Richard Garnons Williams

Last updated

Colonel Richard Garnons Williams
Richard Garnons Williams.jpg
Birth nameRichard Davies Garnons Williams
Date of birth(1856-06-15)15 June 1856
Place of birth Llowes, Wales, UK
Date of death27 September 1915(1915-09-27) (aged 59)
Place of death Loos, France
School Magdalen College School, Oxford
University Trinity College, Cambridge
Rugby union career
Position(s) Forward
Amateur team(s)
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1874–1876 Cambridge University R.U.F.C. ()
Brecon RFC ()
1880–1881 Newport RFC 3 (0)
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1881 Wales 1 (0)
----
Military career
AllegianceFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Service / branchFlag of the British Army.svg  British Army
RankLieutenant Colonel
Commands12th Royal Fusiliers
Battles / wars World War I
Memorials Loos Memorial

Colonel Richard Davies Garnons Williams (15 June 1856 – 27 September 1915) [a] was a British Army officer and Welsh rugby union player who represented Wales, Brecon and Newport. He played in the first Wales international rugby union match in 1881.

Contents

Garnons Williams became an officer in the British Army in 1876, and retired from regular service in 1892, though he continued to serve in a voluntary capacity until 1906. Already aged 58 at the outbreak of the First World War, he rejoined the army and was killed in action in 1915.

Early life and family

Richard Garnons Williams was born on 15 June 1856 in Llowes, Radnorshire, the second child of the Reverend Garnons Williams of Abercamlais, Powys, and his wife Catherine Frances, the daughter of Fenton Hort, of Leopardstown, Dublin, and sister of Fenton John Anthony Hort. [2] Garnons Williams was educated at Magdalen College School, Oxford before being prepared for University by private tuition in Wimbledon, Surrey. He then went to Trinity College, Cambridge, in October 1874. [3] [4]

His siblings were Reverend Arthur, Richard Davies, Captain Aylmer Herbert, Gerald, Katharine Frances Helena, Annabella Mary, Hugh, who died an infant, Mark Penry Fenton, and Mary Elizabeth. [5] Aylmer Herbert joined the Royal Navy in 1871 and, after receiving his commission in 1880, served until his retirement in 1902, having reached the rank of captain. He then took command of the training ship HMS Cornwall until 1904 when he was appointed to command the Lancashire Navy League Sea Training Home at Liscard. He died on 8 February 1916 aged 58. [6] Gerald was married in April 1892 to Minnie Lilian Court, the youngest daughter of Major Henry Court of Iverfarne, Buckinghamshire. [7] Mark Penry was Fleet Surgeon aboard HMS Hampshire and died when his vessel was wrecked in 1916. [8]

Richard Garnons Williams married Alice Jessie Bircham on 8 January 1885. [3] They had a daughter, Barbara, who married Captain Hume Buckley Roderick of the Welsh Guards on 9 November 1916. [9] [10] [11] Her husband was killed in action on the Western Front in 1917. She was herself serving in France at the time. [12] They also had a son, Roger, who played first-class cricket and served in the army.

Rugby

Wales Rugby Team, 1881. Garnons Williams is standing at the far right of the back row. Wales1881.jpg
Wales Rugby Team, 1881. Garnons Williams is standing at the far right of the back row.

After going up to Trinity College, Garnons Williams represented Cambridge at rugby, but did not win a Blue. [13] He played three matches for Newport RFC in 1880, after he had joined the army: against Manchester Rangers (2 October), Gloucester (4 December), and Cardiff (18 December). [14] In 1881 he was selected to represent Wales in its first ever match, against England on 19 February at Blackheath. [15] The challenge to England came from Richard Mullock of Newport, who was not an official of the South Wales Football Union, but wanted to bring Wales up to the same level as the other home nations, rather than settle for playing against English and Irish provincial teams. England, for its part, had recently beaten Ireland by two tries and two goals to none, and the previous season had become the first winners of the Calcutta Cup by beating Scotland by three tries and two goals to one goal. The date offered to Mullock by the English Rugby Football Union (RFU), 19 February, coincided with a match for the South Wales Cup between Llanelli and cup holders Swansea, thereby limiting Mullock's selection options. [16] England won by eight goals to nil. [17] It was Garnons Williams' only appearance for Wales. [18]

