Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Memorial: | Chatham Naval Memorial | 28 Kent | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.116 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 46B GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Early Life :
Born Kirdford/Petworth in Sussex in 1879 and appears aged 1 on the 1881 census with parents John and Jane Balchin residing at Crewchamps Farm, No. 2 Cottage. He had 3 older brothers and sisters: Harry (1863), Amy (1877) and Rosa (1878) and 3 younger Lewis (1883), Nelson (1886) and Daisy (1888).He married Gertrude Alice from Burham Kent, Q1-1903 at Malling in Kent and in 1906 they had their only son Arthur Ernest.
Family :
Wife: Gertrude Alice b.1879-d. nee Martin from Burham Kent,Son: Arthur Ernest b.1906-d.
Probate record shows: BALCHIN, John Benjamin of High Street, Burham, Kent. Petty Officer, Royal Navy. Died 20th January 1918 at sea. Probate granted and administered at London 24th April to William Hayman - labourer. Effects £197 0s 6d.
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: HMS Raglan |
| Action : Naval Campaign |
Naval Campaign is defined as to include all sea operations where attrition rates are in ones and twos and which do not fall within specific naval battles such as Jutland, Coronel, Falklands etc. This includes Merchant Navy losses.
HMS Ophir (1901) - Able Seaman
HMS Hibernia (1913) - Petty Officer
HMS Raglan (1918) - Petty Officer
Detail :
HMS Raglan sailed for the Dardanelles in June 1915. She remained in the Eastern Mediterranean, based at Imbros. On 20 January 1918, while the battleships HMS Agamemnon and HMS Lord Nelson were absent, Raglan and other members of the Detached Squadron of the Aegean Squadron were attacked by the Turkish battlecruiser Yavuz Sultan Selim (formerly the German SMS Goeben), the cruiser Midilli (formerly the German SMS Breslau) and four destroyers. HMS Raglan was sunk with the loss of 127 lives. The monitor HMS M28 was also sunk in the same battle. Midilli and Yavuz Sultan Selim ran into a minefield; Midilli sank and Yavuz Sultan Selim was badly damaged. Petty Officer 1st Class John BALCHIN was one of the men on HMS Raglan who was lost.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | King's Navy No. 2901 E.C. | East Kent |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
15th December 1913 | 19th January 1914 | 15th March 1915 |
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley