford Brigade saw the extent of the fire he summoned assistance from Bexley, Bexleyheath, Lamorbey and Northfleet.

The ancient house, which contained much timber, burned fiercely, and about midnight the whole of the building where the fire originated, collapsed. It was then discovered that an old lady of 80, a Mrs Forrest, who was staying with Mrs Phillips, was missing. Her body was not recovered until two days later.

The damage occasioned by the fire was over £20,000. The premises on either side, - Mr Message (butcher) and Messrs Upson (boots and shoes) – had to be rebuilt, and the present “Luton House,” was built by Messrs Phillips on the site of their burnt out premises. As a result of this fire, the Urban District Council had emergency fire ladders placed in various parts of the town.

The remains of the shop operated by S F Phillips & Sons, after demolition following the fire in 1900.⁵

The premises were reconstructed in 1901 as a four storied brick building. The property still exists, the ground floor is now occupied by Savers and Coral Bookmakers.

The 1901 census shows Simon (68) and Jane (61) Phillips living at 28 Tower Road, Dartford with his son Edwin (32) and his wife Florence (28). Edwin is described as a furniture salesman.

The store of S F Phillips & Sons rebuilt in 1901 (this photo was taken c 1920).⁵

In 1906 Simon received a special diploma and bronze medal recording his 61 years honourable connection with the drapery trade⁴. This indicates that he started work in 1845, when aged 13.

Simon died in 1908. An article in the West Kent Advertiser¹ stated that he had been an invalid since the fire and had died “of senile decay and influenza”. It also said that “The deceased gentleman was held in the highest estimation in the community, alike for his business integrity and enterprise, his Christian character, and his kindliness of heart and generous disposition.”

He was buried in East Hill Cemetery. The gravestone is inscribed

In / loving memory / of / SIMON FRANCIS PHILLIPS / who entered into rest / on Sunday March 1^st 1908 / aged 75 years / And ever near us, though unseen / the dear immortal spirits tread / for all the boundless universe / is life – there are no dead / Also of JANE PHILLIPS / who entered into rest / on September 29^th 1927 / aged 88 years / Also of WILLIAM GEORGE PHILLIPS / born 1874 – died 1963. / Greatly beloved

Gravestone of Simon Phillips

Simon left £10,322 (equivalent to about £3.8 million now⁶). Probate was granted to his widow Jane and his three sons.

Shortly before Simon’s death, his eldest son Francis moved away from Dartford to set up a business in Southsea (near Portsmouth). His son Edwin died in 1911 so it was left to his youngest son William to run the business in Dartford. His mother took an active role - in 1921 (aged 82) she was supervising one of the departments⁴. The 1921 census shows William (aged 46) and Jane (82), both partners in the drapery business, at 27 High Street, Dartford. Listed as a visitor was Jane's grandson Leslie George Phillips, 21, a drapery salesman. Also living at the address were five boarders (three of which worked at the drapery shop) and a domestic servant.

Jane Phillips died in 1927 and in 1928 the business closed. William was a member of Dartford Council for 12 years and was Mayor of Dartford 1945-6.

If you have any additional information about Simon Francis Phillips or his family, please contact me.

Philip Taylor (email PhilT42LQS@Yahoo.co.uk)

References

1. W Kent Advertiser 6^th March 1908.

2. Information from the 1911 census return for Jane Phillips.

3. Dartford Further Historical Notes by S K Keyes (1938).

4. Information from the Souvenir Programme of the 1921 Dartford Shopping Carnival.

5. These photos are from Yesterday’s Town: Dartford by Geoff Porteus (1981).

6. Calculated with respect to average earnings using the website “Measuring Worth” www.measuringworth.com/ukcompare/