International appearance
OppositionScoreResultDateVenueRef
Flag of England.svg  England 8-0Lost19 February 1881Blackheath [17]

Military career

Deciding to follow a military career Garnons Williams was accepted into the Royal Military College Sandhurst, and is also recorded as representing the Sandhurst rugby team. He completed his officer training in 1876, and was commissioned as a sub-lieutenant [b] on 26 February. [19] He was posted to the 38th Regiment of Foot, promoted lieutenant on 17 January 1877, and with his army rank (but not regimental seniority) backdated to his original commission as sub-lieutenant, [20] and a month later, on 17 February 1877, transferred to the 7th Regiment of Foot. [21]

By February 1885 he had been promoted to captain, and his unit had been renamed the Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment). [22] On 10 January 1887 he was appointed adjutant of the 4th Battalion of the regiment, the Militia unit of the regiment. [23] A regular officer was normally given this post in Militia units to organise training and generally maintain standards. His posting lasted the usual 5 years. [24] He then retired from the regular army on 4 May 1892. [25] On 8 August 1894 he was commissioned major in the 1st (Brecknockshire) Volunteer Battalion, South Wales Borderers, [26] and on 1 November 1895 was appointed brigade major for the South Wales Brigade of the Volunteer Force. [27] On 12 July 1899 he was granted the honorary rank of lieutenant colonel. [28] He resigned his Volunteer commission on 26 May 1906, retaining his rank and with permission to continue wearing his uniform. [29]

First World War

He rejoined the British Army shortly after the outbreak of World War I and was posted to his original regiment, joining the 12th (Service) Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers as a major on 26 September 1914. [30] He was promoted temporary lieutenant colonel on 3 October 1914, and transferred back to the South Wales Borderers to command the Brecknockshire Battalion. [31] [32] He was later posted back to 12th Royal Fusiliers, and, according to official sources, was killed on 25 September 1915 while leading his battalion at the Battle of Loos. He is commemorated on the Loos Memorial to the Missing. [33] [34] At 59 years of age, he was the eldest of the 13 Wales international players to be killed during the war.

A soldier under the command of Colonel Garnons Williams wrote an account of his commanding officer's death, which puts the date of his death as 27 September. Col Garnons Williams was in temporary command of the 12th Royal Fusiliers when on 25 September he led his battalion in an attack on German trenches. However, the flanks were exposed and on 27 September, Garnons Williams gave the order to retreat. He was at that moment shot in the head from a house nearby. The soldier who gave the account said: "I was very sorry for him, as we could not have had a better, braver officer. He was with us all the time in the front trench, and looked after us as well as he could; no man could have done better. Nobody could get back to him." The following evening, the battalion was relieved, Garnons Williams being declared officially wounded and missing in action, unofficially reported killed. [35]

See also

Notes

  1. Official sources say 25 September. [1]
  2. Following the Cardwell Reforms the British Army briefly used the rank of sub-lieutenant before settling on second lieutenant.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Welch Fusiliers</span> Line infantry regiment of the British Army

The Royal Welch Fusiliers (Welsh: Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689; shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and became the Welch Regiment of Fusiliers; the prefix "Royal" was added in 1713, then confirmed in 1714 when George I named it the Prince of Wales's Own Royal Regiment of Welsh Fusiliers. In 1751, after reforms that standardised the naming and numbering of regiments, it became the 23rd Regiment of Foot (Royal Welsh Fuzileers). In 1881, the final title of the regiment was adopted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welsh Guards</span> Infantry regiment of the British Army

The Welsh Guards, part of the Guards Division, is one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the First World War, by Royal Warrant of George V. Shortly after the regiment's formation, it was deployed to France where it took part in the fighting on the Western Front until the end of the war in November 1918. During the inter-war years, the regiment undertook garrison duties in the United Kingdom, except between 1929 and 1930 when it deployed to Egypt, and late 1939 when it deployed to Gibraltar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">160th (Welsh) Brigade</span> Military unit

160th (Welsh) Brigade or Brigâd 160 (Cymru), is a regional brigade of the British Army that has been in existence since 1908, and saw service during both the First and the Second World Wars, as part of the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division. It is a regional command responsible for all of Wales. The Brigade is also regionally aligned with the Eastern European and Central Asian regions as part of defence engagement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Fusiliers</span> Line infantry regiment of the British Army

The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welch Regiment</span> British Army formation

The Welch Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1969. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 41st (Welch) Regiment of Foot and 69th Regiment of Foot to form the Welsh Regiment, by which it was known until 1920 when it was renamed the Welch Regiment. In 1969 the regiment was amalgamated with the South Wales Borderers to form the Royal Regiment of Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Wales Borderers</span> Military unit

The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montgomeryshire Yeomanry</span> Military unit

The Montgomeryshire Yeomanry was a Welsh auxiliary unit of the British Army first formed in 1803. It served in home defence and for internal security, including deployments to deal with Chartist disturbances in the 1830s. It provided volunteers to the Imperial Yeomanry during the Second Boer War and formed three regiments for service during World War I. It was broken up and converted to infantry and artillery in 1920.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Williams (rugby union, born 1882)</span> British Lions & Wales international rugby union footballer (1882–1916)

John Lewis Williams was a Welsh international wing who played club rugby for Cardiff Rugby Football Club. A three times Triple Crown winner, out of seventeen appearances for Wales he was on the losing side only twice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Geen</span> Wales international rugby union footballer

William Purdon Geen was a rugby union wing and centre, who represented Wales, and played club rugby for Oxford University and Newport and county rugby for Monmouthshire. He was also invited to play for the Barbarians on several occasions. Geen unsuccessfully trialled for England in 1910, but was selected and played for Wales on three occasions in the 1912–1913 season. Injury prevented him from playing more internationals, and his service in the First World War put an end to his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lou Phillips</span> Rugby player

Louis Augustus Phillips was a Welsh rugby player, who played half-back for Newport RFC, and won four caps for Wales. He was also a talented amateur golfer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric Milroy</span> Scotland international rugby union player (1887–1916)

Eric "Puss" MacLeod Milroy was a rugby union player who represented Scotland and Watsonians. He was capped twelve times for Scotland between 1910 and 1914, his first appearance coming as a surprise replacement for the Scottish captain, George Cunningham. He was selected for the 1910 British Isles tour to South Africa after other players were forced to withdraw. Due to illness, he only participated in three matches, and did not take part in any of the tests against South Africa. In 1914, he captained Scotland against Ireland, and against England in the last international match before the outbreak of the First World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Skinner Wilson (rugby union)</span> Scotland international rugby union player

Lieutenant-Commander John Skinner Wilson was a Trinidad-born rugby player, who represented Scotland, United Services RFC and London Scottish FC. He enrolled in the Royal Navy in 1898. He was killed in World War I in the Battle of Jutland, serving as Lieutenant-Commander aboard HMS Indefatigable. He is remembered on panel 10 at the Plymouth Naval Memorial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Middleton Wallace</span> Scotland international rugby union player

William "Willie" Middleton Wallace was a rugby union player. He played fullback for Cambridge University RFC and was capped for Scotland in 1913–14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Ross (rugby union, born 1879)</span> Scotland international rugby union player

Pte. Andrew Ross was a Scottish rugby union player from Edinburgh. He worked in the Merchant Navy as a marine engineer. He played for Royal High School FP and was capped several times for Scotland between 1905 and 1909.

Second Lieutenant David Cuthbert Thomas was a Welsh soldier of the British Army who served during the First World War. He is best known for his association with the poet Siegfried Sassoon, who after his death became the subject of some of the greatest war poems by Sassoon and Robert Graves.

Colonel William Murray Threipland, was a British Army officer. He was appointed the founding colonel commanding of the Welsh Guards in February 1915, and was the regiment's Colonel from March 1937.

The 1915 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King, and were published in The London Gazette and in The Times on 3 June 1915.

Roger Fenton Garnons Williams was a Welsh first-class cricketer and an officer in the British Army.

References

  1. "CWGC - Casualty Details Garnons-Williams, Richard Davies". cwgc.org.
  2. Life and Letters of Fenton John Anthony Hort Internet Archive.org
  3. 1 2 Venn 2011, p. 497.
  4. Bebbington 2014.
  5. Nicholas 1991, p. 121.
  6. "DEATH OF CAPTAIN A H GARNONS WILLIAMS, RN". The Brecon County Times. William Henry Clark. 17 February 1916. hdl:10107/3857999.
  7. "Marriage of Mr Garnons Williams". South Wales Echo. Jones & Son. 29 April 1892. hdl:10107/4429364.
  8. "THE LATE FLEET SURGEON GARNONS WILLIAMS". The Brecon County Times. William Henry Clark. 29 June 1916. hdl:10107/3858168.
  9. "FORTHCOMING MARRIAGE". Llanelly Star. Brinley R. Jones. 14 October 1916. hdl:10107/4123247.
  10. "WELSH OFFICER MARRIED". Herald of Wales and Monmouthshire Recorder. [s.n.] 18 November 1916. hdl:10107/4115390.
  11. "Wedding of Hay Interest". The Brecon Radnor Express Carmarthen and Swansea Valley Gazette and Brynmawr District Advertiser. Robt. Read. 23 November 1916. hdl:10107/4094389.
  12. "Our Fallen Heroes". Llanelly Star. Brinley R. Jones. 15 December 1917. hdl:10107/4123555.
  13. Jenkins 1981, pp. 145–152.
  14. "Richard Williams". blackandambers.co.uk. Archived from the original on 17 June 2011.
  15. McCrery 2014, pp. 232–233.
  16. Richards 2014, pp. 12–15.
  17. 1 2 "England-Wales 1881". ESPN UK.
  18. Richard Garnons Williams at ESPNscrum
  19. "No. 24299". The London Gazette . 25 February 1876. p. 886.
  20. "No. 24634". The London Gazette . 18 October 1878. p. 5610.
  21. "No. 24404". The London Gazette . 16 January 1877. pp. 218–219.
  22. "No. 25439". The London Gazette . 6 February 1885. p. 521.
  23. "No. 25666". The London Gazette . 21 January 1887. p. 338.
  24. "No. 26243". The London Gazette . 8 January 1892. p. 135.
  25. "No. 26284". The London Gazette . 3 May 1892. p. 2550.
  26. "No. 26539". The London Gazette . 7 August 1894. p. 4548.
  27. "No. 26679". The London Gazette . 12 November 1895. p. 6103.
  28. "No. 27097". The London Gazette . 11 July 1899. p. 4282.
  29. "No. 27916". The London Gazette . 25 May 1906. p. 3662.
  30. "No. 28960". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 October 1914. p. 8854.
  31. "No. 28922". The London Gazette . 2 October 1914. p. 7819.
  32. Smith & Williams 1980, p. 202.
  33. Casualty details—Garnons Williams, Richard Davies, Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved on 16 April 2009.
  34. Rugby Heroes who went to War BBC Online Matthew Ferris, November 2008
  35. "Col. Garnons Williams". The Brecon County Times. William Henry Clark. 11 November 1915. hdl:10107/3857874.

Bibliography

Further reading